Wat Tyler Cluverius, Jr.

Wat Tyler Cluverius Jr. (12 December 1874 – 28 October 1952) was an admiral in the United States Navy and president of Worcester Polytechnic Institute. When he died, he was the last surviving officer of the sinking of .

An 1896 graduate of the United States Naval Academy, Cluverius joined the crew of in 1897 and was on board when the ship suffered an explosion in Havana Harbor in 1898. The sinking of Maine helped precipitate the Spanish–American War, a war in which Cluverius participated on a number of ships including . During the Philippine–American War he served on the . In 1914, he took part in the United States occupation of Veracruz, commanding a battalion of bluejackets from the battleship . During World War I he commanded the minelayer USS Shawmut, laying the anti-submarine mine barrage across the North Sea, for which he was awarded the Navy Distinguished Service Medal.

Cluverius was Commandant of Midshipmen at the Naval Academy from 1919 to 1921, and attended the Naval War College from 1921 to 1922. He was aide to the Secretary of the Navy, Curtis D. Wilbur. Promoted to flag rank in 1928, he was Commandant of the Norfolk Navy Yard from 1928 to 1930, commanded Battleship Division Two the Scouting Fleet from June to November 1930, and was chief of staff to the Commander in Chief United States Fleet. He was commandant of the Ninth Naval District and the Fourth Naval District before retiring from the Navy on 1 January 1939. In retirement, Cluverius became president of Worcester Polytechnic Institute, but returned to active duty during World War II as secretary of the Naval office of Public Information and as a member of the Navy Board of Production Awards. In this capacity he was involved in the conferring of Army-Navy "E" Awards.

Naval career Wat Tyler Cluverius Jr. was born in New Orleans, Louisiana on 12 December 1874, the son of Wat Tyler Cluverius Sr., and his wife Martha Lewis née Manning. He attended Tulane University before being appointed to the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland, which he entered on 20 May 1892.

In those days, naval cadets—the rank of midshipman would not exist for a few more years—by law had to serve for two years before they were eligible to take the examinations for the rank of ensign. Therefore, after graduation from the Naval Academy in June 1896, Cluverius was posted to the cruiser . He was one of only 89 survivors, of whom 18 were officers.

Senior officers of Mine Squadron One, in the North Sea, September 1918. Cluverius is front left. The loss of Maine helped precipitate the Spanish–American War. Cluverius saw action during the conflict on a number of ships including , on which he participated in the Second Battle of Manzanillo and the bombardments of Santiago and Aquadores. Commissioned as an ensign, he served in the Philippine–American War on in 1900. He then served on the gunboat . On 5 April 1900, they were married in a ceremony at the Boston Navy Yard. Both sons in law later became admirals. After returning to the ship he became its executive officer until July 1915, when he became commander of . He was then posted back to the Naval Academy as an engineering instructor. He was awarded the Navy Distinguished Service Medal "for exceptionally meritorious service in a duty of great responsibility as Commanding Officer of the USS Shawmut, engaged in laying mines in the North Sea." He also became an Officer of the French Legion of Honor, and Officer of the Belgian Order of Leopold and a Commander of the Norwegian Order of St. Olav. He was Commandant of the Norfolk Navy Yard from 1928 to 1930, and commanded Battleship Division Two (BatDiv2) of the Scouting Fleet from June to November 1930.

Cluverius was commandant of the Ninth Naval District from 1932 to 1935. As such, he was the US Navy representative at the Century of Progress World's Fair in Chicago from 1933 to 1934. His last sea command was the Base Force, United States Fleet, from 1935 to 1937. In June 1937 he became Commandant Fourth Naval District and Philadelphia Navy Yard, a post he held until his retirement on 1 January 1939.

Later life In retirement, Cluverius became president of Worcester Polytechnic Institute, in succession to Rear Admiral Ralph Earle, a Naval Academy classmate who died in February 1939. Cluverius announced that his priority would be to complete the building program envisaged by his predecessor. He began with a footbridge which was named in Earle's memory.

Cluverius returned to active duty during World War II as secretary of the Naval office of Public Information and as a member of the Navy Board of Production Awards. In this capacity he was involved in the conferring of Army-Navy "E" Awards. In 1943, Worcester was chosen as one of the colleges in the V-12 Navy College Training Program. He returned to Worcester in 1945 after the war ended. In 1951, he oversaw the establishment of an ROTC unit on the campus.

On 28 October 1952, Cluverius was returning by train from a Navy reunion in Philadelphia when he became so seriously ill that when the train stopped in New Haven he was taken to hospital, where he died. The last surviving officer of USS Maine, he was buried in Arlington National Cemetery, with his wife Hannah, who died on 20 January 1938.

Decorations

Here is the ribbon bar of Rear admiral Wat Tyler Cluverius: