Robert Carlton

He was born in Laurium on Aug. 5, 1925, the son of Catherine (Viani) and Arthur Frederic Carlton. 

He attended Calumet High School and joined the war effort by serving in the United States Navy, enlisting in August of 1942. He saw action in the Asian-Pacific at the Aleutians, Tarawa, Kwajalein, and Saipan.

In 1944, while attending a Naval school in Syracuse, New York, he met and married Margaret (Peggy) Taylor on Sept. 26, 1944. He would further serve in the Navy during the Korean conflict and again in Vietnam.

His Naval career would continue in the early 1950s, taking him to Idaho Falls, Idaho, where he worked on the Navy’s nuclear beginnings as an instructor. He was to be on the first crew to launch and serve on the USS Enterprise (CVAN65), the nation’s first atomic-powered carrier.

He spent his final years in the Navy as an instructor at the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. His last duty was serving aboard the USS Shanandoah. He loved the Navy and took great pride in serving his country.

Bob had a unique life. He had five daughters. He lived in an all-male Navy environment of many months at sea, returning home to an entirely female household. He was a loving father and shared many of his deployments with his family, bringing home not only stories but also the local foods, music, and culture of the many places he had experienced.

He had a great love for the Copper Country, especially Eagle Harbor, where his grandparents had a cottage. The family summered every year at the Harbor, and aunts, uncles, and cousins greeted them. The parallel story of Bob’s naval achievements was his marriage. A military life can be challenging and often marked by long absences. But Bob and Peg made it work. They were married for 72 years. 

He is preceded in death by his parents; sister, Patricia Chopp (Edward); brother, Fritz Carlton (Dorothy); his wife, Peggy; and daughter, Rosemay Carlton Arendt (Paul). 

He is survived by his daughters, Dr. Kathleen Carlton Johnson (Robert,” Buzz”), Lake Linden, Elizabeth Hicks (Stormy), Carlsbad, California, Theresa Clevenstine (Peter), Chisholm, Minnesota, and Mary Alice Walters (Bob), Lecanto, Florida; and his sister, Mary Kay Masnado, of Agate Harbor. He was a grandfather to 19 grandchildren and multiple great-grandchildren.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 26, 2025, at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Lake Linden, with Father Raju Jose officiating. Visitation will be held on Thursday, Sept. 25, from 6-8 p.m. at the Pearce Funeral Home in Lake Linden. Burial will take place in Lake View Cemetery in Calumet immediately after the Mass.

May his soul and all the souls of the faithful and departed rest in peace. Amen.