Robert Coontz Robert Edward Coontz ( June 11 , 1864 – January 26 , 1935 ) was an admiral in the United States Navy , who sailed with the Great White Fleet and served as the second Chief of Naval Operations . Early life . Robert Coontz , son of Mr . & Mrs . Benton Coontz , was born in Hannibal , Missouri . His parents were originally from Florida , Missouri where they had been neighbors and schoolmates of a young Sam Clemens . Roberts father was involved in several businesses , including owning Hannibal ' s streetcar system . While a young boy , Robert Coontz left his name for posterity by carving it into the rock of Mark Twain Cave , then known as McDowell ' s Cave . After completing his primary education in Hannibal public schools , Coontz attended Inglesile College from 1878 to 1879 and Hannibal College ( now Hannibal - LaGrange University ) from 1879 to 1880 . Coontz asked family friend Congressman William H . Hatch for an appointment to the U . S . Naval Academy . However several other young men from the congressional district also desired the appointment so a competitive exam was arranged , which Coontz won . Naval career . Coontz graduated from the U . S . Naval Academy in 1885 and served at the Navy Department and in several ships over the next decade , among them vessels stationed in Alaskan waters and the Great Lakes . He returned to the Navy Department late in 1894 to work on updating officer records , then was assigned to the cruiser " Philadelphia " , the Coast Survey and the cruiser " Charleston " . During the Spanish - American War the " Charleston " and Coontz seized control of Guam , then joined Admiral George Dewey ' s forces in the Philippines . Coontz would remain in the Pacific , seeing action in the Philippine - American War . Following further duty afloat and ashore , Coontz , then a Lieutenant Commander , was Executive Officer of the battleship " Nebraska " during the 1907 – 1909 world cruise of the " Great White Fleet " . After promotion to Commander in 1909 , Coontz was Commandant of Midshipmen at the U . S . Naval Academy . In 1912 - 13 , he was Governor of Guam . Captain Coontz then served as Commanding Officer of the battleship " Georgia " , followed by duty as Commandant of the Puget Sound Navy Yard and the 13th Naval District . He held those positions until late in 1918 . Following a brief period as acting Chief of Naval Operations , Rear Admiral Coontz assumed command of a battleship division in the Atlantic . Coontz had just been assigned to the Pacific Fleet in September 1919 when he was selected to become Chief of Naval Operations , succeeding Admiral William S . Benson . Reportedly , his term as CNO was marked by unceasing pressure for economy , Congressional unhappiness over base closings , diplomatic efforts to achieve naval limitations , internal Navy Department conflicts over organization and the best ways to manage new technologies , plus the naval fallout of the Teapot Dome scandal . While dealing with these problems , Admiral Coontz established a unified United States Fleet and strengthened the CNO ' s position within the Navy Department . Relieved as CNO in mid - 1923 by Admiral Edward W . Eberle , Coontz was able to return to sea as Commander in Chief of the U . S . Fleet . In 1925 , he led the fleet on a trans - Pacific visit to New Zealand and Australia , the first massed deployment of American battleships since the " Great White Fleet " cruise nearly two decades earlier and a valuable demonstration of their strategic reach . Admiral Coontz is also acknowledged for his key role in the promotion of U . S . naval aviation . He lobbied for converting the " USS Lexington " and " USS Saratoga " from battlecruisers to aircraft carriers following the Washington Naval Treaty , ships that would prove vital for training in the inter - war years and as fighting ships during World War II . From October 1925 until his retirement in June 1928 , Coontz served as Commandant of the Fifth Naval District , reverting to the rank of Rear Admiral . Retirement and death . After retiring , Coontz wrote a memoir chronicling his early life growing up in Hannibal , Missouri and his Navy career , titled " From the Mississippi to the Sea " . A second book , " True Ancedotes of an Admiral " , was published in 1934 . Admiral Coontz was briefly recalled to active duty in 1930 to investigate railroads in Alaska . Two years later in 1932 Coontz would represent Alaska at the Democratic National Convention . It was also in 1932 that he became Commander - in - Chief of the Veterans of Foreign Wars . After suffering a series of heart attacks beginning in 1934 , Admiral Robert E . Coontz died on 26 January 1935 at the Puget Sound Naval Hospital in Bremerton , Washington . Coontz is buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery in his native Hannibal , Missouri .