Orin Gould Murfin (April 13, 1876 – October 22, 1956) was an

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

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 ...

. Murfin served as the commanding officer of in 1916; , 1923–1925; and , 1928–29. During

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 ...

, he supervised U.S. mine-laying bases in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

, for which he was subsequently awarded the

Distinguished Service Medal Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a high award of a nation. Examples include: *Distinguished Service Medal (Australia) (established 1991), awarded to personnel of the Australian Defence Force for distinguished leadership in action * Distinguishe ...

. From 1931–34, Murfin was the Navy's Judge Advocate General. He also served as Commander-in-Chief,

Asiatic Fleet The United States Asiatic Fleet was a fleet of the United States Navy during much of the first half of the 20th century. Before World War II, the fleet patrolled the Philippine Islands. Much of the fleet was destroyed by the Japanese by Februar ...

, 1935–36. From there, Murfin became the commandant of the 14th Naval District, where he led the Navy's participation in the search for

Amelia Earhart Amelia Mary Earhart ( , born July 24, 1897; disappeared July 2, 1937; declared dead January 5, 1939) was an American aviation pioneer and writer. Earhart was the first female aviator to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. She set many oth ...

when her plane went missing in 1937. Born in Scioto County, Ohio, Murfin received his early education in

Jackson, Ohio Jackson is a city in and the county seat of Jackson County, Ohio, United States approximately 27 mi (43 km) SE of Chillicothe. The population was 6,239 at the 2020 census. History Established in 1817, residents named the to ...

. He then attended 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 ...

, graduating in 1897. Murfin served aboard the battleship during the

Spanish–American War , partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence , image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = (clock ...

. He retired from active duty in May 1940. Following his retirement, Murfin served as the President of the Navy Court of Inquiry following the

attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii, j ...

. The court's conclusions were regarded as too lenient by Secretary of the Navy James V. Forrestal; see

Edward C. Kalbfus Edward Clifford Kalbfus (November 24, 1877 – September 6, 1954), List of military figures by nickname#O, nicknamed "Old Dutch", was a Admiral (United States), four-star admiral in the United States Navy who was commander of the Battle Force of t ...

. Murfin and his wife Anna settled in

Coronado, California Coronado (Spanish for "Crowned") is a resort city located in San Diego County, California, United States, across the San Diego Bay from downtown San Diego. It was founded in the 1880s and incorporated in 1890. Its population was 24,697 at the ...

after his retirement. He died on October 22, 1956 at the Naval Hospital, Balboa Park in San Diego and was buried in

Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery is a federal military cemetery in the city of San Diego, California. It is located on the grounds of the former Army coastal artillery station Fort Rosecrans and is administered by the United States Department o ...

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Photo of Admiral Murfin (center)
1876 births 1956 deaths People from Scioto County, Ohio People from Jackson, Ohio United States Naval Academy alumni Military personnel from Ohio United States Navy personnel of the Spanish–American War United States Navy personnel of World War I United States Navy admirals Judge Advocates General of the United States Navy United States Navy World War II admirals Attack on Pearl Harbor Recipients of the Navy Distinguished Service Medal People from Coronado, California Burials at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery {{US-navy-bio-stub

See also

References

External links