Louis McCoy Nulton Louis McCoy Nulton ( August 8 , 1869 - November 10 , 1954 ) was a four - star admiral in the United States Navy who was superintendent of the U . S . Naval Academy from 1925 to 1928 and commander of the Battle Fleet from 1929 to 1930 . Early career . He was born in Winchester , Virginia to Annie Clark and Colonel Joseph Nulton , a prominent Virginian who commanded Confederate troops during the American Civil War and subsequently commanded for many years the Old Second Virginia Regiment , National Guard . Appointed to the U . S . Naval Academy in 1885 at the age of 16 , he graduated seventh in the class of 1889 and served his initial sea duty as a passed cadet aboard the protected cruiser " Chicago " . His early assignments included service aboard the battleship " Texas " , followed by duty as executive officer of the auxiliary cruiser " Panther " , as ordnance officer of the battleship " Ohio " , and as executive officer of the battleship " Wisconsin " . He served two tours as an instructor at the U . S . Naval Academy and a third tour as commandant of midshipmen , and compiled one of the technical dictionaries used at the Academy . His first command was the gunboat " Nashville " in 1913 , followed by the armored cruiser " Montana " . In 1914 , while commanding " Montana " , he led landing parties ashore during the United States occupation of Veracruz . In 1918 he was given command of the Atlantic Fleet battleship " Pennsylvania " , and served as " Pennsylvania " ' s captain when it escorted President Woodrow Wilson to and from the Paris Peace Conference . Flag officer . He became commandant of the Philadelphia Navy Yard on September 22 , 1920 and was promoted to rear admiral the following year . In late 1921 , he unsuccessfully tried to save the partially completed battlecruiser " Constitution " from being scrapped by accelerating its construction schedule using funds he had illegally transferred from the construction and repair of other vessels , and by lobbying for " Constitution " ' s conversion into an aircraft carrier . He was sent to sea in 1923 as commander of Battleship Division Three ( " New York " , " Texas " , " Oklahoma " , " Nevada " ) . He was superintendent of the U . S . Naval Academy from February 1925 to June 1928 . In spring 1928 , he was again ordered to sea as Commander Battleship Divisions , Battle Fleet ( COMBATDIVS ) , with the temporary rank of vice admiral , flying his three - star flag aboard the battleship " West Virginia " from June 26 , 1928 to May 20 , 1929 . He was promoted to the temporary rank of full admiral as Commander Battle Fleet ( COMBATFLT ) on May 21 , 1929 , succeeding Admiral William V . Pratt , who had been elevated to Commander in Chief , United States Fleet ( CINCUS ) . As COMBATFLT , Nulton was the second most senior officer afloat , and selected the battleship " California " as his new flagship as a compliment to that state . On January 9 , 1930 , Pratt sailed from New York as a delegate to the London Naval Conference , leaving Nulton to act in his stead from the date of Pratt ' s departure until his return in May 1930 . As acting CINCUS , Nulton commanded the combined fleets during the winter maneuvers in the Caribbean . Relieved by Admiral Frank H . Schofield on May 24 , 1930 , Nulton reverted to his permanent rank of rear admiral and was assigned as commandant of the First Naval District . He retired from the Navy on September 1 , 1933 upon reaching the statutory retirement age . Personal life . He married the former Minnie Clark Evans on September 5 , 1895 and they had two daughters . In retirement , he and his wife resided in Winchester , Virginia from 1933 to 1946 . He died on November 11 , 1954 at his home in Maysville , Kentucky , and was buried in the U . S . Naval Academy Cemetery in Annapolis , Maryland . His decorations include the Navy Cross , awarded for exceptionally meritorious service as commandant of midshipmen at the U . S . Naval Academy and later as commanding officer of " Pennsylvania " . As commander of the battleship divisions of the Pacific Fleet in 1929 , he was commended in a letter from President Herbert Hoover for " attain [ ing ] the highest merit in battle efficiency of any division of its class . " A collection of Nulton family genealogical material and memorabilia from Nulton ' s naval career is archived at the Handley Regional Library in Winchester , Virginia .