Thomas Washington (6 June 1865 – 15 December 1954) was an

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

in the

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during

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Early life and career

Thomas Washington and his brother Richard were twins of Virginia and her farmer husband R.A. Washington, both born at Goldsboro, North Carolina. On May 17, 1883, Thomas Washington accepted an appointment to the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (USNA, Navy, or Annapolis) is a United States Service academies, federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as United States Secre ...

. He traveled to Annapolis, Maryland, and graduated on 10 June 1887. After the required two years of sea duty during which he served on the European Station in the sloops and , he was commissioned

ensign Ensign most often refers to: * Ensign (flag), a flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality * Ensign (rank), a navy (and former army) officer rank Ensign or The Ensign may also refer to: Places * Ensign, Alberta, Alberta, Canada * Ensign, Ka ...

in 1889. Over the ensuing three years, he briefly served aboard the

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ship ''Endeavor'', followed by a tour in the gunboat to the

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. He was assigned to the office of the Navy's Judge Advocate General in 1892. Subsequently, after duty on several trial boards for general courts martial at the

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and

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s, he was assigned to a succession of ships—, and —before joining the

battleship A battleship is a large, heavily naval armour, armored warship with a main battery consisting of large naval gun, guns, designed to serve as a capital ship. From their advent in the late 1880s, battleships were among the largest and most form ...

in early 1898. He was on this ship when she helped to defeat the Spanish Fleet under Admiral

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on 3 July 1898 in the

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. His younger brother and naval cadet, Pope Washington, was one of the survivors of the explosion of the ''Maine''. After a second tour of duty ashore in the office of the Judge Advocate General, Washington served on the General Board. Ordered thence to the Asiatic Station, he joined the staff of Rear Admiral Robley D. "Fighting Bob" Evans, the Commander-in-Chief,

Asiatic Fleet The United States Asiatic Fleet was a fleet of the United States Navy during much of the first half of the 20th century. Before World War II, the fleet patrolled the Philippine Islands. Much of the fleet was destroyed by the Japanese by Februar ...

, on 29 October 1902. Quartered on the battleship , the Asiatic Fleet's

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, he remained on Evans' staff until detached on 1 June 1904. Special duty at the

Bureau of Navigation The Bureau of Navigation, later the Bureau of Navigation and Steamboat Inspection and finally the Bureau of Marine Inspection and Navigation — not to be confused with the United States Navys Bureau of Navigation — was an agency of the Unite ...

followed his return from the Orient and preceded his assuming command of dispatch boat , the vessel which was then serving as the

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's yacht. Washington next put in another tour with the Bureau of Navigation for duty before returning to sea in 1912 to command, in turn, the gunboat and

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s and over the next two years.

World War I

On 20 April 1914, Washington—by then a captain—assumed the duties of

Hydrographer of the Navy The Hydrographer of the Navy is the principal hydrographical Royal Naval appointment. From 1795 until 2001, the post was responsible for the production of charts for the Royal Navy, and around this post grew the United Kingdom Hydrographic Office ...

. World War I broke out in

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less than four months after Washington assumed the Hydrographer's duties, depriving the United States of its external sources of oceanographic and hydrographic information. Washington and his small staff responded by independently gathering the necessary data for use by the United States Navy and Merchant Marine. Relieved as hydrographer on 23 June 1916, Washington was given command of the battleship . A few months after the United States entered the war in the spring of 1917, ''Florida'' crossed the Atlantic with Battleship Division Nine to operate with the British

Grand Fleet The Grand Fleet was the main battlefleet of the Royal Navy during the First World War. It was established in August 1914 and disbanded in April 1919. Its main base was Scapa Flow in the Orkney Islands. History Formed in August 1914 from th ...

. The manner in which he carried out this assignment won Washington the Distinguished Service Medal for "exceptionally meritorious service in a duty of great responsibility."

Post-war service

On 22 November 1918, eleven days after the

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, he assumed command of Flagship Division 3, Battleship Force 1, Atlantic Fleet, flying his "flag" alternately in yachts and . He subsequently commanded Divisions 2 and 4, successively, of the Atlantic Fleet. Detached from this duty on 9 August, he assumed the post of Chief of the

on 11 August, with the accompanying rank of rear admiral. Less than a year later, Washington received orders to duty as Commander-in-Chief, Asiatic Fleet (CINCAF). He broke his flag in

armored cruiser The armored cruiser was a type of warship of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was designed like other types of cruisers to operate as a long-range, independent warship, capable of defeating any ship apart from a pre-dreadnought battles ...

on 11 October 1923 and commanded the Fleet until 14 October 1925. During his tour, the Asiatic Fleet provided support for the

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's round-the-world flight in the spring of 1924. Operating from the Kurils to

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, the destroyer squadrons of the Fleet sailed on plane-guard stations, transported supplies and spare parts, and provided radio bearings and communications services for the planes, and thus contributed greatly to the success of the flight. Relieved as CINCAF on 14 October 1925, Washington became Commandant of the Naval Operating Base,

San Francisco, California San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

, on 19 November 1925, and filled the billet until his retirement on 6 June 1929.

Last years and legacy

In the 1930s Washington was the Governor of the Philadelphia Naval Home. Advanced on the retired list to the full rank of admiral on 16 July 1942, Washington died at the Bethesda Naval Hospital,

Bethesda, Maryland Bethesda () is an unincorporated, census-designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. Located just northwest of Washington, D.C., it is a major business and government center of the Washington metropolitan region ...

on December 15, 1954. He was buried at

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Namesake

* The oceanographic research ship was named for him.

References

*
Naval InvestigationWarns of Desertion

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Washington, Thomas 1865 births 1954 deaths People from Goldsboro, North Carolina United States Naval Academy alumni American military personnel of the Spanish–American War United States Navy personnel of World War I United States Navy admirals United States Coast and Geodetic Survey personnel Recipients of the Navy Distinguished Service Medal Burials at Arlington National Cemetery