Early Career
Barron was born in Hampton, Virginia, on November 28, 1809, the son of Samuel Barron (1765–1810) and Jane Sawyer Barron. He had at least one sister. His family had a distinguished naval tradition. His father and his uncle James Barron (1768–1851) were both captains in the United States Navy. They had learned seamanship as young men during the Revolutionary War (1775–1783) when their father James Barron (1740–1787), who also had a brother in the navy, was commodore of the Virginia State Navy. Before Barron's first birthday his father died, and as a tribute to the elder Samuel Barron, the Department of the Navy appointed his namesake son a midshipman on January 1, 1812.
Barron also served during the 1850s as a member of the Lighthouse Board in Washington, where his distinguished bearing and courtly manners won him the nickname of "the Navy diplomat." Tiring of Washington politics and debates on slavery, he requested sea duty and in 1858 received command of the USS Wabash, flagship of the Mediterranean squadron. When he returned to the United States in 1860, Barron was assigned once again to the Lighthouse Board, where he shared duties with Raphael Semmes, a future admiral in the Confederate navy.
Civil War Years
Following his release Barron spent two months with his children at his sister's home in Warrenton, North Carolina. During that time the Confederate navy ordered him first to take charge of the Navy Ordnance Depot at Charlotte, North Carolina, and then to construct ironclad riverboats at Chattanooga, Tennessee, but he did not report to either place. Finally, he was ordered to take command of all naval forces in Virginia waters and accepted that assignment. As head of the James River Squadron until March 1863, Barron spent most of his time in Richmond serving on various committees rather than aboard his flagship, the Patrick Henry. His most difficult duty was restructuring the navy ranks to place them in better alignment with those of the army. He also went on a secret mission to Jackson, Mississippi, with authority to pay $1 million for six Union river gunboats, but Barron found only two gunboats, both in poor condition and under the command of civilian boatmen rather than Union navy officers. Furthermore, the governor of Mississippi and General Joseph E. Johnston had better use for the money, and so Barron arranged to leave the funds in their custody and returned to Richmond.
On August 30, 1863, Barron was ordered to Europe with the rank of commodore. Commander James D. Bulloch at that time had a small fleet of ships under construction and almost ready for action in Great Britain and France. Barron was to serve as the senior Confederate navy officer in Europe and to assume command of the ships. He reached London by October 12, 1863, and arranged for a Liverpool firm to handle Confederate naval funds. He then moved to Paris, where he established his headquarters. Barron made no effort to exercise his higher rank over Bulloch. As senior navy officer he made duty assignments in accordance with Bulloch's wishes, authorized pay vouchers, and played a social role in Paris. By the time Barron settled in Paris, the European nations had discovered alternative sources of cotton and they had decided to remain neutral in the American Civil War. They accordingly refused to release the warships to the Confederacy.
Barron's financial agents had guarded his interests, and he bought a farm called Malvern near Loretto in Essex County. His unmarried daughter Imogen Barron lived with him at Malvern for the remainder of his life in retirement. Samuel Barron died of what was described as old age at his home on February 26, 1888, and was buried in Cedar Grove Cemetery in Norfolk.
Time Line
-
November 28, 1809 - Samuel Barron is born in Hampton, the son of U.S. Navy captain Samuel Barron and Jane Sawyer Barron.
-
January 1, 1812 - The Department of the Navy appoints two-year-old Samuel Barron a midshipman in honor of his father, a navy captain who died before his son's first birthday.
-
1815 - The Navy Department orders six-year-old midshipman Samuel Barron to duty at Gosport Navy Yard in Portsmouth. He is the youngest person ever to receive a commission and go on active duty in the U.S. Navy.
-
1816–1820 - Samuel Barron learns his numbers and letters as a young navy midshipman.
-
1820 - Before his eleventh birthday, Samuel Barron sails on his first cruise aboard the USS Columbus, flagship of the Mediterranean fleet.
-
June 1825 - Samuel Barron is aboard the USS Brandywine when it returns the Marquis de Lafayette to France.
