MELVILLE S. BROWN, CDR, USN
Melville Brown '10
Lucky Bag
From the 1910 Lucky Bag:
Loss
Melville was lost on November 2, 1936 when the aircraft he was aboard crashed. He was the executive officer of USS Lexington (CV 2) at the time.
He had only become a qualified naval aviator (#4171) a short while before, in 1935.
From Wikipedia:
CDR Brown was the Commanding Officer of the USS Truxtun (DD-229) when the ship was commissioned in 1921, and later was Executive Officer of the aircraft carrier USS Lexington (CV-2).
Namesake
Brown Field Municipal Airport, near San Diego, is named for Melville.
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 1911
Midshipman, Connecticut
January 1914
Ensign, Nebraska
January 1916
Lieutenant (j.g.), Birmingham
Others at or embarked at this command:
January 1917
Lieutenant (j.g.), Bureau of Navigation
March 1918
Lieutenant, Bureau of Navigation, Washington, D.C.
Others at this command:
January 1919
Lieutenant Commander, Bureau of Navigation
Others at this command:
January 1920
Lieutenant Commander, staff, Destroyer Force, Atlantic Fleet
January 1921
Lieutenant Commander, USS Truxton
January 1922
Lieutenant Commander, Bureau of Navigation, Washington, D.C.
May 1923
Lieutenant Commander, Bureau of Navigation, Washington, D.C.
July 1923
Lieutenant Commander, Bureau of Navigation, Washington, D.C.
September 1923
Lieutenant Commander, Bureau of Navigation, Washington, D.C.
November 1923
Lieutenant Commander, Bureau of Navigation, Washington, D.C.
January 1924
Lieutenant Commander, Bureau of Navigation, Washington, D.C.
March 1924
Lieutenant Commander, Bureau of Navigation, Washington, D.C.
May 1924
Lieutenant Commander, commanding officer, USS Marcus
July 1924
Lieutenant Commander, commanding officer, USS MacDonough
September 1924
Lieutenant Commander, commanding officer, USS MacDonough
November 1924
Lieutenant Commander, commanding officer, USS MacDonough
January 1925
Lieutenant Commander, commanding officer, USS MacDonough
March 1925
Lieutenant Commander, commanding officer, USS MacDonough
May 1925
Lieutenant Commander, commanding officer, USS MacDonough
July 1925
Lieutenant Commander, commanding officer, USS MacDonough
October 1925
Lieutenant Commander, commanding officer, USS MacDonough
January 1926
Lieutenant Commander, commanding officer, USS MacDonough
October 1926
Lieutenant Commander, commanding officer, USS MacDonough
January 1927
Lieutenant Commander, commanding officer, USS MacDonough
April 1927
Lieutenant Commander, USS Antares
October 1927
Lieutenant Commander, under instruction, Naval War College
Others at this command:
January 1928
Lieutenant Commander, under instruction, Naval War College
Others at this command:
April 1928
Lieutenant Commander, under instruction, Naval War College
Others at this command:
July 1928
Lieutenant Commander, staff, Naval War College
October 1928
Lieutenant Commander, staff, Naval War College
Others at this command:
January 1929
Lieutenant Commander, staff, Naval War College
Others at this command:
April 1929
Lieutenant Commander, staff, Naval War College
Others at this command:
July 1929
Lieutenant Commander, staff, Naval War College
October 1929
Lieutenant Commander, staff, Naval War College
January 1930
Lieutenant Commander, staff, Naval War College
April 1930
Lieutenant Commander, staff, Naval War College
October 1930
Commander, gunnery officer, USS Saratoga
Others at this command:
Others at or embarked at this command:
LT William Sample '19 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 2B)
LTjg Walter Leach, Jr. '24 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Creighton Lankford '25 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 1B)
LTjg Carlton Hutchins '26 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Charles Signer '26 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Robert Symes '27 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
LTjg Renwick Calderhead '27 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
LTjg John Eldridge, Jr. '27 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 2B)
LTjg Julian Greer '27 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
ENS Weldon Hamilton '28 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
January 1931
Commander, gunnery officer, USS Saratoga
Others at this command:
Others at or embarked at this command:
LT William Sample '19 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 2B)
LTjg Walter Leach, Jr. '24 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Creighton Lankford '25 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 1B)
LTjg Carlton Hutchins '26 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Charles Signer '26 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Robert Symes '27 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
LTjg Renwick Calderhead '27 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
LTjg John Eldridge, Jr. '27 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 2B)
LTjg Julian Greer '27 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
ENS Weldon Hamilton '28 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
April 1931
Commander, gunnery officer, USS Saratoga
Others at this command:
Others at or embarked at this command:
LT William Sample '19 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 2B)
LTjg Walter Leach, Jr. '24 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Creighton Lankford '25 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 1B)
LTjg Carlton Hutchins '26 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Charles Signer '26 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Robert Symes '27 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
LTjg Renwick Calderhead '27 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
