Rear Admiral George Brown (June 19, 1835 – June 29, 1913) was an officer of 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 ...

who served during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

Biography

Brown was born in

Rushville, Indiana Rushville is a city in Rushville Township, Rush County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 6,341 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of Rush County. It, like the county, was named in honor of Dr. Benjamin Rush, who signe ...

, and entered the navy as a midshipman on February 5, 1849. He subsequently served aboard the and . He served throughout the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, first as inspector of ordnance for the (rank

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

), then as commander of the with the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron, during which time he was promoted to

lieutenant commander Lieutenant commander (also hyphenated lieutenant-commander and abbreviated Lt Cdr, LtCdr. or LCDR) is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander. The corresponding rank i ...

. He especially distinguished himself on the night of February 24, 1863, when, in command of the river gunboat at Palmyra Island, he defended himself for an hour and a half against four

Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...

gunboats. He was wounded and taken prisoner, and his vessel was destroyed. He was held at

Libby Prison Libby Prison was a Confederate prison at Richmond, Virginia, during the American Civil War. In 1862 it was designated to hold officer prisoners from the Union Army. It gained an infamous reputation for the overcrowded and harsh conditions. Prison ...

in Richmond, Virginia until exchanged in May 1863. He commandeered and armed the civilian vessel ''Union'' at Marion, Indiana for defense against

Morgan's Raiders Morgan's Raid was a diversionary incursion by Confederate cavalry into the Union states of Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio and West Virginia during the American Civil War. The raid took place from June 11 to July 26, 1863, and is named for the commander ...

in July 1863. Later he commanded the at the

Battle of Mobile Bay The Battle of Mobile Bay of August 5, 1864, was a naval and land engagement of the American Civil War in which a Union fleet commanded by Rear Admiral David G. Farragut, assisted by a contingent of soldiers, attacked a smaller Confederate fle ...

in 1864. After the war, he conveyed the former to Japan, to which it had been sold. He also was elected a First Class Companion of the Indiana Commandery of the

Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States The Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States (MOLLUS), or simply the Loyal Legion is a United States patriotic order, organized April 15, 1865, by three veteran officers of the Army. The original membership was composed of members ...

. He became a

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 ...

in April 1877, after being appointed to command the

Department of Alaska Department of Alaska was the designation for the government of Alaska from its purchase by the United States of America in 1867 until its organization as the District of Alaska in 1884. During the department era, Alaska was variously under ...

, and was promoted to

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 regarde ...

in September 1893. In June and July 1891 he was in Chilean waters involved in the

Itata Incident The ''Itata'' incident was a diplomatic affair and military incident involving the United States and Chilean insurgents during the 1891 Chilean Civil War. The incident concerned an arms shipment by the Chilean ship ''Itata'' from the United St ...

which was a diplomatic affair and military incident involving the United States and

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

during the

1891 Chilean Civil War The Chilean Civil War of 1891 (also known as Revolution of 1891) was a civil war in Chile fought between forces supporting Congress and forces supporting the President, José Manuel Balmaceda from 16 January 1891 to 18 September 1891. The war ...

. The incident concerned an attempted arms shipment by the rebel ship ''Itata'' from the U.S. to Chile. He was accused by opponents of the administration of having gone beyond his public orders to become involved in intrigues with the combatants.

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

defends Brown from these charges in his book, ''Campaigns and Controversies''.Roosevelt, pp. 152–54. He commanded the naval forces in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

in 1889–92, and the

Norfolk Navy Yard The Norfolk Naval Shipyard, often called the Norfolk Navy Yard and abbreviated as NNSY, is a U.S. Navy facility in Portsmouth, Virginia, for building, remodeling and repairing the Navy's ships. It is the oldest and largest industrial facility tha ...

in 1886–90, and again in 1893–97, when he retired. Two of his sons, George, Jr. and Hugh, became officers in the U.S. Navy.

Personal life

Brown's wife was Kate Morris.BROWN, George
in ''

Who's Who in America Marquis Who's Who ( or ) is an American publisher of a number of directories containing short biographies. The books usually are entitled ''Who's Who in...'' followed by some subject, such as ''Who's Who in America'', ''Who's Who of American Wome ...

'' (1901-1902 edition), via

archive.org The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

Dates of rank

*Midshipman – 5 February 1849 *Passed midshipman – 12 June 1855 *Master – 16 September 1855 *Lieutenant – 2 June 1856 *Lieutenant commander – 16 July 1862 *Commander – 25 July 1866 *Captain – 25 April 1877 *Commodore – 4 September 1887 *Rear admiral – 27 September 1893 *Retired list – 19 June 1897

Notes

References

* Roosevelt, Theodore. ''Campaigns and Controversies''. Kessinger Publishing, 2005. * ''The Union Army'', Vol VII, The Navy, pp. 17–18 * ''Indiana in the Civil War'' website, entry for George Brown {{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, George 1835 births 1913 deaths People from Indiana People of Indiana in the American Civil War Union Navy officers United States Navy rear admirals (upper half)