List of U.S. military vessels named after living Americans

United States Navy

The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

has a long tradition that no vessel be named for a living person, and an equally long tradition, stretching back to the Continental Navy

Continental Navy

The Continental Navy was the navy of the United States during the American Revolutionary War, and was formed in 1775. Through the efforts of the Continental Navy's patron, John Adams and vigorous Congressional support in the face of stiff opposition, the fleet cumulatively became relatively...

, of breaking it from time to time. As of December 2009, the only commissioned vessels in the U.S. Navy named after living persons are named after former President

President of the United States

The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....

and submariner

Submariner

Submariner can mean:*A sailor who is a crewman of a submarine*Namor the Sub-Mariner, a comic-book character in the Marvel Comics Universe*Rolex Submariner, a make of diver's watch*Submariner an album by Experimental rock band The Dead Science...

Jimmy Carter

James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...

and named after former President and carrier pilot George H. W. Bush

George H. W. Bush

George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...

. The U.S. Navy generally announces the name of a ship some time before it is launched, and well before it is accepted for purchase and commissioned into active service.

List of ships

The following ships received their names while their namesakes were alive. The list includes several ships whose namesakes died before the ships were commissioned.

1700s

George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...

had several vessels named after him before he died in 1799, including at least four in the 1770s and one in 1798. (See also ).
- USS Washington (1775) was a schooner
  Schooner
  A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....
  
  named Endeavor acquired by Gen. Washington in October 1775, renamed Washington, and re-rigged as a brigantine
  Brigantine
  In sailing, a brigantine or hermaphrodite brig is a vessel with two masts, only the forward of which is square rigged.-Origins of the term:...
  
  .

} was a row galley

Row galley

The row galley was an armed naval craft that used oars rather than sail as a means of propulsion. During the "age of sail" row galleys had the advantage of propulsion while ships of sail might be stopped or running at slow speed because of lack of wind for their sails.Even row galleys were...

that operated in Narragansett Bay

Narragansett Bay

Narragansett Bay is a bay and estuary on the north side of Rhode Island Sound. Covering 147 mi2 , the Bay forms New England's largest estuary, which functions as an expansive natural harbor, and includes a small archipelago...

during the winter and spring of 1776.
} was one of 13 frigate

Frigate

A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...

s authorized by the Continental Congress. She was launched in August 1776.
}, a lateen-rigged two-masted galley, was built in the autumn of 1776.
} was commissioned in 1798.

John Hancock
John Hancock
John Hancock was a merchant, statesman, and prominent Patriot of the American Revolution. He served as president of the Second Continental Congress and was the first and third Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts...

's name was given to two vessels before he died in October 1793. (See also .)

} was the former schooner

Schooner

A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....

Speedwell, hired in October 1775.
} was a sailing frigate of the American Revolutionary War

American Revolutionary War

The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...

, commissioned in 1776. was a 6-gun schooner

Schooner

A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....

, fitted out in 1775; Benjamin Franklin

Benjamin Franklin

Dr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...

died in 1790. (See also ) was commissioned in 1776; Martha Washington

Martha Washington

Martha Dandridge Custis Washington was the wife of George Washington, the first president of the United States. Although the title was not coined until after her death, Martha Washington is considered to be the first First Lady of the United States...

died in 1802. was commissioned in 1778; Silas Deane

Silas Deane

Silas Deane was an American merchant, politician and diplomat. Originally a supporter of American independence Deane served as a delegate to the Continental Congress and then as the United States' first foreign diplomat when he travelled to France to lobby the French government for aid...

died in 1789.

John Adams
John Adams
John Adams was an American lawyer, statesman, diplomat and political theorist. A leading champion of independence in 1776, he was the second President of the United States...

had two ships named after him, he died on July 4, 1826.

} was a 28-gun frigate built in New York, and launched 8 June 1799.
} was a 24-gun frigate built in Charleston, South Carolina, and launched 5 June 1799.

1800s

USS Jefferson (1814)
USS Jefferson (1814)
The second USS Jefferson was a brig in the United States Navy during the War of 1812. She was named for Thomas Jefferson.Jefferson was built at Sackett's Harbor, New York, for service in Commodore Isaac Chauncey's fleet on Lake Ontario and launched 7 April 1814...

was launched in 1814; Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...

died on July 4, 1826.
James Madison
James Madison
James Madison, Jr. was an American statesman and political theorist. He was the fourth President of the United States and is hailed as the “Father of the Constitution” for being the primary author of the United States Constitution and at first an opponent of, and then a key author of the United...

had three vessels named for him before he died on June 28, 1836.

} was commissioned in 1807.
} was a 14-gun schooner

Schooner

A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....

launched in 1812.
} was a Van Buren-class schooner, designed by Edward Preble

Edward Preble

Edward Preble was a United States naval officer.-Early life and Revolutionary War:Preble was born at Falmouth, Eastern Massachusetts, now Portland, Maine, 15 August 1761, the son of Gen. Jedidiah Preble. As a boy, his home was destroyed in the burning of Falmouth by British Naval Commander Henry...

and built in 1832. was commissioned in 1839; Martin Van Buren

Martin Van Buren

Martin Van Buren was the eighth President of the United States . Before his presidency, he was the eighth Vice President and the tenth Secretary of State, under Andrew Jackson ....

died in July 1862. (See also )

USS Harriet Lane
USS Harriet Lane (1857)
Harriet Lane was a revenue cutter of the United States Revenue Cutter Service and, on the outbreak of the American Civil War, a ship of the United States Navy and later Confederate States Navy. She was named after the niece of senator and later United States President, James Buchanan...

