Samuel Francis Du Pont

Samuel Francis Du Pont 1803-1865
Born Bergen Point, New Jersey

At the start of the Civil War, Samuel F. Du Pont was one of the navy's senior and most distinguished officers. Accordingly, he was given command of the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron, the largest fleet ever commanded by a naval officer up to that time. His capture of Port Royal, South Carolina, in November 1861 was the first major Union naval victory of the war and demonstrated the effectiveness of the navy's improved ordnance against shore defenses. The victory earned Du Pont the rank of rear admiral. In 1863, however, Du Pont, leading a fleet of ironclads, failed to take Charleston and suffered the worst naval defeat of the war. He asked to be relieved of his command and the request was granted, thus ending a forty-five-year career in the navy rather ignominiously.