James Russell Soley (1 October 1850 – 11 September 1911) was a

lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...

and naval

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human species; as well as the ...

, and served as an

Assistant Secretary of the Navy Assistant Secretary of the Navy (ASN) is the title given to certain civilian senior officials in the United States Department of the Navy. From 1861 to 1954, the Assistant Secretary of the Navy was the second-highest civilian office in the Depart ...

for the United States military.

Biography

Born in

Roxbury, Massachusetts Roxbury () is a Neighborhoods in Boston, neighborhood in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Roxbury is a Municipal annexation in the United States, dissolved municipality and one of 23 official neighborhoods of Boston used by the city for ne ...

, Soley graduated from

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate education, undergraduate college of Harvard University, a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Part of the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Scienc ...

in 1870. He was appointed Assistant Professor of Ethics and English at 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 ...

on 1 October 1871. Only two years later, he became Head of the Department of English Studies, History, and Law. In 1875 he married Mary Woolsey Howland. On 9 June 1882, Soley was assigned to 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 ...

. He served as Superintendent of the naval war records office and he headed the Navy Department Library: Office of Naval Records and Library. During this duty, Soley began the collection of the naval documents of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

and started the editorial work which culminated in the publication of the 31-volume collection, The '' Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion''. These years also saw the publication of several of Soley's books and articles on American naval history. In 1884, Commodore Stephen B. Luce appointed Soley instructor in International Law at the newly established

United States Naval War College The Naval War College (NWC or NAVWARCOL) is the staff college and "Home of Thought" for the United States Navy at Naval Station Newport in Newport, Rhode Island. The NWC educates and develops leaders, supports defining the future Navy and associ ...

, thereby becoming that institution's first civilian faculty member. While serving in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, Soley studied law at Columbian University (now called

George Washington University The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally-chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Originally named Columbian College, it was chartered in 1821 by ...

) and received his law degree in 1890. On 18 July 1890 he resigned his commission to become an

, dealing with administration of labor in naval shore establishments. He served in this position until March 1893. After his service with the Navy Soley moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

to practice law, working with his former naval chief, Benjamin F. Tracy, who had been Secretary of the Navy from 1889 to March 1893. Soley specialized in international law. He served as counsel for

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

during the arbitration at

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

in 1899, which stemmed from a boundary dispute with the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

which had resulted in the

Venezuela Crisis of 1895 The Venezuelan crisis of 1895 occurred over Venezuela's longstanding dispute with Great Britain about the territory of Essequibo, which Britain believed was part of British Guiana and Venezuela recognized as its own Guayana Esequiba. The issue ...

. Soley died of pneumonia in New York City on 11 September 1911. U.S.Navy, James R. Soley (1850-1911), page article

Legacy

was named for him.

Bibliography

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Soley, James R. 1850 births 1911 deaths Harvard College alumni Columbian College of Arts and Sciences alumni American naval historians American male non-fiction writers International law scholars Naval War College faculty United States Assistant Secretaries of the Navy