Ralph Hungerford

Ralph Waldo Hungerford (April 21, 1896 – February 20, 1977) was a United States Navy Captain, and the governor of American Samoa from January 27, 1945, to September 3, 1945. He was born April 21, 1896, in Windsor, New York, but moved to Rhode Island later in life. He received appointment to the United States Naval Academy on June 17, 1915. During World War II, he served on the staff of Rear Admiral Adolphus Andrews in defense of the East Coast of the United States; he specialized in antisubmarine warfare. He was awarded the Legion of Merit on January 14, 1943. Hungerford became governor on January 27, 1945, and faced the daunting task of restoring the island to a pre-Pacific War economy. He died in 1977 in Pennsylvania.