Office of the Superintendent/Correspondence: Registers to Parts of Press Copies of Letters Sent and Letters Received by the Superintendent (Entries 3, 9, 12, 16, 22, and 23, and Entry 29), 1888-1906: Finding Aid

History of the Office of the Superintendent

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 entry contains registers to letters sent and received by Superintendents Commander William T. Sampson (1886-1890), Captain Robert L. Phythian (1890-1894), Captain Philip H. Cooper (1894-1898), Rear Admiral Frederick V. McNair (1898-1900), Commander Richard Wainwright (1900-1902), Captain Willard H. Brownson (1902-1905), and Rear Admiral James H. Sands (1905-1907).

Description of Contents

This entry consists of registers to press copies of letters sent and received by the Superintendent. Each volume registers both letters sent and received, with the exception of the volumes for 1901 and 1903-1906, in which only letters received are registered. The information given for letters sent includes name or title of addressee, subject, a summary of the letter’s contents, location or book and page numbers of the letter sent, date of the letter, and file and record number assigned to any letter received on the same subject. Few entries are found in the "action" column, and in the 1902 volume the heading "action" was replaced by bureau number under which the file numbers of all incoming bureau letters were entered.

The information for letters received is generally the same as that for letters sent. In some instances the subject of the letter has been substituted for the name of the sender. The file and record number is that of the letter received in entry 29 "Letters Received by the Superintendent, 1888-1906" (NAID: 2990061), and the book and page numbers refer to the location of the letter sent in reply. Book and page numbers have been omitted in the registers of letters received, 1902-1906. Numbers assigned by Navy Department bureaus to letters sent to the Academy ("Bureau or Letter Nos.") have been entered in the registers for 1900 and 1902-1906.

Arrangement

Arranged by year, thereunder alphabetically by initial letter or first two letters of surname or subject, thereunder by sent and received, and thereunder by month and day.

The volume numbers referred to in the registers do not correspond to the current volume numbers. A conversion table documenting the present volume numbers, the corresponding volume numbers referenced in the registers, and the entry numbers containing the volumes may be found in Appendix A: Conversion Table for Entry 2 of Records of the United States Naval Academy: Inventory of Record Group 405, compiled by Geraldine N. Phillips and Aloha South.

Access and Use

Access

Access is unrestricted.

Copyright and Permission

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.

Other Finding Aid(s)

National Archives Catalog entry available electronically at: https://catalog.archives.gov/id/2965666.

Acquisition and Appraisal

Custodial History

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.

Related Materials

Location of Copies or Alternate Formats

The pages of the registers containing the entries for letters received have been reproduced as NARA Microfilm Publication M1018, Registers of Letters Received and Letters Received by the Superintendent of the U.S. Naval Academy 1888-1906. The pages containing the entries for the letters sent have not been microfilmed.

Related Archival Material

The press copies of letters sent referenced in the register books may be found in Entry 3: "Press Copies of Letters Sent 1865-1911" (NAID: 2980540); Entry 9: "Press Copies of Letters Sent to the Secretary of the Navy 1865-1888" (NAID: 2989934); Entry 12: "Press Copies of Letters and Endorsements Sent to Bureaus of the Navy Department 1865-1908" (NAID: 2989989); Entry 16: "Press Copies of Letters Sent to the Bureau of Navigation 1883-1888" (NAID: 2989998); Entry 22: "Press Copies of Letters and Memorandums Sent to Academy Officers, Instructors, and Cadets, 1883-1908" (NAID: 2990014); and Entry 23: "Press Copies of Letters Sent to Various Public and Private Individuals 1885-1888" (NAID: 2990015).

Materials Cataloged Separately

No materials have been removed from this collection and cataloged separately.

Processing and Other Information

Preferred Citation

Office of the Superintendent/Correspondence: Registers to Parts of Press Copies of Letters Sent and Letters Received by the Superintendent, RG 405.2.1 Entry 2

Special Collections & Archives Department

Nimitz Library

United States Naval Academy

Processing Information

This collection was inventoried by Samuel Limneos in March 2019. Finding aid written by Samuel Limneos in March 2019. Historical Sketch and Scope and Content Note adapted in part from Inventory of Records Group 405 by Geraldine N. Phillips and Aloha South, 1975.

Subject Headings

Name and Subject Terms

• Cooper, Philip Henry, 1844-1912
• McNair, Frederick Vallette, 1839-1900
• Naval education -- United States
• Phythian, Robert Lees, 1835-1917
• Sampson, William Thomas, 1840-1902
• Sands, James Hoban, 1845-1911
• United States Naval Academy
• United States Naval Academy -- History -- 19th century
• United States Naval Academy. Superintendent
• Wainwright, Richard, 1849-1926

Genre Terms

• Registers (Lists)