LTjg John Eldridge, Jr. '27 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 2B)
LTjg Julian Greer '27 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
ENS Weldon Hamilton '28 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
July 1931
Commander, gunnery officer, USS Saratoga
Others at this command:
Others at or embarked at this command:
LTjg Walter Leach, Jr. '24 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Robert Symes '27 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
LTjg Eugene Davis '27 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Renwick Calderhead '27 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
LTjg Julian Greer '27 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
ENS William Arthur '29 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 1B)
ENS Lloyd Greenamyer '29 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 1B)
October 1931
Commander, gunnery officer, USS Saratoga
Others at this command:
Others at or embarked at this command:
LT Edwin Conway '20 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
LTjg Walter Leach, Jr. '24 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Robert Symes '27 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
LTjg Eugene Davis '27 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Renwick Calderhead '27 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
ENS Weldon Hamilton '28 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
ENS William Arthur '29 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 1B)
ENS William Oliver '29 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
ENS Lloyd Greenamyer '29 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 1B)
January 1932
Commander, gunnery officer, USS Saratoga
Others at this command:
Others at or embarked at this command:
LTjg Walter Leach, Jr. '24 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Robert Symes '27 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
LTjg Eugene Davis '27 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Renwick Calderhead '27 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
ENS Weldon Hamilton '28 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
ENS William Arthur '29 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 1B)
ENS William Oliver '29 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
ENS Lloyd Greenamyer '29 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 1B)
April 1932
Commander, gunnery officer, USS Saratoga
Others at this command:
Others at or embarked at this command:
LTjg Walter Leach, Jr. '24 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Robert Symes '27 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
LTjg Eugene Davis '27 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Renwick Calderhead '27 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
LTjg Julian Greer '27 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
ENS William Arthur '29 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 1B)
ENS Mathias Wyatt '29 (Aircraft Squadrons, Battle Force)
ENS William Oliver '29 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
ENS Lloyd Greenamyer '29 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 1B)
October 1932
Commander, Navy Department, Washington, D.C.
Others at this command:
Others at or embarked at this command:
January 1933
Commander, Navy Department, Washington, D.C.
Others at this command:
Others at or embarked at this command:
April 1933
Commander, Navy Department, Washington, D.C.
Others at this command:
Others at or embarked at this command:
July 1933
Commander, Navy Department, Washington, D.C.
October 1933
Commander, Navy Department, Washington, D.C.
Others at or embarked at this command:
April 1934
Commander, Navy Department, Washington, D.C.
Others at or embarked at this command:
July 1934
Commander, Navy Department, Washington, D.C.
Others at this command:
Others at or embarked at this command:
October 1934
Commander, Navy Department, Washington, D.C.
Others at this command:
Others at or embarked at this command:
January 1935
Commander, under instruction, Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida
Others at this command:
LTjg John Duke '26
LTjg Ralph Smith '26
1LT Harold Bauer '30
LTjg Vernon Hain '31
LTjg Thomas Ashworth, Jr. '31
ENS Edward Allen '31
LTjg Robert Mackert '31
April 1935
Commander, under instruction, Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida
Others at this command:
LTjg John Duke '26
LTjg Ralph Smith '26
LTjg Robert Coates '30
1LT Nicholas Pusel '30
1LT Harold Bauer '30
LTjg Vernon Hain '31
LTjg Thomas Ashworth, Jr. '31
ENS Edward Allen '31
LTjg Robert Mackert '31
October 1935
Commander, under instruction, Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida
Others at this command:
LT Richard Moss '24
LTjg John Duke '26
1LT Ernest Pollock '28
LTjg William Pennewill '29
LTjg Robert Coates '30
1LT Nicholas Pusel '30
LTjg Gilbert Carpenter '30
LTjg Lance Massey '30
1LT Harold Bauer '30
LTjg Robert Mackert '31
January 1936
Commander, under instruction, Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida
Others at this command:
LTjg John Duke '26
1LT Ernest Pollock '28
LTjg William Pennewill '29
LTjg Gilbert Carpenter '30
LTjg Lance Massey '30
1LT Harold Bauer '30
April 1936
Commander, for assignment, Aircraft Squadrons, Base Force, USS Wright
July 1936
Commander, executive officer, USS Lexington
Others at this command:
Others at or embarked at this command:
LTjg Vernon Hain '31 (Bombing Plane Squadron (VB) 3B)
LTjg Philip Ashworth '31 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 3B)
LTjg Truman Carpenter '32 (Bombing Plane Squadron (VB) 3B)
LTjg George Ottinger '32 (Bombing Plane Squadron (VB) 5B)
Class of 1910
Melville is one of 15 members of the Class of 1910 on Virtual Memorial Hall.