An "old salt" is an old sailor or mariner who tells oral history and sea stories. Sometimes deemed a sage within their domain, and while sometimes a raconteur, much of the history and traditions of mariners are passed from generation to generation as told and retold by old salts. Their factual oral histories and fictional sea stories often intermingle and thus may overall be truthful, half-true, or fiction. Each narrative told by an old salt tends to have the aim of enhancing the reputation of the old salt, the old salt's companions, or the old salt's forebears, although they may also tell instructive tales of tragedy.[1] [2]
In the United States Navy, the "Old Salt" is a title passed to the longest-serving Surface Warfare Officer on active duty.[3] The award, currently held by Admiral Christopher W. Grady, honors the officer with the earliest standing SWO qualification.[4]
| Portrait | Name | Tenure as titleholder | Positions held | Ref | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date received | Date relinquished | Time as titleholder | ||||||
| 1 | Admiral Lee Baggett Jr. | December 9, 1988 | Commander-in-Chief, United States Atlantic Command (1985-1988) | [5] | ||||
| 2 | Rear Admiral Lawrence Layman | December 9, 1988 | February 28, 1989 | Director of Space, Command and Control (1986-1989) | ||||
| 3 | Vice Admiral Albert J. Herberger | March 21, 1990 | Deputy Commander-in-Chief, United States Transportation Command (1987-1990)[6] | |||||
| 4 | Vice Admiral Joseph S. Donnell III | March 21, 1990 | January 31, 1991 | Commander, Naval Surface Force, U.S. Atlantic Fleet (????-1991) | ||||
| 5 | Admiral David E. Jeremiah | February 1, 1991 | February 28, 1994 | Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (1990-1994) | ||||
| 6 | Vice Admiral David M. Bennett | March 1, 1994 | August 25, 1995 | Commander, Naval Surface Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet (1990-1992) Naval Inspector General (1992-1995) | ||||
| 7 | Vice Admiral Philip M. Quast | February 14, 1997 | Commander, Military Sealift Command (1995-1997)[7] | |||||
| 8 | Rear Admiral George F.A. Wagner | April 30, 1998 | Commander, Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command (1995-1998) | |||||
| 9 | Rear Admiral George A. Huchting | January 14, 1999 | Program Executive Officer for Surface Combatants (1991-1998) | |||||
| 10 | Rear Admiral Dennis R. Conley | January 14, 1999 | March 31, 1999 | Commander, Mine Warfare Command (1996-1999) | ||||
| 11 | Rear Admiral James B. Ferguson III | April 1, 1999 | June 1, 1999 | Commander, Western Hemisphere Group (????-1999) | ||||
| 12 | Vice Admiral James F. Amerault | June 2, 1999 | July 24, 2001 | Deputy Chief of Naval Operations (Fleet Readiness and Logistics) (1998-2001)[8] | ||||
| 13 | Vice Admiral Rodney P. Rempt | July 25, 2001 | May 21, 2007 | President of the Naval War College (2001-2003) Superintendent of the United States Naval Academy (2003-2007) | ||||
| 14 | Admiral Michael Mullen | December 16, 2011 | Chief of Naval Operations (2005-2007) Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (2007-2011) | |||||
| 15 | Admiral John C. Harvey Jr. | September 14, 2012 | Commander, United States Fleet Forces Command (2009-2012) | [9] | ||||
| 16 | Vice Admiral John Terence Blake | December 17, 2012 | Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Integration of Capabilities and Resources (2012)[10] | [11] | ||||
| 17 | Vice Admiral Michael A. Lefever | May 7, 2014 | Director, Strategic Operational Planning, National Counterterrorism Center (2011-2014) | |||||
| 18 | Admiral Samuel J. Locklear | June 22, 2015 | Commander, United States Pacific Command (2012-2015) | |||||
| 19 | Admiral Kurt W. Tidd | October 22, 2018 | Assistant to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (2013-2016)[12] Commander, United States Southern Command (2016-2018) | [13] | ||||
| 20 | Admiral Philip S. Davidson | April 30, 2021 | Commander, United States Indo-Pacific Command (2018-2021) | [14] | ||||
| 21 | Admiral Christopher W. Grady | Incumbent | Commander, United States Fleet Forces Command (2018-2021) Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (2021–present) | |||||