Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star " admiral" rank. It is often rega ...

Bradley Allen Fiske (June 13, 1854 – April 6, 1942) was an officer in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

who was noted as a technical innovator. During his long career, Fiske invented more than a hundred and thirty electrical and mechanical devices, with both naval and civilian uses, and wrote extensively on technical and professional issues; ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...

'' called him "one of the notable naval inventors of all time." One of the earliest to understand the revolutionary possibilities of naval aviation, he wrote a number of books of important effect in gaining a wider understanding of the modern Navy by the public. For inventing the

rangefinder A rangefinder (also rangefinding telemeter, depending on the context) is a device used to measure distances to remote objects. Originally optical devices used in surveying, they soon found applications in other fields, such as photography an ...

, he was awarded the

Elliott Cresson Medal The Elliott Cresson Medal, also known as the Elliott Cresson Gold Medal, was the highest award given by the Franklin Institute. The award was established by Elliott Cresson, life member of the Franklin Institute, with $1,000 granted in 1848. The ...

The Franklin Institute The Franklin Institute is a science museum and the center of science education and research in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is named after the American scientist and statesman Benjamin Franklin. It houses the Benjamin Franklin National Memori ...

in 1891.

Early life and career

Fiske was born in

Lyons, New York Lyons is a town in Wayne County, New York, United States. The population was 5,682 at the 2010 census. It is named after Lyon, France.

on 13 June 1854 to Rev. William Allen Fiske and Susan Mathews (Bradley) Fiske. He was appointed to the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy ...

from the State of Ohio in 1870, graduating four years later and receiving his commission as an Ensign in July 1875. His early service years included duty as an officer on board the steam sloops-of-war and , both on the

Pacific Station The Pacific Station was created in 1837 as one of the geographical military formations into which the Royal Navy divided its worldwide responsibilities. The South America Station was split into the Pacific Station and the South East Coast of ...

, and the paddle steamer in the Atlantic. He also received instruction in the then-young field of

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, ...

warfare. Promoted to Master in 1881 and Lieutenant in 1887, during much of that decade he had training ship duty in and , served in the South Atlantic Squadron on the steam sloop , and was twice assigned to the

Bureau of Ordnance The Bureau of Ordnance (BuOrd) was a United States Navy organization, which was responsible for the procurement, storage, and deployment of all naval weapons, between the years 1862 and 1959. History Congress established the Bureau in the Departme ...

in Washington, D.C. He married Josephine Harper on February 15, 1882 in New York and they had one daughter, Caroline Harper Fiske, in 1885. Josephine was the sister of publisher Henry S. Harper. As one of the Navy's most technically astute officers, in 1886-1888 he supervised the installation of ordnance on , one of the first of the Navy's modern steel warships. In 1888-1890 he was involved in the trials of the , whose large caliber compressed-air guns were then considered a promising experiment, and was in charge of installing electric lighting in the new cruiser .

Spanish–American War and afterward

During the rest of the 1890s, Lieutenant Fiske was mainly employed at the Bureau of Ordnance and at sea, where he was an officer of the cruiser , and the gunboats and . While serving in the latter, he took part in the

Battle of Manila Bay The Battle of Manila Bay ( fil, Labanan sa Look ng Maynila; es, Batalla de Bahía de Manila), also known as the Battle of Cavite, took place on 1 May 1898, during the Spanish–American War. The American Asiatic Squadron under Commodore ...

on 1 May 1898. Following the Spanish–American War, Fiske continued his service in Philippine waters on board the monitor .

Command assignments

During the years between the Spanish–American War and World War I, Fiske advanced rapidly in rank: to Lieutenant Commander in 1899, Commander in 1903, and Captain in 1907. He held many responsible positions on shore and at sea, serving as an Inspector of Ordnance, Executive Officer of and the battleship , Commanding Officer of the monitor and cruisers and , had recruiting duty, served as Captain of the Yard at the

Philadelphia Navy Yard The Philadelphia Naval Shipyard was an important naval shipyard of the United States for almost two centuries. Philadelphia's original navy yard, begun in 1776 on Front Street and Federal Street in what is now the Pennsport section of the ci ...

