Laurence Wild

Laurence Wild (May 1, 1890 – May 26, 1971) was a United States Navy Captain, college basketball player and coach, and the governor of American Samoa from August 8, 1940, to June 5, 1942.

While a Lieutenant Commander, Wild served as a communications officer for Submarine Squadron 11.

[6] President of the United States Franklin Roosevelt recommended Wild for the rank of captain in 1939.

[2] During his governorship, a more complicated political structure arose in American Samoa when Brigadier General Henry Louis Larsen of the United States Marine Corps became Military Governor and Island Commander of Tutuila.

Wild recommended to the Chief of Naval Operations the establishment of an insular native force distinct from the Fitafita Guard.