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Assistant Secretary of the Navy

Senior civilian official of the Department of the Navy, position abolished in 1954

Assistant Secretary of the Navy
Summary

Senior civilian official of the Department of the Navy, position abolished in 1954

The personal flag used by Assistant secretaries of the Navy as well as the [[General Counsel 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 Department of the Navy (reporting to the United States secretary of the Navy). That role has since been supplanted by the office of Under Secretary of the Navy and the office of Assistant Secretary of the Navy has been abolished. There have, however, been a number of offices bearing the phrase "Assistant Secretary of the Navy" in their title (see below for details).

At present, there are four Assistant secretaries of the Navy, each of whom reports to and assists the secretary of the Navy and the under secretary of the Navy:

  • Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Research, Development and Acquisition)
  • Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Manpower and Reserve Affairs)
  • Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Financial Management and Comptroller)
  • Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Energy, Installations and Environment)
  • The General Counsel of the Navy is equivalent in rank to the four Assistant Secretaries.

History

The Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Navy was established in 1861, to provide a senior deputy to the Secretary. The Assistant Secretary was responsible for the Navy's civilian personnel, as well as for administration of shore facilities (such as naval bases and shipyards). Gustavus Fox was the first to hold the post, serving throughout the Civil War. The office was disestablished in 1869, during Reconstruction, but was reestablished by Congress on July 11, 1890. James R. Soley was the first to be appointed to the newly reestablished position.

The Assistant Secretary was the Navy's number-two civilian until 1940, when Congress established the position of Under Secretary of the Navy, who was given oversight of the Assistant Secretary's activities. James V. Forrestal, later Secretary of Defense, was the first to serve as Under Secretary; he held the post until 1944, when he became Secretary of the Navy.

During the 20th century, the responsibilities of the Assistant Secretary were divided among several officials. During the 1920s, for example, to reflect the increasing importance of naval aviation, Congress established the position of Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Air.

The office of Assistant Secretary of the Navy was disestablished in 1954.

Notable officeholders

  • U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt served as Assistant Secretary of the Navy from 1897 to 1898, during the William McKinley administration. His short tenure was due to resigning to organize and lead into combat the 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry during the Spanish–American War. It is notable for his taking the initiative to order Admiral George Dewey to sail to Manila where he sank the Spanish Pacific Fleet at the very outset of the war.
  • U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt served as Assistant Secretary of the Navy from 1913 until 1920, and helped to implement Navy policies during World War I.
  • According to author Edward J. Renehan, Jr., no fewer than five members of the extended Roosevelt clan served as Assistant Secretary of the Navy: Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin Roosevelt, Theodore Roosevelt Jr. who served from 1921 through 1924 under Harding and Coolidge, Theodore Douglas Robinson (the son of Corinne Roosevelt) who served from 1924 through 1929 under Coolidge, and finally Henry Latrobe Roosevelt, a descendant of Robert Fulton's old friend "Steamboat Nicholas" Roosevelt, who served from 1933 through 1936 under FDR.
  • Ralph Austin Bard was Assistant Secretary (1941–1944) and then Under Secretary (1944–1945) during World War II.

