Albert Smith Barker (March 31, 1843 – January 30, 1916) was an admiral 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 ...

and the

Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...

Biography

Barker was born on March 31, 1843, in

Hanson, Massachusetts Hanson is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. Part of Greater Boston, Hanson is located 20 miles (32 km) south of Boston and is one of the inland towns of the South Shore. The population was 10,639 at the 2020 census ...

, the son of Josiah and Eliza (Cushing) Barker. He entered the

U.S. Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (USNA, Navy, or Annapolis) 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 is the sec ...

in October 1859 at the age of sixteen and was graduated in May 1861 after the outbreak of the Civil War. Barker initially served as a midshipman aboard the , was commissioned as an ensign in November 1862 and survived its sinking in March 1863. He later served on and during the Civil War. In July 1883, Albert Barker was commander of the screw-sloop while on the East Coast of Africa at Zanzibar. He wrote a report on the "Trade of Zanzibar" of imports and exports for the years 1882–83. The trade of the port principally being with the United States, England, Germany, and France. Many vessels from these countries were employed in this trade process with America, such as the British man-of-war stationed at Zanzibar as a store ship. From May 1892 to August 1894, Barker was commander of the cruiser . On October 26, 1894, Barker married Mary Ellen (Blackmar) Maxwell (1852–1938), the widow of a religious missionary who died in 1890 while the couple was in India. She was an author of three novels under the name Ellen Blackmar Maxwell. From March 1896 to January 1897, Barker was commander of the battleship . During the Spanish–American War, Barker commanded the cruiser and participated in the bombardment of Santiago on July 1, 1898. In August 1898, he again became commander of the ''Oregon''. In 1899, Barker briefly served as Commander-in-Chief 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 ...

. Barker served as commandant of the

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

from 1899 to 1900 and commandant of the

New York Navy Yard The Brooklyn Navy Yard (originally known as the New York Navy Yard) is a shipyard and industrial complex in northwest Brooklyn in New York City, New York, U.S. The Navy Yard is located on the East River in Wallabout Bay, a semicircular bend ...

from 1900 to 1903. He was Commander-in-Chief of the

North Atlantic Fleet The North Atlantic Squadron was a section of the United States Navy operating in the North Atlantic. It was renamed as the North Atlantic Fleet in 1902. In 1905 the European Squadron, European and South Atlantic Squadron, South Atlantic squadr ...

from April 1, 1903, to March 31, 1905. Rear Admiral Barker died of pneumonia on January 30, 1916, at his home in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

Barker and his wife are buried at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia. ...

Recognition

The destroyer was named for him.

Gallery

File:Lt. Barker, 1864.png, Barker as a Lieutenant, 1864 File:Albert S. Barker.jpg, Barker as Rear Admiral, no later than 1901

Dates of rank

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

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 ...

– Class of 1863, graduated May 1861 Barker never held the rank of LTJG (O-2) due to it not being created until later years. As well, Rear Admiral then is equivalent to today's

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 ...

(Upper Half).

References

Attribution