New destroyer honors a black naval pioneer | HamptonRoads.com | PilotOnline.com

NORFOLK

When Samuel Gravely Jr. was born in segregated Richmond 88 years ago, he never could have imagined a career as a U.S. naval officer - not to mention becoming the first black officer to command a warship and, eventually, the service's first black admiral.

Gravely died in 2004, but this month marks yet another first: The first warship named for a black admiral was commissioned over the weekend. On Wednesday, the brand-new destroyer pulled into Norfolk, its new homeport.

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