David G. Farragut photographed by Mathew Brady
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DAVID GLASGOW FARRAGUT
July 5, 1801 • August 14, 1870
- Birthplace: Campbell's Station, southwest of Knoxville, Tennessee.
- Parents: George Farragut and Elizabeth Shine.
- Brothers and Sisters: David was the second of five children.
- December 17, 1810 : Appointed midshipman by the Secretary of the Navy.
- 1815-1820: Aide to Commodores Bainbridge, Chauncey, Captain Gallagher.
- 1822-1824: Served with Commodore David Porter's "Mosquito Fleet" entrusted with the difficult task of suppressing piracy in the West Indies.
- Date and Place of First Marriage: September 24, 1823, married Susan C. Marchant, Norfolk, Virginia (She died in 1840).
- Date and Place of Second Marriage: December 26, 1843, married Virginia Loyall of Norfolk, Virginia.
- 1825: Promoted to lieutenant, assigned to the frigate "Brandywine," under orders to transport Lafayette to France.
- April 17, 1861: The Virginia Convention passed an ordinance of succession, forcing Farragut, who was living in Virginia, to choose between the Confederacy or the Union. Farragut, dissatisfied with the Convention and supporting Lincoln, left Virginia to live in the north, where he was unemployed and under suspicion for a time until he proved his loyalty to the Union.
- 1862: Appointed to command the West Gulf Blockading Squadron. Goal: to neutralize the defenses guarding the approaches to New Orleans (controlled by the Confederacy) and "take possession of it under the guns of your squadron." Farragut won a magnificent victory. President Lincoln approved a resolution of Congress tendering him, his officers and men the thanks of the nation.
- July 30, 1862: Commissioned a Rear-Admiral, first officer in that grade.
- 1864: Defeated Confederate defenses in the Battle of Mobile Bay, captured Fort Gaines and Fort Morgan; the crowning event of Farragut's life.
- July 26, 1866: Commissioned Admiral, a grade made especially for him.
- Age at Death: 70 years.
- Place of Death: New York City, New York.
- Burial Place: Woodlawn Cemetery, Westchester County, New York.
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