, attended the

Naval War College The Naval War College (NWC or NAVWARCOL) is the staff college and "Home of Thought" for the United States Navy at Naval Station Newport in Newport, Rhode Island. The NWC educates and develops leaders, supports defining the future Navy and associ ...

and was a member of the Navy's General Board (1911) and the Army-Navy Joint Board, among other assignments.

Flag assignments

Bradley Fiske became a Rear Admiral in August 1911, subsequently commanding three different divisions of the Atlantic Fleet as well as serving as the

Secretary of the Navy The secretary of the Navy (or SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the Department of the Navy, a military department (component organization) within the United States Department of Defense. By law, the se ...

's Aide for Inspections. In February 1913 he was appointed Aide for Operations, a post that later became that of

Chief of Naval Operations The chief of naval operations (CNO) is the professional head of the United States Navy. The position is a statutory office () held by an admiral who is a military adviser and deputy to the secretary of the Navy. In a separate capacity as a memb ...

. As Aide for Operations, Fiske forcefully advocated the creation of a Naval general staff and the elevation of the nation's preparedness for war. On November 9, 1914, Fiske sent a memorandum to then

Josephus Daniels Josephus Daniels (May 18, 1862 – January 15, 1948) was an American newspaper editor and publisher from the 1880s until his death, who controlled Raleigh's '' News & Observer'', at the time North Carolina's largest newspaper, for decades. A ...

that the U.S. Navy was not organized for warfare: "If this country avoids war during the next five years it will be accomplished only by a happy combination of high diplomatic skill and rare good fortune," the memo said, stating the Navy was short 19,600 men from its stated table of organization. Though individual ships were well-maintained and controlled, naval administration was lacking. Fiske resigned as Aide for Operations on April 1, 1915, and was replaced by Admiral

William Shepherd Benson William Shepherd Benson (25 September 1855 – 20 May 1932) was an admiral in the United States Navy and the first chief of naval operations (CNO), holding the post throughout World War I. Early life and career Born in Bibb County, Georgia ...

as the first Chief of Naval Operations.

Naval innovations

In the late 19th century, ships' guns were equipped only with open sights. Fiske, then a lieutenant on a gunboat, developed the idea of augmenting his ship's guns with a telescopic sight to improve accuracy. By 1890, he had taken out the first of several patents on his telescopic sights, which in time would be developed into the modern range finder. In 1910, while considering the problem of defending the Philippine islands, Fiske conceived of the idea of equipping aircraft with lightweight torpedoes. Fiske worked out the mechanics of carrying and releasing an

aerial torpedo An aerial torpedo (also known as an airborne torpedo or air-dropped torpedo) is a torpedo launched from a torpedo bomber aircraft into the water, after which the weapon propels itself to the target. First used in World War I, air-dropped torpe ...

from a

bomber A bomber is a military combat aircraft designed to attack ground and naval targets by dropping air-to-ground weaponry (such as bombs), launching torpedoes, or deploying air-launched cruise missiles. The first use of bombs dropped from an air ...

, and defined tactics that included a night-time approach so that the target ship would be less able to defend itself.Hopkins, Albert Allis. ''The Scientific American War Book: The Mechanism and Technique of War'', Chapter XLV: Aerial Torpedoes and Torpedo Mines. Munn & Company, Incorporated, 1915 Airplanes large enough to suit his purpose were not available until 1912, at which point Fiske was able to implement his design. Fiske reported in 1915 that, using this method, enemy fleets could be attacked within their own harbors, and remarked that he had invented not just a new weapon but an entirely new method of warfare.

