William Ronckendorff was an officer in the United States Navy

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...

.

Biography

He entered the Navy, became passed midshipman

Passed midshipman

A Passed Midshipman, sometimes called as Midshipman, Passed, is an unused and historic term which describes a Midshipman who had passed the Lieutenant exam and was eligible for promotion to Lieutenant as soon as there was a vacancy in that grade....

 on 23 June 1838, was commissioned lieutenant on 28 June 1843, and in June 1845 was bearer of despatches to the commander-in-chief of 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...

, with which he served during the war with Mexico. He was in the “Savannah

USS Savannah (1842)

The second USS Savannah was a frigate in the United States Navy. She was named after the city of Savannah, Georgia.Savannah was begun in 1820 at the New York Navy Yard, but she remained on the stocks until 5 May 1842, when she was launched...

” at the capture and occupation of Monterey

Monterey, California

The City of Monterey in Monterey County is located on Monterey Bay along the Pacific coast in Central California. Monterey lies at an elevation of 26 feet above sea level. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 27,810. Monterey is of historical importance because it was the capital of...

 and points on the coast of California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

, and returned to New York in September 1847.

He commanded the steamer “M. W. Chapin

USS Anacostia (1856)

USS Anacostia was a steamer, constructed as a tugboat, that was first chartered by the United States Navy for service during the Paraguay crisis of the 1850s and then commissioned as a U.S. Navy ship. She later served prominently in the Union Navy during the American Civil War.-Under charter to...

” in the Paraguay expedition

Paraguay expedition

The Paraguay Expedition was a United States Naval mission sent to Asunción, Paraguay in 1858 to demand indemnity and apology from the Paraguayan Government for the 1 February 1855 firing on the US Navy vessel...

 of 1859 and on coast survey duty in 1860, was commissioned commander

Commander (United States)

In the United States, commander is a military rank that is also sometimes used as a military title, depending on the branch of service. It is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the military, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Naval rank:In the United States...

, 29 June 1861, and had charge of the steamer “Water Witch

USS Water Witch (1851)

The third USS Water Witch was a wooden-hulled, sidewheel gunboat in the United States Navy during the American Civil War. She is best known as the ship fired on by Paraguay in 1855...

” from 1 March until 12 October 1861, in the Gulf Squadron. On 27 December 1861, he took command of the steamer “San Jacinto

USS San Jacinto (1850)

The first USS San Jacinto was an early screw frigate in the United States Navy during the mid-19th century. She was named for the San Jacinto River, site of the Battle of San Jacinto during the Texas Revolution. She is perhaps best known for her role in the Trent Affair of 1861.San Jacinto was laid...

,” with which he was present in Hampton Roads

Hampton Roads

Hampton Roads is the name for both a body of water and the Norfolk–Virginia Beach metropolitan area which surrounds it in southeastern Virginia, United States...

 to fight the “Merrimac

CSS Virginia

CSS Virginia was the first steam-powered ironclad warship of the Confederate States Navy, built during the first year of the American Civil War; she was constructed as a casemate ironclad using the raised and cut down original lower hull and steam engines of the scuttled . Virginia was one of the...

,” and participated in the attack on Sewell's Point

Sewell's Point

Sewells Point is a peninsula of land in the independent city of Norfolk, Virginia in the United States, located at the mouth of the salt-water port of Hampton Roads. Sewells Point is bordered by water on three sides, with Willoughby Bay to the north, Hampton Roads to the west, and the Lafayette...

, 15 May 1862, and in the capture of Norfolk

Norfolk, Virginia

Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....

 on 18 May. He was in the “Ticonderoga,” searching for privateer

Privateer

A privateer is a private person or ship authorized by a government by letters of marque to attack foreign shipping during wartime. Privateering was a way of mobilizing armed ships and sailors without having to spend public money or commit naval officers...

s in 1863, and in February 1864 he commanded the monitor

Monitor (warship)

A monitor was a class of relatively small warship which was neither fast nor strongly armoured but carried disproportionately large guns. They were used by some navies from the 1860s until the end of World War II, and saw their final use by the United States Navy during the Vietnam War.The monitors...

 “Monadnock” in operations in James River

James River

The James River may refer to:Rivers in the United States and their namesakes* James River * James River , North Dakota, South Dakota* James River * James River * James River...

 until the evacuation 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...

, when he cruised to Havana

Havana

Havana is the capital city, province, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city proper has a population of 2.1 million inhabitants, and it spans a total of — making it the largest city in the Caribbean region, and the most populous...

 in search of the “Stonewall.”

In July 1865, he was transferred to the monitor “Tonawanda

USS Tonawanda (1864)

|...

.” He was commissioned captain, 27 September 1866, and was at Philadelphia until 1 October 1870, when he took charge of the ironclads

Ironclad warship

An ironclad was a steam-propelled warship in the early part of the second half of the 19th century, protected by iron or steel armor plates. The ironclad was developed as a result of the vulnerability of wooden warships to explosive or incendiary shells. The first ironclad battleship, La Gloire,...

 at New Orleans until 8 April 1872. He commanded the steamer “Canandaigua

USS Canandaigua (1862)

USS Canandaigua was a sloop-of-war which displaced , with steam engine screw, acquired by the Union Navy during the second year of the American Civil War...

,” of the North Atlantic Squadron

North Atlantic Squadron

The North Atlantic Squadron was a section of the United States Navy operating in the North Atlantic. It was renamed as the North Atlantic Fleet in 1902. In 1905 the European and South Atlantic Squadrons were abolished and absorbed into the North Atlantic Fleet. On Jan...

, in 1872-73, was promoted to commodore on 12 September 1874, and was placed on the retired list on 9 November 1874, by reason of his age.