Alan Bartlett Shepard, Jr.
Project Mercury Astronaut

Alan B. Shepard, Jr. a commander in the U.S. Navy, was born November 18, 1923 in East Derry, New Hampshire. The 37-year old astronaut is 5 feet 11 inches tall, weighs 160 pounds, has blue eyes and brown hair. Shepherd is married to the former Louise Brewer of Kennett Square, Pennsylvania. The couple has two daughters; Juliana 9, and Laura 13. His parents, Col. and Mrs. Alan B. Shepard, live in East Derry where the elder Shepard, a retired officer of the Army of the United States, is an insurance broker. Shepard's sister, Mrs. Pauline S. Sherman, resides in Attleboro, Massasschutes.

Shepard attended primary school in East Derry and he graduated from Pinkerton Academy, Derry, New Hampshire, 1940. He studied one year at Admiral Farragut Academy, Toma River, New Jersey, and then entered the Navel Academy, Annapolis in 1944. He was graduated from the Navel War College, Newport, Rhode Island, in 1958.

The astronaut saw service on the destroyer COGSWELL in the Pacific during World War II. He then entered flying training at Corpus Christi, Texas, and Pensacola, Florida. He received his wings in March 1947. Subsquent service was in Fighter Squadron 42 at the Norfolk Naval Air Station and Jacksonville, Florida. He also served several tours aboard aircraft carriers in the Mediterranean. Shepard went to the USN Test Pilot School at Patuxent River, Maryland, in 1950 and served two tours in flight tests to obtain data on light at different altitudes and on a variety of experiments in test and development of the Navy's in-flight refueling system, carrier suitability trials of the F2H3 Banchee, and Navy trials of the first angled carrier deck. Between his flight-test tours at Patuxent, Shepard was assigned to Fighter Squadron 193 at Moffett Field, California, a night fighter unit flying Banchee jets. He was Operations Officer of this squadron and made two tours with it to the Western Pacific on board the carrier ORISKANY. He has been engaged in the test of the F3H Demon, F8U Crusader, F4D Skylancer. The last five months at Patuxent were spent as an instructor in the Test Pilot School. After his graduation from the Naval War College, Shepard joined the staff of the Commander-in-chief, Atlantic Fleet, as aircraft readiness officer. He has 3700 hours of flying time, 1800 in jets.

Shepherd's hobbies are golf, ice skating and water skiing.