Yates Stirling Jr.
On July 20, 1924, he became Captain of the Yard, Navy Yard, Washington, D.C., with additional duty as Assistant Superintendent of the Naval Gun Factory. He was promoted to rear admiral on October 6, 1926 and in December that year Stirling was designated Chief of Staff to Admiral Charles F. Hughes, Commander in Chief, U.S. Fleet, based at San Pedro, California. At the October 27, 1927 Navy Day Ceremonies at San Pedro harbor, despite an all-day downpour, thousands of Southern Californians gathered for the festivities, including ships' tours, band performances of patriotic music and the key-note address given by Stirling, "Merchant Marine, the Navy and the Nation".
USS Paragua (1888)
Among U.S. Naval officers at the turn of the 20th century, the command of a small gunboat during the Philippine Insurrection was considered a choice assignment due to the likelihood of engagement and the autonomy of generally choosing patrol routes and ports of call. Such noted World War II admirals as William Leahy, Chester Nimitz, William "Bull" Halsey and John S. McCain, Sr. all were first or second in command of patrol gunboats in the Philippines very early in their careers. Admiral Frederick J. Horne, who was Vice Chief of Naval Operations and directed all navy logistics during World War II served on "Paragua" while a passed midshipman as did Rear Admiral Yates Stirling, Jr. who commanded "Paragua" as a lieutenant from December 1900 – December 1901. In his book "Faith of My Fathers", Senator John McCain wrote of an interview he conducted in the 1950s as a midshipman at the Naval Academy with retired Admiral Chester Nimitz, who was then in his 70s. While McCain wanted to learn about the World War II experience of his grandfather, Admiral John S. McCain, Sr., the younger McCain recalled that all Nimitz wanted to talk about were the adventures that he and McCain's grandfather, his executive officer on had together in 1907, while chasing pirates in the Moro Gulf and visiting ports freely as they chose. Nimitz considered it the best time of his entire navy career.