INFORMATION TO USERS This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. UMI films the text directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter face, while others may be from any type of computer printer. The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send UMI a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to loe removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Oversize materials (e.g., maps, drawings, charts) are reproduced by sectioning the original, beginning at the upper left-hand comer and continuing from left to right in equal sections with small overlaps. Each original is also photographed in one exposure and is included in reduced form at the back of the book. Photographs included in the original manuscript have been reproduced xerographically in this copy. Higher quality 6” x 9” black and white photographic prints are available for any photographs or illustrations appearing in this copy for an additional charge. Contact UMI directly to order. UMI* Bell & Howell Information and Learning 300 North Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 USA 800-521-0600 WASHINGTON IRVING CHAMBERS: INNOVATION, PROFESSIONALIZATION, AND THE NEW NAVY, 1872-1919 DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctorof Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Stephen Kenneth Stein, B.A., M.A. ***** The Ohio State University 1999 Dissertation Committee: Approved by Dr. Allan R. Millett, Adviser Dr.JolinF.OuUmart» ^ Dr. William R. Childs Adviser Department of History UMI Number: 9S41439 UMI Microform 9941439 Copyright 1999, by UMI Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. UMI 300 North Zeeb Road Ann Arbor, MI 48103 Copyright by Stephen Kenneth Stein 1999 ABSTRACT The career of Washington Irving Chambers spans a unique and formative period in the development of the United States Navy. He entered the Naval Academy in the doldrum years of obsolete, often rotting ships, and left the Navy after it had a developed a large, world-class fleet of modem battleships and was preparing to build its first aircraft carriers. This was a critical period in the formation of a professional identity for naval officers who adopted a professional identity at the same time that changing technology forced a complete transformation of the fleet. The officers who embraced new technology were often the same ones who redefined themselves as professionals. The synergy between professionalization and technological innovation accelerated the process that washed away the old Navy and left a new one in its place. Chambers' career demonstrates the process of institutional socialization by naval officers during this period of constant flux and change, and shows an officer struggling to master new technologies while simultaneously using his mastery of technology to further his career and improve the Navy. Chambers was one of the first officers assigned to the new Office of Naval Intelligence and one of the members of the Naval War College's first permanent faculty. He designed torpedoes and several warships including a prototype Dreadnoughtstyle battleship. At the close of his career, he founded the Navy's air arm. Working with Glenn Curtiss, Chambers guided a coalition of aviation enthusiasts and pioneers, popularized aviation and convinced the Navy of its importance. Chambers helped bring about the two most momentous transformations the U. S. Navy has undergone in its history. In the first of these. Chambers iielped like-minded officers convince Congress and Ihe public of the need to adopt a new naval strategy built around a fleet of battleships. In the second. Chambers laid the groundwork for naval aviation and the eventual dethronement of the battleship by the aircraft carrier. lU To Carolyn IV ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I wish to express my sincere appreciation to Dr. Allan R. Millett for his encouragement, insight and guidance through this project Thanks also go to the other members of my advisory committee. Dr. John F. Guilmartin and Dr. William R. Childs, for their comments and suggestions. The assistance of Kathleen McDonough at the Manuscript Division of the Library of Congress, Rebecca Livingston at the National Archives, Gregory Plunges at the Northeast Regional Branch of the National Archives, Evelyn Cherpak at the Naval War College Library, and Beverly Lyall at the Nimitz Library at the U. S. Naval Academy are ail gratefully acknowledged. Without the unstinting support of my wife, Carolyn, completion of this project would have been impossible. VITA August 6, 1964.........................................................................Bom - Chicago, Illinois 1988 B.A., University of Colorado 1992..................................................................................M.A., University of Colorado HELDS OF STUDY Major Field: History Studies in American, Ancient, and Military History VI TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS................................................................................................. iv VITA................................................................................................................................... ^ INTRODUCTION.............................................................................................................. 1 CHAPTER PAGE 1. THE NAVAL ACADEMY....................................................................... 21 Midshipman Chambers .................................................................26 Hazing at the Academy .................................................................33 Summer Cruises............................................................................41 Graduation ....................................................................................43 2. EARLY CRUISES.....................................................................................47 Gallivanting Around Panama ........................................................49 Duty on the Pensacola ..................................................................51 The Portsmouth .............................................................................55 The Paris Exposition of 1878 ........................................................61 The M arion ...................................................................................62 Ordnance and Innovation ..............................................................64 The Rescue of the T rinity.............................................................67 IntelUgence Officer .......................................................................69 New lYospects...............................................................................70 3. THE GREELY RELIEF EXPEDITION...................................................73 The Greely Expedition ..................................................................74 The Relief Expedition ...................................................................77 The Voyage Home........................................................................87 Conclusion ....................................................................................91 4. THE NICARAGUAN SURVEY..............................................................95 The Surveying Expedition .......................................................... 101 The Canal Issue in the 1880s and 1890s ......................................108 Conclusion ................................................................................. 111 Vll 5. THE OFHCE OF NAVAL INTELLIGENCE........................................113 Invention ......................................................................................119 Spokesman for Reform ................................................................121 The Office of Naval Intelligence at its Peak .............................. 129 Torpedoes ............................. 130 New Ships....................................................................................131 Conclusion...................................................................................135 6. THE NEW YORK NAVY YARD.......................................................... 138 Chambers at the Yard ...................................................................141 The ABCs and the Maine .............................................................144 Tracy, Ramsay, and the Spoils System ........................................149 Ramsay’s Aide .............................................................................157 Conclusion ...................................................................................159 7. THE PETREL AND ATLANTA...............................................................162 The Squadron of Evolution ..........................................................162 The Petrel.....................................................................................165 A tlanta ..................................................................................170 8. THE NAVAL WAR COLLEGE .............................................................177 Alfred Thayer Mahan