Samuel Shaw

Samuel Shaw was a Revolutionary War naval officer who, along with Richard Marven, were among the first whistleblowers of the infant United States. As a whistleblower, Shaw was instrumental in the Continental Congress' passage of the first whistleblower protection law in the United States.

Shaw, a midshipman, and Marven, a third lieutenant in the Continental Navy, were moved to act after witnessing the mistreatment of British prisoners of war by Commodore Esek Hopkins, then Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Navy. Shaw and Marven were both from Rhode Island, as was Hopkins, whose brother was Stephen Hopkins, Governor of the new state, and a signatory to the Declaration of Independence. For reporting the misconduct of the Navy's highest officer, Shaw and Marven were both dismissed from the Navy. Hopkins then filed a criminal libel suit against Shaw and Marven in the Rhode Island Courts.

On the second National Whistleblower Appreciation Day, Shaw was recognized as an unsung hero of American Whistleblowers. honored as one of two federal employees who created protections for those who stand for truth.