OXFORD — After years of denying his eligibility, 99-year-old John Crumpton, Jr. has finally accepted the Boston Post Cane, along with the fact that he is indeed Oxford’s oldest citizen.

Crumpton was awarded the cane Feb. 15 during Oxford’s Board of Selectmen’s meeting, with more than 20 well wishers in attendance.

Considered a town father and honored in 2019 with the dedication of Oxford’s annual town report, Crumpton has lived in Oxford since the early 1980s. His Gorham-born wife Eva, who he married in 1950, informed him she was going to move home to Maine.

As he explained to the Sun Journal a few years ago, after his long career in the Navy, eight ships, three wars and 20 addresses shared between the couple, she resolved: “I’m going home now. Are you coming with me?”

“The answer, of course, was ‘yes ma’am,’” he quipped.

Crumpton was born Oct. 24, 1924 in Craig Springs, Mississippi, a village so small it could not be found on a map. During his youth the town was comprised of about a half dozen houses, a school, Lutheran church and cemetery, and a crossroads.

His world expanded the same way as countless others of his generation – Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941 and the United States’ entry to World War II. Then 17, Crumpton and his best friend Ray Bock determined to enlist in the U.S. Navy.

His father opposed Crumpton’s plan, refusing to sign his enlistment papers. But when the son promised to defy his wishes and find someone on a street corner who would sign them instead, his father relented and gave his approval.

In 1943, while he served on the USS Memphis along the West African coast, the ship served as a stop-over for President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who was on route to the Casablanca Conference with British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. Crumpton was in the group of sailors escorting Roosevelt aboard the ship and then was chosen to stand guard while the president fished with another sailor on the Gambia River.

He later met President Harry Truman who was inspecting troops during a brigade parade, and met with President-elect Richard Nixon at the White House in 1969 as he led a briefing on the Navy’s shipbuilding program and budget.

Crumpton attended the U.S. Naval Academy starting in 1948, graduating four years later. From there he continued his 33-year career in the Navy, serving in both the Korean and Vietnam wars. He retired in 1975 with the rank of Captain and Commanding Officer of the USS Drake.

It was then Crumpton stopped giving orders to sailors and followed Eva’s instead. The two eventually made their way to Oxford, moving to the Robinson Family Homestead where he still resides today. After 61 years of marriage Eva passed away in 2011.

As a resident of Oxford since 1981, Crumpton has served with several town committees and local organizations. He continues to be an active member of the Oxford Historical Society, the Anderson Staples Legion Post 112, the Twin Town Nature Club, and to follow his favorite sport, ice hockey.

In addition to his most recent honor as recipient of the Boston Post Cane, Crumpton has received awards for Legion of Merit, Navy & Marine Corps Medal, Joint Services Commendation, Navy Commendation with Combat V, Gold Star, Korean Service Medal and Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (Vietnam).

Reflecting on almost a century of life, Crumpton says his most cherished accomplishment is his service to God and his church. After moving to Oxford, he and Eva became active members of the Oxford Congregational Church as its long-term Trustee, as the Church Moderator, and where he faithfully attends every Sunday.

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