This Military Service Page was created/owned by
Shaun Thomas (Underdog), OSC
to remember
Toth, Stephen Spencer, LT.
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Contact Info
Home Town San Diego
Last Address San Diego
Date of Passing Jun 08, 1967
Location of Interment Annapolis National Cemetery (VA) - Annapolis, Maryland
         Buried at National Cemetery, U.S. Naval Acadamy, Annapolis, Maryland
Other Comments:
             Awarded Silver Star for heroism under fire during the attack on theÂ
             U.S.S. Liberty (AGTR-5).
            Â
                      Shipmates column for class reunion Class of 1963
                                       July/August 2004
 Pete Soverel tells us about a ceremony which afforded permanent recognition of our late classmate Steve Toth.
    I attended the 45th reunion of my high school class (St. George's School, Newport, RI) this May. Steve graduated from St. George's in 1958 and attended VMI for one year before joining our class at the Naval Academy. The school has a memorial area in the chapel dedicated to St. George alumni who have been killed in action since World War I. On Sunday, May 16, the school dedicated a plaque commemorating Lt. Steven Spencer Toth, USN, who was killed in action during the Israeli attack on USS LIBERTY. His sister, Josie Toth Linen, attended the ceremony. I read Steve's Silver Star citation at the memorial service. It was a very well done and moving ceremony.
       Here is a photo of the memorial plaque in the school chapel.
USS Liberty Incident (Israel)
From Month/Year
June / 1967
To Month/Year
June / 1967
Description The USS Liberty incident was an attack on a United States Navy technical research ship, USS Liberty, by Israeli Air Force jet fighter aircraft and Israeli Navy motor torpedo boats, on 8 June 1967, during the Six-Day War. The combined air and sea attack killed 34 crew members (naval officers, seamen, two marines, and one civilian), wounded 171 crew members, and severely damaged the ship. At the time, the ship was in international waters north of the Sinai Peninsula, about 25.5 nmi (29.3 mi; 47.2 km) northwest from the Egyptian city of Arish.
Israel apologized for the attack, saying that the USS Liberty had been attacked in error after being mistaken for an Egyptian ship. Both the Israeli and U.S. governments conducted inquiries and issued reports that concluded the attack was a mistake due to Israeli confusion about the ship's identity, though others, including survivors of the attack, have rejected these conclusions and maintain that the attack was deliberate.
In May 1968, the Israeli government paid US$3,323,500 (US$22.9 million 2017) in compensation to the families of the 34 men killed in the attack. In March 1969, Israel paid a further $3,566,457 to the men who had been wounded. On 18 December 1980, it agreed to pay $6 million as settlement for the final U.S. bill of $17,132,709 for material damage to Liberty herself plus 13 years' interest.
My Participation in This Battle or Operation
From Month/Year
June / 1967
To Month/Year
June / 1967
Last Updated: Mar 16, 2020
Personal Memories
Memories On the afternoon of 8 June 1967, while in international waters off the northern coast of the Sinai Peninsula, Liberty was attacked and damaged by Israeli aircraft; 34 crewmen were killed and 173 wounded. Although severely damaged with a 39-foot-wide (12 m) by 24-foot-high (7.3 m) hole amidships and a twisted keel, Libertyâ??s crew kept her afloat, and she was able to leave the area under her own power. She was escorted to Valletta, Malta, by units of the Sixth Fleet and was given temporary repairs. After the repairs were completed, Liberty returned to the United States on 27 July 1967. She was decommissioned and stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 28 June 1968. She was laid up in the Atlantic Reserve Fleet of Norfolk until December 1970, when she was transferred to the Maritime Administration for disposal. In 1973, she was sold for scrapping to the Boston Metals Company of Baltimore, Maryland. The incident has become a subject of controversy and debate, with many books written on the topic.
 