George Washington Williams (

Yorkville, South Carolina York is a city in and county seat of York County, South Carolina, United States. The population was approximately 6,985 at the 2000 census and up to 7,736 at the 2010 census. York is located approximately southwest of Charlotte, North Caroli ...

, 30 July 1869 – Charleston, South Carolina, 18 July 1925) was a U.S. Navy rear admiral.

Navy career

Williams graduated from 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 ...

in 1890. He served the required two years of sea duty in ''Pensacola'', before he was commissioned an

ensign An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be diffe ...

on 1 July 1892.

Late 19th century/early 20th century assignments

Williams served in a succession of sea and shore billets throughout the 19th century: the former in USS ''Essex'', ''Columbia'', ''Yankee'', ''Buffalo'', ''Panther'', ''Richmond'', and ''Monongahela''; the latter at the Naval Torpedo Station,

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is an American seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, and northeast of New Yor ...

. In addition, he served on the staff of the Commander in Chief, Asiatic Fleet, in 1899 and commanded the

torpedo boat A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval ship designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs were steam-powered craft dedicated to ramming enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes. Later evolutions launched variants of ...

''Bainbridge'' in 1903 before commanding the 1st Torpedo Boat Flotilla. Reporting to ''Wisconsin'' on 5 April 1905, Williams subsequently joined the

protected cruiser Protected cruisers, a type of naval cruiser of the late-19th century, gained their description because an armoured deck offered protection for vital machine-spaces from fragments caused by shells exploding above them. Protected cruisers re ...

''Chicago'' for a tour of duty which included participating in relief efforts at

San Francisco, California San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

, in the wake of the destructive

San Francisco earthquake At 05:12 Pacific Standard Time on Wednesday, April 18, 1906, the coast of Northern California was struck by a major earthquake with an estimated moment magnitude of 7.9 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (''Extreme''). High-intensity sha ...

and fire which destroyed much of that city. In the years immediately preceding

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Williams served as

ordnance Ordnance may refer to: Military and defense *Materiel in military logistics, including weapons, ammunition, vehicles, and maintenance tools and equipment. **The military branch responsible for supplying and developing these items, e.g., the Unit ...

officer in ''Montana'' (

Armored Cruiser The armored cruiser was a type of warship of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was designed like other types of cruisers to operate as a long-range, independent warship, capable of defeating any ship apart from a battleship and fast eno ...

No. 13); commander of the Atlantic Torpedo Fleet; Inspector of Ordnance in Charge at the Naval Torpedo Station; commanding officer of the cruiser ''Cleveland'' and later of battleship ''Oregon'', before he assumed command of ''Pueblo'', (Armored Cruiser No. 7) on 29 April 1917. He admired the

Czechoslovak Legion The Czechoslovak Legion (Czech language, Czech: ''Československé legie''; Slovak language, Slovak: ''Československé légie'') were volunteer armed forces composed predominantly of Czechs and Slovaks fighting on the side of the Allies of World ...

's holding

Kazan Kazan ( ; rus, Казань, p=kɐˈzanʲ; tt-Cyrl, Казан, ''Qazan'', IPA: ɑzan is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan in Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Volga and the Kazanka rivers, covering an ...

against the Bolshevik army, and gave a report about it to T. G. Masaryk in America in August 1918.Preclík, Vratislav. Masaryk a legie (Masaryk and legions), váz. kniha, 219 pages, first issue vydalo nakladatelství Paris Karviná, Žižkova 2379 (734 01 Karvina, Czech Republic) ve spolupráci s Masarykovým demokratickým hnutím (Masaryk Democratic Movement, Prague), 2019, , pages 36 - 39, 41 - 42, 106 - 107, 111-112, 124–125, 128, 129, 132, 140–148, 184–199.

Awarded the Navy Cross

Williams — by that time a captain — was awarded the

Navy Cross The Navy Cross is the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps' second-highest military decoration awarded for sailors and marines who distinguish themselves for extraordinary heroism in combat with an armed enemy force. The medal is eq ...

for "distinguished service in the line of his profession" while commanding ''Pueblo'' during

, as the armored cruiser engaged in the "important, exacting, and hazardous duty of transporting and escorting troops and supplies to

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

an ports through waters infested with enemy submarines and mines."

Commanding the USS ''New Mexico''

Detached from ''Pueblo'' on 6 September 1918, Williams participated in fitting out the new dreadnaught ''Idaho'' (Battleship No. 42) and later served ashore in the

Office of Naval Intelligence The Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI) is the military intelligence agency of the United States Navy. Established in 1882 primarily to advance the Navy's modernization efforts, it is the oldest member of the U.S. Intelligence Community and serve ...

. He took 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 ...

course in 1919 and 1920 before commanding the new dreadnaught ''New Mexico'' (BB-40) from 31 May 1921 to 18 May 1922. After detachment from ''New Mexico'', Williams became the senior member of the Pacific Coast section of the

Board of Inspection and Survey The Board of Inspection and Survey (INSURV) is a United States Navy organization whose purpose is to inspect and assess the material condition of U.S. Navy vessels. The Board is currently headquartered at Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek, Virgin ...

Commandant of the 6th Naval District

Reaching flag rank on 29 September 1922, Williams served as Chief of Staff to the Commander in Chief, Atlantic Fleet, and later as the Chief of Staff to the Commander in Chief, United States Fleet, when the former command was reorganized. Detached from this duty in the spring of 1923, Williams subsequently served at Charleston, South Carolina, as the commandant of the

6th Naval District The naval district was a U.S. Navy military and administrative command ashore. Apart from Naval District Washington, the Districts were disestablished and renamed Navy Regions about 1999, and are now under Commander, Naval Installations Comman ...

before breaking his two-star flag in ''Concord'' (CL-10) on 15 September 1924 as Commander, Destroyer Squadrons, Scouting Fleet.

Final days

Rear Admiral Williams died on 18 July 1925 at the Naval Hospital, Charleston, South Carolina.

Namesakes

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, the

destroyer escort Destroyer escort (DE) was the United States Navy mid-20th-century classification for a warship designed with the endurance necessary to escort mid-ocean convoys of merchant marine ships. Development of the destroyer escort was promoted by th ...

USS ''Williams'' (DE-290) was named for Rear Admiral Williams. Her construction was cancelled in 1944. In 1944, the destroyer escort USS ''Williams'' (DE-372) was named in his honor. She was in commission from 1944 to 1946.

References

: {{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, George Washington United States Navy admirals Recipients of the Navy Cross (United States) 1869 births 1925 deaths People from York, South Carolina United States Naval Academy alumni United States Navy personnel of World War I