Cornelius Kinchiloe Stribling (22 September 1796 – 17 January 1880) was a

rear admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regard ...

in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage of ...

who served during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States, United States of America and its Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom ...

, the

Second Barbary War The Second Barbary War (1815) or the U.S.–Algerian War was fought between the United States and the North African Barbary Coast states of Tripoli, Tunis, and Algiers. The war ended when the United States Senate ratified Commodore Stephen De ...

, the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the 1 ...

, and the American Civil War.

Biography

Stribling was born at

Pendleton, South Carolina Pendleton is a town in Anderson County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 3,489 at the 2020 census. It is a sister city of Stornoway in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. The Pendleton Historic District, consisting of the town and ...

, and left home at the age of 15. He was appointed

midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Canada (Naval Cadet), Australia, Bangladesh, Namibia, New Zealand, South Af ...

on 18 June 1812, the day the United States declared war on

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

. During the War of 1812, he served in from 1 January 1813 to April 1814 and in from then until April 1815. While assigned to ''Mohawk'' on

Lake Ontario Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York. The Canada–United States border span ...

, Stribling participated in the blockade of Kingston in the summer and fall of 1814. Soon after the end of the war, he returned to ''Macedonian'' and, in 1815, participated in the capture of two Algerine ships, a

frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and ...

and a

brig A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square-rigged. Brigs originated in the second half of the 18th century and were a common type of smaller merchant vessel or warship from then until the latter part ...

, by

Commodore Commodore may refer to: Ranks * Commodore (rank), a naval rank ** Commodore (Royal Navy), in the United Kingdom ** Commodore (United States) ** Commodore (Canada) ** Commodore (Finland) ** Commodore (Germany) or ''Kommodore'' * Air commodore, ...

Stephen Decatur Stephen Decatur Jr. (; January 5, 1779 – March 22, 1820) was an American naval officer and commodore. He was born on the eastern shore of Maryland in Worcester County. His father, Stephen Decatur Sr., was a commodore in the Unite ...

's squadron. In October 1815, Stribling was transferred to and returned home in that frigate at the end of 1817. On 1 April 1818, he was promoted to lieutenant and served successively in , , and , and again in ''Constellation'', during the campaigns against pirates in the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater ...

. In 1823, he was given command of two barges along the coast of Cuba and with them captured buccaneer

schooner A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoon ...

''Pilot'' after a running fight. In 1835, he commanded the re-commissioned ''Peacock'' (1828) on her second

diplomatic mission A diplomatic mission or foreign mission is a group of people from a state or organization present in another state to represent the sending state or organization officially in the receiving or host state. In practice, the phrase usually deno ...

conveying diplomatist Edmund Roberts, accompanied by Lieutenant Commanding A. S. Campbell the U. S. Schooner ''Enterprise'', both under the command of Commodore Edmund P. Kennedy, on the Commodore's way to establish the

East India Squadron The East India Squadron, or East Indies Squadron, was a squadron of American ships which existed in the nineteenth century, it focused on protecting American interests in the Far East while the Pacific Squadron concentrated on the western coas ...

. During the Mexican War, Stribling was attached to the

ship-of-the-line A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed during the Age of Sail from the 17th century to the mid-19th century. The ship of the line was designed for the naval tactic known as the line of battle, which depended on the two colum ...

and took part in operations against the coastal towns of Lower California and western

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. From 1850 to 1853, he served as Superintendent of the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy is ...

. On 1 August 1853, he was promoted to the rank of

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

. From 1854 to 1855, he commanded and, between 1857 and 1859, he was Commandant at the

Pensacola Navy Yard Naval Air Station Pensacola or NAS Pensacola (formerly NAS/KNAS until changed circa 1970 to allow Nassau International Airport, now Lynden Pindling International Airport, to have IATA code NAS), "The Cradle of Naval Aviation", is a United State ...

. After two years as Commander of the East India Squadron, Stribling returned home in 1861 to find the Union rent asunder by the Civil War. He supported the Union cause. Under the provisions of the Act of Congress, effective 21 December 1861, his long service required that he be placed upon the retired list. That action and a promotion to the rank of

commodore Commodore may refer to: Ranks * Commodore (rank), a naval rank ** Commodore (Royal Navy), in the United Kingdom ** Commodore (United States) ** Commodore (Canada) ** Commodore (Finland) ** Commodore (Germany) or ''Kommodore'' * Air commodore, ...

took place on 2 August 1862. The exigencies of war soon brought him back to active duty. He commanded the

Philadelphia Navy Yard The Philadelphia Naval Shipyard was an important naval shipyard of the United States for almost two centuries. Philadelphia's original navy yard, begun in 1776 on Front Street and Federal Street in what is now the Pennsport section of the c ...

until 23 September 1864, when he was ordered to assume command of the

East Gulf Blockading Squadron The Union blockade in the American Civil War was a naval strategy by the United States to prevent the Confederacy from trading. The blockade was proclaimed by President Abraham Lincoln in April 1861, and required the monitoring of of Atlantic ...

. He held this post for the duration of the war. On 6 August 1866, he was appointed to the Lighthouse Board and remained with that organization until 18 September 1871, having served as president of the board from 15 March 1869. Rear Admiral Stribling died at

Martinsburg, West Virginia Martinsburg is a city in and the seat of Berkeley County, West Virginia, in the tip of the state's Eastern Panhandle region in the lower Shenandoah Valley. Its population was 18,835 in the 2021 census estimate, making it the largest city in the Ea ...

, on 17 January 1880. He was buried at Oak Hill Cemetery in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, Na ...

Namesakes and honors

*Two ships have been named in his honor. *Stribling Walk, the central brick walkway of the United States Naval Academy, is also named for him. According to Naval Academy legend the walk has 11880 bricks in it due to his death in January 1880.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stribling, Cornelius American military personnel of the Mexican–American War United States Navy personnel of the War of 1812 Military personnel from Martinsburg, West Virginia Superintendents of the United States Naval Academy Union Navy officers United States Navy admirals 1796 births 1880 deaths Burials at Oak Hill Cemetery (Washington, D.C.)

Biography

Namesakes and honors

See also

References