Martin Edward Trench

Martin Edward Trench (November 30, 1869 – January 6, 1927) was a Captain of the United States Navy and Governor of the United States Virgin Islands from 1925 until his death in 1927. He is the first Governor of the territory to have died while in office.

Born the son of an immigrant farmer from Ireland in Dennison, Minnesota, he graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1893. He first served in the Spanish–American War. During World War I, he commanded USS Charleston (C-22). On September 12, 1925, he was sworn in as the Governor of the United States Virgin Islands.

He died in Worcester, Massachusetts while spending the holidays with a friend away from the Islands. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery outside of Washington, DC.