NEBRASKA STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY MANUSCRIPT FINDING AID
RG5544.AM: Charles R. “Joe” Sterling, 1939-2002
Papers: 1958-1998
Nebraska City, Neb.: Naval Officer
Size: fraction; 1 folder
BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
Born near Weeping Water, Nebraska, Charles R. “Joe” Sterling joined the U.S. Navy in the late 1950s and served on the U.S.S. Pueblo as Communications Technician 2nd Class. The U.S.S. Pueblo was attacked by torpedo boats off the coast of North Korea on January 23, 1968. One crew member was killed and 82 were taken prisoner. Sterling and the rest of the crew were held prisoner for 11 months until their release on December 23, 1968. He continued his service in the U.S. Navy and reached the rank of Disbursing Clerk 1st Class. He retired from the Navy on October 1st, 1985. Charles R. “Joe” Sterling died on November 21, 2002. He is buried at Mount Pleasant Cemetery at Nehawka, Nebraska.
SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE
This collection consists of one oversized folder of materials (mainly certificates) relating to Charles R. “Joe” Sterling’s service in the U.S. Navy. (For photographs, please see RG5544.PH) Additional artifacts relating to Sterling’s service are located in the collections of the Nebraska History Museum.
DESCRIPTION
OB002
Folder
Certificates, etc.
01-03-2005 TMM/tmm
