Kemp Tolley (born 1908 Manila — died 28 October 2000) was an officer in the US Navy and is the author of books on the history of the US Navy, like The Yangtze Patrol. He was a 1929 graduate of the United States Naval Academy, where he was a member of Phi Alpha Theta. Tolley himself served in the Yangtze Patrol.
At the time of his birth in 1908, Admiral Tolley's father, Lt Col Oscar Kemp Tolley, U.S. Army, was stationed in the Philippines.
During his civilian life, he lived in the historic Corbett Village in Monkton, Maryland.
Barrow, Clay. "Midshipman Tolley." Naval History. September/October 1995, v. 9, n. 5, pages 17—21. A profile of Kemp Tolley, "one of the most colorful men in the history of the U.S. Navy," by a former editor of the U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings. Tolley wrote Yangtze Patrol, Cruise of the Lanikai, Caviar and Commissars and dozens of published articles.
Buckley, Thomas H. "Yangtze Patrol: The U.S. Navy in China. By Kemp Tolley." The Journal of American History, September 1972, v. 59, no. 2, pages 453-454
Jacobus, Stephen "Shakey Jake". "Tolley's Way — One Gentleman's Adventurous Naval Career." Naval History, September/October 1995, v. 9, n.5, pages 22—23. Biographical sketch of Admiral Kemp Tolley, author of Yangtze Patrol, who served in China and many other adventurous places.
Rosenberg, David A. "Yangtze Patrol: The U.S. Navy in China." Military Affairs, October 1974, v. 38, page 120. A review of Kemp Tolley's book on the Yangtze Patrol.
Tolley, Kemp. "The Chameleon." Shipmate, October 1966, v. 29, pages 2—5.
Tolley, Kemp. "A Day in the Life of a Chungking Gunboat." Shipmate, June—July 1967, v. 30, pages 8—12 and 17.
Tolley, Kemp. "Three Piecee and Other Dollars Mex." Shipmate, July 1965, v. 28, pages 8—10.
Tolley, Kemp. "YangPat — Shanghai to Chungking." U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings, June 1963, v. 89, pages 80—89. This article emphasizes United States gunboat operations during the years 1937 to 1941.