Lee Edwards, 76, commanded nuclear submarines
March 30, 2023
Arthur Lee Edwards of Pawleys Island, a retired Navy captain who commanded three nuclear submarines, died March 8 in Charleston with his wife by his side. He was 76.
Known as Lee, he was born July 16, 1946, in Hammond, Ind., the oldest of four children of Arthur and Nina Edwards. He graduated from high school in Chicago and entered the U.S. Naval Academy in the summer of 1964. He distinguished himself academically, was a member of the Drum and Bugle Corps and played 150-pound football. After graduation, he was accepted into William and Mary’s law school, but chose to remain in the Navy.
Although he initially wanted to be a Marine pilot, Admiral Hyman Rickover convinced Capt. Edwards to join the submarine force after a long day of interviews at Naval Reactors. Following graduation and completion of Nuclear Power Training and Submarine School, he served on several submarines including the Sand Lance (SSN 660) and Simon Bolivar (SSBN 641). He then spent nearly a decade in command of three nuclear submarines: Nathan Hale (SSBN 623), Trepang (SSN 674) and Pennsylvania (SSBN 735).
Capt. Edwards completed his 30-year career working in the Pentagon in the OP-02 SSBN (submersible ship ballistic missile) program.
After retiring from the Navy, he worked as a program manager with Lockheed Martin, Department of Energy’s nuclear weapons production site remediation, eight years on the professional staff at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab as well as a senior consultant in the office of the chief engineer at NASA headquarters.
He earned a second master’s degree and taught algebra at Springfield High School in Virginia from a desire to give back to his community.
Locally, Capt. Edwards served on the boards for the S.C. Maritime Museum and the Boys and Girls Schools in Georgetown. In his spare time, he acted as the secretary/treasurer and dockmaster for his neighborhood.
Capt. Edwards was an accomplished pilot and avid fisherman who had a deep love of the outdoors. He loved to go hiking and skiing and his many fishing trips took him to Alaska, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Idaho, as well as his beloved Waccamaw River by his home.
He and his wife traveled extensively in Europe, Mexico and the Caribbean. He was a die-hard Bears and Cubs fan, and attended the Little League World Series.
He is survived by his wife of 37 years, Judie Chestnut Edwards; his sister, Julie Holms; and his brother, Brian Edwards.
A memorial service will be held April 16 at 2 p.m. at Georgetown Presbyterian Church.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Wounded Warrior Project (woundedwarriorproject.org).
There is a guest book at burroughsfh.com.
