Edward D. Taussig - Wake Island, Guam and The Philippine-American War

Wake Island, Guam and The Philippine-American War

Promoted to the rank of commander on 10 August 1898, his first command was the gunboat USS Bennington (PG-4), which departed San Francisco on 18 September bound for Hawaii, Guam and duty with the Asiatic Squadron, in the aftermath of the 12 August 1898 Spanish-American War armistice. Bennington arrived in Hawaii on 27 September 1898 and spent the next three months operating in local waters and conducting surveys, including Pearl Harbor. In December of that year, Taussig was given orders to proceed to Wake Island and claim it for the United States. After ten days passage from Honolulu, he arrived to formally claim the island on 17 January 1899. At one p.m. a flag staff was placed, and with sailors in dress whites forming two ranks, Taussig called all to witness that the island was not in the possession of any other nation and declared it in possession of the United States. Taussig ordered the American flag raised by Ensign Wettengell and Bennington gave a 21 gun salute when the flag reached the truck. At the time President William McKinley ordering that Wake Island be claimed as a U.S. possession was seen as questionable; however, no other nation had claimed the island and there was no native population. Wake Island was primarily taken for its strategic value as a cable station, midway between Hawaii and the Philippines.

Departing from Wake Island at 5:35 p.m. on 17 January 1899, Bennington arrived at Guam on 23 January 1899. The island previously had been captured on 21 June 1898 by Captain Henry Glass of the Charleston who had left Francisco Portusach Martínez, an American civilian, in charge of the territory. Captain Glass is reported to have told Martinez, the only American on Guam, to “take care of the island until some other officers or man-of-war might reach Guam.” Although this has never been confirmed by the U.S. Navy, it was widely believed to be true. Martinez had been deposed in favor of non-American leadership under José Sisto and then Venancio Roberto, each laying competing claims to governance. Venancio Roberto’s claim was rebuked in favor of Sisto by Lieutenant Commander Vincendon L. Cottman, commander of the U.S. Navy collier Brutus that had arrived at Guam on New Year’s Day 1899 en route back to the U.S from the Spanish American War. However Sisto's authority was short-lived.

On February 1, Sisto officially relinquished control of the governmental and administrative affairs of Guam to Taussig and Cottman. The American flag was raised over the Governor’s Palace in a ceremony that ended with a 21-gun salute from the Bennington, formally ending nearly 300 years of Guam being part of the Spanish colonial empire. In his short time on Guam, Commander Taussig set up a local council system of temporary government which lasted until the arrival of Lieutenant Louis A. Kaiser in July 1899 under orders to conduct navy surveillance of affairs of Guam. Taussig also supervised the establishment of signal stations and a port survey. On April 15, 1899, Admiral George Dewey cabled the Navy Department in Washington, "Wheeling arrived six days from Guam. Quiet and order there. Most friendly to Americans. Native Government established by Taussig working well. Native soldiers fine body of men. USS Nanshan (AG-3) (United States Naval Transport) in Guam."

Departing Guam in mid-February 1899, Commander Taussig and Bennington continued on to Manila, where the ship arrived on 22 February 1899 with the mission of supporting the Army's campaigns during the Philippine–American War primarily with patrol and escort duty. In August 1899, Taussig was summarily relieved of command of the Bennington and ordered home by Rear Admiral John C. Watson, commander of the Asiatic Station, following Taussig’s dissent from the latter’s views concerning campaign plans that were voiced at a staff conference in Manila. According to press reports, Watson resented Taussig’s verbal opposition, and a heated argument between the two ensued. Following his return to San Francisco on the hospital ship, Solace, Commander Taussig requested an investigation.

He was assigned to duty with the United States Lighthouse Board as 13th District Inspector in Portland, OR from October 1899 – April 1900. However, Commander Taussig did not have to wait long for vindication, when in March 1900, public accounts surfaced of Watson’s friction with officers under his command and with the Bureau of Navigation over Watson’s choice of Commander C.C. Cornwall as his executive officer, which the Bureau disapproved. Due to health reasons, Watson was himself privately relieved of command months before the public announcement in March 1900 that he was to be relieved by Rear Admiral George C. Remey. Watson returned home on his flagship USS Baltimore (C-3) in April 1900, the same month that Commander Taussig’s duty as lighthouse inspector ended.