John G. Crommelin
Encyclopedia
Rear Admiral
John Geraerdt Crommelin, Jr. (October 2, 1902 – November 2, 1996) was a prominent United States Navy
officer and later a frequent political
candidate who championed white supremacy
.
as eldest of five brothers, he graduated an United States Naval Academy
in Annapolis, Maryland
in 1923. Previously he grew up in Montgomery and in Elmore County, Alabama
.
He saw combat at the Pacific during World War II
. All of his brothers also graduated from the US Naval Academy and two of them were killed in action during WWII.
Crommelin earned a reputation of courageous and skillful naval aviator and nickname "bomb-run John". He served as an executive officer as well as air officer aboard the Enterprise and was chief of staff aboard the carrier Liscombe Bay when it was sunk in the Makin Island campaign off the Gilbert Islands.
In 1946, Captain Crommelin was given command of America's newest and most modern aircraft carrier of the time, the USS Saipan (CVL-48).
In 1949 he served at Navy headquarters in The Pentagon
in rank of captain. He became there a vocal critic of http://www.thebrownshoes.org/AcrobatPDF/25-Crommelin,%20John%20G..pdf military politics warning of the dangers of concentrating military authority in the hands of a few, despite being in active service. Captain Crommelin publicly complained that the Defense Department was scuttling naval air power and showing improper favor to the Air Force, and that "a Prussian General Staff system of the type employed by Hitler" was being imposed on the armed forces under unification.
Crommelin was publicly reprimanded by Admiral
Forrest P. Sherman, then Chief of Naval Operations
, for making public confidential Navy letters linking top admirals to active opposition against unification
.
In result, he was transferred to San Francisco, California
. After he continued his criticism in the face of orders to keep silent, he was ordered by Admiral Sherman to be furloughed at half pay, beginning early in 1950.
His activity and views became publicly well-known. In example in 1950 The New York Times's military affairs expert Hanson W. Baldwin
wrote that Captain Crommelin was a "stormy petrel who wouldn't shut up." Others consider him another "Eagle of the Sea" plucked by "The harpies of the shore...".
Crommelin retired from active duty with the rank of Rear Admiral in May 1950, after 30 years. He went to operate a part of his family plantation, named Harrogate Springs, in Elmore County, raising a variety of crops.
USS CROMMELIN (FFG 37), twenty-eighth ship of the Oliver Hazard Perry-class of guided-missile frigates, assigned to Destroyer Squadron 31 and homeported in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on the island of Oahu is named for the Crommelin brothers although inclusion of John G. is presently considered politically incorrect although his photograph appears with his brothers on the military website. Despite his later misguided political efforts, he is still recognized as a genuine Naval hero.
Alongside his Senatorial and Gubernatorial bids in Alabama, he was nominated for Vice President
by the minor far-right National States' Rights Party
(not to be confused with the more moderate Dixiecrat
s), as the running mate of Governor of Arkansas Orval Faubus
.
During the United States presidential election of 1968
he ran in the Democratic New Hampshire
primary, winning only 186 votes (0.34%) and finishing fifth.
None of his electoral bids was successful.
He married Lillian E. Landis in 1930, who died in 1993. They had two daughters and one son. (Social Security Death Index shows date of death as 8 February 1993.)
Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate from Alabama, 1956
Alabama gubernatorial election, 1958 (Democratic primary)
Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate from Alabama, 1960
United States presidential election, 1960
Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate from Alabama, 1962
Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate from Alabama, 1966
United States presidential election, 1968
(Democratic primaries)
Rear admiral (United States)
Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. The uniformed services of the United States are unique in having two grades of rear admirals.- Rear admiral :...
John Geraerdt Crommelin, Jr. (October 2, 1902 – November 2, 1996) was a prominent United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
officer and later a frequent political
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
candidate who championed white supremacy
White supremacy
White supremacy is the belief, and promotion of the belief, that white people are superior to people of other racial backgrounds. The term is sometimes used specifically to describe a political ideology that advocates the social and political dominance by whites.White supremacy, as with racial...
.
