Talk:George M. Robeson

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Article revision[edit]

This article needs revision. I am currently working on Ulysses S. Grant cabinet appointments, in order to balance and/or improve their articles. More needs to be done on Robeson. I believe several of Grant's cabinet members have been automatically assumed as corrupt by historians. Cmguy777 (talk) 06:10, 6 April 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Removed material[edit]

The following has been removed in order to clean up and improve the article. Cmguy777 (talk) 18:17, 6 April 2012 (UTC) {{multiple|pov=September 2011|expert=September 2011}} "==Reputation and controversy==" {{unreferenced|section|date=September 2011}} Robeson's services as Secretary of the Navy under Grant have never been fully examined. When he became Secretary the U.S. Navy was considered one of the most modern and best in the world following the success of the Union's fleets in the American Civil War. But the general rumor of the Grant years was that our seeming lead in naval construction, particularly with modern ironclad warships, was lost due to corruption pushed by Robeson and his cronies. Instead of building newer and better ships, Robeson had the older ones repaired piecemeal, and (the story went) the contracts went to his friends. The result was that the fleet deteriorated. It was later suggested that only a series of energetic Secretaries of the Navy in the 1880s, culminating in Benjamin Tracy in the administration of Benjamin Harrison, saved the honor of the U.S. Navy.[reply]

On the other hand, after the bloodshed and horrors of the Civil War, there was a general desire to reduce military expenditure whenever possible. The army too was reduced in size, being just large enough for the purposes of assisting in the Reconstruction programs of the southern states and the patrolling and controlling of the Indians in the west. Robeson's policies may very well have been dictated by these movements of the public and Congress. If so he may have lacked real spirit and enterprise, but he was simply doing what was expected of him.

He did help push the "Polaris" Expedition of Arctic explorer Charles Francis Hall in 1870, that went to Northern Greenland, and made the then record of furthest North. Although the expedition ended in disarray after the mysterious death of Hall in 1871, it did have some accomplishments. One was to honor the Secretary with the naming of Robeson Channel for him.

Also, during the events of 1873 resulting from the Virginius Affair, Robeson did his best to get the navy ready if needed to confront the Kingdom of Spain around Cuba.

Continued improvements needed[edit]

Contined improvements are needed for this article. Please feel free to make edits that are referenced and/or sourced. Cmguy777 (talk) 18:27, 6 April 2012 (UTC)[reply]

World's first self propelled torpedo warship[edit]

I put that the USS Intrepid was the world's first self propelled torpedo warship (1874). I could not find any completed at an earlier date. Cmguy777 (talk) 19:25, 23 October 2014 (UTC)[reply]