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Stephen Bleecker Luce

Luce, Stephen B.

The Oxford Companion to American Military History | 2000 | | Copyright

Luce, Stephen B. (1827–1917), naval officer, reformer, and founder of the Naval War College.Born in Albany, New York, Stephen Luce became a naval midshipman in 1841 and spent six years at sea, before being appointed to the Naval Academy at Annapolis. Graduating in 1849, Luce's experience caused him to think about improving naval training and education, and he became an instructor of seamanship and gunnery at Annapolis in 1860. During the Civil War, Luce alternated between the academy and participating in the Union blockade of the Confederacy.

After the war, Luce experimented with training reforms, corresponding with Gen. Emory Upton and observing Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman's efforts to establish an army postgraduate school system. Luce's efforts resulted in the establishment of the Naval War College at Newport in 1884. He was its president from 1884 to 1886, when, promoted rear admiral, he turned the college over to his friend and protégé, Capt. Alfred T. Mahan, and took command of the North Atlantic Station until his retirement in 1889. Luce continued to write, served as president of the Naval Institute, and later rejoined the Naval War College staff.

While not as intellectual as Mahan, Luce was a reformer and a practical sailor, who saw education as a way to harness technology. Luce influenced a generation of officers and played a crucial role in American military education.

Bibliography

Albert Gleaves , Life and Letters of Stephen B. Luce: Rear Admiral, U.S.N., Founder of the Naval War College, 1925.
Ronald Spector , Professor of War: The Naval War College and the Development of the Naval Profession, 1977.
James L. Abrahamson , America Arms for a New Century, 1981.

Steven C. Gravlin
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John Whiteclay Chambers II. "Luce, Stephen B." The Oxford Companion to American Military History. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 1 Jun. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

John Whiteclay Chambers II. "Luce, Stephen B." The Oxford Companion to American Military History. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (June 1, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O126-LuceStephenB.html

John Whiteclay Chambers II. "Luce, Stephen B." The Oxford Companion to American Military History. 2000. Retrieved June 01, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O126-LuceStephenB.html

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Stephen Bleecker Luce

The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed. | 2011 | Copyright

Stephen Bleecker Luce 1827–1917, American naval officer, b. Albany, N.Y. He entered the navy as a midshipman in 1841. In the Civil War he was head of the department of seamanship at the Naval Academy (then at Newport, R.I.) and served on blockade duty off the South Carolina coast. After the war he was commandant (1865–68) of midshipmen at Annapolis and saw varied service afloat and ashore. It was largely owing to his efforts that the naval war college was established at Newport in 1884. He was its first superintendent (1884–86). Promoted rear admiral in 1886, he was retired in 1889. Luce's Seamanship (1863), which went through many editions, was long an authoritative text.

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"Stephen Bleecker Luce." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 1 Jun. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

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"Stephen Bleecker Luce." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved June 01, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Luce-Ste.html

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Luce, Stephen Bleeker

The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military | 2001 | Copyright

Luce, Stephen Bleeker (1827–1917) career naval officer, born in Albany, New York. Luce was a leader and catalyst for the development of professional education and training in the U.S. Navy, and responsible for the establishment of the Naval War College (1884). He lobbied for its existence, recruited its faculty, and served as its first president (1885–86). Luce was recalled to active duty in 1901, returning to the staff of the Naval War College, where he remained until 1910.
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"Luce, Stephen Bleeker." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 1 Jun. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"Luce, Stephen Bleeker." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (June 1, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-LuceStephenBleeker.html

"Luce, Stephen Bleeker." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Retrieved June 01, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-LuceStephenBleeker.html

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