George Collier Remey (August 10, 1841 – February 10, 1928) was a rear admiral of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

, serving in the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

and the

Spanish–American War , partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence , image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = (cloc ...

Early life

George Collier Remey was born at Burlington, Iowa on August 10, 1841, to Eliza Smith (née Howland) and William Butler Remey. His father was captain of a steamboat in Burlington. He graduated from the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy ...

in 1859.

Career

Initially assigned to the sloop on the

Asiatic Station The Asiatic Squadron was a squadron of United States Navy warships stationed in East Asia during the latter half of the 19th century. It was created in 1868 when the East India Squadron was disbanded. Vessels of the squadron were primarily inv ...

, he returned to the United States with the outbreak of the Civil War and served in the gunboat during the Peninsular Campaign, March–July 1862; and, afterward, in the blockade of Charleston. In April 1863, he assumed duties as Executive Officer in the

screw sloop A screw sloop is a propeller-driven sloop-of-war. In the 19th century, during the introduction of the steam engine, ships driven by propellers were differentiated from those driven by paddle-wheels by referring to the ship's ''screws'' (propelle ...

and during attacks on

Fort Wagner Fort Wagner or Battery Wagner was a beachhead fortification on Morris Island, South Carolina, that covered the southern approach to Charleston Harbor. It was the site of two American Civil War battles in the campaign known as Operations Again ...

briefly commanded ''Marblehead''. From August 23 to September 7, he commanded a battery of naval guns on Morris Island, and on the night of September 7–8, led the second division of a boat attack on

Fort Sumter Fort Sumter is a sea fort built on an artificial island protecting Charleston, South Carolina from naval invasion. Its origin dates to the War of 1812 when the British invaded Washington by sea. It was still incomplete in 1861 when the Battle ...

. The division made shore, but was smashed by gunfire. Remey and the surviving members of his party were forced to surrender. Following 13 months of imprisonment at Columbia, S.C., Remey was exchanged and returned to duty, serving in the sidewheel steamship until the end of the war. In 1866, he saw service off the west coast of

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...

. In 1870–71, he participated in the Tehuantepec Survey Expedition. After commanding the screw sloop and service in the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western Europe, Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa ...

, he was appointed captain in 1885. Four years later he assumed command of the

protected cruiser Protected cruisers, a type of naval cruiser of the late-19th century, gained their description because an armoured deck offered protection for vital machine-spaces from fragments caused by shells exploding above them. Protected cruisers re ...

, flagship of the

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 s ...

Commandant Commandant ( or ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ran ...

of the

Portsmouth Navy Yard The Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, often called the Portsmouth Navy Yard, is a United States Navy shipyard in Kittery on the southern boundary of Maine near the city of Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Founded in 1800, PNS is U.S. Navy's oldest continuo ...

at the outbreak of the

, he was ordered to take charge of the Naval Base Key West, whence he directed the supply and repair of all naval forces in

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

n waters and organized supply lines to

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

forces in Cuba. After peace returned, Rear Admiral Remey resumed duties at the Portsmouth Navy Yard. In April 1900, he assumed command of the

and for the next two years guided the ships of that station through the diplomatic and military chaos that was China. Remey then returned to the United States and served for a year as Chairman of the Lighthouse Board before retiring on August 10, 1903.

Personal life

Remey married Mary Josephine Mason, daughter of Iowa Chief Justice

Charles Mason Charles Mason (April 1728 Their son was

Mason Remey Charles Mason Remey (15 May 1874 – 4 February 1974) was a prominent member of the early American Baháʼí community, and served in several important administrative capacities. He is well-known for an attempted schism of 1960, in which he cla ...

. He had two brothers,

William Butler Remey William Butler Remey (1842 – January 20, 1895) was an American military officer who served in the American Civil War and was the first Judge Advocate General of the Navy, serving from 1880 to 1892. Early life William Butler Remey was born in ...

, who served as

Judge Advocate General of the Navy The Judge Advocate General of the Navy (JAG) is the highest-ranking uniformed lawyer in the United States Department of the Navy. The Judge Advocate General is the principal advisor to the Secretary of the Navy and the Chief of Naval Operations o ...

and Edward Wallace Remey, who also served in the navy. Rear Admiral Remey died at

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, on February 10, 1928.

Namesake

In 1943, the destroyer was named in his honor.

Gallery

File:Fourteen Retired Flag Officers.jpg, Remey is second from left in the front row in this photograph of 13 retired U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps flag officers taken c. 1923. File:Flag officers Rear Admiral George C. Remey birthday 1926.jpg, Remey is seated second from left in this photo of retired flag officers taken at his 85th birthday party on August 10, 1926.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Remey, George 1841 births 1928 deaths Union Navy officers American military personnel of the Spanish–American War United States Navy admirals People of Iowa in the American Civil War Burials at Arlington National Cemetery People from Dupont Circle