George C. Read
Encyclopedia
George Campbell Read was a United States Naval Officer
who served on Old Ironsides
during the War of 1812
and commanded vessels in actions off the Barbary Coast
and India
. Read eventually rose to the rank of rear admiral
.
. At the age of 16, Read entered the United States Navy as a midshipman. Read first joined the crew of the USS Constitution
(aka Old Ironsides) in 1806 under the command of his uncle, Captain Hugh G. Campbell. Early in his service, because of his relationship with the captain, Read was suspected of being an informant concerning a fight between two lieutenants: Melancthon Taylor Woolsey
and William Burrows. For a long time, Woolsey and the other officers shunned Read who endured the treatment without complaint. When it was eventually learned that it was the captain's clerk
and not Read who had informed, Woolsey apologized to Read and asked why he remained silent about the real informant. Read replied, "That would have been doing the very thing for which you blamed me, Mr. Woolsey -- turning informer." Thereafter, Woolsey referred to this incident as an example of Read's great self-restraint and self-respect.
In 1810, after six years of service, Read was promoted to Lieutenant, and he served aboard the USS Constitution
under Commodore Isaac Hull
during the War of 1812. When the Constitution defeated the British warship HMS Guerriere
on August 19, 1812, Read was detailed by Hull to board the English vessel and accept her surrender. Two months later, on October 25, Read was serving under Commodore Stephen Decatur
aboard the USS United States
when they defeated the British warship HMS Macedonian
. As a lieutenant, Read commanded the brig USS Chippewa
during the Algerian War
of 1815. He was promoted to Commander in 1816, and served in the Mediterranean and off the coast of Africa. After a promotion to captain in 1825, Read took command of the USS Constitution. From 1838 to 1839 he took part in retaliatory actions against the pirates and raiders who preyed on American shipping in India. Read commanded the Second Sumatran Expedition
which was undertaken in response to the massacre of the merchant ship Eclipse.
From 1839 to 1846, Read commanded the Philadelphia Naval School. As commander there, he served on a Naval board with Commodores Thomas ap Catesby Jones
, Matthew C. Perry, and Captains Elie A. F. La Vallette
and Isaac Mayo
for the examination of midshipmen entitled to promotion. Read next commanded the African Squadron 1846-47 and the Mediterranean Squadron 1847-49. When the American Civil War broke out in 1861, Read was again in charge of the Philadelphia Naval Asylum
. Read was promoted to rear admiral in July 1862. He died one month later, on August 22, after 58 years of Naval service. He is buried in Laurel Hill Cemetery
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
. His wife, Elizabeth, the daughter of Captain Richard Dale
, died on March 1, 1863 and was buried beside him.
during the American Civil War until 20 July 1865.
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 served on Old Ironsides
USS Constitution
USS Constitution is a wooden-hulled, three-masted heavy frigate of the United States Navy. Named by President George Washington after the Constitution of the United States of America, she is the world's oldest floating commissioned naval vessel...
during the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
and commanded vessels in actions off the Barbary Coast
Barbary Coast
The Barbary Coast, or Barbary, was the term used by Europeans from the 16th until the 19th century to refer to much of the collective land of the Berber people. Today, the terms Maghreb and "Tamazgha" correspond roughly to "Barbary"...
and India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. Read eventually rose to the rank of rear admiral
Rear admiral (United States)
Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. The uniformed services of the United States are unique in having two grades of rear admirals.- Rear admiral :...
.
Career
George Campbell Read was born on January 9, 1788 in Glastonbury, ConnecticutGlastonbury, Connecticut
Glastonbury is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States, founded in 1693. The population was 31,876 at the 2000 census. The town was named after Glastonbury in Somerset, England. Glastonbury is located on the banks of the Connecticut River, 7 miles southeast of Hartford. The town...
. At the age of 16, Read entered the United States Navy as a midshipman. Read first joined the crew of the USS Constitution
USS Constitution
USS Constitution is a wooden-hulled, three-masted heavy frigate of the United States Navy. Named by President George Washington after the Constitution of the United States of America, she is the world's oldest floating commissioned naval vessel...
(aka Old Ironsides) in 1806 under the command of his uncle, Captain Hugh G. Campbell. Early in his service, because of his relationship with the captain, Read was suspected of being an informant concerning a fight between two lieutenants: Melancthon Taylor Woolsey
Melancthon Taylor Woolsey
Commodore Melancthon Taylor Woolsey was an officer in the United States Navy during the War of 1812 and battles on the Great Lakes. He supervised warship construction at Navy Point in Sackets Harbor, New York, and later had a full career in the Navy.-Biography:Woolsey was born near Plattsburgh,...
and William Burrows. For a long time, Woolsey and the other officers shunned Read who endured the treatment without complaint. When it was eventually learned that it was the captain's clerk
Captain's clerk
A captain's clerk was a rating, now obsolete, in the Royal Navy for a person employed by the captain to keep his records, correspondence, and accounts. The regulations of the Royal Navy demanded that a purser serve at least one year as a captain's clerk, so the latter was often a young man working...
and not Read who had informed, Woolsey apologized to Read and asked why he remained silent about the real informant. Read replied, "That would have been doing the very thing for which you blamed me, Mr. Woolsey -- turning informer." Thereafter, Woolsey referred to this incident as an example of Read's great self-restraint and self-respect.
