Wikipedia

Frank Freyer

Frank Barrows Freyer (December 10, 1878 – December 7, 1947) was a United States Navy captain who served as the 14th Naval Governor of Guam. Freyer graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1902, having played several collegiate sports there. The Navy assigned him to many different ships, including having him participate in the Great White Fleet and its visit to Japan. Soon after, he was transferred to the Naval Base Guam, where he served as assistant to the Commandant before from November 5, 1910, to January 21, 1911, he became acting governor of the island. As governor, he suspended the licenses of all midwives on the island because of an alarming rate of infection, requiring them all to be re-certified. After George Salisbury relieved him of the position, Freyer became his aide.

Frank Barrows Freyer
14th Naval Governor of Guam
In office
November 5, 1910 – January 21, 1911
Preceded byEdward John Dorn
Succeeded byGeorge Salisbury
Personal details
BornDecember 10, 1878
Marietta, Georgia, United States
DiedDecember 7, 1947(1947-12-07) (aged 68)
Nationality United States
Alma materUnited States Naval Academy
George Washington University
AwardsOrder of the Sun
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/serviceUnited States Navy Seal United States Navy
Rank Captain
CommandsPeruvian Navy
USS Procyon
USS Trenton

In 1913, he received a Bachelor of Laws from George Washington University and, in 1918, became assistant to the Judge Advocate General of the Navy. After agreeing to help Peru restructure its naval forces, the United States Navy ordered Freyer there to take command of the efforts; he became Chief of Staff of the Peruvian Navy the following year. In the position, he helped rebuild the naval tactics and education of the country, and stayed there for many years. During his stay, Freyer collected over 1,000 works of Peruvian art, now on display as the "Frank Barrow Freyer Collection" at the Denver Art Museum. He went on to command USS Procyon and USS Trenton before retiring.

Life

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Freyer was originally from Marietta, Georgia.[1] He began his college career at Georgia Institute of Technology in the fall of 1895. While there he founded the Georgia Tech chapter of Kappa Sigma. In the fall of 1898 he transferred to the United States Naval Academy. He graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1902 and received a Bachelor of Laws from George Washington University in 1913.[2] He married and two children, a daughter Engracia[3] and a son Frank Barrow Freyer II.[4] His granddaughter, G. Diane Freyer, married William Schneider, Jr., an Under-Secretary of State in the Reagan administration.[4] After retiring from the Navy, Freyer and his wife lived in Denver, Colorado.[5] He and his wife were avid art collectors, amassing a painting and furniture collection of over 1,000 works of Peruvian artwork.[6] The "Frank Barrow Freyer Collection" has been displayed in numerous museums, including the Newark Museum,[7] the Brooklyn Museum,[8] the Columbus Museum of Fine Arts, and the Toledo Museum of Art.[9] Many of the collection's pieces currently reside in the Denver Art Museum, and a piece from the collection, Ignacio Chacon's Madonna and Child with Bird, was depicted on a United States postage stamp in 2006.[10]

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Freyer was admitted to the United States Naval Academy in May 1898 from Georgia.[11] While attending the academy, he participated as a member of the Navy Midshipmen crew team[12] and as a fullback for the Navy Midshipmen football team.[13] He was also a member of the Kappa Sigma fraternity.[14] Soon after graduating, Freyer served as an ensign aboard USS Olympia in 1903.[15] Freyer later served aboard USS Missouri during its visit to Japan as part of the Great White Fleet.[16] In 1917, Freyer was stationed aboard USS Oregon.[17] In 1918, he was transferred to Washington, D.C., where he became assistant to the Judge Advocate General of the Navy.[18]

Freyer, now a commander, sailed for Peru in August 1920 as head of a mission aiding in the reorganization of the Peruvian Navy.[19] He was soon named Chief of Staff of the Peruvian Navy in January 1921, using the position to rebuild Peruvian naval education and command.[20][21] For his service to Peru, the Congress of the Republic of Peru awarded him the nation's highest award, the Order of the Sun. After leaving Peru, he captained USS Procyon.[22] In 1929, Captain Freyer commanded USS Trenton.[23]

Governorship

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Freyer served as acting Naval Governor of Guam from November 5, 1910, to January 21, 1911.[24] Prior to becoming governor, he briefly served in the position of principal technical assistant to the Commandant of the Naval Base Guam from March 1 to March 8, 1909.[25] As governor, Freyer addressed the alarming spread of infection and tetanus by suspending the licenses of all pattera, or midwives, and requiring that they all pass an additional recertification exam.[26] After leaving the governorship, Lieutenant Freyer became aide to Governor George Salisbury.[27]

Personal life

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On June 22, 1908, at the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco, California, Freyer married Maria Engracia Critcher. They had three children, Engracia, Frank, and John.[28]

In 1910, Freyer's daughter Engracia Enriquetta Critcher Freyer (1910-1977) was born in Hagåtña, Guam.[29]

