Adolphus was quite a man in his own right. Among his achievements are:
- Shortly before his death, Greely was awarded the Medal of Honor, The United States' highest award for Valor;
- Was a famous Arctic Explorer. Commanded the 'Lady Franklin Bay Expedition" which achieved the world record for "Farthest North",
- Named an Arctic Glacier in Honor of his Wife;
- Fought in the Civil War;
- U.S. Army Post, Fort Greely was named in his honor
- Assumed Military Command of San Francisco in the wake of the 1906 Earthquake (Telegrams: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6)
- Is the only person to ever rise from the rank of Volunteer Private to Major General in the United States Army;
- Is a Co-Founder of the National Geographic Society;
- Is Buried in Section 1 of the Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia with his wife, Henrietta Hudson Cruger Nesmith;
- Had a U.S. Postage Stamp issued in his honor in 1986;
- The Nesmith-Greely Building in San Diego, California named in his honor, and
- Click here to view a Memoir of A. W. Greely published by the
New England Historical and Genealogical Register in 1936 (This takes a long
time to load. Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader - Free from Adobe).
- US Naval Ship, the USS General A.W. Greely, a 10,654 -ton, C4-S-A1 type transport, was built at Richmond, California, in 1944-45 - see images below
- Much, much more . . .
