Frederick C. Billard

Frederick C. Billard
Birth name	Frederick Chamberlayne Billard[1]
Born	(1873-09-22)22 September 1873 Washington, D.C., U.S.
Died	17 May 1932(1932-05-17) (aged 58)
Buried	Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington County, Virginia, U.S.
Service/branch	United States Coast Guard
Years of service	1894–1932
Rank	Rear admiral
Commands	Commandant of the Coast Guard
Battles/wars	World War I
Awards	Navy Cross

Frederick Chamberlayne Billard (22 September 1873 – 17 May 1932) served as the sixth commandant of the United States Coast Guard for an unprecedented three terms from 1924 until his death in 1932. Rear Admiral Billard died of pneumonia in May 1932 shortly after starting his third term. There were major changes to the organization during his career. The U.S. Revenue-Marine that was established on 4 August 1790 became the Revenue Cutter Service in 1894, the same year he enlisted. The Revenue Cutter Service that he had entered in 1894 merged with the United States Life-Saving Service to form the United States Coast Guard on 28 January 1915.

Billard's career began with his appointment to the School of Instruction of the Revenue Cutter Service in 1894. He served as an aide to two commandants, was the superintendent of the United States Coast Guard Academy twice, and commanded several cutters. He was promoted to the rank of rear admiral when he was appointed to the position of Coast Guard Commandant in January 1924.

His leadership of the Coast Guard during the Prohibition era required careful planning and use of available resources to accomplish the mission while making sure that other required missions were not slighted.

He was very involved in the training of his officers as a superintendent of the United States Coast Guard Academy, and he was responsible for the purchase of the permanent location of the academy at New London, Connecticut.

While he was commandant, he emphasized training, formalized coursework for enlisted personnel, and standardized the testing procedures for advancement in rating. Billard supported newly available technology such as aircraft and radio communication to accomplish the mission. The Coast Guard's involvement in oceanography was instituted during his tenure. He emphasized integrity in the Coast Guard's dealings with the public, and expected his officers and enlisted men to be honest in order to preserve the image of the Coast Guard.

Composed by U.S. Coast Guard Captain Francis Saltus Van Boskerck in 1927, Semper Paratus became the official song of the U.S. Coast Guard in 1928. During the run of A Girl in Every Port (1928 film) at the Fox Theater in Washington D.C., a detachment of 50 Coast Guard officers appeared at the theater for the debut of "Semper Paratus", the official song of the U.S. Coast Guard. The officers appeared at each performance during the playing of the song.^[2]