Joseph Nicholson Barney (c. 1818 – June 16, 1899) was a career

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

officer (1835–1861) who served in the

Confederate States Navy The Confederate States Navy (CSN) was the Navy, naval branch of the Confederate States Armed Forces, established by an act of the Confederate States Congress on February 21, 1861. It was responsible for Confederate naval operations during the Amer ...

in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

(1861–1865).

Personal life and family

Barney was born in

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

in about 1818, the son of U.S. Congressman

John Barney John Barney (January 18, 1785 – January 26, 1857) was a U.S. Congressman from the fifth district of Maryland, serving from 1825 to 1829. He was the son of Commodore Joshua Barney, a hero of the Revolution and the War of 1812. Born in Baltimo ...

and Elizabeth Nicholson Hindman and the grandson of United States Navy Commodore

Joshua Barney Joshua Barney (6 July 1759 – 1 December 1818) was an American naval officer who served in the Continental Navy during the American Revolutionary War and in the French Navy during the French Revolutionary Wars. He later achieved the rank of comm ...

. He married Eliza Jacobs Rogers on June 9, 1846, in

New Castle County New Castle County is the northernmost of the three counties of the U.S. state of Delaware (New Castle, Kent, and Sussex). As of the 2020 census, the population was 570,719, making it the most populous county in Delaware, with nearly 60% of the ...

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...

, with whom he had one daughter before her death in 1848. He married a second time in 1858 to Anne (Nannie) Seddon Dornin, daughter of Thomas Aloysius Dornin, with whom he had eight children. He died at his home in

Fredericksburg, Virginia Fredericksburg is an Independent city (United States), independent city in Virginia, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 27,982. It is south of Washington, D.C., and north of Richmond, Virginia, R ...

, aged 81, on June 16, 1899, after a month-long illness.Genealogy of the Barney family in America
Eugene Dimon Preston, 1990, page 902 His second wife died on October 11, 1913. His grandson

Thomas Holcomb General (United States), General Thomas Holcomb (August 5, 1879 – May 24, 1965) was a United States Marine Corps officer who served as the seventeenth Commandant of the United States Marine Corps, Commandant of the Marine Corps from 1936 to 19 ...

was

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 ...

of the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

(1936–1943) and first Marine to achieve the rank of

general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

United States Navy

He entered a naval academy in 1832 and received a warrant in the United States Navy as a

midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest Military rank#Subordinate/student officer, rank in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Royal Cana ...

in 1835, was promoted to

passed midshipman A passed midshipman, sometimes called as "midshipman, passed", is a term used historically in the 19th century to describe a midshipman who had passed the lieutenant's exam and was eligible for promotion to lieutenant as soon as there was a vac ...

in 1841, the first of 22 passed by the board of examination. By 1843, he was acting

master Master, master's or masters may refer to: Ranks or titles In education: *Master (college), head of a college *Master's degree, a postgraduate or sometimes undergraduate degree in the specified discipline *Schoolmaster or master, presiding office ...

of the USS ''Vincennes''. He was promoted to

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

in 1847. His postings included the USS ''Potomac'', USS ''Columbia'', USS ''Vincennes'', USS ''Cyane'', the

Norfolk Naval Shipyard The Norfolk Naval Shipyard, often called the Norfolk Navy Yard and abbreviated as NNSY, is a U.S. Navy facility in Portsmouth, Virginia, for building, remodeling and repairing the Navy's ships. It is the oldest and largest industrial facility ...

, and USS ''Susquehanna''. In 1861, at the beginning of the

, he held the position of

first lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a se ...

on the USS ''Susquehanna'' in the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...

. Upon returning to the United States on June 6, he resigned his commission the same day.

Confederate States Navy

Barney was appointed a lieutenant in the Confederate States Navy on July 2, 1861. He commanded the CSS ''Jamestown'' during the

Battle of Hampton Roads The Battle of Hampton Roads, also referred to as the Battle of the ''Monitor'' and ''Merrimack'' or the Battle of Ironclads, was a naval battle during the American Civil War. The battle was fought over two days, March 8 and 9, 1862, in Hampton ...

