Benjamin Franklin Tilley

Benjamin Franklin Tilley
Benjamin Franklin Tilley
Born	(1848-03-29)March 29, 1848 Bristol, Rhode Island, United States
Died	March 18, 1907(1907-03-18) (aged 58) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Allegiance	United States
Service/branch	United States Navy
Years of service	1863–1907
Rank	Rear Admiral
Commands held	USS Bancroft USS Newport USS Vicksburg USS Abarenda USS Iowa Commandant of U.S. Naval Station Tutuila Commandant of League Island Naval Yard
Other work	Acting-Governor of American Samoa

Benjamin Franklin Tilley (March 29, 1848 – March 18, 1907), often known as B. F. Tilley, was a career officer in the United States Navy who served from the end of the American Civil War through the Spanish–American War. He is best remembered as the first Acting-Governor of American Samoa, as well as the territory's first Naval governor.

Tilley entered the United States Naval Academy during the height of the Civil War, graduating after the conflict. He gradually rose through the ranks and participated as a lieutenant in the United States military crackdown against workers in the wake of the Great Railroad Strike of 1877. He and a small contingent of sailors and marines defended the American consulate in Santiago, Chile during the 1891 Chilean Civil War. He was a commander during the Spanish–American War, and his gunship USS Newport successfully captured two Spanish Navy ships. After the war, Tilley was made the first acting-Governor of Tutuila and Manua (later called American Samoa) and set legal and administrative precedents for the new territory. Near the conclusion of his 41 years of service, he was promoted to rear admiral, but died shortly afterwards from pneumonia.

Benjamin Franklin Tilley was born March 29, 1848 in Bristol, Rhode Island, the sixth of nine children. He enrolled in the United States Naval Academy on September 22, 1863 at the age of 15 and in the midst of the American Civil War. The war forced the school to relocate from Annapolis, Maryland, threatened by the Confederacy, to Newport, Rhode Island. In 1866, he graduated first in his class, going on to serve as a midshipman first on board USS Franklin and then USS Frolic. He spent three years serving on board Frolic, eventually being promoted to ensign. His next assignment was on board USS Lancaster, where he was promoted to master in 1870 and then to lieutenant in 1871. From 1872 to 1875, he served on board USS Pensacola in the South Pacific. After Pensacola, he served briefly on board USS New Hampshire and then spent two years serving on USS Hartford.