Francis Munroe Ramsay
Encyclopedia
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
who distinguished himself in the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, and who later served as Chief of the Navy's Bureau of Navigation.
Early life and career
Born in the District of Columbia, Ramsay was appointed MidshipmanMidshipman
A midshipman is an officer cadet, or a commissioned officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Pakistan, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Kenya...
5 October 1850. After training in Preble
USS Preble (1839)
USS Preble was a United States Navy sloop-of-war with 16 guns, built by the Portsmouth Navy Yard, Kittery, Maine, launched June 13, 1839 and commissioned in 1840. She was named after Commodore Edward Preble ....
and in St. Lawrence
USS St. Lawrence (1848)
USS St. Lawrence was a frigate in the United States Navy. She was based on the same plans as .Although St. Lawrence was laid down in 1826 by the Norfolk Navy Yard, she remained uncompleted on the ways until work on her, interrupted by a shortage of funds, was resumed during the Mexican-American War...
, he graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy
United States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located in Annapolis, Maryland, United States...
in 1856. He subsequently served in Falmouth
USS Falmouth (1827)
USS Falmouth was a sloop of war in the United States Navy during the mid-19th century.Falmouth was launched on 3 November 1827 by Boston Navy Yard, and declared ready for sea 19 January 1828, Commander C. W. Morgan in command....
with the Brazil Squadron
Brazil Squadron
The Brazil Squadron, the Brazil Station, or the South Atlantic Squadron was an overseas military station established by the United States in 1826 to protect American commerce in the South Atlantic during a war between Brazil and Argentina...
; in Merrimack
USS Merrimack (1855)
USS Merrimack was a frigate and sailing vessel of the United States Navy, best known as the hull upon which the ironclad warship, CSS Virginia was constructed during the American Civil War...
with the Pacific Squadron
Pacific Squadron
The Pacific Squadron was part of the United States Navy squadron stationed in the Pacific Ocean in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Initially with no United States ports in the Pacific, they operated out of storeships which provided naval supplies and purchased food and obtained water from local...
; on ordnance duty at the Washington Navy Yard
Washington Navy Yard
The Washington Navy Yard is the former shipyard and ordnance plant of the United States Navy in Southeast Washington, D.C. It is the oldest shore establishment of the U.S. Navy...
; and in Saratoga
USS Saratoga (1842)
USS Saratoga, a sloop-of-war, was the third ship of the United States Navy to be named for the Battle of Saratoga of the American Revolutionary War. Her keel was laid down in the summer of 1841 by the Portsmouth Navy Yard...
on the Africa Station.
Civil War service
On 23 March 1863, he assumed command of ChoctawUSS Choctaw (1856)
USS Choctaw was a was a large steamer built for the merchant service, but acquired by the Union Navy during the second year of the American Civil War....
, for duty in the Mississippi Squadron. In that gunboat
Gunboat
A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies.-History:...
, he participated in Yazoo River
Yazoo River
The Yazoo River is a river in the U.S. state of Mississippi.The Yazoo River was named by French explorer La Salle in 1682 as "Rivière des Yazous" in reference to the Yazoo tribe living near the river's mouth. The exact meaning of the term is unclear...
operations during April and May. Then on 7 June, he supported a Union garrison at Milliken's Bend, La., in holding off
Battle of Milliken's Bend
The Battle of Milliken's Bend, fought June 7, 1863, was part of the Vicksburg Campaign of the American Civil War. Confederate Lt. Gen. John C. Pemberton and his army were besieged in Vicksburg, Mississippi, by Union commander Maj. Gen. Ulysses S...
some 4,000 Confederate
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
troops. Moving on to Vicksburg
Vicksburg, Mississippi
Vicksburg is a city in Warren County, Mississippi, United States. It is the only city in Warren County. It is located northwest of New Orleans on the Mississippi and Yazoo rivers, and due west of Jackson, the state capital. In 1900, 14,834 people lived in Vicksburg; in 1910, 20,814; in 1920,...
, he commanded a battery of heavy guns mounted on scows in exposed positions before the city, 19 June – 4 July. After the capture of the river stronghold
Battle of Vicksburg
The Siege of Vicksburg was the final major military action in the Vicksburg Campaign of the American Civil War. In a series of maneuvers, Union Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant and his Army of the Tennessee crossed the Mississippi River and drove the Confederate army of Lt. Gen. John C...
, he was given command of the 3d Division, Mississippi Squadron.
