Charles Peshall Plunkett

Charles Plunkett (center, army uniform) and Assistant Secretary of the Navy Franklin D. Roosevelt inspecting a US Navy Railway Battery in France August 1918.

Plunkett was born in Washington, D.C. and was appointed to the Naval Academy in 1879. During the Spanish–American War, he served in Admiral Dewey's Squadron at the Battle of Manila Bay. He commanded both the battleship North Dakota (BB-29) and the armored cruiser South Dakota (ACR-9), and served as Director of Target Practice and Engineering Competitions for the Navy Department before the United States entered World War I.[1]

In July 1918, he assumed command of the five Naval Railway Batteries in France. Under his direction the mobile units of 14-inch battleship guns supported the French and American armies from 6 September until the Armistice, and was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal for his service during the war. He later commanded Destroyers, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, and served as Chief of Staff at the Naval War College; as President of the Board of Inspection and Survey; and as Commandant of the New York Navy Yard and the 3rd Naval District.[1]

Retiring in 1928, Rear Admiral Plunkett died in Washington, D.C. on 24 March 1931.[1]

The Gleaves-class destroyer USS Plunkett (DD-431) was named in his honor.

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• This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.