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".
Otis R. Marston
Young Otis was a strong swimmer. He swam across the Golden Gate strait from San Francisco to Marin County in 1915. He received a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from the University of California at Berkeley in 1916, then went on to receive his master's degree in industrial engineering at Cornell University in 1917.
Otis joined the United States Navy and received training at the United States Naval Academy where he graduated as an ensign in 1918. While on leave on Christmas Eve 1918, Otis rode a mule to Hermit Camp in the Grand Canyon, and saw Hermit Rapid on Christmas Day. By the close of 1919, he had completed his qualifications as a submarine commander with the Navy on the USS H-7 (SS-150) .