, the famous battle with the , during which he captured two brigs and an Accomac schooner off Newport News Point while the CSS ''Virginia'' held the Union Navy's attention. After the Confederate evacuation of

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

, the ''Jamestown'' was scuttled to block the

James River The James River is a river in Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows from the confluence of the Cowpasture and Jackson Rivers in Botetourt County U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowli ...

Drewry's Bluff Drewry's Bluff is located in northeastern Chesterfield County, Virginia, in the United States. It was the site of Confederate Fort Darling during the American Civil War. It was named for a local landowner, Confederate Captain Augustus H. Drewry ...

. In the subsequent

Battle of Drewry's Bluff The Battle of Drewry's Bluff, also known as the Battle of Fort Darling, or Fort Drewry, took place on May 15, 1862, in Chesterfield County, Virginia, as part of the Peninsula Campaign of the American Civil War. Four Union Navy warships, includ ...

, in which Confederate shore batteries drove off a Union Navy force heading towards

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a city in the United States * Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...

, the ''Jamestown'''s guns were considered the main factor in repulsing the enemy ships. Following the battle, he received praise from the

Confederate Congress The Confederate States Congress was both the provisional and permanent legislative assembly/legislature of the Confederate States of America that existed from February 1861 to April/June 1865, during the American Civil War. Its actions were, ...

and was promoted to

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...

. In early 1863, Barney was briefly assigned command of naval operations in Galveston, including the revenue cutter ''Harriet Lane'', captured in the

Battle of Galveston The Battle of Galveston was a naval and land battle of the American Civil War, when Confederate forces under Major Gen. John B. Magruder expelled occupying Union troops from the city of Galveston, Texas on January 1, 1863. After the loss of ...

. However the ship was already under command of Leon Smith, an army volunteer and steamboat captain, who had played a role in capturing the ship, having been placed in command of the ship by Major General John B. Magruder and in control of additional ships improvised as a " cottonclad fleet". The ship was also considered by the navy to be too slow and inefficient to become a

blockade runner A blockade runner is a merchant vessel used for evading a naval blockade of a port or strait. It is usually light and fast, using stealth and speed rather than confronting the blockaders in order to break the blockade. Blockade runners usua ...

, though it was later used in this capacity. Following discussions with Magruder, who was not willing to relinquish controls of the cottonclads, Barney conceded the appointment, and in a letter to Confederate Naval Secretary

Stephen Mallory Stephen Russell Mallory (1812 – November 9, 1873) was an American politician who was a United States Senator from Florida from 1851 to the secession of his home state and the outbreak of the American Civil War in 1861. For much of that perio ...

, recommended that the navy relinquish control. Barney later explained that he made his recommendation since he considered that the presence of two separate marine forces with independent commanders would lead to discord and confusion. Barney was sent to Europe in spring 1863. He assumed command of the Confederate raider CSS ''Florida'' in September 1863, relieving the ailing John Newland Maffitt, and oversaw her refit at

Brest, France Brest (; ) is a port, port city in the Finistère department, Brittany (administrative region), Brittany. Located in a sheltered bay not far from the western tip of a peninsula and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an impor ...

, but had to be detached due to ill health before the ''Florida'' put to sea. From 1864 to 1865, he was a Confederate naval agent in Europe. He returned to the United States following the war, and took the Oath of Allegiance to the U.S. Constitution in September 1865.

Later life

After the Civil War ended, Barney retired to

Powhatan County, Virginia Powhatan County () is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 30,033. Its county seat is Powhatan. Powhatan County is included in the Greater Richmond Region. The James River forms the coun ...

, before moving to Fredericksburg in 1874. Barney was active in the insurance business there until retiring in 1895. He was also an elder in the

Presbyterian Church Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Christianity, Reformed Protestantism, Protestant tradition named for its form of ecclesiastical polity, church government by representative assemblies of Presbyterian polity#Elder, elders, known as ...

. Barney and his wife were active in activities promoting the memory of the Confederacy. His wife played a role in fundraising for a Confederate memorial in Fredericksburg as secretary of the city's

Ladies' Memorial Association A Ladies' Memorial Association (LMA) is a type of organization for women that sprang up all over the American South in the years after the American Civil War. Typically, these were organizations by and for women, whose goal was to raise monuments ...

, which funded the monument. Joseph and Bradley T. Johnson led the unveiling ceremony of the monument in 1891.

Notes

References