Office of the Superintendent/Administrative Records: Record of Examination of Candidates for Cadet Midshipmen, 1867-1873: 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.

Description of Contents

This series consists of register books maintained by the entrance examination committee representing the academy's Department of Ethics and English Studies. Each page contains the candidate's name, congressional district and state of appointment, and age in years and months. Examination data includes a 0 to 4.0 scale of merit; the number of spelling and grammar words provided in the candidate's first and second examination papers, and the number correctly and incorrectly answered; marks received during the candidate's first oral examination and full board examination in reading, writing, spelling, grammar, and geography; the candidate's first oral examination average mark; and the candidate's final qualification disposition in arithmetic and English, and any deficient branches.

Each page also contains a remarks section in which the examination board secretary annotated formal, and sometimes candid, comments about the candidate's aptitude, intelligence, demeanor and physical presence and habits, among various other aspects.

Arrangement

Arranged chronologically by date of examination, with the candidates for each examination listed numerically.

Access and Use

Access

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/3021181.

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

Related Archival Material

Similar record books containing grades received on oral and written examinations in subjects enumerated in these volumes as "arithmetic," by candidates for admission are found in Subseries 1d: Mathematics Entrance Examination Grade Books, 1867-1903 in entry 201f: "Records of the Division of Mathematics and Science, 1862-1995." Other candidate examination grades and remarks are found in entry 68: "Marks for the First Oral Examination of Candidates for Cadet Midshipmen, 1867-1870," (NAID: 3021185); entry 69: "Record of Examination of Candidates for Cadet Engineers, 1871-1873" (NAID: 3021191); entry 70: "Register of Grades Received on Examinations for Admission by Applicants for Cadet Appointments, 1873-1886" (NAID: 3021194); entry 71: "Register of Marks Received by Candidates for Appointment at Entrance Examinations, 1874-1890" (NAID: 3023070); and entry 72: "Register of Candidates Who Failed to Pass the Required Examination for Admission to the Academy, 1875-1881" (NAID: 3025145).

Materials Cataloged Separately

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

Processing and Other Information

Preferred Citation

Office of the Superintendent/Administrative Records: Record of Examination of Candidates for Cadet Midshipmen, RG 405.2.3 Entry 67

Special Collections & Archives Department

Nimitz Library

United States Naval Academy

Selected Bibliography

The following sources were consulted during preparation of the historical note:

Sweetman, Jack. The U.S. Naval Academy: An Illustrated History. Annapolis, Maryland: United States Naval Institute Press, 1979.

Processing Information

This collection was processed by Samuel Limneos in November 2021. Finding aid written by Samuel Limneos in November 2021. 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

• Naval education -- United States
• United States Naval Academy -- Admission
• United States Naval Academy – Students
• United States Naval Academy. Department of Ethics and English Studies

Genre Terms

• Registers (lists)