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Carlton Skinner

Carlton Skinner
Carlton Skinner.jpg
Skinner on the USCGC Sea Cloud, June 1948
1st Appointed Governor of Guam
In office
September 17, 1949 – April 22, 1953
Preceded by Charles Alan Pownall
(last military governor)
Succeeded by Ford Quint Elvidge
Personal details
Born (1913-04-08)April 8, 1913
Palo Alto, California
Died June 22, 2004(2004-06-22) (aged 91)
Boston, Massachusetts
Nationality United States American
Political party Democratic
Spouse(s) Jeanne Rowe Skinner
Children Franz, Andrea, Barbara
Military service
Nickname(s) The George Washington of Guam
Allegiance  United States
Service/branch United States Coast Guard Seal United States Coast Guard
Rank US-O5 insignia.svg Commander
Commands USCGC Sea Cloud; USS Hoaquim

Carlton Skinner (April 8, 1913 – June 22, 2004) was the first civilian governor of Guam and a prominent advocate for the integration of the United States Armed Forces.President Harry Truman appointed Skinner governor in 1949, after the United States Navy ceded control of the island to the Department of the Interior.

Skinner, a native of Palo Alto, California, originally attended Wesleyan University where he was a member of the fraternity that later became a chapter of The Kappa Alpha Society and transferred from there to the University of California at Los Angeles. Prior to World War II, he was a correspondent for United Press International and The Wall Street Journal. From 1947 to 1949 he served as Public Relations Director and then as a special assistant to the United States Secretary of the Interior.

As a Coast Guard Lieutenant, Skinner commanded the USCGC Sea Cloud, a weather ship. When the United States entered World War II, the Coast Guard was integrated into the Navy, and the Sea Cloud was sent out on combat service. Leaving Boston, the Sea Cloud participated in sinking one submarine. Earlier, while serving as executive officer of the USCGC Northland, Skinner began to question the Armed Forces policy of ship segregation. The Northland, stranded during a patrol with no engine, was saved when a black steward crewman got the engine started after white engineers were unable. When Skinner recommended the man for promotion, he was told that blacks were only allowed to be steward's mates. Seeking to prove a point, Skinner sailed with the Navy's first fully integrated crew since the Civil War, with duties spread equally among white and black crewmen. Future black artist Jacob Lawrence was among the men who served on the Sea Cloud under Lieutenant Skinner.


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