The legacy of Washington native Thetis Marie Roberson

Published 12:03 pm Wednesday, November 27, 2024

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Born in 1927, Thetis Marie Shephard Roberson was named after the luxury yacht Thetis, which millionaire Charles H. Fuller of Pawtucket, Rhode Island owned. In the early 1900s, he often traveled to Washington by boat to hunt in Beaufort and Hyde Counties. He was also good friends with the Moss Family, and Washington became one of his favorite ports. “Thetis’s father, Ernest Shepherd, worked on the boat when it was docked in Washington,” said Ann Clarke, Roberson’s niece. “I believe he did maintenance work of some sort. He loved the name Thetis, and when his daughter was born, he and his wife named her after the boat.”

At the age of 17 and a half, Thetis and her sister Dot left Washington and went to work at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard in 1944. They, along with hundreds of other female homemakers, other single women, and teenagers, came to hold down the jobs that were only filled by men before being sent to fight in World War II. “I wanted to do my part to help out,” said Roberson. “I lied about my age so I could work in the shipyard, but that was just a little lie.”

Roberson admitted being quite nervous when she was hired as a shipfitters helper and welder because she didn’t know the first thing about welding. She was grateful they had placed her with someone who was skilled and had the patience to take her under his wing and teach her. “We didn’t have a choice about where we went or what we did,” said Roberson. They wanted me to be a shipfitters helper and tack welder. It was hard work with long hours, but it was all worth it!”

Roberson was assigned to work on the USS Lake Champlain, one of 24 Essex-class aircraft carriers, a special class completed only during or shortly after World War II. To say her first encounter with the 18-inch wide beams that she had to walk across the flight deck and stand on to do her welding was terrifying to say the least. “I was scared to death,” said Roberson. “If you fell from there, you would fall all the way down to the hanger deck.”

She managed to slowly inch her way across the beam, making sure not to look down, eventually making it halfway across the beam. “I thought I can do this,” said Roberson. “By the time I got to the place on the beam where I was supposed to stop and do welding beads, I was like a cat walking around on that beam,” she said with a glowing smile.

During her days at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard, she saw the USS Lake Champlain transformed into a mighty aircraft carrier. Though it never saw combat as it was commissioned towards the end of the war, it did serve in the “Magic Carpet” operations, bringing troops back from Europe after the end of the war. “It was really interesting to see it all come together,” said Roberson. “We really worked hard all of the time because the ship had to be built piece by piece.”

When her work was done, she watched the timbers that were used to support the ship during its construction come down and bid farewell as it left the dry dock into the open water. “I felt like, Ahh (sigh of content) and thought I helped do that. I felt so proud, just so proud.”

At the war’s end, the men started returning home and back to their jobs in the shipyard. “Women were supposed to let them have their jobs back because they were the head supporter of the family,” said Roberson. “Some women really hated to give up their jobs because having it helped them provide for their family, and they got benefits. I enjoyed working there. It was a great opportunity and I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”

Roberson, who is now 97 resides in Virginia Beach, Virginia.

Historical information was furnished by the Norfolk Naval Shipyard Public Affairs office and Ann Clarke.