Early life and naval career
Born in Montgomery, AlabamaMontgomery, Alabama
Montgomery is the capital of the U.S. state of Alabama, and is the county seat of Montgomery County. It is located on the Alabama River southeast of the center of the state, in the Gulf Coastal Plain. As of the 2010 census, Montgomery had a population of 205,764 making it the second-largest city...
as eldest of five brothers, he graduated an United States Naval Academy
United States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located in Annapolis, Maryland, United States...
in Annapolis, Maryland
Annapolis, Maryland
Annapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland, as well as the county seat of Anne Arundel County. It had a population of 38,394 at the 2010 census and is situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east of Washington, D.C. Annapolis is...
in 1923. Previously he grew up in Montgomery and in Elmore County, Alabama
Elmore County, Alabama
Elmore County is a county of the State of Alabama. Its name is in honor of General John A. Elmore. As of 2010 its population was 79,303. Its county seat is Wetumpka.This county is part of the Montgomery Metropolitan Statistical Area.- History :...
.
He saw combat at the Pacific during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. All of his brothers also graduated from the US Naval Academy and two of them were killed in action during WWII.
Crommelin earned a reputation of courageous and skillful naval aviator and nickname "bomb-run John". He served as an executive officer as well as air officer aboard the Enterprise and was chief of staff aboard the carrier Liscombe Bay when it was sunk in the Makin Island campaign off the Gilbert Islands.
In 1946, Captain Crommelin was given command of America's newest and most modern aircraft carrier of the time, the USS Saipan (CVL-48).
In 1949 he served at Navy headquarters in The Pentagon
The Pentagon
The Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located in Arlington County, Virginia. As a symbol of the U.S. military, "the Pentagon" is often used metonymically to refer to the Department of Defense rather than the building itself.Designed by the American architect...
in rank of captain. He became there a vocal critic of http://www.thebrownshoes.org/AcrobatPDF/25-Crommelin,%20John%20G..pdf military politics warning of the dangers of concentrating military authority in the hands of a few, despite being in active service. Captain Crommelin publicly complained that the Defense Department was scuttling naval air power and showing improper favor to the Air Force, and that "a Prussian General Staff system of the type employed by Hitler" was being imposed on the armed forces under unification.
Crommelin was publicly reprimanded by Admiral
Admiral
Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks, of the highest naval officers. It is usually considered a full admiral and above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet . It is usually abbreviated to "Adm" or "ADM"...
Forrest P. Sherman, then Chief of Naval Operations
Chief of Naval Operations
The Chief of Naval Operations is a statutory office held by a four-star admiral in the United States Navy, and is the most senior uniformed officer assigned to serve in the Department of the Navy. The office is a military adviser and deputy to the Secretary of the Navy...
, for making public confidential Navy letters linking top admirals to active opposition against unification
Revolt of the Admirals
The Revolt of the Admirals is a name given to an episode that took place in the late 1940s in which several United States Navy admirals and high-ranking civilian officials publicly disagreed with the President and the Secretary of Defense's strategy and plans for the military forces in the early...
.
In result, he was transferred to San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
. After he continued his criticism in the face of orders to keep silent, he was ordered by Admiral Sherman to be furloughed at half pay, beginning early in 1950.
His activity and views became publicly well-known. In example in 1950 The New York Times's military affairs expert Hanson W. Baldwin
Hanson W. Baldwin
Hanson Weightman Baldwin was the long-time military editor of the New York Times. He won a Pulitzer Prize for "for his coverage of the early days of World War II". He authored or edited numerous books on military topics....
wrote that Captain Crommelin was a "stormy petrel who wouldn't shut up." Others consider him another "Eagle of the Sea" plucked by "The harpies of the shore...".
Crommelin retired from active duty with the rank of Rear Admiral in May 1950, after 30 years. He went to operate a part of his family plantation, named Harrogate Springs, in Elmore County, raising a variety of crops.
USS CROMMELIN (FFG 37), twenty-eighth ship of the Oliver Hazard Perry-class of guided-missile frigates, assigned to Destroyer Squadron 31 and homeported in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on the island of Oahu is named for the Crommelin brothers although inclusion of John G. is presently considered politically incorrect although his photograph appears with his brothers on the military website. Despite his later misguided political efforts, he is still recognized as a genuine Naval hero.
