Ridley McLean Rear Admiral Ridley McLean , USN ( 10 November 1872 – 12 November 1933 ) was a two - star Admiral in the United States Navy . He was a Naval Academy graduate , the original author of the Navy ' s " Bluejacket ' s Manual " , and Judge Advocate General ( JAG ) . He was a battleship commander in World War I , a pioneer in naval use of shortwave communication , a submarine force and a Battleship division commander . Early life . Ridley McLean was born in Murfreesboro , Tennessee , to Thornton and Sallie ( Ridley ) McLean . Thornton , the son of Kentucky Congressman Finis Ewing McLean , was in the banking business in Pulaski . Sallie died on November 22 , 1872 , just 12 days after giving birth to her only child . Thornton and Ridley soon left for California , lived there for a decade , and returned to Murfreesboro around 1883 . Thornton died in 1887 , leaving Ridley in the care of his maternal uncle , Army Captain B . L . Ridley , and his wife . After two years at the University of Tennessee , Knoxville , Ridley was appointed to the Naval Academy by Congressman James D . Richardson , and commenced on May 20 , 1890 . Military career . Early career . After graduation from the Naval Academy in 1894 , one of McLean ' s first assignments was to the gunboat during the Reyes Rebellion in Nicaragua in February 1900 . Attached to the staff of Rear Admiral Louis Kempff on board the flagship , USS Kentucky , he participated in Boxer Rebellion in 1900 and the Philippine insurrection during 1901 - 1902 . In 1902 LT McLean wrote " The Bluejacket ' s Manual " for the United States Naval Institute , a book intended to provide information useful to new recruits and be a reference for every person in Naval service . In 1903 he contributed a chapter titled " Practical Naval Gunnery " to the " Text Book of Ordinance and Gunnery " . In 1904 he was assistant to LCDR William Sims , Inspector of target practice and in 1906 was given orders to report to the . This tour would be cut short upon receipt of new orders to the staff of the Commander in Chief of the Atlantic Fleet , Rear Admiral Charles S . Sperry . LCDR McLean was on the Admiral ' s flagship the on its tour around the world in the Great White Fleet from 1907 - 1909 . Following staff duty LCDR McLean was Atlantic Fleet ordnance officer before assuming duties as the Executive Officer on board the . In 1913 Commander McLean assumed what is normally a Captain billet as Judge Advocate General of the US Navy , a position he held until which entitled him the rank of Captain in title only . In December 1916 he received orders to become Commanding Officer of the through May 1917 . World War I . When World War I broke out Commander McLean served as Chief of Staff for the Battleship Force 1 , Atlantic Fleet under VADM Albert Grant until 1918 at which time he was chosen to become the Commanding Officer of the , escorting allied convoys . Post War . After a short tour as Commanding officer on the USS " New Hampshire " , he became the CO of the September 1918 - September 1919 . At the same time he was permanently appointed to the rank of Captain and for the next few years McLean was stationed at the Army War College in Washington D . C . From June 1922 through April 1924 Captain McLean was CO of the . Assuming the role as Director of Naval Communications in July 1924 , CAPT McLean pioneered the use of shortwave radio communications when he authorized the experiment on board the on the 1925 cruise of Australia and New Zealand . Promoted to Rear Admiral in 1927 and as Commander of Battleforce Submarines using the submarine tender as his flagship . Rear Admiral McLean fought for submarine sustainability and flexibility to fight long ways from home and for extended periods . Personal life . In November 1916 Commander McLean married Olive Gale Hill and became stepfather to her two children ( Olive Beatrice and Gale ) from a previous marriage . Death . On November 12 , 1933 at the age of 61 , Rear Admiral McLean , Commander of Battleship Division 3 died suddenly from a fatal heart attack aboard his flagship the , while at anchor in San Francisco bay . The following day funeral services were held on board the Nevada while the flagged draped coffin of the Rear Admiral lay on the deck . Crews from all 50 warships in San Francisco were summoned to stand at attention during the service . After the service was complete the Nevada steamed through Golden Gate , passing the as she fired a thirteen gun salute . His body was later interned at Arlington National Cemetery .