Uriel Sebree (1848–1922) was a career officer in the United States Navy. He entered the Naval Academy during the Civil War and served until 1910, retiring as a rear admiral. He is best remembered for his two expeditions into the Arctic and for serving as the second acting governor of American Samoa. He was also commander-in-chief of the Pacific Fleet. After graduating from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1867, Sebree was posted to a number of vessels before being assigned to a rescue mission to find the remaining crew of the missing Polaris in the Navy's first mission to the Arctic. This attempt was only a partial success—the Polaris crew was rescued by a Scottish ship rather than the US Navy—but this led to Sebree's selection eleven years later for a second expedition to the Arctic. That mission to rescue Adolphus Greely and the survivors of the Lady Franklin Bay expedition was a success. Sebree was subsequently appointed as the second acting governor of American Samoa. He served in this position for only a year before returning to the United States. In 1907, he was promoted to rear admiral and given command of the Pathfinder Expedition around the South American coast before being appointed commander of the 2nd Division of the Pacific Fleet and then commander-in-chief of the entire fleet. He retired in 1910 and died in Coronado, California in 1922. Two geographical features in Alaska—Sebree Peak and Sebree Island—are named for Admiral Sebree.
Read the rest of this article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uriel_Sebree
_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:
1603:
After Queen Elizabeth I died at Richmond Palace, King James VI of Scotland acceded to the throne of England, Wales and Ireland, becoming James I of England and unifying the crowns of the four kingdoms for the first time. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_I_of_England
1882:
German physician Robert Koch announced the discovery of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, a bacterium that causes tuberculosis. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/tuberculosis
1944:
World War II: Captured Allied soldiers began "the Great Escape", breaking out of the German prison camp Stalag Luft III. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stalag_Luft_III
1976:
Military leaders in Argentina led by Jorge Rafael Videla deposed President Isabel Perón in a coup d'état, established a military junta known as the National Reorganization Process, and began state-sponsored violence against dissidents known as the Dirty War. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dirty_War
1989:
The tanker Exxon Valdez spilled more than 10 million U.S. gallons of oil into Prince William Sound, Alaska, causing one of the most devastating man-made environmental disasters at sea. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exxon_Valdez_oil_spill
_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:
nidify (v): To make a nest http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/nidify
___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:
Follow the voice of your heart, even if it leads you off the path of timid souls. Do not become hard and embittered, even if life tortures you at times. There is only one thing that counts: to live one's life well and happily... --Wilhelm Reich http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Wilhelm_Reich