Naval History and Heritage Command
The Navy Department Library
Ninth Naval District
The boundaries of the Ninth Naval District, headquartered at the Lake Training Station in Lake Bluff, Illinois, were established on 7 May 1903 in accordance with General Order No. 128, signed by Acting Secretary of the Navy Charles H. Darling. In 1911 the district was activated as part of an administrative unit called the "Ninth, Tenth, and Eleventh Naval Districts." In 1920 the district became a separate entity with its own district staff. In 1945 the district, headquartered at what was now known as Great Lakes Naval Training Station in Illinois, consisted of the following geographic areas: Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Kansas. The Ninth Naval District was disestablished on 30 June 1979 and its functions transferred to the Fourth, Eighth, Eleventh and Thirteenth Naval Districts.
| 1919-1920 | RADM Benton C. Decker | 26 March 1919 | |
| 1920-1921 | CAPT Julian L. Latimer | 10 August 1920 | |
| 1921-1923 | CAPT Walter S. Crosley | 25 April 1921 | |
| 1923-1926 | CAPT Clark D. Stearns | 11 December 1923 | |
| 1929-1930 | CAPT Stafford H. Doyle | 15 Augsut 1929 | |
| 1930-1931 | CAPT Robert T. Menner | 2 June 1930 | |
| 1931-1934 | RADM James J. Raby | 12 September 1931 | |
| 1934-1936 | RADM Edward B. Fenner | 14 May 1934 | |
| 1936- | RADM Henry V. Butler | 17 July 1936 | |
| 1941-1944 | RADM John Downes | 7 December 1941 | |
| 1944- | RADM Arthur S. Carpender | 3 January 1944 | |
| 1947-1951 | RADM James C. Jones | 18 July 1947 | |
| 1951-1954 | RADM Francis P. Old | 7 July 1951 | |
| 1954-1954 | RADM Richard P. Glass | 24 February 1954 | |
| 1954-1955 | RADM Daniel V. Gallery, Jr. | 1 October 1954 | |
| 1955-1959 | RADM Emmet P. Forrestel | 4 March 1955 | |
| 1959-1961 | RADM John M. Higgins | 31 October 1959 | |
| 1961-1963 | RADM Ira H. Nunn | 31 August 1961 | |
| 1963-1967 | RADM Howard A. Yeager | 30 March 1963 | |
| 1967-1967 | RADM William S. Guest | March 1967 | |
| 1967-1970 | RADM Henry A. Renken | September 1967 | |
| 1970-1973 | RADM Draper L. Kauffman | June 1970 | |
| 1973-1974 | RADM John D. Kane, Jr. | September 1973 | |
| 1974-1976 | RADM Warren H. O'neil | April 1974 | |
| 1976-1977 | RADM Albert M. Sackett | June 1976 | |
| 1977-1979 | RADM Thomas W. McNamara | August 1977 |
Notes: CAPT = Captain, RADM = Rear Admiral.
The administrative records of the Ninth Naval District are located in Record Group (RG) 181.2.8 at the National Archives and Records Administration’s Great Lakes Region (Chicago) facility at 7358 South Pulaski Road, Chicago, Illinois 60629-5898, 773-948-9001.
An unpublished 3-volume administrative history of the Ninth Naval District during World War II, known as “World War II Naval Administrative History # 116,” 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 #116."