Retirement and later years

Following a year at the Naval War College, Rear Admiral Fiske was retired upon reaching the age of 62 in June 1916. His professional activities continued into the mid-1920s, however, with service as President of the U.S. Naval Institute and several sessions of temporary duty with the Navy Department. In 1924, Rear Admiral Bradley A. Fiske was quoted in the New York Times stating that "the Japanese and the Americans have taken attitudes that are irreconcilable egarding the Immigration Actand such attitudes have usually preceded wars... We are prepared for war if it does come."Asada, Sadao, ''Culture Shock and Japanese-American Relations: Historical Essays''; University of Missouri Press, 2007, page 40 Among Fiske's improvements were an improved

stadimeter A stadimeter is an optical device for estimating the range to an object of known height by measuring the angle between the top and bottom of the object as observed at the device. It is similar to a sextant, in that the device is using mirrors to ...

, helm-angle indicator, engine-room telegraphs, speed and direction indicators, a turret range finder, a gun director system, and steering telegraphs. Rear Admiral Bradley A. Fiske died in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

on 6 April 1942, aged 87.

Namesake

The Navy has named two warships, , 1943–1944, and , 1945–1980, in his honor.

Bibliography

Books

* ''Electricity in Theory and Practice'' (1883) ritten while Fiske was a lieutenant* ''American Naval Policy'' (1905) ritten while Fiske was a commander* ''War Time in Manila'' (1913) * ''Preparedness of the Navy'' (1916) * ''The Navy as a Fighting Machine'' (1916) * ''From Midshipman To Rear-Admiral'' (1919) utobiography* ''The Art of Fighting'' (1920) * ''Invention, the Master-Key to Progress'' (1921)

Articles, essays, and introductions

*"The Naval Profession," United States Naval Institute Proceedings, June 1907, pp. 570–73 *Introduction to ''Textbook of Aeronautics'', by Henry Woodhose (1917). *"France", in ''For France'', by Charles Hanson Towne (1918) *Introduction to ''

Togo and the Rise of Japanese Sea Power ''Togo and the Rise of Japanese Sea Power'' is a 1936 non-fiction book by Edwin A. Falk, published by Longmans, Green and Co. Bradley A. Fiske, a former rear admiral of the U.S. Navy, gave an introduction. The book is about Tōgō Heihachirō. Pa ...

'' by Edwin A. Falk (1936) *"Electricity in Naval Life. The Steering Telegraph," ''The Electrical Engineer'', 21 October 1896: 399-401.

Gallery

File:RADM Bradley A. Fiske.JPG, File:Fourteen Retired Flag Officers.jpg, Fiske is second from the right in the back row in this photograph of 13 retired U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps flag officers taken ca. 1923. File:Flag officers Rear Admiral George C. Remey birthday 1926.jpg, Fiske is standing fifth from left in this photo of retired flag officers taken at the 85th birthday party of Rear Admiral

George C. Remey George Collier Remey (August 10, 1841 – February 10, 1928) was a rear admiral of the United States Navy, serving in the Civil War and the Spanish–American War. Early life George Collier Remey was born at Burlington, Iowa on August 10, 1841 ...

on 10 August 1926. File:Retired USN admirals 7 August 1928.jpg, Fiske is seated on the left in this 7 August 1928 photograph of retired U.S. Navy rear admirals and other retirees at Rear Admiral

Spencer S. Wood Rear Admiral Spencer Shepard Wood (7 August 1861 – 30 July 1940) was a United States Navy officer. His career included service in the Spanish–American War and World War I, command of battleships and cruisers, and duty as an aide to a numb ...

s home in Jamestown,

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...

References

;Sources *

External links

;Patents *, ''Means for regulating and controlling electric motors'' ;General * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fiske, Bradley 1854 births 1942 deaths 19th-century American inventors 20th-century American inventors American military personnel of the Spanish–American War United States Naval Academy alumni United States Navy rear admirals Naval War College alumni Burials at Arlington National Cemetery People from Lyons, New York