Excerpts from obituary published in Exponent Telegram, Clarksburg, West Virginia, on October 11, 2013

Samuel Franklin Wiseman, 93 years old, died, October 8, 2013, after a brief illness.  He was a native of Clarksburg, West Virginia, where he graduated from Washington Irving High School and West Virginia Business College.  He was a U.S. Navy veteran of World War II, serving in Naval Intelligence.  After the war, Sam became a civilian employee of the Naval Investigative Service (NIS), which subsequently became the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS), from which he retired after 37 years of government service.  He is survived by his wife of 69 years, a daughter, and a grandson.  Sam loved nature and, while in high school, took up the hobby of photography, which he pursued his entire life, taking beautiful photos of God’s creations.  Also a stamp collector since childhood, he belonged to numerous philatelic organizations and through the years contributed many exhibits to philatelic shows both near and far.  An avid Portsmouth history buff, Sam was a lecturer and speaker much in demand on subjects such as Portsmouth history, Confederate philately, Masonic topics and the War Between the States.

Travel was also a hobby, and together Sam and his wife enjoyed visiting most of the states and many countries, but during basketball season they could be found at Old Dominion University where, for many years, they had season tickets so they could cheer for the men and women’s teams.  Sam was a member of Western Branch Baptist Church (deacon), Portsmouth Lodge A.F.&A.M. 100 (60-year member), Portsmouth Scottish Rite Bodies (33rd Degree Inspector General Honorary), the Naval Criminal Investigative Service Association, various stamp clubs, Friends of the Norfolk Naval Shipyard Museum, Friends of the Portsmouth Public Library and a charter member of both the Portsmouth Area Civil War Roundtable and the Portsmouth Historical Society.

Submitted by CDR Roy A. Mosteller, USNR (Ret)