Services Are Today for Capt. William Munroe

Services will be today for Retired Navy Capt. William Robert Munroe Jr., who helped pioneer the design and use of guided missiles for Navy ships. Munroe, 70, died Oct. 2 in La Jolla after a long illness. Services will be at 3 p.m. at the Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery in Point Loma.

Munroe participated in the design of the Regulus I and II missiles, which earned him the command of the Charles Francis Adams, the first Navy ship designed and built as a guided missile destroyer.

Munroe was born in Los Angeles and educated at St. Alban’s School in Washington and at the University of Virginia and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

His Navy career began in 1942 and spanned 30 years during which he commanded a variety of Navy vessels.

He was awarded five Bronze Stars, receiving the first for action in the Pacific during World War II. During the Korean War, his command took part in several decisive actions that resulted in his being decorated with the Distinguished Service Cross, one of Britain’s highest military honors.

In the early 1970s, Munroe served as director of operations and planning for the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He received several presidential citations and naval awards for his strategic and tactical work. He retired in 1979 and moved from Washington to La Jolla.

Munroe is survived by his wife, Carlota Chapman-Munroe; a son, William Robert Munroe III of New York, and a daughter, Maria Munroe-Browne of Los Angeles.

Memorial contributions may be sent to: Scripps Memorial Hospital, 9888 Genesee Ave., La Jolla CA 92037, or to The City of St. Jude, 2048 W. Fairview Ave., Montgomery AL 36177.