Frederick Lincoln Ashworth
Vice Admiral, U.S. Navy

Frederick Lincoln Ashworth was born on 24 January 1911 in Beverly, MA. Ashworth graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1933. He attended flight school and was designated a Naval Aviator.

In the early part of World War II, Ashworth was Commander of Torpedo Squadron Eleven (VT-11), a Grumman TBF Avenger unit based on Guadalcanal and the USS Hornet.

Holding the rank of Commander, Ashworth became Director of Operations for Project Alberta, the portion of the Manhattan Project tasked with dropping of the weapons on Japan. He selected Tinian as the location of its operating airbase.

The Director of Project Alberta, Captain William Parsons, served as the weaponeer during the first mission on 6 August 1945 when Hiroshima was bombed.

On 9 August 1945, three days after the bombing of Hiroshima, Ashworth was assigned on board "Bock's Car," the B-29 Superfortress which was set to drop the second atomic bomb, "Fat Man." His chief job was to arm the weapon. The bomb was ultimately dropped on the Japanese city of Nagasaki and Japan surrendered a few days later on 15 August 1945.

Ashworth remained in the Navy after the war and was Commandant of Midshipmen at the Naval Academy in 1958. He was promoted to Vice Admiral and served as Commander of the U.S. Sixth Fleet from 1966 until his retirement in 1968.

Medals and Awards

Navy Distinguished Service Medal
Silver Star Medal
Legion of Merit (2 Awards)
Distinguished Flying Cross (2 Awards)

Badges

Naval Aviator Insignia

In Retirement

After retiring, Ashworth lived in Santa Fe, NM, for over three decades. He died on 3 December 2005 in Phoenix, AZ, at the age of 93.

Death and Burial

Vice Admiral Frederick Lincoln Ashworth died on 3 December 2005 in Phoenix, AZ, at the age of 93. He is buried at the Santa Fe National Cemetery in Santa Fe, NM.