Assistant Secretaries of the Navy, 1861–1954

PictureNameAssumed officeLeft officePresident appointed bySecretary served under
[[Image:Gustavus Fox.jpg75px]]Gustavus FoxAugust 1, 1861November 26, 1866Abraham LincolnGideon Welles
[[Image:William Faxon.jpg75px]]William FaxonJune 1, 1866March 3, 1869Andrew JohnsonGideon Welles, Adolph Edward Borie, George Maxwell Robeson, Richard Wigginton Thompson, Nathan Goff, Jr., William Henry Hunt, William Eaton Chandler, William Collins Whitney
[[Image:James R. Soley.jpg75px]]James R. SoleyJuly 18, 1890March 19, 1893Benjamin HarrisonBenjamin Franklin Tracy
[[Image:William McAdooNJ.jpg75px]]William McAdooMarch 20, 1893April 18, 1897Grover ClevelandHilary Abner Herbert
[[Image:Col. Theodore Roosevelt LCCN2009631417 (cropped).jpg75px]]Theodore RooseveltApril 19, 1897May 10, 1898William McKinleyJohn Davis Long
[[Image:Charles Herbert Allen, 1898.jpg75px]]Charles Herbert AllenMay 11, 1898April 21, 1900
[[File:Frank W. Hackett (Assistant Secretary of the Navy).jpg75px]]Frank W. HackettApril 24, 1900December 16, 1901
[[Image:Charles Hial Darling.jpg75px]]Charles Hial DarlingDecember 17, 1901October 30, 1905Theodore RooseveltJohn Davis Long, William Henry Moody, Paul Morton, Charles Joseph Bonaparte
[[Image:Truman Handy Newberry.jpg75px]]Truman Handy NewberryNovember 1, 1905November 30, 1908Charles Joseph Bonaparte, Victor Howard Metcalf
[[File:Herbert Livingston Satterlee circa 1900.jpg75px]]Herbert L. SatterleeDecember 3, 1908March 5, 1909Truman Handy Newberry
[[File:Beekman Winthrop by George Bain (cropped).jpg75px]]Beekman WinthropMarch 6, 1909March 16, 1913William Howard TaftGeorge von Lengerke Meyer
[[Image:Franklin Roosevelt Secretary of the Navy 1913.jpg75px]]Franklin D. RooseveltMarch 17, 1913August 26, 1920Woodrow WilsonJosephus Daniels
[[File:Gordon Woodbury (Assistant Secretary of the Navy).jpg75px]]Gordon WoodburyAugust 27, 1920March 9, 1921
[[Image:LC-DIG-ggbain-37582.jpg75px]]Theodore Roosevelt Jr.March 10, 1921September 30, 1924Warren HardingEdwin Denby
[[File:Theodore Douglas Robinson (Assistant Secretary of the Navy).jpg75px]]Theodore Douglas RobinsonNovember 11, 1924March 4, 1929Calvin CoolidgeCurtis Dwight Wilbur
[[File:Ernest Lee Jahncke - Assistant Secretary of the United States Navy in 1930.jpg75px]]Ernest L. JahnckeApril 1, 1929March 17, 1933Herbert HooverCharles Francis Adams III
[[File:Henry Latrobe Roosevelt (Assistant Secretary of the Navy).jpg75px]]Henry L. RooseveltMarch 17, 1933February 22, 1936Franklin D. RooseveltClaude Augustus Swanson
[[Image:Charles Edison.jpg75px]]Charles EdisonJanuary 18, 1937January 1, 1940
[[File:Lewis Compton (Assistant Secretary of the Navy).jpg75px]]Lewis ComptonFebruary 9, 1940January 10, 1941Charles Edison
[[Image:Asst Navy Sec Ralph A Bard.jpg75px]]Ralph Austin BardFebruary 24, 1941June 24, 1944William Franklin Knox
[[File:Streuve Hensel (Assistant Secretary of the Navy).jpg75px]]H. Struve HenselJanuary 30, 1945February 28, 1946Franklin D. RooseveltJames Vincent Forrestal
[[Image:W. John Kenney.jpg75px]]W. John KenneyMarch 1, 1946September 19, 1947Harry S. Truman
[[File:Mark E. Andrews (Assistant Secretary of the Navy).jpg75px]]Mark E. AndrewsJanuary 21, 1948February 15, 1949John L. Sullivan
[[File:John theodore koehler in washington dc 1942.jpg75px]]John T. KoehlerFebruary 18, 1949October 3, 1951Francis P. Matthews
[[Image:Herbert R Askins.jpg75px]]Herbert R. AskinsOctober 3, 1951January 20, 1953Dan A. Kimball
Raymond H. FoglerJune 22, 1953October 4, 1954Dwight D. EisenhowerRobert B. Anderson, Charles S. Thomas
Source:

Defunct offices bearing the title of "Assistant Secretary of the Navy"

Office nameYear createdYear abolished
Assistant Secretary of the Navy (AIR)19261959
Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Installations and Logistics)c. 1960s?c. 1970s?
Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Material)c. 1950s?c. 1950s?
Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Research and Development)19591977
Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Research, Engineering and Systems)19771990
Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Shipbuilding and Logistics)1990

References

References

  1. "List of Assistant Secretary of the Navy". History.navy.mil.
  2. (2013-02-01). "Theodore Roosevelt and the Navy by The Theodore Roosevelt Association". Theodoreroosevelt.org.
Wikipedia Source

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