Political activity
Although he was widely praised and credited for his courage in speaking out for his views and for his previous distinguished combat career, Crommelin's reputation suffered from his later political involvement.Alongside his Senatorial and Gubernatorial bids in Alabama, he was nominated for Vice President
Vice President of the United States
The Vice President of the United States is the holder of a public office created by the United States Constitution. The Vice President, together with the President of the United States, is indirectly elected by the people, through the Electoral College, to a four-year term...
by the minor far-right National States' Rights Party
National States' Rights Party
National States' Rights Party was a far right, white supremacist party that briefly played a minor role in the politics of the United States.-Foundation:...
(not to be confused with the more moderate Dixiecrat
Dixiecrat
The States' Rights Democratic Party was a short-lived segregationist political party in the United States in 1948...
s), as the running mate of Governor of Arkansas Orval Faubus
Orval Faubus
Orval Eugene Faubus was the 36th Governor of Arkansas, serving from 1955 to 1967. He is best known for his 1957 stand against the desegregation of Little Rock public schools during the Little Rock Crisis, in which he defied a unanimous decision of the United States Supreme Court by ordering the...
.
During the United States presidential election of 1968
United States presidential election, 1968
The United States presidential election of 1968 was the 46th quadrennial United States presidential election. Coming four years after Democrat Lyndon B. Johnson won in a historic landslide, it saw Johnson forced out of the race and Republican Richard Nixon elected...
he ran in the Democratic New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
primary, winning only 186 votes (0.34%) and finishing fifth.
None of his electoral bids was successful.
He married Lillian E. Landis in 1930, who died in 1993. They had two daughters and one son. (Social Security Death Index shows date of death as 8 February 1993.)
Electoral history
Alabama United States Senate election, 1950- J. Lister HillJ. Lister HillJoseph Lister Hill was a Democratic U.S. Senator from the state of Alabama. He was elected to fill the term left by the resignation of Dixie Bibb Graves and was reelected five times, serving in the Senate from January 11, 1938 until January 3, 1969...
(D) (inc.) – 125,534 (76.54%) - John G. Crommelin (Independent) – 38,477 (23.46%)
Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate from Alabama, 1956
- J. Lister HillJ. Lister HillJoseph Lister Hill was a Democratic U.S. Senator from the state of Alabama. He was elected to fill the term left by the resignation of Dixie Bibb Graves and was reelected five times, serving in the Senate from January 11, 1938 until January 3, 1969...
(inc.) – 247,519 (68.20%) - John G. Crommelin – 115,440 (31.81%)
Alabama gubernatorial election, 1958 (Democratic primary)
- John Malcolm PattersonJohn Malcolm PattersonJohn Malcolm Patterson is an American politician who was the 44th Governor of Alabama, from 1959 to 1963. Previously he served as State Attorney General ....
– 196,859 (31.82%) - George WallaceGeorge WallaceGeorge Corley Wallace, Jr. was the 45th Governor of Alabama, serving four terms: 1963–1967, 1971–1979 and 1983–1987. "The most influential loser" in 20th-century U.S. politics, according to biographers Dan T. Carter and Stephan Lesher, he ran for U.S...
– 162,435 (26.26%) - Jimmy FaulknerJimmy FaulknerJimmy Faulkner was one of Ireland's top guitarists, who in a four-decade career played with many of Ireland's leading rock, blues, folk and jazz musicians....
– 91,512 (14.79%) - A.W. Todd – 59,240 (9.58%)
- Laurie Battle – 38,955 (6.30%)
- George Hawkins – 24,332 (3.93%)
- C.C. Owen – 15,270 (2.47%)
- Karl Harrison – 12,488 (2.02%)
- Billy WalkerBilly WalkerWilliam Henry "Billy" Walker was a prominent English footballer of the 1920s and 1930s. He is considered by many to be the greatest footballer to ever play for Aston Villa Football Club-Biography:...
