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Dromo's Den
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[Up] [Dromo's Den] David Dixon Porter Biography PORTER,
David Dixon (1813-91) An American admiral. He was a son of Commodore David
Porter and was born in Chester, Pa., June 8, 1813. In 1824 he accompanied his
father on his expedition against the West Indian pirates, and when his father
became admiral of the Mexican navy he entered the same service as a midshipman.
While serving under his cousin, Captain David H. Porter, who was in command of a
Mexican vessel cruising against Spanish commerce, young Porter took part in a
desperate engagement with a much superior Spanish frigate. The vessel on which
he was serving was captured, and he was for a short time confined in the guard
ship at Havana. Soon after his release he was commissioned a midshipman in the
United States navy, and served until 1835 on the European station. Porter became
a lieutenant in 1841, and served at the naval observatory in 1845-46. In 1846 he
was sent by the Secretary of War on a secret mission to Haiti, and then served
with distinction in the Mexican War as a lieutenant and afterward as commanding
officer of the Spitfire. After the
close of that struggle, he obtained a furlough, and for some years commanded
private passenger steamers. The
Civil War gave Porter the opportunity to distinguish himself. The beginning of
that struggle found him a lieutenant on shore duty; in a little more than two
years he was a rear admiral in command of a squadron. His first service in the
war was to assist, as commander
of the Powhatan, in the relief
of Fort Pickens at Pensacola. Shortly afterward he was advanced to the rank of
commander. A little later, largely through his recommendation, Farragut
was given command of the West Gulf blockading squadron which was to operate
against New Orleans, and
Porter was put in charge of the fleet of bomb vessels under him. By
Farragut's order Porter, in April, 1862, began a bombardment of Forts Jackson
and St. Philip, which guarded the way up the Mississippi, and after six days and
nights, in the course of which he threw into them more than 16,000 shells, he
reduced them to such a condition that Farragut's fleet was able to pass them and
capture New Orleans. Four days later the forts themselves surrendered to Porter.
During the next few months he served with great credit in the operations between
New Orleans and Vicksburg, his bombardment at the latter place assisting
Farragut to run past the forts. In September, 1862, he was put in charge of the
Mississippi squadron as acting rear admiral. He improvised a navy yard at Mound
City, Ill., and soon increased his squadron of about a dozen effective vessels
to more than 120 by converting ordinary river steamers into gunboats. With a
part of this fleet he assisted the army in the capture of Arkansas Post in
January, 1863, and next succeeded in running past the batteries of Vicksburg and
reducing the Confederate forts at Grand Gulf. He then coöperated with General
Grant in the siege of Vicksburg, and upon the surrender of that place
received the thanks of Congress for "opening the Mississippi,'' and a
commission as rear admiral. In the spring of 1864 he assisted General Banks in
the disastrous expedition up the Red River, and it was only by the greatest
exertions that he succeeded in saving his vessels. (See BAILEY, JOSEPH.) In the
same year he was put in command of the North Atlantic blockading squadron. While
in this command his most important service was in coöperating in the capture of
Fort Fisher, which was taken by assault on the 15th of January, 1865, after a
long and destructive bombardment by his fleet. For this service he again
received the thanks of Congress. After
peace came he served from 1865 to 1869 as superintendent of the Naval Academy at
Annapolis, and did much to increase the efficiency of that institution. In 1866
he was promoted to be vice admiral, and in 1870, on the death of Farragut, was
advanced to the highest of all naval ranks, that of admiral. He died in
Washington, Feb. 13, 1891. Admiral
Porter wrote a life of his father (1875); Incidents
and Anecdotes of the Civil War (1885); History
of the Navy in the War of the Rebellion (1887); two novels, Allan
Date and Robert le Diable (1885)
and Harry Martine (1866); a posthumous
novelette, A Romance of Gettysburg,
which appeared in the Criterion for
1903; and articles for various publications. The New International
Encyclopaedia, Vol. XIX
(New York: Dodd, Mead & Co., 1920)
66-67. |