Floyd Matthews

Who was Floyd Matthews?

Floyd Huston "Skipper" Matthews was, at age 105, an American veteran of the United States Navy, in which he served for thirty years. Matthews was the oldest living United States military veteran in Alabama as well as the oldest living submariner at the time of his death at the age of 105. He was also one of the oldest surviving World War II veterans and one of the few surviving World War I era veterans, according to the Alabama Department of Veterans Affairs.

Matthews was born in West Point, Tennessee. He first enlisted in the United States Navy in 1919 in the months following the end of World War I when Matthews was aged 16. He later served in the Pacific during World War II. By the time of Matthews' service during World War II, he had risen through the ranks of the Navy to the level of lieutenant commander.

Floyd Matthews died at Eliza Coffee Memorial Hospital. He was survived by his sons, Bill and John. Matthews was a resident of Florence, Alabama.