Avenue of Heroes: Virgil C. Griffin

Prepared by: Patrick Working (grandson)

Naval pioneer Captain Virgil ‘Squash’ Griffin was born in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1891. He graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1912, ninth in a class of 159. After graduation, he was ordered to America’s first dreadnought, the USS South Carolina (BB-26). In 1914, during the Mexican Revolution, the ship took part in the seizure and occupation of Vera Cruz. Virgil commanded the Fourth Company of armed bluejackets which came under fire during the Battle of Vera Cruz.

CAPT Griffin reported to Pensacola for flight training and, in April of 1917, was designated the nation’s 41st Naval Aviator. America had just entered World War I and he was assigned to the U.S. Navy Aeronautical Detachment No.1, America’s first fighting force to land in France during the war. CAPT Griffin commanded U.S. Naval Air Station in St. Trojan, France, where he helped develop tactics in the use of seaplanes to combat German U-boats. In 1920 Virgil married Elize Hall, who provided a firm foundation for ‘her Griff’ throughout his career.

CAPT Griffin played many crucial roles as the Navy transitioned from battleship to aircraft carrier and air power. He helped design and build arresting gear for the Navy’s first aircraft carrier, USS Langley (CV-1) and in 1922, CAPT Griffin made the historic first takeoffin a Vought VE-7. The era of the aircraft carrier was born! CAPT Griffin was superintendent of training at the Pensacola aviation
school, Air Officer on the USS Lexington and USS Saratoga, Commanding Officer of Scouting Wing, Battle Force, Executive Air Officer, Pearl Harbor, Executive Officer of USS Langley, and Commanding Officer of the Naval Air Station at Anacostia, D.C. He served as ADM William ‘Bull’ Halsey’s Chief of Staff, and Commanded Fleet Air Wing 5.

During World War II, Griffin commanded the Naval Air Station Isle Grande at San Juan, Puerto Rico, and the Navy’s largest Technical Training Center, in Norman, Oklahoma. His final duty was Commanding Officer of Naval Air Station Barber’s Point, Hawaii.

CAPT Griffin retired in 1947 and lived in Coronado at 777 G Avenue until his death in 1957. He is interred beside his beloved wife, Elize, at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery.

The Avenue of Heroes military service recognition program is sponsored by the City of Coronado. Introduced in 2014, the program has honored 246 hometown heroes to date. On November 4, 2023, another 16 were honored. City staff and volunteers from the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2422, the Coronado Historical Association and Third and Fourth Streets Neighborhood Association oversee its operation.

In 2011, the program was inspired spontaneously with the movement of two Navy SEALs to their final resting place. News spread quickly and the local Rotary Club passed out American flags. People lined Fourth Street to honor the fallen service members. As the procession approached the Coronado Bridge, a lone Navy SEAL stood at attention, saluting as he waited for the passage of his comrades. That moment made clear that Third and Fourth streets were already an Avenue of Heroes.

That spontaneous beginning launched the program in May 2015 with 18 banners. The Avenue of Heroes is a reminder that Coronado has a rich history and legacy of service to the country.