Brownson, Willard H. (Willard Herbert), 1845-1935

U.S. naval officer.

U.S. navy officer.

Rear Admiral, U.S. Navy.

Willard Brownson was born in Lyons, New York on 8 July 1845. After attending Lyons Union School he was appointed to the Naval Academy in 1861 and graduated in 1865. He served in the North Atlantic Squadron until 1868 when he was assigned to the Pacific Fleet. During his tour of duty on USS Mohican, Brownson and a detachment of men destroyed the pirate ship Forward in Mexican waters. In 1872, he reported for duty at the Navy Academy's Department of Mathematics. Three years later the young Lieutenant was sent to the Asiatic Fleet. Brownson returned to the Naval Academy in 1878 as Assistant Commandant of Cadets. In 1881, he was ordered to the Coast and Geodetic Survey as a Lieutenant Commander where he commanded the ship Blake until 1884. After brief duty as executive officer of USS Powhatan, he was named Inspector of Hydrography for the Coast Survey. From 1889 to 1894 he commanded several ships, including USS Detroit, and was promoted to Commander in 1891. After a return to the Naval Academy as Commandant of Cadets, Brownson served for two years on the Board of Inspection and Survey. In 1899 he achieved the rank of Captain and command of the battleship Alabama, and from 1902 to 1905 was Superintendent of the Naval Academy. Brownson was promoted to Rear Admiral in 1905. He served as Commander, Special Service Squadron in Central American Waters and the Commander-in-Chief of the Asiatic Fleet. In 1907, he was assigned as Chief of the Bureau of Navigation, which handled the Navy's personnel matters. In July of that year, he was transferred to the retired list, but continued to serve in his post at the Bureau of Navigation until December. That same month, President Theodore Roosevelt decided to give command of hospital ships to Navy doctors, against the advice of Brownson, who then resigned from the Navy.

Biographical Note