Yates Stirling Jr.
Yates Stirling Jr. (April 30, 1872 – January 27, 1948) was a decorated and controversial rear admiral in the United States Navy whose 44-year career spanned from several years before the Spanish–American War to the mid-1930s. He was awarded the Navy Cross and French Legion of Honor for distinguished service during World War One. The elder son of Rear Admiral Yates Stirling, he was an outspoken advocate of American sea power as a strong deterrent to war and to protect and promote international commerce. During Stirling's naval career and following retirement, he was a frequent lecturer, newspaper columnist and author of numerous books and articles, including his memoirs, "Sea Duty: The Memoirs of a Fighting Admiral", published in 1939. Describing himself, Stirling wrote, "All my life I have been called a stormy petrel. I have never hesitated to use the pen to reveal what I considered should be brought to public attention, usually within the Navy, but often to a wider public. I seem to see some benefits that have come through those efforts. I have always believed that a naval man is disloyal to his country if he does not reveal acts that are doing harm to his service and show, if he can, how to remedy the fault. An efficient Navy cannot be run with 'yes men' only."
Yates Stirling
Stirling attended private schools in Baltimore as a youth. He was appointed by Representative Henry Winter Davis of Maryland to the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland, as an acting midshipman on 27 September 1860. In June 1861, Stirling and several other midshipman, including Robley "Fighting Bob" Evans, future hero of the Spanish–American War, submitted letters of resignation, believing their loyalty was with the Confederacy. Four weeks later they had second thoughts and retracted their resignations, expressing loyalty to the Union. When the rank of acting midshipman was abolished on 16 July 1862, his rank became midshipman. After the American Civil War broke out in April 1861, the Academy moved to Newport, Rhode Island, for the duration of the war and Stirling graduated one year ahead of schedule in 1863 due to the expanded U.S. Navys need for officers during the war. He was commissioned as an ensign on 28 May 1863.