George Wilmot Davis Jr. (May 29, 1933 – December 28, 2024) was a

Vice Admiral Vice admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to lieutenant general and air marshal. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral. Australia In the Royal Australian Navy, the rank of Vice ...

in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

. He served as the first

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

of the

USS Virginia (CGN-38) USS ''Virginia'' (CGN-38) was a nuclear-powered guided missile cruiser, the lead ship of her class, and the eighth ship of the United States Navy to be named for the Commonwealth of Virginia. She was commissioned in 1976 and decommissioned ...

from September 1976 to August 1978.

Biography

George Wilmot Davis Jr. was born in

Columbia, South Carolina Columbia is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is List of municipalities in South Carolina, the second-mo ...

on May 29, 1933. He graduated from the United States Navy Academy in June 1955, and was assigned to the USS Gwin (DM-33). After the USS Gwin was decommissioned in 1958, Davis would go on to serve as the

Executive Officer An executive officer is a person who is principally responsible for leading all or part of an organization, although the exact nature of the role varies depending on the organization. In many militaries and police forces, an executive officer ...

and Captain of multiple other ships in the US Navy. Following that, Davis would briefly serve in the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

, where he earned the

Vietnam Service Medal The Vietnam Service Medal was a military award of the United States Armed Forces established on 8 July 1965 by order of President Lyndon B. Johnson. The medal is awarded to recognize service during the Vietnam War by all members of the U.S. ...

. On September 11, 1976, the

was commissioned, and Davis was assigned as the first Captain of the USS Virginia. He would serve as the Captain of the Virginia for just under the next two years until August 1978. In 1980, he was assigned as the Assistant Chief of Staff for Logistics of the

Allied Land Forces Southern Europe Allied Land Forces Southern Europe (LANDSOUTH) was a military command of NATO's Allied Forces Southern Europe (AFSOUTH) command. Based in Verona in Northern Italy LANDSOUTH was tasked with defending Italy north of the Apennine Mountains against ...

, a position he would hold for a year until October 1981. In 1985, he was made Vice Admiral of the United States Navy by President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...

, a rank he would hold for the next three years. Davis died on December 28, 2024, at the age of 91.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, George W. Jr. 1933 births 2024 deaths People from South Carolina United States Navy vice admirals