Robert Coontz

Robert Edward Coontz
Admiral Robert E. Coontz, USN
Born	(1864-06-11)June 11, 1864 Hannibal, Missouri
Died	January 26, 1935(1935-01-26) (aged 70) Puget Sound Naval Hospital, Bremerton, Washington
Buried at	Mount Olivet Cemetery, Hannibal, Missouri
Allegiance	United States of America
Service/branch	United States Navy
Years of service	1885–1928
Rank	Admiral
Commands held	Chief of Naval Operations Governor of Guam USS Georgia (BB-15)
Battles/wars	Spanish–American War Philippine–American War Battle of Veracruz World War I
Awards	Distinguished Service Medal Legion of Honour - Commander

Robert Edward Coontz (June 11, 1864 – January 26, 1935) was an admiral in the United States Navy, who sailed with the Great White Fleet and served as the second Chief of Naval Operations.

Robert Coontz, son of Mr. & Mrs. Benton Coontz, was born in Hannibal, Missouri. His parents were originally from Florida, Missouri where they had been neighbors and schoolmates of a young Sam Clemens. Roberts father was involved in several businesses, including owning Hannibal's streetcar system. While a young boy, Robert Coontz left his name for posterity by carving it into the rock of Mark Twain Cave, then known as McDowell's Cave. After completing his primary education in Hannibal public schools, Coontz attended Inglesile College from 1878 to 1879 and Hannibal College (now Hannibal-LaGrange University) from 1879 to 1880. Coontz asked family friend Congressman William H. Hatch for an appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy. However several other young men from the congressional district also desired the appointment so a competitive exam was arranged, which Coontz won.

Coontz graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1885 and served at the Navy Department and in several ships over the next decade, among them vessels stationed in Alaskan waters and the Great Lakes. He returned to the Navy Department late in 1894 to work on updating officer records, then was assigned to the cruiser Philadelphia, the Coast Survey and the cruiser Charleston. During the Spanish–American War the Charleston and Coontz seized control of Guam, then joined Admiral George Dewey's forces in the Philippines. Coontz would remain in the Pacific, seeing action in the Philippine–American War. Following further duty afloat and ashore, Coontz, then a Lieutenant Commander, was Executive Officer of the battleship Nebraska during the 1907–1909 world cruise of the "Great White Fleet".