During February and March 1864, he led expeditions up the Black and Ouachita River
Ouachita River
The Ouachita River is a river that runs south and east through the U.S. states of Arkansas and Louisiana, joining the Tensas River to form the Black River near Jonesville, Louisiana.-Course:...
s and from mid-March to early May participated in Rear Admiral David Dixon Porter
David Dixon Porter
David Dixon Porter was a member of one of the most distinguished families in the history of the United States Navy. Promoted as the second man to the rank of admiral, after his adoptive brother David G...
's expedition up the Red River
Red River (Mississippi watershed)
The Red River, or sometimes the Red River of the South, is a major tributary of the Mississippi and Atchafalaya Rivers in the southern United States of America. The river gains its name from the red-bed country of its watershed. It is one of several rivers with that name...
. On 28 September, he was transferred to the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron in command of Unadilla
USS Unadilla (1861)
USS Unadilla was a built for service with the United States Navy during the American Civil War. She was the lead ship in her class.Unadilla was used by the Navy to patrol navigable waterways of the Confederacy to prevent the South from trading with other countries.- Built in New York City in 1861...
.
He participated in the amphibious assaults on Fort Fisher
Fort Fisher
Fort Fisher was a Confederate fort during the American Civil War. It protected the vital trading routes of the port at Wilmington, North Carolina, from 1861 until its capture by the Union in 1865....
24 December 1864 and on 13 January 1865, and in subsequent attacks against Fort Anderson
Fort Anderson
Fort Anderson can refer to:*Fort Anderson — A Union fort used in the American Civil War and site of the Battle of Paducah, Kentucky*Fort Anderson — A Confederate fort used in the American Civil War...
and other forts along the Cape Fear River
Cape Fear River
The Cape Fear River is a long blackwater river in east central North Carolina in the United States. It flows into the Atlantic Ocean near Cape Fear, from which it takes its name. The overall water quality of the river is continuously measured and monitored by and conducted by the , , and the...
. In April, he assisted in removing torpedoes (mines
Naval mine
A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, an enemy vessel...
) from the James River
James River (Virginia)
The James River is a river in the U.S. state of Virginia. It is long, extending to if one includes the Jackson River, the longer of its two source tributaries. The James River drains a catchment comprising . The watershed includes about 4% open water and an area with a population of 2.5 million...
and was present at the capture of Richmond
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
.
Post-Civil War service
After the Civil War, Ramsay served in many and varied positions afloat—as Fleet CaptainFleet captain
Fleet Captain is a rare military title that may be bestowed upon senior naval captains for a variety of reasons, the most common of which is to temporarily take command of more than one vessel. The rank can, therefore, be interpreted as a close equivalent to Commodore or to the 19th century rank...
, South Atlantic Squadron and as commanding officer of Guerriere
USS Guerriere (1865)
The second USS Guerriere was a frigate in the United States Navy. She was named for the victory of the frigate over during the War of 1812....
, Ossipee
USS Ossipee (1861)
|-External links:* Alaska's Digital Archives. Includes transfer ceremony of Alaska from Russia to the United States on October 18, 1867....
, Lancaster
USS Lancaster (1858)
The first USS Lancaster was a screw sloop-of-war in the United States Navy during the American Civil War through the Spanish-American War....
, Boston
USS Boston (1884)
The fifth USS Boston, a protected cruiser, was launched 4 December 1884 by John Roach & Sons, Chester, Pennsylvania, and commissioned 2 May 1887, Captain Francis M. Ramsay in command....
, and Trenton
USS Trenton (1876)
|...
. Ashore, he served at the Naval Academy, at Newport
Naval Station Newport
The Naval Station Newport is a United States Navy base located in the towns of Newport and Middletown, Rhode Island. Naval Station Newport is home to the Naval War College and the Naval Justice School...
, in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
as naval attaché, and at Boston
Boston Navy Yard
The Boston Navy Yard, originally called the Charlestown Navy Yard and later Boston Naval Shipyard, was one of the oldest shipbuilding facilities in the United States Navy. Established in 1801, it was officially closed as an active naval installation on July 1, 1974, and the property was...
and New York as commandant of the Navy Yards. In 1889 he became Chief of the Bureau of Navigation and remained in that post until his retirement 5 April 1897.
He was promoted to rear admiral on 5 April 1894, and died in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
19 July 1914.
Legacy
In 1918, the destroyerDestroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
USS Ramsay
USS Ramsay (DD-124)
USS Ramsay was a Wickes class destroyer in the United States Navy during the World War I, reclassified as DM-16 during World War II and again reclassified as AG-98...
(DD-124) was named in his honor.