Tyrone G. Martin

{{Short description|American navy officer, historian and author (1930–2026)}} {{Infobox military person | honorific_prefix = | name = Tyrone Gabriel Martin | honorific_suffix = | native_name = | native_name_lang = | image = TyroneGMartin2007.jpg | image_size = | alt = | caption = Martin (right) with Commander William A. Bullard III in 2007 | birth_date = {{Birth date|1930|06|05}} | birth_place = [[Greenwich, Connecticut]], U.S. | death_date = {{Death date and age|2026|02|16|1930|06|05}} | death_place = [[Tryon, North Carolina]], U.S. | burial_place = | burial_label = | burial_coordinates =  | nickname = Ty | birth_name = | allegiance = {{US}} | branch = {{flag|United States Navy}} | service_years = 26 | rank = Commander | service_number = | unit = | commands = {{USS|Constitution}} | battles = | battles_label = | awards =  | relations = | other_work = Author and Historian | signature = | website =  }}

'''Tyrone Gabriel Martin''' (June 5, 1930 – February 26, 2026) was a [[United States Navy]] [[Commander (United States)|commander]], naval historian, most notable as an authority on {{USS|Constitution}} ("Old Ironsides"), of which he was the 58th commanding officer.<ref Name="NewsStand">{{cite web|title=Cmdr. Ty Martin (ret.), the 58th commanding officer (1974-1978) of USS Constitution, signs a copy of his book|publisher=United States Navy|date=22 May 2007|url=http://www.navy.mil/view_single.asp?id=46447|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191214184323/https://www.navy.mil/view_image.asp?id=46447|archive-date=14 December 2019|url-status=dead}}</ref> Martin was born in [[Greenwich, Connecticut]] on 5 June 1930 and commissioned an officer through the [[NROTC]] in 1952. During his twenty-three years of navy service he commanded two [[destroyer]]s on tours of duty off [[Korea]] and [[Vietnam]] finally becoming the commanding officer (captain) of ''Constitution'' on 6 August 1974.<ref Name="Timonier">{{cite web|title=Commanders of the USS Constitution|publisher=Timonier|year=2002|url=http://www.polkcounty.org/timonier/commanders/commanders.htm|access-date=19 October 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081011032548/http://www.polkcounty.org/timonier/commanders/commanders.htm|archive-date=11 October 2008}}</ref> In July 1976, during the [[United States Bicentennial]] celebrations, Queen [[Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom]] and her husband [[Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh]], arrived for their [[state visit]] and privately toured the ship for approximately thirty minutes with Commander Martin and Secretary of the Navy [[J. William Middendorf]].<ref name="ChiTrib12-30-76">{{Cite news|work=Chicago Tribune|date=30 December 1976|page=C12|title=Happy 200th party for U. S.}}</ref> During the 1980s, he was a Senior Naval Science Instructor (SNSI) for the [[NJROTC]] program at [[Boston Technical High School]].

During Martin's tenure as Commanding Officer, several traditions were instituted that are still observed by the crew of ''Constitution'', such as the wearing of 1812 era uniforms and the practice of firing morning and sunset guns. ''Constitution'' received her first [[Meritorious Unit Commendation]] during his tour, and Martin was the first captain to be decorated for service since [[Charles Stewart (1778–1869)|Charles Stewart]]. Martin turned over command of the ship to Commander Robert Leo Gillen on 30 June 1978.<ref Name="Timonier"/> He retiredin 1978.<ref>{{cite web | title=Tyrone Gabriel Martin | publisher=USS Constitution Museum | date=3 March 2026 | url=https://ussconstitutionmuseum.org/crew/tyrone-gabriel-martin/}}</ref> After his time in the navy, Martin retired to Tryon, NC where he wrote several books about "Old Ironsides" and numerous articles on various aspects of the ship and her times, plus the "Salty Talk" column in the journal [[Naval History journal|''Naval History'']].

In 2019, the [[Naval Historical Foundation]] awarded Martin the [[Commodore Dudley W. Knox Naval History Lifetime Achievement Award]].<ref>''Pull Together: Newsletter of the Naval Historical Foundation'', vo. 58, no. 1 (Summer 2019), pp. 9-11.</ref>

Martin died in [[Tryon, North Carolina]] on February 26, 2026, at the age of 95.<ref>{{cite web |title=Commander Tyrone Martin |url=https://www.mcfarlandfuneralchapel.com/obituaries/commander-tyrone-martin |website=McFarland Funeral Chapel |access-date=2 April 2026}}</ref>

== Works == * {{cite book|isbn=1-55750-588-8|oclc=243901224|title=A Most Fortunate Ship: A Narrative History of "Old Ironsides"|publisher=[[Naval Institute Press]]|year=1997}} * {{cite book|isbn=1-884824-19-6|oclc=36330743|title=Undefeated: Old Ironsides in the War of 1812|publisher=Tryon Publishing Company|location=Chapel Hill|year=1996}} * {{cite book|isbn=1-884824-20-X|oclc=37713196|title=Creating a Legend|publisher=Tryon Publishing Company|location=Chapel Hill|year=1997}} * {{cite book|isbn=1-877853-60-7|title=The USS Constitution's Finest Fight: The Journal of Acting Chaplain Assheton Humphreys, US Navy|last=Humphreys|first=Assheton Y.|publisher=The Nautical & Aviation Publishing|year=2000|editor=Tyrone G. Martin|oclc=44632941}} * {{cite book|isbn=1-884824-31-5|oclc=62156072|title=A Signal Honor: The Men of Constitution|author=John Charles Roach|publisher=Tryon Publishing Company |location=Chapel Hill|year=2003}} * {{cite book|oclc=88264025|title=The USS Constitution: A Design Confirmed|publisher=Peabody Museum of Salem|location=Salem Massachusetts|year=1997}} * {{cite book|isbn=978-1-4327-3160-1|title=Constitution: All Sails Up and Flying|last=Eriksen|first=Olof A.|publisher=Outskirts Press|year=2009|editor=Tyrone G. Martin}}

==References== {{reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Martin, Tyrone G.}} [[Category:1930 births]] [[Category:2026 deaths]] [[Category:American naval historians]] [[Category:American male non-fiction writers]] [[Category:United States Navy officers]]