Hunter Davidson (September 20, 1826February 16, 1913) was an American engineer, inventor, and naval officer, first serving the United States and then joining the Confederacy 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 ...

. He later served as the first commander of the Maryland Oyster Police Force during the height of the Oyster Wars.

Early life and family

Davidson was born in Georgetown in 1826. He was the son of William B. Davidson, an

artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...

officer in the United States Army, and Elizabeth Chapman Hunter. Davidson was twice married and had seven children. His older brother was Union Army brigadier general John Wynn Davidson. In 1847, he graduated from the

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 ...

Military service

United States Navy

After graduating from the Naval Academy, Davidson was stationed aboard the USS Portsmouth during the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...

. During the 1850s, Davidson was stationed on the USS Dale as part of the

Africa Squadron The Africa Squadron was a unit of the United States Navy that operated from 1819 to 1861 in the Blockade of Africa to suppress the slave trade along the coast of West Africa. However, the term was often ascribed generally to anti-slavery oper ...

and Atlantic Anti-Slavery Operations of the United States to suppress the slave trade. In the 1850s, Davidson was also assigned duty for several years with the Coast Survey, a predecessor of what became the

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA ) is an American scientific and regulatory agency charged with Weather forecasting, forecasting weather, monitoring oceanic and atmospheric conditions, Hydrography, charting the seas, ...

. Davidson was promoted to lieutenant in 1855, and was granted two patents for a lifeboat-lifting device. In 1856, Davidson was one of the officers selected to return the exploration vessel HMS ''Resolute'' to Queen Victoria and the Royal Navy. Davidson was an instructor at the Naval Academy from 1858 to 1861 prior to the outbreak of the American Civil War.

American Civil War (Confederate Navy)

Davidson was commissioned as a lieutenant 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 ...

during the American Civil War. He was stationed on the

CSS Virginia CSS ''Virginia'' was the first steam-powered ironclad warship built by the Confederate States Navy during the first year of the American Civil War; she was constructed as a casemate ironclad using the razéed (cut down) original lower hull an ...

as a gunnery officer 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 ...

of 1862. In June and July 1862, Davidson was commander of the CSS Teaser, used by the Confederate Naval Submarine Battery Service to plant and service "torpedoes" (

Naval mine A naval mine is a self-contained explosive weapon placed in water to damage or destroy surface ships or submarines. Similar to anti-personnel mine, anti-personnel and other land mines, and unlike purpose launched naval depth charges, they are ...

s) in 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 ...

. Davidson later served as commander of the Submarine Battery Service, also referred to as the "Torpedo Bureau," a branch of the

Confederate Secret Service The Confederate Secret Service refers to any of a number of official and semi-official secret service organizations and operations performed by the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War. Some of the organizations were directe ...

. He was credited for his work in operationalizing the electric detonation of mines.

Later life

After his service for the Confederacy, Davidson was ineligible for further military service in the United States after the Civil War had ended. In 1865 he briefly served as a merchant officer in the United Kingdom.

Maryland Oyster Navy

In 1868 during the early period of the Oyster Wars in Maryland, Davidson was unanimously appointed as the first commander of the Maryland Oyster Police Force, which was nicknamed as the "Oyster Navy." Davidson acquired a 12-pounder Dahlgren howitzer for the force's first steamer, ''Leila'', for use in the gun battles between the police force and the illegal oyster

dredgers Dredging is the excavation of material from a water environment. Possible reasons for dredging include improving existing water features; reshaping land and water features to alter drainage, navigability, and commercial use; constructing dam ...

. The organization was tasked with enforcing the state's oyster-harvesting laws and served as the predecessor of the modern Maryland Natural Resources Police. In 1870, as part of his role, Davidson delivered a report to the

Maryland General Assembly The Maryland General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland that convenes within the State House in Annapolis. It is a bicameral body: the upper chamber, the Maryland Senate, has 47 representatives, and the lower ...

which made recommendations regarding oyster management issues, protecting oyster habitats, and regulating the harvesting of oysters in the state. In 1871, Davidson thwarted an assassination plot against him by a pirating oysterman named Gus Rice. Davidson served in the role until 1872.

South America

After leaving his post with the Oyster Navy, Davidson relocated to South America where he founded and was the first chief of the

Argentine Navy The Argentine Navy (ARA; ). This forms the basis for the navy's ship prefix "ARA". is the navy of Argentina. It is one of the three branches of the Armed Forces of the Argentine Republic, together with the Argentine Army, Army and the Argentine ...

’s Torpedo Division. In the role, he conducted the first detailed

hydrographic survey Hydrographic survey is the science of measurement and description of features which affect maritime navigation, marine construction, dredging, offshore wind farms, offshore oil exploration and drilling and related activities. Surveys may als ...

s of Argentine waterways, including the

Bahia Blanca Bahia () is one of the 26 Federative units of Brazil, states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo (state), São Paulo, Mina ...

Estuary and

Iguazu River The Iguazu River ( , ), also called Rio Iguassu, (from the Guaraní ''í Guazú'', literally "Big Water") is a river in Brazil and Argentina. It is an important tributary of the Paraná River. The Iguazu River is long, with a drainage basin of ...

. In 1874, he designed a 620-ton steamer, ''Fulminante,'' for the country's Minister of War (and previous Vice President),

Adolfo Alsina Adolfo Alsina Maza (January 4, 1829 – December 29, 1877) was an Argentine lawyer and Unitarian politician, who was one of the founders of the Autonomist Party and the National Autonomist Party.Ione S. Wright and Lisa M. Nekhom, ''Histori ...

. He retired to Paraguay in 1885.

Death and burial

Davidson died on February 16, 1913, in

Paraguay Paraguay, officially the Republic of Paraguay, is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the Argentina–Paraguay border, south and southwest, Brazil to the Brazil–Paraguay border, east and northeast, and Boli ...

, South America, at the age of 86.

Works

* "Electrical Torpedoes as a System of Defence," in the ''

Southern Historical Society Papers The Southern Historical Society was an American organization founded to preserve archival materials related to the government of the Confederate States of America and to document the history of the American Civil War.1826 births 1913 deaths 19th-century American engineers 20th-century American engineers American oceanographers People from Georgetown (Washington, D.C.) People of Virginia in the American Civil War United States Navy officers Argentine Navy officers Confederate States Navy commanders 19th-century American inventors American engineers Engineers from Virginia United States Naval Academy alumni