Naval History and Heritage Command
The Navy Department Library
Fourth Naval District
The boundaries of the Fourth Naval District, to be headquartered at League Island Navy Yard in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, were established on 7 May 1903 in accordance with General Order No. 128, signed by Acting Secretary of the Navy Charles H. Darling. No personnel were assigned to the district staff until late 1915. In 1945 the district, still headquartered in Philadelphia, consisted of the following geographic areas: Pennsylvania, the southern part of New Jersey (including the counties of Burlington, Ocean, and all counties south thereof), and Delaware (including Winter Quarters Shoal Light Vessel). On 7 October 1976 this command absorbed the functions of the First and Third Naval Districts. The Fourth Naval District was disestablished on 30 September 1980.
| 1915-1917 | CAPT Robert l. Russell | 3 December 1915 | |
| 1917-1918 | CAPT George F. Cooper | 25 April 1917 | |
| 1918-1920 | RADM Charles F. Hughes | 21 October 1918 | |
| 1920-1923 | RADM Louis McCoy Nulton | 22 September 1920 | |
| 1923-1926 | RADM Archibald H. Scales | 14 September 1923 | |
| 1926-1927 | RADM Thomas P. Magruder | 5 June 1926 | |
| 1927-1930 | RADM Julian L. Latimer | 5 November 1927 | |
| 1930-1933 | RADM Lucius A. Bostwick | 1 July 1930 | |
| 1933-1934 | RADM Arthur J. Hepburn | 1 August 1933 | |
| 1934-1937 | RADM William C. Watts | 1 June 1934 | |
| 1937-1938 | RADM Wat T. Cluverius | 21 June 1937 | |
| 1938-1940 | RADM Julius C. Townsend | 15 November 1938 | |
| 1940-1942 | RADM Adolphus E. Watson | 22 January 1940 | |
| 1942-1945 | RADM Milo F. Draemel | 30 August 1942 | |
| 1946-1949 | RADM James L. Kauffman | 20 June 1946 | |
| 1949-1951 | RADM Roscoe E. Schuirmann | 29 April 1949 | |
| 1951-1954 | RADM John H. Brown, Jr. | 29 June 1951 | |
| 1954-1956 | RADM Ernest H. Von Heimburg | 1 February 1954 | |
| 1959-1961 | RADM Charles H. Lyman III | 27 February 1959 | |
| 1961-1965 | RADM Robert W. Cavenagh | 15 November 1961 | |
| 1965-1968 | RADM Robert H. Speck | August 1965 | |
| 1968-1972 | RADM Kenneth L. Veth | November 1968 | |
| 1972-1975 | RADM Joseph L. Coleman | December 1972 | |
| 1975-1978 | RADM Wycliffe D. Toole, Jr. | June 1975 | |
| 1978 | RADM Frederick F. Palmer | ||
| 1979-1980 | RADM Carl A. Brettschneider |
Notes: CAPT = Captain, RADM = Rear Admiral.
The administrative records of the Fourth Naval District are located in Record Group (RG) 181.2.3 at the National Archives and Records Administration’s Mid Atlantic Region Archives Facility (Center City Philadelphia) at 900 Market Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19107-4292 (entrance on Chestnut Street, between 9th and 10th Streets), telephone 215-606-0100.
An unpublished 6-volume administrative history of the Fourth Naval District during World War II, known as “World War II Naval Administrative History # 111,” is located in the Navy Department Library. It is unavailable for loan and must be consulted in the library. Photocopying of this manuscript is generally prohibited; the use of digital cameras by researchers is encouraged. Permission to photocopy a limited number of pages may be granted by the reference staff, contingent upon the physical state of the item. Any photocopying of this manuscript shall be done under the close supervision of the reference staff. The use of personal scanners by non-library staff personnel must be approved by the reference staff on a document-by-document basis (Reference: Naval Historical Center Instruction [NAVHISTCENTINST] 5070.1C.). When requesting the administrative history, please specify its number. For example: "I'd like to examine World War Two Admin. History #111."
