[1] As a lieutenant commander, McCully served as a military observer embedded within the Imperial Russian Army during the Russo-Japanese War in 1904, arriving at the front lines in Manchuria via the Trans-Siberian Railway.

[2] After the end of the war, McCully served as executive officer on the cruiser USS California (ACR-6).

In 1918, as a rear admiral, he was placed in command of United States Navy forces in northern Russia.

In December 1919 McCully was sent to south Russia on an intelligence mission, along with his aide, Lieutenant Commander Hugo W. Koehler, to join the Whites and report on the strength of the Bolsheviks and their potential threat.

[6][7] The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Navy Distinguished Service Medal to Rear Admiral Newton Alexander McCully, United States Navy, for exceptionally meritorious service in a duty of great responsibility as District Commander, Rochefort, in successfully handling naval activities in France south of the Loire River and safeguarding American convoys through the submarine zone during World War I.