GEORGE A. TREVER, LCDR, USN
George Trever '09
Lucky Bag
From the 1909 Lucky Bag:
George Arthur Trever
Whitewater, Wisconsin
"Gawge," "Bull"
A side partner of Kodak Kate, who taught him his trade (specifications for her court-martial are being prepared). It is said the camera never lies, but you should see some of George's pictures. Of course, it is the camera's fault. Spends part of his time swapping quarters with Yost for five-cent cigars, but most of his time is devoted to making life unbearable for the Post-Office Department. Put in a req. Second Class year for an extension on his locker door, and as soon as this was granted, opened up negotiations for a box car to transport one of Buffham's Best. One of the old Eighth Company, the leader of the gang and always ready for anything. Never let him get a joke on you if you expect any peace in this life, for you'll never hear the last of it. An inveterate fumer—especially of those five-cent ones. Had ambition to appear as a coachman on the Chi until the executive made him change his course. Don't wait for him to tell you anything—it takes him too long.
A quiet old man who may be seen earnestly talking with Ben on his return from each formation.
Buzzard.
George Arthur Trever
Whitewater, Wisconsin
"Gawge," "Bull"
A side partner of Kodak Kate, who taught him his trade (specifications for her court-martial are being prepared). It is said the camera never lies, but you should see some of George's pictures. Of course, it is the camera's fault. Spends part of his time swapping quarters with Yost for five-cent cigars, but most of his time is devoted to making life unbearable for the Post-Office Department. Put in a req. Second Class year for an extension on his locker door, and as soon as this was granted, opened up negotiations for a box car to transport one of Buffham's Best. One of the old Eighth Company, the leader of the gang and always ready for anything. Never let him get a joke on you if you expect any peace in this life, for you'll never hear the last of it. An inveterate fumer—especially of those five-cent ones. Had ambition to appear as a coachman on the Chi until the executive made him change his course. Don't wait for him to tell you anything—it takes him too long.
A quiet old man who may be seen earnestly talking with Ben on his return from each formation.
Buzzard.
Loss
George was lost on October 14, 1918 when he succumbed to injuries sustained in an explosion aboard USS O-5 (SS 66) on October 5th. He was the boat's commissioning commanding officer.
Biography
From Pig Boats:
George Arthur Trever (11 June 1885 – 14 October 1918) was an officer in the United States Navy in the early 1900s.
Born in Waupun, Wisconsin, Trever was appointed to the Naval Academy in May 1905 and graduated on 4 June 1909. He spent the years prior to his commissioning in cruises in Pennsylvania (Armored Cruiser No. 4); Princeton (Gunboat No. 13); and Annapolis (Gunboat No. 10). Receiving the single gold stripe of an ensign while serving in Rowan (Torpedo Boat No. 8) on 5 June 1911, Trever assumed command of that vessel later that month. In September 1912, he was transferred to Farragut (Torpedo Boat No. 11); and he commanded her until early 1914, when detached to report on board Cheyenne (Monitor No. 10).
Following his tour in Cheyenne, newly promoted Lt. (j.g.) Trever was ordered to H-1 (Submarine No. 28), then attached to the Pacific Fleet. After a two-year tour of duty commanding H-1, he reported for duty at the Mare Island Navy Yard. In the spring of 1917, Trever reported to the Puget Sound Navy Yard, Bremerton, Washington, to supervise the building of N-1 (Submarine No. 53), then on the ways at the Seattle Construction and Drydock Company, Seattle, Washington. N-1 was commissioned on 26 September 1917 and operated put of Puget Sound until transferred to New York late in the year for patrol duties in the Atlantic.
In May 1918, Trever was ordered to the Fore River Shipbuilding Company, Quincy, Massachusetts, to assist in fitting out O-5 (Submarine No. 66). He assumed command of the new O-boat on 9 June 1918 and received the temporary rank of lieutenant commander on 1 July 1918.
On 5 October 1918, during post-commissioning trials, a battery explosion occurred on board O-5, in which Trever was injured and Lt.(jg) William Joseph Sharkey and EM/2c James L. Still were killed. Nine days later, at the naval hospital, Brooklyn, New York, on 14 October 1918, Lt. Comdr. George A. Trever died as a result of the severe and multiple injuries suffered in the shipboard tragedy.
Other Information
From researcher Kathy Franz:
George graduated from Whitewater High School.
He married Bessie E. McMillen on June 12, 1909, in San Diego. Their daughters were Nancy, born on September 16, 1912, and Elizabeth “Betty,” born on January 21, 1914. Betty became Mrs. Carroll Baker and died in April 1994. She was active in the Long Marine Laboratory, the Symphony Guild, the Sierra Club and Republican Women.
George's body was reported to be buried on October 22, 1918, in Greenwood Cemetery, San Diego, but no record exists of his burial.
His father Dr. George Henry Trever was a minister and professor who became president (1925-1927) at Gammon Theological Seminary in Atlanta. His mother was Ada Satirda (Peabody) who died in August 1913 while visiting George and his family in San Diego. George's sister was Erna (Mrs. E. B. Dixson of Chicago.)
From Hall of Valor:
The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Navy Cross to Lieutenant Commander George Arthur Trever, United States Navy, for distinguished service in the line of his profession as Commanding Officer of the U.S.S. 0-5, operating against enemy submarines off the Atlantic coast of the United States during World War I.
Service: Navy
Division: U.S.S. O-5
The "Register of Commissioned and Warrant Officers of the United States Navy and Marine Corps" was published annually from 1815 through at least the 1970s; it provided rank, command or station, and occasionally billet until the beginning of World War II when command/station was no longer included. Scanned copies were reviewed and data entered from the mid-1840s through 1922, when more-frequent Navy Directories were available.
The Navy Directory was a publication that provided information on the command, billet, and rank of every active and retired naval officer. Single editions have been found online from January 1915 and March 1918, and then from three to six editions per year from 1923 through 1940; the final edition is from April 1941.
The entries in both series of documents are sometimes cryptic and confusing. They are often inconsistent, even within an edition, with the name of commands; this is especially true for aviation squadrons in the 1920s and early 1930s.
Alumni listed at the same command may or may not have had significant interactions; they could have shared a stateroom or workspace, stood many hours of watch together… or, especially at the larger commands, they might not have known each other at all. The information provides the opportunity to draw connections that are otherwise invisible, though, and gives a fuller view of the professional experiences of these alumni in Memorial Hall.
January 1910
January 1911
January 1912
January 1913
January 1914
January 1916
January 1917
March 1918
Namesake
USS Trever (DD 339) was named for George; the ship was sponsored by his widow, Bess.
Memorial Hall Error
George is listed as a CDR in Memorial Hall, but he had only been temporarily promoted to LCDR two months before his loss. There is no evidence of a posthumous promotion, including in the history of his namesake ship.
The "category" links below lead to lists of related Honorees; use them to explore further the service and sacrifice of alumni in Memorial Hall.
