George McMillin

Who was George McMillin?

George Johnson McMillin was a United States Navy Rear Admiral who served as the 38th and final Naval Governor of Guam. He graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1911 and served as an officer during four separate conflicts: World War I, the occupation of the Dominican Republic, the United States occupation of Veracruz, and World War II. He served on the staff of both the Naval Academy and the Naval War College as well. He is most remembered as the commander who surrendered Guamanian forces to a much larger Japanese force during the First Battle of Guam, only the second battle of World War II involving the United States. He had previously evacuated all but one civilian American citizen from the island and attempted to rebuild defenses after a strong typhoon devastated the island the year before. On December 8, 1941, Japanese forces invaded Guam and McMillin surrendered two days later. He spent the rest of the war at various Japanese prisoner of war camps.