The VA has a file called the BIRLS Death File which has data about your father. If your father died in 2014 he's not in the index on Ancestry.com because that only goes to 2010. Ask for the service officer at your local VA to help you obtain a copy of this file.
Being Navy, he might not have had a social security number. Here are 2 I found but they may not be yours.
Name:
| |
William Martin Melton
[William M Melton] |
| SSN: |
452565430 |
| Gender: |
Male |
| Race: |
Black |
| Birth Date: |
26 Dec 1934 |
| Birth Place: |
Navaro, Texas
[Dresden, Texas] |
| Death Date: |
11 May 1992 |
| Father: |
Alonzan Melton |
| Mother: |
Elizabeth Jeffrey |
| Type of Claim: |
Original SSN. |
| Notes: |
Jan 1953: Name listed as WILLIAM MARTIN MELTON; 16 Sep 1988: Name listed as WILLIAM M MELTON |
There is another one born in the 1920s:
Name:
| |
William Martin Melton
[William M Melton] |
| SSN: |
406265521 |
| Gender: |
Male |
| Race: |
White |
| Birth Date: |
28 Jul 1923 |
| Birth Place: |
Glasgow Barr, Kentucky |
| Death Date: |
1 Oct 2003 |
| Father: |
Tommie Melton |
| Mother: |
Francis Johnson |
| Type of Claim: |
Original SSN. |
| Notes: |
Jan 1943: Name listed as WILLIAM MARTIN MELTON; 04 Oct 2003: Name listed as WILLIAM M MELTON
|
You can apply for a copy of the Social Security Application at https://secure.ssa.gov/apps9/eFOIA-FEWeb/internet/main.jsp
I would suggest getting a photocopy of the original application.
Neither of these coincides with the Find-A-Grave for date of birth and it's possible he didn't apply for social security.
