Herndon Monument

The Herndon Monument on the grounds of the U.S. Naval Academy is a 21-foot-tall (6.4 m) grey granite obelisk. It was erected in memory of Captain William Lewis Herndon, who courageously decided to go down with his ship, SS Central America, and the men left aboard rather than save himself on September 12, 1857. All women and children and many of the men aboard were saved by a nearby ship during the storm.

Herndon Monument
United States Naval Academy
Campus of the US Naval Academy
For the loss of William Lewis Herndon
Unveiled1860
Location
Annapolis, Maryland

near 
the Naval Academy Chapel
Designed byunknown
Forgetful of self, in his death he added a new glory to the annals of the sea

Description

The monument is a 400-by-71-by-71-inch (10.2 m × 1.8 m × 1.8 m) *note. This measurement is 33.33 feet whereas above the claim is that the monument is 21 feet.* granite obelisk presented to the Academy by the class of 1860. It was designed by an unknown sculptor, and has the alternative long name of "Commander William L. Herndon, USN 1813-1857".[1]

Inscriptions
The Herndon Monument in 1868.

On the monument's base, facing the Naval Academy Chapel, is a plaque:[2]

Commander William Lewis Herndon
1818-1857
Naval Officer - Explorer - Merchant Captain

In command of the Central America, home-bound with California gold
seekers, Captain Herndon lost his life in a gallant effort to save
ship and lives during a cyclone off Hatteras, September 12, 1857.

"Forgetful of self, in his death he added a new glory to the annals of the sea" - Maury

Maury is Matthew Fontaine Maury, Herndon's co-worker (from 1842 to 1846), brother-in-law, and cousin.[3]

To the right on the obelisk from the plaque, in raised block letters, is "HERNDON.". On the opposite side of the obelisk, also in raised letters, is "September 12, 1857.".[2]

Ceremony
Class of 2014
The climbing of the monument by Fourth Class Midshipmen.

It is the site of the famous "plebes-no-more" ceremony, where the plebes (first-year students at the academy) all work together to climb the greased monument and replace a plebe "dixie-cup hat" on top with a combination cover. This is the official end of the plebe year.

It is a Naval Academy tradition that the midshipman who replaces the dixie cup hat will be given the Superintendent's combination cover. Legend says that he or she will be the first of his or her class to make Flag Rank, although in reality, this has not yet occurred.

The academy began recording times in 1959. In 1962 Midshipman 4th Class Ed Linz scaled the monument with the aid of a cargo net. Using such devices is now banned.

The record was set in 1969 when Midshipman Larry Fanning made the climb in 1 minute and 30 seconds. However, the monument was not greased.

Midshipman 4th Class Michael J Maynard of the Class of 1975 scaled the monument in 20 minutes in 1972, believed to be the fastest time since the tradition of greasing the monument began.

The 2010 Herndon Monument climb for the Class of 2013 took place on Monday, May 24, 2010 at 1:30pm. Superintendent Vice Admiral Jeffrey Fowler indicated dissatisfaction that year with the risk of injury associated with the climbing tradition and a desire to discontinue it.[4] Vice Adm. Fowler ordered the Brigade of Midshipmen not to slather the monument with lard "to improve the safety of the event."[5] However, his successor, Vice Admiral Michael Miller, reinstated the tradition in 2011, citing that "[c]onducting the ceremonial climb in the same manner as so many previous classes helps to instill spirit and camaraderie among plebes and better links them to the many classes that have gone before them. The Herndon Monument climb serves as a useful event in reinforcing teamwork, organization and leadership."[6]

Table of recorded times
Scaling times of the Herndon Monument
Year Climbed Class Year Time (H:MM:SS) Scaler
195919620:12:00[7]
19601963John M. Truesdell
196219650:03:00[8]Ed Linz
196619691:30:00Gerald T. Witowski
19681971Steve DiAntonio
196919720:01:30[9]Larry Fanning
197119740:35:00William Jackson
197219750:20:00[11]Michael Maynard
197419770:46:00Alexander Acera
197619790:58:00Dwight Crevelt
197819811:21:00James Filmardirossian
197919822:09:00[12]Jay Gallo
198019832:43:00Bill Freitag
198119841:24:00[13]Andreas Bierbrauer
198219851:44:00Sonny Dean
198319861:43:55Kevin Delamer
198419872:22:00Bob Kay
198519883:12:23Chad Watson
198619891:23:07Kenneth Grimes
198719901:51:20Byron Hopkins
198819910:43:44Melvyn Davis
198919921:51:30Sam Cook
199019931:34:50Larry Parker
1991 1994 2:36:00[14] Brad Cougher
199219952:21:37James Golladay
199319961:38:20Kepper Pickard
199419971:44:20Ross Scott
199519984:05:17[15]Steve Fortmann
199619992:08:46Joshua Caleb Williams
199720002:55:17Zachary Guerra
199820012:22:55Josh Stewart
199920022:07:41Jason Fahy
200020031:19:44Nathaniel Jennings
200120042:15:52Alexander Lim
200220052:07:41Daniel Knott
200320061:19:00Daniel Shea
200420072:19:24Philip Johnson
200520081:16:13John David Olsen
200620091:14:15Brian Richards
200720101:32:43Jamie Shrock
200820112:35:59Greg Reichel
200920121:14:38[16]Schyler Widman
201020130:02:05[17]Keegan Albi
201120142:41:32Matthew Dalton
201220152:10:13Andrew Craig
201320161:32:43Patrick Lien
201420172:19:35Mike Landry
201520181:38:36Javarri Beachum
201620191:12:30Chris Bianchi
201720202:21:22Joe McGraw
201820212:09:23Peter Rossi
201920221:05:05Christian Schwien

Notes
  1. Smithsonian American Art Museum. "Herndon Monument, (sculpture)". Smithsonian American Art Museum. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  2. "HERNDON Monument at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland". dcMemorials.com. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  3. This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
  4. Ewing, Philip (May 12, 2010). "Academy supe wants to end Herndon Climb". Marine Corps Times. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
  5. Ewing, Philip (May 26, 2010). "No lard on Herndon Monument for climb". Navy Times.
  6. Fellman, Sam (March 23, 2011). "Grease returns to plebes' Herndon climb". Marine Corps Times. Retrieved 23 March 2011.
  7. First recorded time
  8. Used a cargo net - "Herndon Monument Climb time: 1:14:38". Capital Gazette Communications, Inc. 2009-05-19. Retrieved 2009-05-20.
  9. Fastest time officially recorded, although the monument was not greased
  10. USNA Public Affairs Office www.usna.edu Herndon Monument Fact Sheet
  11. Fastest time greased Capital Gazette 5-5-2008
  12. Bisbee, Gene. "Monumental madness." Annapolis Evening Capital, May 25, 1979.
  13. The Washington Star, May 23, 1981.
  14. "Plebes climb through the ooze to academy respectability". tribunedigital-baltimoresun. Retrieved 2016-12-17.
  15. Longest time
  16. Official time per press release - "Herndon Monument Climb time: 1:14:38". Capital Gazette Communications, Inc. 2009-05-18. Retrieved 2009-05-20.
  17. Ungreased following an order by VADM Fowler, Superintendent of the Naval Academy

References

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