Introduction
Six merchant marine cadets from the Maine Maritime Academy in
Castine, lost their lives in a horrific crash that took place on May
31, 1953. Scheduled to march in a Memorial Day parade that
day, the cadets broke regulations when they went for a ride.
Their speeding car rounded a curve and careened into a ten-ton power
shovel. Floyd Brann was driving the shovel to a construction
site and was helpless to avoid the crash.
Lisa Simpson Lutts, Executive Director of Castine Historical
Society, Castine, Maine, provided the biographies of the merchant
marine cadets that she found in the Boston Globe, and the KWE thanks
her for her assistance.
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Cadet Fatalities
Fox, Philip J. -
Philip, age 20, was the son of Benjamin Philip Fox
(1897-1990) and Margaret Elizabeth Brodigan Fox (1900-1988) of
Braintree, Massachusetts. He was the third ranking student
in the junior class at the Maine Maritime Academy. Philip
graduated from Boston College High School in 1951. He had
returned to the academy three weeks prior to the accident after
a Caribbean cruise on the Academy's training ship. He had
visited his parents two weeks before. Besides his parents
he was survived by sisters Mrs. Phyllis Poccia of Yonkers, New
York, and Marilyn Fox, 19, a freshman at Regis College; and his
brother, Benjamin Fox Jr. (1945-1998). Philip would have
entered his senior year at the Academy in June. He and his
family are buried in Blue Hill Cemetery, Braintree,
Massachusetts.
Ingraham, James Fuller Jr. -
James, age 21, was the only son of James Fuller Ingraham Sr.
(1896-1966) and Mabelle P. Little Ingraham (1898-1986) of
Augusta, Maine. He attended Cony High School before
entering the academy. His father was a member of the
investment firm of Millet Ingraham & Company in August.
James was survived by two sisters, Margaret of New York City and
Mrs. Preston Dollof of Booth Bay, Maine. James and his
parents are buried in Forest Grove Cemetery, Augusta, Maine.
McIntosh, LeRoy B. -
LeRoy, age 20, was the son of Joseph Allen "Mickey" McKay
(1905-1976) and Dorothy E. London McKay (1913-1992) of Houlton,
Maine. At Houlton High LeRoy was an honor student and
active in athletics. He took part in many cross-country
events. At the academy he continued to excel in academics,
ranking as the eighth student in his class. He was
survived by four half-brothers: Robert A. McKay (1935-2011), 18;
David McKay, 14; Rodney McKay, 9; and Peter McKay, 2. His
half sister was Glenna McKay, 16. LeRoy is buried in
Evergreen Cemetery, Houlton, Maine.
O'Brien, Robert J. -
Robert, age 19, was the son of Rodney J. O'Brien (1910-1985)
and Louise J. Cummings O'Brien (1909-2000) of Rochester, New
Hampshire. He was a graduate of Spaulding High School in
Rochester. Robert and his parents are buried in Saint
Mary's Cemetery, Rochester, New Hampshire.
Stinson, Arnold Willis Jr. -
Arnold, age 19, was the son of Arnold Willis Stinson Sr.
(1902-1997) and Kathleen Anderson Stinson (1901-1996) of Cape
Porpoise, Maine. He was an honor student and member of the
junior class at the merchant marine academy. He attended
Kennebunk High School for two years and then went for two years
to Maine Central Institute in Pittsfield, Maine, where he
graduated. In addition to his parents he was survived by a
brother, Robert W. Stinson, who was serving in the Marine Corps,
and two grandfathers, William Stinson and James Anderson, both
of Cape Porpoise. Arnold Stinson Jr. is buried in Arundel
Cemetery, Kennebunkport, Maine.
Sulides, Paul P. -
Paul, age 19, was the son of Philip Apostolos Sulides
(1899-1998) and Efime "Emma" Vangel Sulides (1906-1990) of
Rockland, Maine. A graduate of Rockland High School where
he was an honor student and a member of the baseball and
basketball teams, he was survived by two brothers, John and
Peter Philip (1924-1991) (the latter in the Army at Ft. Benning,
Georgia), and four sisters, Ellen, Sylvia Robinson (1933-1997),
Elizabeth and Janet. Paul is buried in Seaview Cemetery,
Rockland.
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