The plan of the Naval School at Fort Severn, Annapolis, Maryland, approved by the Navy Department August 28, 1846, provided that a Superintendent of the school be appointed by the Secretary of the Navy from a list of officers of a rank not higher than commander. The Superintendent was to have responsibility for the general management of the institution, including overseeing the course of study, professors, and other personnel connected with the Academy. He could appoint and remove all persons employed at the Academy except those for whose appointment or discharge special provision was made by the laws or regulations of the Navy or the Academy. He had general charge of the buildings, grounds, and ships belonging to the Academy. The Superintendent also formulated the code of rules and regulations for the internal government of the school to be submitted to the Secretary of the Navy for approval. After 1867, officers were assigned by the Navy Department to the Academy to serve as assistants or aides to the Superintendent. The Office of the Superintendent as described in the 1846 plan remained relatively unchanged throughout the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Officers of ranks higher than commander, however, have served in the position.
This series contains brigade and regimental orders issued by the Superintendent. The typed, printed, and carbon copies of orders have been bound together to form these volumes. The orders cover midshipman records; leave and liberty; infectious diseases and quarantines; deaths of officers and faculty; references to the Regulations for the Government of the Navy; congratulatory remarks for athletic performance; contests, prizes and awards; rules for informal dances, hops, and balls; charities; midshipman post-graduation orders; midshipman class privileges; midshipman rank appointments, promotions, and demotions; official warnings of academic and conduct deficiency; study periods; newspaper publications covering the Naval Academy and midshipmen; midshipman target practice performance; dismissal of midshipmen from the academy; official correspondence format and style; uniforms; travel and conduct regulations pertaining to Army-Navy football games; midshipman patronage of local establishments; mail and local postal regulations; occupancy of public quarters; board of investigation reports on midshipman misconduct; and midshipman delegations to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and other American universities. A large portion of the regimental orders pertain to midshipman misconduct and resultant disciplinary action taken by academy authorities. There is a list of subjects of orders at the beginning of volumes 554-556. Brigade orders exist for the period July 1909-September 1914. Regimental orders begin in October 1914 and continue until September 1920.
Arranged in chronological order and numbered.
Unrestricted.
Generally, materials produced by Federal agencies are in the public domain and may be reproduced without permission. Any non-government publications held herein may still be subject to copyright. For further information, consult the Head, Special Collections & Archives.
National Archives Catalog entry available electronically at:
RG 405 Records of the United States Naval Academy is the property of the National Archives and Records Administration. The materials are housed at the United States Naval Academy, William W. Jeffries Memorial Archives, an affiliated archive, as per a Memorandum of Agreement between the National Archives and Records Administration and the United States Naval Academy.
The subjects of these orders are potentially duplicated and interspersed throughout entry 51: "Orders, Circulars, Memoranda, and other Issuances of the Superintendent, 1870-1928" (NAID: 2990338). For earlier and contemporary orders, see entry 45: "Orders of Superintendent Cornelius K. Stribling, 1850-1852" (NAID: 2990281); entry 46: "Orders of the Superintendent, 1851-1865" (NAID: 2990283); entry 47: "Orders for the Suspension of Acting Midshipmen, 1856-1862" (NAID: 2990285); entry 48: "Press Copies of Orders Issued by the Superintendent, 1865-1874, 1886-1888" (NAID: 2990289); entry 49: "Orders of the Superintendent, 1874-1886" (NAID: 2990325); entry 50: "Orders Issued by the Superintendent, 1890-1905" (NAID: 2990329); entry 52: "Printed Orders, Circulars, and Notices, 1900-1903" (NAID: 2990354); entry 53: "Orders, Memoranda, and Notices, 1905-1910" (NAID:2990355); and entry 55: "Miscellaneous Directive and Memoranda, 1908-1910" (NAID: 2990357). For earlier, contemporary, and later directives issued by the Superintendent see entry 54: "Orders Issued by the Superintendent, 1907-1979" (NAID: 2990356); and entry 56: "Notices Issued by the Superintendent, 1908-1971" (NAID: 2990358). For notices issued by other units of the Superintendent's office see entry 58: "Notices Issued by the Aide to the Superintendent, 1912-1914" (NAID: 3000020).
No materials have been removed from this collection and cataloged separately.
Office of the Superintendent/Directives: Brigade and Regimental Orders, RG 405.2.2 Entry 57
Special Collections & Archives Department
Nimitz Library
United States Naval Academy
The following sources were consulted during preparation of the historical note:
This collection was processed by
Preceding the numbered sequence of brigade orders are various memoranda and general order addressing publications, academy public housing, mail, and midshipman proficiency marks; orders of note include an enclosed October 26, 1909 written apology and restitution payment from Robert J. Collier, editor of