References

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  1. ^ "Initiates for the College Year 1895-96". Caduceus of Kappa Sigma. 11. Charlottesville, Virginia: Kappa Sigma: 388. 1896. Retrieved January 15, 2011.
  2. ^ Catalogue. Washington, D.C.: George Washington University. 1913. p. 284. Retrieved January 15, 2011.
  3. ^ "Son to William Doughertys Jr". The New York Times. New York City. The New York Times. July 12, 1949. p. 30.
  4. ^ a b "Miss Freyer Is the Bride of U. S. Aide". The New York Times. New York City. The New York Times Company. June 30, 1986. Archived from the original on May 24, 2015. Retrieved January 13, 2011.
  5. ^ "Engracia Freyer a Bride: Daughter of Naval Captain Wed to William A. Doughtery". The New York Times. New York City. The New York Times Company. November 18, 1943. p. 26.
  6. ^ "Show Stresses Art of South America". The New York Times. New York City. The New York Times Company. January 14, 1942. p. 16.
  7. ^ "Sundry Pulse Beats of Late Summer". The New York Times. New York City. The New York Times. August 31, 1941. p. X7.
  8. ^ "Antiques from the Peru of the Incas". The New York Times. New York City. The New York Times Company. January 4, 1931. p. SM8.
  9. ^ Bruner, Louise (January 7, 1968). "Columbus Show Depicts Blending of Cultures". The Blade. Toledo. Block Communications. p. 41. Retrieved January 15, 2011.
  10. ^ "Ceremony for New 2006 Christmas Stamp". High Plains Sentinel. Wright, Wyoming. October 12, 2006. p. 2. Retrieved January 15, 2011.
  11. ^ "The Naval Academy Opening" (PDF). The New York Times. New York City. The New York Times Company. September 11, 1898. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
  12. ^ "Annapolis Boat Crews: Preparing for Spring Contests with Columbia and Pennsylvania" (PDF). The New York Times. New York City. The New York Times Company. January 22, 1899. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
  13. ^ "Football at Annapolis: Naval Cadets Will Put a Strong Eleven in the Field for the Coming Season" (PDF). The New York Times. New York City. The New York Times Company. September 8, 1901. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
  14. ^ "Alpha-Tau". Caduceus of Kappa Sigma. 16. Charlottesville, Virginia: Kappa Sigma: 303. 1901. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
  15. ^ Register of the Commissioned and Warrant Officers of the United States Navy and Marine Corps and Reserve Officers on Active Duty. Washington, D.C.: United States Government Printing Office. 1903. p. 188. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
  16. ^ "Photo #: NH 82511". Online Library of Selected Images. Washington, D.C.: Naval History & Heritage Command. January 19, 1999. Archived from the original on March 5, 2011. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
  17. ^ Register of the Commissioned and Warrant Officers of the United States Navy and Marine Corps and Reserve Officers on Active Duty. Washington, D.C.: United States Government Printing Office. 1917. p. 305. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
  18. ^ Official Congressional Serial Set. Washington, D.C.: United States Government Printing Office. 1918. p. 264. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
  19. ^ "Social Notes" (PDF). The New York Times. New York City. The New York Times Company. July 3, 1920. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
  20. ^ Masterson, Daniel (1991). Militarism and Politics in Latin America: Peru from Sánchez Cerro to Sendero Luminoso. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 31. ISBN 0-313-27213-1. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
  21. ^ "Peru". The Encyclopædia Britannica. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. 1922.
  22. ^ "Caduceus". Caduceus of Kappa Sigma. 41 (1). Charlottesville, Virginia: Kappa Sigma: 49. 1924. Retrieved January 15, 2011.
  23. ^ "New Cruiser Delivered". The New York Times. New York City. The New York Times Company. August 27, 1929. p. 55.
  24. ^ "Naval Era Governors of Guam". Guampedia. Guam: University of Guam. August 10, 2010. Archived from the original on July 11, 2011. Retrieved October 29, 2010.
  25. ^ Annual Report of the Secretary of the Navy. Washington, D.C.: United States Government Printing Office. 1909. p. 567. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
  26. ^ Hattori, Anne Perez (2004). Colonial Dis-ease: US Navy Health Policies and the Chamorros of Guam, 1898-1941. Honolulu, Hawaii: University of Hawaii Press. ISBN 9780824828080. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
  27. ^ Brooklyn Daily Eagle Almanac. Brooklyn: Brooklyn Eagle. 1911. p. 357.
  28. ^ "SERVICE WEDDINGS". Army and Navy Journal. June 27, 1908. p. 1184. Retrieved December 2, 2021.
  29. ^ "Engracia Enriquetta Critcher Freyer, 27 August 1910–27 February 1977 (Age 66)". familysearch.org. Retrieved December 2, 2021.
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