Ernest King outscored 30 other applicants in an application exam in Mansfield, Ohio to win acceptance at the U.S. Naval Academy. He attended from 1897 to 1901. During his time at the Academy, King served in the Spanish-American War by serving on the USS San Francisco. This photo is of King as a Midshipman. After graduation, as a junior officer, King served in a variety of large and small ships, had instructor duty at the Naval Academy, performed engineering duties and was twice on flag staffs.