Joseph B . Murdock Rear Admiral Joseph Ballard Murdock ( 13 February 1851 – 20 March 1931 ) , sometimes spelled Murdoch , was an officer in the United States Navy . He fought in the Spanish - American War , was Commander - in - Chief of the United States Asiatic Fleet , and came out of retirement to serve during World War I . In retirement , he was a member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives . He also was an author of books on naval and scientific subjects . Naval career . Murdock was born in Hartford , Connecticut , on 13 February 1851 , the son of The Reverend John N . Murdock and the former Martha Ballard . After an education in public schools in Boston and Cambridge , Massachusetts , he was appointed to the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis , Maryland , from the 4th Congressional District of Massachusetts on 26 July 1866 . He graduated on 7 June 1870 . Murdocks first tour was aboard the gunboat in the North Atlantic Squadron from July 1870 to November 1872 ; he was promoted to ensign on 13 July 1871 while aboard " Nipsic " . After leaving " Nipsic " , he stood for an examination and then was on leave until March 1873 . He served aboard the screw sloop - of - war in the South Atlantic Squadron from September 1873 to July 1874 and was promoted to master on 2 February 1874 while aboard " Monongahela " . He then was assigned to the screw sloop - of - war from July 1874 to July 1875 . Murdock next had duty with the United States Coast Survey – which became the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey in 1878 during his tour – from October 1875 to June 1879 . From August 1879 to September 1880 he was aboard the frigate in the Training Squadron , and he was promoted to lieutenant on 10 March 1880 while aboard " Constitution " . After a tour as an instructor at the Naval Academy from October 1880 to September 1883 , Murdock took a leave of absence until August 1884 , followed by special duty in Philadelphia , Pennsylvania , until December 1885 . He returned to sea that month , assigned to the gunboat and dispatch vessel , remaining aboard her until December 1886 , when he reported to the Naval Torpedo Station at Newport , Rhode Island , for a tour of duty that lasted until March 1888 . Murdock served aboard the screw steamer from March to April 1888 , then aboard the screw sloop - of - war in the Asiatic Squadron from April 1888 to March 1891 . He had special duty in Europe from March to November 1891 , then reported to the New York Navy Yard in Brooklyn , New York , on 2 November 1891 for electrical duty . Leaving the navy yard , Murdock served aboard the protected cruiser in the North Atlantic Squadron from April to December 1894 , then aboard the protected cruiser in the North Atlantic Squadron and the European Squadron from December 1894 to March 1897 . He was at the Naval War College in Newport , Rhode Island , from April 1897 to April 1898 , when , upon the outbreak of the Spanish - American War , he became executive officer of the troop transport and auxiliary cruiser , seeing action aboard her in the blockade of Cuba , the landing of United States Marines along the Cuban coast , and in the Battle of Santiago de Cuba before the war ended in August 1898 . Leaving " Panther " in October 1898 , Murdock returned to the Naval War College that month , being promoted to lieutenant commander on 3 March 1899 and remaining at the college until October 1899 . He was executive officer of the armored cruiser from October 1899 to November 1900 , when he returned to the Naval War College . He was promoted to commander on 16 June 1901 during this tour at the war college . Near the end of 1902 , Murdock was selected to be the commanding officer of the gunboat in the Atlantic Training Squadron . On 17 May 1904 , he became the first commanding officer of the new protected cruiser upon her commissioning at Philadelphia , Pennsylvania , and commanded her in operations along the United States East Coast and in the Caribbean until October 1905 . Murdock was promoted to captain on 22 January 1906 and on 30 April 1906 became a member of the Naval Examining Board and of the Naval Retiring Board . He was commanding officer of the battleship during the round - the - world cruise of the Great White Fleet between December 1907 and February 1909 . He returned to the New York Navy Yard to serve as both its commandant and as commander of the Third Naval District from 15 May 1909 to 21 March 1910 . and was promoted to rear admiral on 20 November 1909 . From 1910 to April 1911 he commanded the Second Division and Battleship Division Three of the United States Atlantic Fleet with the battleship as his flagship . Murdock became commander - in - chief of the United States Asiatic Fleet on 16 May 1911 . In mid - 1911 , Rear Admiral Reginald F . Nicholson was chosen to succeed Murdock as commander - in - chief of the fleet as of November 1911 , but Murdock had gained distinction in his handling of unrest in China related to the Xinhai Revolution of that year , and United States Secretary of State Philander C . Knox requested that Murdock be kept on as fleet commander - in - chief to allow continuity until the situation in China stabilized . Nicholson instead was dispatched to the Asiatic Fleet to command its Yangtze Patrol . In February 1912 , with the Chinese crisis having abated , it was again proposed that Nicholson succeed Murdock , but Knox again asked that Murdock stay on as fleet commander - in - chief . On 20 July 1912 , Nicholson finally received orders to take command of the Asiatic Fleet , and he relieved Murdock on 24 July 1912 . Returning to the United States , Murdock finished his naval career with a stint as a member of the General Board of the United States Navy and of the Joint Army and Navy Board . He retired from the Navy after 43 years of service on 13 February 1913 at the mandatory retirement age of 62 . After the United States entered World War I , however , Murdock was recalled to active Navy service to be president of the general court martial at the Portsmouth Navy Yard in Kittery , Maine . He served from 2 May 1918 until 1 May 1919 , when he resumed his retirement . Political career . Murdock had a summer home in Hill , New Hampshire , of which he had been a legal resident since 1884 , and in retirement he moved permanently to Hill and lived there for the rest of his life . He became involved in New Hampshire politics as a member of the Republican Party , and he was a member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives from 1921 to 1927 . While in office , he was Chairman of the House Committee on National Affairs and a member of the Appropriations Committee and of the Forestry Committee ( later Commission ) . Personal life . Murdock was a member of the American Philosophical Society , Franklin Institute , Union Club of Boston , Army and Navy Club of Washington , D . C . , Sons of the Revolution , and Society of Colonial Wars . He was an author who wrote papers and monographs on naval and scientific subjects such as electricity . Murdock married the former Anne Dillingham ( 25 December 1852 – 3 November 1930 ) on 26 June 1879 . She died in their home in Hill a few months before Murdocks death . Death . Murdock died in a hospital in Manchester , New Hampshire , on 20 March 1931 . He is buried with his wife at Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge and Watertown , Massachusetts .