DuPont, 1863
1803–65, American naval officer, b. Bergen Point, N.J.; grandson of Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours. Appointed a midshipman in 1815, he saw his first active duty in the Mediterranean (1817) and served in the Mexican War. As commander of the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron in the Civil War, Du Pont directed (Nov., 1861) the successful naval attack against Port Royal, S.C., for which he won a rear admiral’s commission. He secured further footholds for the Union on the coasts of South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida. The blockade Du Pont organized was generally successful, except at Charleston. Against Du Pont’s advice the Dept. of the Navy ordered him to attack Charleston with ironclad monitors. When the attack failed (Apr. 7, 1863), Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles blamed Du Pont and, at Du Pont’s request, relieved him of his command (July, 1863). A congressional investigation followed, but its findings were inconclusive.
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Cost: $1,200 for repairs
Commissioned: January, 1863
Decommissioned: 1869
Disposition: Sold
Rig: Schooner
Machinery: None
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Armament: None
Tender History:
The Confederate schooner Anna Deane was captured by the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron on 13 May 1862 while attempting to run the Union blockade. She was given to the Lighthouse Service which repaired and outfitted her for $1,200. She was renamed the DuPont, after the commanding officer of the Squadron that captured her, Flag Officer Samuel F. DuPont, USN. DuPont also had served as a member of the Lighthouse Board from 1852 - 1857.
The DuPont served in the 6th Lighthouse District. She was sold at New Orleans in 1870.
Sources:
Douglas Peterson. United States Lighthouse Service Tenders, 1840-1939. Annapolis: Eastwind Publishing, 2000.