Thomas Washington

Infobox Military Person
name=Thomas Washington
lived= birth date|1865|6|6 – death date and age|1954|12|15|1865|6|6


caption=Admiral Thomas Washington, 1919
nickname=
placeofbirth= Goldsboro, North Carolina
placeofdeath= Bethesda Naval Hospital
allegiance= United States of America
branch= United States Navy
serviceyears=1889-1929
rank= Admiral
unit=
commands=Asiatic Fleet USS Florida
battles= Spanish-American War World War I
awards= Navy Distinguished Service Medal
relations=
laterwork=

Thomas Washington (6 June 1865 - 15 December 1954) was an admiral in the United States Navy during World War I.

Early life and career

Born at Goldsboro, North Carolina, Washington was appointed to the United States Naval Academy on 17 May 1883. He graduated on 10 June 1887 and, after the required two years of sea duty during which he served on the European Station in "Enterprise" and "Lancaster", was commissioned ensign in 1889. Over the ensuing three years, he served at sea--first in "Alliance" and then in "Endeavor"—-until 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 Norfolk and Washington Navy Yards, he was assigned to a succession of ships--"Montgomery", "Terror", and "Patterson"--before joining battleship "Indiana" in early 1898. He was in this ship when she helped to defeat the Spanish Fleet under Admiral Cervera on 3 July 1898 in the Battle of Santiago de Cuba.

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, on 29 October 1902. Quartered in battleship "Illinois", the Asiatic Fleet's flagship, he remained on Evans' staff until detached on 1 June 1904.

Special duty at the Bureau of Navigation followed his return from the Orient and preceded his assuming command of dispatch boat "Dolphin", the vessel which was then serving as the Secretary of the Navy'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, gunboat "Yorktown" and cruisers "Charleston" and "Denver" 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. World War I broke out in Europe 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 battleship "Florida". A few months after the United States entered the war in the spring of 1917, "Florida" crossed the Atlantic to operate with the British Grand Fleet. 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

Eleven days after the Armistice--on 22 November 1918--he assumed command of Flagship Division 3, Battleship Force 1, Atlantic Fleet, flying his "flag" alternately in yachts "Aramis" and "Nokomis". 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 Bureau of Navigation 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 "Huron" on 11 October 1923 and commanded the Fleet until 14 October 1925. During his tour, the Asiatic Fleet provided support for the United States Army's round-the-world flight in the spring of 1924. Operating from the Kurils to Calcutta, 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, on 19 November 1925, and filled the billet until his retirement on 6 June 1929.

Last years and legacy

Advanced on the retired list to the full rank of admiral on 16 July 1942, Washington died at the Bethesda Naval Hospital, Bethesda, Maryland.

Namsake

USS "Thomas Washington" (AGOR-10) was named for him.

References