William Reynolds (December 10, 1815 – November 5, 1879) was a

rear admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...

in the

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 ...

who served during 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 ...

. His younger brother was

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

general John F. Reynolds. Reynolds was born in

Lancaster, Pennsylvania Lancaster ( ) is a city in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 58,039 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, eighth-most populous ci ...

on December 10 1815, and joined the Navy in 1831. His first assignment was to the , in which he toured Africa, Brazil and the

Malay Archipelago The Malay Archipelago is the archipelago between Mainland Southeast Asia and Australia, and is also called Insulindia or the Indo-Australian Archipelago. The name was taken from the 19th-century European concept of a Malay race, later based ...

. In 1837, he was promoted to passed midshipman and to lieutenant in 1841. From 1838 to 1842, he served with the

U.S. Exploring Expedition The United States Exploring Expedition of 1838–1842 was an exploring and surveying expedition of the Pacific Ocean and surrounding lands conducted by the United States. The original appointed commanding officer was Commodore (USN)#History, Comm ...

, and was among the first to sight the Antarctic mainland, along with Henry Eld. In 1842, he was assigned to the . In 1862, he 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 ...

and given his first ship, the , a

receiving ship A hulk is a ship that is afloat, but incapable of going to sea. 'Hulk' may be used to describe a ship that has been launched but not completed, an abandoned wreck or shell, or a ship whose propulsion system is no longer maintained or has been r ...

Port Royal, South Carolina Port Royal is a town on Port Royal Island in Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 14,220 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Hilton Head Island–Bluffton metropolitan area. Port Royal is home to Marine Corps R ...

. (When that ship was replaced by the , he was transferred to command it.) He was subsequently given command of the depot there. In 1865, Reynolds was promoted to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

and given command of the

screw sloop A screw sloop is a propeller-driven sloop-of-war. They were popularized in the mid-19th century, during the introduction of the steam engine and the transition of fleets to this new technology. The sailing sloop The British sloop in the Age o ...

after the

, assigned to the Pacific. In 1867, he was the officer to formally claim the

Midway Atoll Midway Atoll (colloquialism, colloquial: Midway Islands; ; ) is a atoll in the North Pacific Ocean. Midway Atoll is an insular area of the United States and is an Insular area#Unorganized unincorporated territories, unorganized and unincorpo ...

for the United States, after its discovery by a sealing ship in 1859. In 1870, he was made a commodore and was made the Chief of the Bureau of Equipment. In 1873, he was promoted to

and given command of the

Asiatic Squadron The Asiatic Squadron was a squadron (naval), 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 w ...

from his flagship, the

steam frigate Steam frigates (including screw frigates) and the smaller steam corvettes, steam sloops, steam gunboats and steam schooners, were steam-powered warships that were not meant to stand in the line of battle. The first such ships were paddle stea ...

. Reynolds served as the acting Secretary of the United States Navy in 1874. His last foreign tour included an official visit to China. Reynolds' wife, Rebecca Krug Reynolds, became the first American woman to walk on the

Great Wall of China The Great Wall of China (, literally "ten thousand ''li'' long wall") is a series of fortifications in China. They were built across the historical northern borders of ancient Chinese states and Imperial China as protection against vario ...

. In 1877, due to failing health, he retired from active service. Reynolds died in Washington, D.C., on November 5, 1879, and is buried next to his younger brother, John F. Reynolds, in the cemetery in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

References

*Rear-Admiral Reynolds. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

''. New York, N.Y.: November 6, 1879. pg. 4, 1 pgs *

External links

*
Reynolds Family Papers Collection
:

Franklin & Marshall College Franklin & Marshall College (F&M) is a private liberal arts college in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1787 as Franklin College and later merged with Marshall College in 1853, it is one of the oldest colleges in the United St ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Reynolds, William Union Navy officers United States Navy rear admirals (upper half) People from Lancaster, Pennsylvania 1815 births 1879 deaths People of Pennsylvania in the American Civil War People of the United States Exploring Expedition

See also

References

External links