In 1810, after six years of service, Read was promoted to Lieutenant, and he served aboard the USS Constitution
USS Constitution
USS Constitution is a wooden-hulled, three-masted heavy frigate of the United States Navy. Named by President George Washington after the Constitution of the United States of America, she is the world's oldest floating commissioned naval vessel...
under Commodore Isaac Hull
Isaac Hull
-External links:* *...
during the War of 1812. When the Constitution defeated the British warship HMS Guerriere
HMS Guerriere
Two ships of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Guerriere, French for "warlike".*The first Guerriere was a 74-gun third-rate ship of the line, originally the French ship Peuple Souverain, captured on 2 July 1798 at the Battle of the Nile...
on August 19, 1812, Read was detailed by Hull to board the English vessel and accept her surrender. Two months later, on October 25, Read was serving under Commodore Stephen Decatur
Stephen Decatur
Stephen Decatur, Jr. , was an American naval officer notable for his many naval victories in the early 19th century. He was born on the eastern shore of Maryland, Worcester county, the son of a U.S. Naval Officer who served during the American Revolution. Shortly after attending college Decatur...
aboard the USS United States
USS United States (1797)
USS United States was a wooden-hulled, three-masted heavy frigate of the United States Navy and the first of the six original frigates authorized for construction by the Naval Act of 1794...
when they defeated the British warship HMS Macedonian
HMS Macedonian
HMS Macedonian was a 38-gun fifth rate in the Royal Navy, later captured by the during the War of 1812. She was built at Woolwich Dockyard, England in 1809, launched 2 June 1810 and commissioned the same month. She was commanded by Captain Lord William Fitzroy...
. As a lieutenant, Read commanded the brig USS Chippewa
USS Chippewa (1815)
The second USS Chippewa was a brig built in 1815 at Warren, Rhode Island, under the direction of Commodore Oliver Perry, and sent to New York City to be outfitted and manned. Chippewa sailed from Boston, Massachusetts, 3 July 1815, with Lieutenant George C. Read in command, as a part of a squadron...
during the Algerian War
Second Barbary War
The Second Barbary War , also known as the Algerine or Algerian War, was the second of two wars fought between the United States and the Ottoman Empire's North African regencies of Tripoli, Tunis, and Algeria known collectively as the Barbary states. The war between the Barbary States and the U.S...
of 1815. He was promoted to Commander in 1816, and served in the Mediterranean and off the coast of Africa. After a promotion to captain in 1825, Read took command of the USS Constitution. From 1838 to 1839 he took part in retaliatory actions against the pirates and raiders who preyed on American shipping in India. Read commanded the Second Sumatran Expedition
Second Sumatran Expedition
The Second Sumatran Expedition was a punitive expedition by the United States Navy against inhabitants of the island of Sumatra. After Malay warriors or pirates had massacred the crew of the American merchant ship Eclipse, an expedition of two American warships landed a force that defeated the...
which was undertaken in response to the massacre of the merchant ship Eclipse.
From 1839 to 1846, Read commanded the Philadelphia Naval School. As commander there, he served on a Naval board with Commodores Thomas ap Catesby Jones
Thomas ap Catesby Jones
Thomas ap Catesby Jones was a U.S. Navy officer during the War of 1812 and the Mexican-American War.-Early life:Jones was born in 1790 in Westmoreland County, Virginia. Thomas ap Catesby Jones means Thomas, son of Catesby Jones in the Welsh language. His brother was Roger Jones, who would become...
, Matthew C. Perry, and Captains Elie A. F. La Vallette
Elie A. F. La Vallette
Elie Augustus Frederick La Vallette was one of the first rear admirals appointed in the United States Navy when President Abraham Lincoln created the rank in July 1862.-Biography:...
and Isaac Mayo
Isaac Mayo
Commodore Isaac Mayo was a United States naval officer who served in the War of 1812, Second Seminole War, and Mexican War. He is credited with influencing the location of the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis...
for the examination of midshipmen entitled to promotion. Read next commanded the African Squadron 1846-47 and the Mediterranean Squadron 1847-49. When the American Civil War broke out in 1861, Read was again in charge of the Philadelphia Naval Asylum
Philadelphia Naval Asylum
The Philadelphia Naval Asylum, later the Naval Home, was a hospital, the Philadelphia Naval School, and a home for retired sailors for the United States Navy from 1834 to 1976, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
. Read was promoted to rear admiral in July 1862. He died one month later, on August 22, after 58 years of Naval service. He is buried in Laurel Hill Cemetery
Laurel Hill Cemetery
Laurel Hill Cemetery, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the second major garden or rural cemetery in the United States. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1998, one of only a few cemeteries to receive the distinction....
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
. His wife, Elizabeth, the daughter of Captain Richard Dale
Richard Dale
Richard Dale fought in the Continental Navy under John Barry and was first lieutenant for John Paul Jones during the naval battle off of Flamborough Head, England against the HMS Serapis in the celebrated engagement of...
, died on March 1, 1863 and was buried beside him.
USS Commodore Read
The naval patrol ship USS Commodore Read was named in honor of Read. Formerly a ferryboat, it was purchased by the Navy on 19 August 1863, refitted at New York Navy Yard and commissioned on 8 September 1863. The ship served with the Potomac FlotillaPotomac Flotilla
The Potomac Flotilla, or the Potomac Squadron was a unit of the United States Navy created in the early days of the American Civil War to secure Union communications in the Chesapeake Bay, the Potomac River and their tributaries, and to disrupt Confederate communications and shipping in the...
during the American Civil War until 20 July 1865.