, commissioned by the US Revenue Cutter Service
United States Revenue Cutter Service
The United States Revenue Cutter Service was established by Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton in 1790 as an armed maritime law enforcement service. Throughout its entire existence the Revenue Cutter Service operated under the authority of the United States Department of the Treasury...

in 1857, transferred to the U.S. Navy in 1861, named for Harriet Lane
Harriet Lane
Harriet Rebecca Lane Johnston , niece of lifelong bachelor United States President James Buchanan, acted as First Lady of the United States from 1857 to 1861. She was one of the few women to hold the position of First Lady while not being married to the President.-Early life:Harriet Lane's family...

, niece and surrogate First Lady of bachelor President James Buchanan
James Buchanan
James Buchanan, Jr. was the 15th President of the United States . He is the only president from Pennsylvania, the only president who remained a lifelong bachelor and the last to be born in the 18th century....

. Lane died in 1903.

1900s

was commissioned in 1900; John Philip Holland

John Philip Holland

John Philip Holland was an Irish engineer who developed the first submarine to be formally commissioned by the U.S...

, pioneer of submarine design, died August 1914. was laid down in July 1918, launched in December, and commissioned the following June. Joshua Frederick Cockey Talbott

Joshua Frederick Cockey Talbott

Joshua Frederick Cockey "Fred" Talbott was a U.S. Congressman who represented the second Congressional district of Maryland.-Biography:...

, 25-year member of the House Naval Affairs Committee, died October 1918. was laid down in January 1961, and Retired Admiral

Admiral

Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks, of the highest naval officers. It is usually considered a full admiral and above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet . It is usually abbreviated to "Adm" or "ADM"...

Richmond K. Turner

-Footnotes:...

died in February. The ship was launched in 1963 and commissioned in 1964. was named in 1980; Carl Vinson

Carl Vinson

Carl Vinson was a United States Representative from Georgia. He was a Democrat and the first person to serve for more than 50 years in the United States House of Representatives...

, former chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, died in 1981, before the ship was commissioned. was named in 1983; Retired Admiral Hyman Rickover, known as the "Father of the Nuclear Navy", died in 1986. was named in 1989; Retired Admiral Arleigh Burke

Arleigh Burke

Admiral Arleigh Albert '31-knot' Burke was an admiral of the United States Navy who distinguished himself during World War II and the Korean War, and who served as Chief of Naval Operations during the Eisenhower and Kennedy administrations.-Early life and naval career:Burke was born in Boulder,...

, former 3-term CNO

Chief of Naval Operations

The Chief of Naval Operations is a statutory office held by a four-star admiral in the United States Navy, and is the most senior uniformed officer assigned to serve in the Department of the Navy. The office is a military adviser and deputy to the Secretary of the Navy...

, died in 1996. Burke spoke at the ship's commissioning on July 4, 1991. was named in 1993; John Stennis, former chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, died in 1995, before the ship was commissioned. was named in 1995; former President Ronald Reagan

Ronald Reagan

Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....

died in June 2004, eleven months after the ship was commissioned in July 2003.

USNS Bob Hope (T-AKR-300)
USNS Bob Hope (T-AKR-300)
USNS Bob Hope , the lead ship of her class of vehicle cargo ships for Army vehicle prepositioning, is the only naval ship of the United States to be named for Bob Hope, the entertainer...

was named in 1997; Bob Hope
Bob Hope
Bob Hope, KBE, KCSG, KSS was a British-born American comedian and actor who appeared in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in radio, television and movies. He was also noted for his work with the US Armed Forces and his numerous USO shows entertaining American military personnel...

, veteran of USO
United Service Organizations
The United Service Organizations Inc. is a private, nonprofit organization that provides morale and recreational services to members of the U.S. military, with programs in 160 centers worldwide. Since 1941, it has worked in partnership with the Department of Defense , and has provided support and...

shows spanning 50 years, died in 2003.

2000s

was named in 1998 for former President and Navy submariner

Submariner

, Jimmy Carter

Jimmy Carter

. was named in 2002 for former President and Naval Aviator

Naval Aviator

A United States Naval Aviator is a qualified pilot in the United States Navy, Marine Corps or Coast Guard.-Naming Conventions:Most Naval Aviators are Unrestricted Line Officers; however, a small number of Limited Duty Officers and Chief Warrant Officers are also trained as Naval Aviators.Until 1981...

, George H. W. Bush

George H. W. Bush

. was named in April 2004; Paul Nitze

Paul Nitze

Paul Henry Nitze was a high-ranking United States government official who helped shape Cold War defense policy over the course of numerous presidential administrations.-Early life, education, and family:...

, former Secretary of the Navy, died in October 2004, before the ship was commissioned. was named in October 2006; Gerald R. Ford, former President and carrier officer, died in December 2006, before the ship was commissioned. was named on November 27, 2006, for retired Rear Admiral Wayne E. Meyer

Wayne E. Meyer

Rear Admiral Wayne E. Meyer is regarded as the "Father of Aegis" for his 13 years of service as the Aegis Weapon System Manager and later the founding project manager of the Aegis Shipbuilding Project Office...

, acclaimed as the "father" of the Aegis combat system

Aegis combat system

The Aegis Combat System is an integrated naval weapons system developed by the Missile and Surface Radar Division of RCA, and now produced by Lockheed Martin...

. Meyer died in September 2009 a few weeks before the ship was commissioned. was named on January 8, 2009, five days after John Warner

John Warner

John William Warner, KBE is an American Republican politician who served as Secretary of the Navy from 1972 to 1974 and as a five-term United States Senator from Virginia from January 2, 1979, to January 3, 2009...

, former Navy petty officer, former Marine Corps officer, former Secretary of the Navy, and former chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, retired from the U.S. Senate.