-
October 31, 1832 - Samuel Barron marries Imogen Wright, of Norfolk. They will have three sons and three daughters.
-
1846–1848 - During the Mexican War, Samuel Barron commands the USS Perry on the Pacific coast.
-
July 15, 1847 - Samuel Barron is made a commander in the U.S. Navy.
-
1855 - Samuel Barron is in command of the Navy Station at the Gosport Navy Yard when a yellow fever epidemic breaks out, killing his wife and a daughter.
-
September 1855 - Samuel Barron is promoted to captain in the U.S. Navy.
-
1858 - After serving on the Lighthouse Board in Washington, D.C., Samuel Barron receives command of the USS Wabash, flagship of the Mediterranean squadron.
-
1860 - After returning from duty in the Mediterranean, Samuel Barron is assigned to a second stint on the Lighthouse Board in Washington, D.C., where he shares duties with Raphael Semmes, a future admiral in the Confederate navy.
-
Spring 1861 - Samuel Barron and Senator Stephen R. Mallory are sent by the U.S. secretary of the navy to mediate between local secessionists and the military personnel at the Pensacola Navy Base.
-
April 1861 - Samuel Barron tenders his resignation from the U.S. Navy following Virginia's secession.
-
May 14, 1861 - Refusing to accept Samuel Barron's resignation from the U.S. Navy, Secretary of the Navy Gideon Wells instead dismisses Barron from service.
-
May 26, 1861 - Samuel Barron receives a captain's commission in the Virginia State Navy.
-
June 10, 1861 - Samuel Barron obtains a captain's commission in the Confederate States Navy effective this day.
-
July 20, 1861 - Confederate navy captain Samuel Barron assumes responsibility for defending the North Carolina coast.
-
August 30, 1861 - Confederate navy captain Samuel Barron and most of his men are captured when a superior Union force takes Fort Hatteras.
-
September–November 1861 - Captured Confederate navy captain Samuel Barron is imprisoned at Fort Columbus in New York Harbor.
-
November 1861–July 1862 - Captured Confederate navy captain Samuel Barron is imprisoned at Fort Warren in Boston Harbor, after which he is exchanged.
-
July–August 1862 - After his imprisonment, Confederate navy captain Samuel Barron spends two months with his children at his sister's home in Warrenton, North Carolina. He refuses to report to duty in North Carolina and then in Tennessee.
-
September 1862–March 1863 - Confederate navy captain Samuel Barron commands the James River Squadron. He spends most of his time in Richmond rather than aboard his flagship, the CSS Patrick Henry.
-
August 30, 1863 - Confederate navy commodore Samuel Barron is ordered to Europe.
-
October 12, 1863 - Confederate navy commodore Samuel Barron reaches London and arranges for a Liverpool firm to handle Confederate naval funds. He then moves to Paris.
-
January 20, 1865 - Confederate navy commodore Samuel Barron requests permission to return to Virginia. He does not arrive back in the United States in time to play a military role at the end of the war.
-
September 1865 - Former Confederate navy commodore Samuel Barron applies for a presidential pardon.
-
October 10, 1867 - Former Confederate navy commodore Samuel Barron receives a presidential pardon.
-
February 26, 1888 - Samuel Barron dies at his home in Essex County and is buried in Cedar Grove Cemetery in Norfolk.
References
Further Reading
Cite This Entry
- APA Citation:
Spencer, W. F., & the Dictionary of Virginia Biography. Samuel Barron (1809–1888). (2020, January 9). In Encyclopedia Virginia. Retrieved from http://www.EncyclopediaVirginia.org/Barron_Samuel_1809-1888.
- MLA Citation:
Spencer, Warren F. and the Dictionary of Virginia Biography. "Samuel Barron (1809–1888)." Encyclopedia Virginia. Virginia Humanities, 9 Jan. 2020. Web. READ_DATE.
First published: February 10, 2010 | Last modified: January 9, 2020
Contributed by Warren F. Spencer and the Dictionary of Virginia Biography.