Walter Stratton Anderson

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Walter Stratton Anderson (October 4, 1881 – October 24, 1981) was a vice admiral in the United States Navy who served from 1903 to 1946. Born in Carlinville, Illinois, he graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1903 and began a long naval career that included both World Wars. He died at the age of 100 and is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

During World War I, Anderson served as the executive officer of the battleship USS Arizona. After the war, he held numerous important assignments, including Naval Recruiting Bureau work in New York, the Naval War College, and commands of destroyer divisions and ships such as the USS Sinclair, USS Kidder, and later the battleship USS West Virginia. He also served as the Naval Attaché in London from 1934 to 1937 and was promoted to rear admiral in 1936.

In the years leading up to and during World War II, Anderson held several high-profile roles. He commanded Cruiser Division 4 in the Pacific, helped expand the Navy’s intelligence capabilities as Director of the Office of Naval Intelligence, and reported to President Franklin D. Roosevelt on intelligence matters. He was aboard the USS Maryland during the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. Later, he was Commander of the Gulf Sea Frontier and the Seventh Naval District, coordinating operations with Cuba, Mexico, and the Royal Air Force in the Bahamas. He was promoted to vice admiral in 1945 and retired in 1946. For his service in World War II, he received the Legion of Merit and the Navy and Marine Corps Medal.

Anderson’s personal life included a long marriage; his wife died in 1966. His son passed away in 1977, and he was survived by two grandchildren. Walter Stratton Anderson and his wife are buried at Arlington National Cemetery.