– 7,963 (1.29%) - W.E. Dodd – 4,753 (0.77%)
- John G. Crommelin – 2,245 (0.36%)
- Shearen Elebash – 1,177 (0.19%)
- James Gulatte – 798 (0.13%)
- Shorty PriceShorty PriceRalph "Shorty" Price, was an attorney and perennial political candidate from the state of Alabama, mostly noted for his colorful "clown" persona....
– 655 (0.11%)
Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate from Alabama, 1960
- John SparkmanJohn SparkmanJohn Jackson Sparkman was an American politician from the state of Alabama. A conservative Southern Democrat, Sparkman served in the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate from 1937 until 1979. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for Vice President as Adlai Stevenson's running mate in...
(inc.) – 335,722 (86.68%) - John G. Crommelin – 51,571 (13.32%)
United States presidential election, 1960
United States presidential election, 1960
The United States presidential election of 1960 was the 44th American presidential election, held on November 8, 1960, for the term beginning January 20, 1961, and ending January 20, 1965. The incumbent president, Republican Dwight D. Eisenhower, was not eligible to run again. The Republican Party...
- John F. KennedyJohn F. KennedyJohn Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
/Lyndon B. JohnsonLyndon B. JohnsonLyndon Baines Johnson , often referred to as LBJ, was the 36th President of the United States after his service as the 37th Vice President of the United States...
(D) – 34,220,984 (49.9%) and 303 electoral votes (22 states carried) - Richard NixonRichard NixonRichard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
/Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr.Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr.Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr. was a Republican United States Senator from Massachusetts and a U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, South Vietnam, West Germany, and the Holy See . He was the Republican nominee for Vice President in the 1960 Presidential election.-Early life:Lodge was born in Nahant,...
(R) – 34,108,157 (49.5%) and 219 electoral votes (26 states carried) - Harry F. ByrdHarry F. ByrdHarry Flood Byrd, Sr. of Berryville in Clarke County, Virginia, was an American newspaper publisher, farmer and politician. He was a descendant of one of the First Families of Virginia...
/Strom ThurmondStrom ThurmondJames Strom Thurmond was an American politician who served as a United States Senator. He also ran for the Presidency of the United States in 1948 as the segregationist States Rights Democratic Party candidate, receiving 2.4% of the popular vote and 39 electoral votes...
/Barry GoldwaterBarry GoldwaterBarry Morris Goldwater was a five-term United States Senator from Arizona and the Republican Party's nominee for President in the 1964 election. An articulate and charismatic figure during the first half of the 1960s, he was known as "Mr...
(Independents) – 15 electoral votes (MississippiMississippiMississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
and AlabamaAlabamaAlabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
unpledged and faithless electors from OklahomaOklahomaOklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
) - Unpledged electors (D) – 286,359 (0.4%) and 0 electoral votes
- Eric HassEric HassEric Hass was a four-time candidate for United States President of the Socialist Labor Party of America.-State elections:In 1942, he ran for New York State Attorney General.In 1944, he ran for U.S...
/Georgia CozziniGeorgia CozziniGeorgia Cozzini was an American socialist politician. She is best remembered as the first woman to run for Governor of Wisconsin and for two consecutive runs as the Vice Presidential candidate of the Socialist Labor Party of America, appearing on the ballot in 1956 and 1960.-Early years:Georgia...
(Socialist Labor) – 47,522 (0.07%) - Rutherford L. Decker/Earle Harold Munn (Prohibition PartyProhibition PartyThe Prohibition Party is a political party in the United States best known for its historic opposition to the sale or consumption of alcoholic beverages. It is the oldest existing third party in the US. The party was an integral part of the temperance movement...
) -–46,203 (0.07%) - Orval E. Faubus/John G. Crommelin (National States' Rights PartyNational States' Rights PartyNational States' Rights Party was a far right, white supremacist party that briefly played a minor role in the politics of the United States.-Foundation:...
) – 44,984 (0.07%)
Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate from Alabama, 1962
- J. Lister HillJ. Lister HillJoseph Lister Hill was a Democratic U.S. Senator from the state of Alabama. He was elected to fill the term left by the resignation of Dixie Bibb Graves and was reelected five times, serving in the Senate from January 11, 1938 until January 3, 1969...
