John H . Russell , Jr . John Henry Russell , Jr . ( November 14 , 1872 – March 6 , 1947 ) was a major general and 16th Commandant of the Marine Corps . His only child was Brooke Astor , a noted philanthropist . Biography . Russell was born in Mare Island , California , the son of Rear Admiral John Henry Russell . Appointed to the United States Naval Academy by President Grover Cleveland in May 1888 , he graduated from the Academy in June 1892 and after two years at sea , passed his final examinations and was transferred to the Marine Corps as a second lieutenant on July 1 , 1894 . Upon appointment as an officer in the Marine Corps , he attended the School of Application at the Marine Barracks , Washington , D . C . , graduating in 1895 . He was retained for another year at the School to conduct a class for noncommissioned officer s . Promotion to successive grades in the Marine Corps followed : first lieutenant , August 10 , 1898 ; captain , March 3 , 1899 ; major , June 6 , 1906 ; lieutenant colonel , August 29 , 1916 ; colonel , March 26 , 1917 ; brigadier general , January 1 , 1922 ; major general , September 1 , 1933 , and Major General Commandant on March 1 , 1934 . To mention but a few of the outstanding tours of duty performed by Maj . Gen . Russell during his service in the Marine Corps the following are selected : In 1896 , he joined , North Atlantic Squadron , serving on board until after the Spanish American War . The Commanding Officer of the vessel addressed a letter to the Secretary of the Navy commenting favorably on the conduct and performance of duty of John H . Russell in action and recommending recognition thereof by the Navy Department . He next performed duty on Guam and upon his return to the United States was placed in charge of the School of Application for Officers at the Marine Barracks , Washington , D . C . Following this tour of duty , and also duty at several navy yards , he was ordered to command the Marine Detachment , USS " Oregon " , remaining on board from September 1902 to March 1904 . His next shore duty was in command of the school for young officers established at the Marine Barracks , Annapolis , Maryland . In 1906 , he was transferred to the Marine Barracks , Naval Station , Honolulu , Territory of Hawaii . From that duty he was ordered to Camp Elliott , Panama Canal Zone , to command the Marines at that station . In September 1908 , he joined the Naval War College , Newport , Rhode Island , for duty as a member of the staff of that college , remaining there until 1910 , and it was during this tour of service that the “ applicatory method ” of instruction was put into effect . He commanded the Marine Detachment , American Legation , Peking , China , from November 14 , 1910 to April 30 , 1913 . The change in the Chinese government from an empire to a republic , which took place during this period , and the attendant disorders in and around Peking made this tour of duty particularly interesting and difficult . Upon his return to the United States , he was assigned duty in the Office of Naval Intelligence , Navy Department , where he served until 1917 , with the exception of a tour of duty ( temporary ) from April 30 to December 5 , 1914 , commanding the 2d Battalion , 3d Regiment , U . S . Marines at Verz Cruz , Mexico , being detached to the U . S . Army during the period . Early in March 1917 , he assumed command of the 3rd Regiment , with headquarters in Santo Domingo City , Dominican Republic , and within a short period of time he was detached and ordered to command the 4th Regiment of Marines with headquarters at Santiago de los Caballeros , where he remained until October 1917 , when he was detached and ordered to the Republic of Haiti to command the Marine Brigade serving in that country . He served in that capacity until December 7 , 1918 . His repeated efforts for a transfer to detachments serving in France during World War I were finally successful , but delay in arrival of his relief in Haiti did not permit transfer from Port - au - Prince until after the Armistice was signed . Upon arrival in Washington , he was ordered to duty in command of the “ Planning Section ” at Headquarters Marine Corps and served in that capacity until September 1919 , when he again was ordered to duty in Haiti to command the 1st Brigade of Marines , serving in that capacity until February 1922 , when , upon the unanimous recommendation to the President by the U . S . Senate Committee that had been investigating affairs in Haiti , he was appointed American High Commissioner to Haiti with the rank of Ambassador Extraordinary . Maj . Gen . Russell served with distinction in Haiti as High Commissioner until November 1930 . Upon his return to the United States , he was assigned to duty as Commanding General , Marine Corps Base , San Diego , California , and was transferred to command the Marine Barracks , Quantico , Virginia , in December 1931 . He was detailed as Assistant to the Major General Commandant at Headquarters Marine Corps in February 1933 . Maj . Gen . Russell was appointed Commandant of the Marine Corps on March 1 , 1934 , and remained in that position until his retirement December 1 , 1936 . Presumably , Russell ave . at the west end of the MCRD San Diego parade ground was named after General Russell . During MajGen Russell ’ s tenure as Commandant of the Marine Corps , the old system of seniority promotions of officers was changed to that of advancement by selection ; the 1st Marine Brigade was withdrawn from Haiti ; the Fleet Marine Force assumed a new importance ; the Reserves were given more attention ; and the number of ships carrying Marine detachments continued to increase . Major General Russell continued in an active career as a military journalist after his retirement . He died in Coronado , California , on March 6 , 1947 and was buried in Arlington National Cemetery . Awards and decorations . In addition to numerous letters of commendation on his excellent performance of duty during his long and varied career , Maj . Gen . Russell was awarded : Namesake . USS " Russell " ( DDG - 59 ) was named for him and his father .