Who Is Emery Rice? 

A native of Massachusetts, Captain Emery Rice felt an irresistible calling to the sea from boyhood. He earned his diploma from the Massachusetts Nautical School in 1897, then went on to serve with distinction in the Spanish-American War, earning two medals for his valor. In the years that followed he commanded vessels in the Merchant Marine across the Pacific as well as on private expeditions to the Arctic.  One ship he commanded rescued fourteen shipwrecked Japanese sailors from a typhoon, an act for which the Emperor of Japan awarded him a medal. Captain Rice was twice recognized by President Theodore Roosevelt for his skill and courage.

When the United States entered the First World War, Captain Rice commanded the SS Mongolia on the Atlantic run. On April 19, 1917, he ordered his crew to open fire on an attacking German U-boat, delivering what is recorded as the first American naval shot of the war. He went on to complete more than 40 Atlantic crossings before the conflict's end.