(inc.) – 363,613 (73.71%) - Donald G. Hallmark – 72,855 (14.77%)
- John G. Crommelin – 56,822 (11.52%)
Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate from Alabama, 1966
- John SparkmanJohn SparkmanJohn Jackson Sparkman was an American politician from the state of Alabama. A conservative Southern Democrat, Sparkman served in the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate from 1937 until 1979. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for Vice President as Adlai Stevenson's running mate in...
(inc.) – 378,295 (56.98%) - Frank E. Dixon – 133,139 (20.05%)
- John G. Crommelin – 114,622 (17.26%)
- Margaret E. Stewart – 37,889 (5.71%)
United States presidential election, 1968
United States presidential election, 1968
The United States presidential election of 1968 was the 46th quadrennial United States presidential election. Coming four years after Democrat Lyndon B. Johnson won in a historic landslide, it saw Johnson forced out of the race and Republican Richard Nixon elected...
(Democratic primaries)
- Eugene McCarthyEugene McCarthyEugene Joseph "Gene" McCarthy was an American politician, poet, and a long-time member of the United States Congress from Minnesota. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1949 to 1959 and the U.S. Senate from 1959 to 1971.In the 1968 presidential election, McCarthy was the first...
– 2,914,933 (38.73%) - Robert Kennedy – 2,305,148 (30.63%)
- Stephen M. YoungStephen M. YoungStephen Marvin Young was an American politician of the Democratic Party from Ohio. He was a United States Senator from Ohio from 1958 until 1971....
– 549,140 (7.30%) - Lyndon B. JohnsonLyndon B. JohnsonLyndon Baines Johnson , often referred to as LBJ, was the 36th President of the United States after his service as the 37th Vice President of the United States...
– 383,590 (5.10%) - Thomas C. LynchThomas C. LynchThomas Conner Lynch was an American lawyer who served as District Attorney in San Francisco and then as Attorney-General of California from 1964 to 1971. He was appointed to the post by Governor Edmund G. Brown in 1964 to replace Stanley Mosk, whom Brown had appointed to the state Supreme Court...
– 380,286 (5.05%) - Roger D. BraniginRoger D. BraniginRoger Douglas Branigin was the 42nd Governor of the U.S. state of Indiana from January 11, 1965 to January 13, 1969...
– 238,700 (3.17%) - George SmathersGeorge SmathersGeorge Armistead Smathers was an American lawyer and politician who represented the state of Florida in the United States Senate for eighteen years, from 1951 until 1969, as a member of the Democratic Party.-Early life:...
– 236,242 (3.14%) - Hubert HumphreyHubert HumphreyHubert Horatio Humphrey, Jr. , served under President Lyndon B. Johnson as the 38th Vice President of the United States. Humphrey twice served as a United States Senator from Minnesota, and served as Democratic Majority Whip. He was a founder of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party and...
– 166,463 (2.21%) - Unpledged – 161,143 (2.14%)
- Scott Kelly – 128,899 (1.71%)
- George WallaceGeorge WallaceGeorge Corley Wallace, Jr. was the 45th Governor of Alabama, serving four terms: 1963–1967, 1971–1979 and 1983–1987. "The most influential loser" in 20th-century U.S. politics, according to biographers Dan T. Carter and Stephan Lesher, he ran for U.S...
– 34,489 (0.46%) - Richard NixonRichard NixonRichard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
(write-in) – 13,610 (0.18%) - Ronald ReaganRonald ReaganRonald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
(write-in) – 5,309 (0.07%) - Ted KennedyTed KennedyEdward Moore "Ted" Kennedy was a United States Senator from Massachusetts and a member of the Democratic Party. Serving almost 47 years, he was the second most senior member of the Senate when he died and is the fourth-longest-serving senator in United States history...
– 4,052 (0.05%) - Paul C. FisherPaul C. FisherPaul C. Fisher was an American inventor and politician. He invented the Fisher Space Pen. He held the patent for this invention, which is the most lucrative in the history of pens.-The Fisher Space Pen:...
– 506 (0.01%) - John G. Crommelin – 186 (0.00%)