Percival Drayton (August 25, 1812 – August 4, 1865) 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. He served in the

Brazil Squadron The Brazil Squadron, the Brazil Station, or the South Atlantic Squadron was an overseas military station established by the United States in 1826 to protect American commerce in the South Atlantic during a war between Brazil and Argentina. When t ...

, the Mediterranean Squadron and as a staff officer during the Paraguay Expedition. 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 commanded naval forces against Confederate forts defended by his brother Thomas F. Drayton in the

Battle of Port Royal The Battle of Port Royal was one of the earliest amphibious operations of the American Civil War, in which a United States Navy fleet and United States Army expeditionary force captured Port Royal Sound, South Carolina, between Savannah, Geo ...

. He served as Fleet Captain in the

West Gulf Blockading Squadron The Union blockade in the American Civil War was a naval strategy by the United States to prevent the Confederacy from trading. The blockade was proclaimed by President Abraham Lincoln in April 1861, and required the monitoring of of Atlantic ...

and commanded the

sloop-of-war During the 18th and 19th centuries, a sloop-of-war was a warship of the Royal Navy with a single gun deck that carried up to 18 guns. The rating system of the Royal Navy covered all vessels with 20 or more guns; thus, the term encompassed all u ...

during the

Battle of Mobile Bay The Battle of Mobile Bay of August 5, 1864, was a naval and land engagement of the American Civil War in which a Union fleet commanded by Rear Admiral David G. Farragut, assisted by a contingent of soldiers, attacked a smaller Confederate fle ...

under Rear Admiral

David Farragut David Glasgow Farragut (; also spelled Glascoe; July 5, 1801 – August 14, 1870) was a flag officer of the United States Navy during the American Civil War. He was the first Rear admiral (United States), rear admiral, Vice admiral (United State ...

. It was to Drayton that Farragut issued his famous command, "Damn the torpedoes! Full steam ahead!"

Early life and family

Drayton was born in

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the List of municipalities in South Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint of South Carolina's coastline on Charleston Harbor, an inlet of the Atla ...

, to Anna Gadsden and

William Drayton William Drayton (December 30, 1776May 24, 1846) was an American politician, banker, and writer who grew up in Charleston, South Carolina. He was the son of William Drayton Sr., who served as justice of the Province of East Florida (1765–1780 ...

, a prominent lawyer and U.S. Representative. He had an older brother Thomas F. Drayton. In 1833 the family relocated to

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, following the Nullification Crisis, as William Drayton was a unionist. He was appointed as president of the

Second Bank of the United States The Second Bank of the United States was the second federally authorized Second Report on Public Credit, Hamiltonian national bank in the United States. Located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the bank was chartered from February 1816 to January ...

. Thomas, already grown, stayed in South Carolina and became a successful farmer and state senator. William Drayton was a descendant of what had been a large landholding family in South Carolina. In the 1770s, his father William Drayton, Sr. had sold his property in South Carolina to his uncle John Drayton, after being appointed in the 1770s as chief justice of the Province of East Florida."Drayton Family Papers"
including correspondence from 1783-1896,

Historical Society of Pennsylvania The Historical Society of Pennsylvania is a historic research facility headquartered on Locust Street in Center City Philadelphia. It is a repository for millions of historic items ranging across rare books, scholarly monographs, family chron ...

, accessed 1 May 2012 John Drayton's branch consolidated the holdings at Magnolia Plantation. After the American Revolutionary War, William Drayton, Sr. returned to South Carolina with his family and became prominent in its politics.

Military career

Percival Drayton was appointed 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 the Navy in December 1827. He served two tours of duty with the

in the South Atlantic from 1828 to 1830 and from 1839 to 1842. He served four tours in the Mediterranean Squadron from 1831 to 1832, 1835 to 1838, 1849 to 1850 and 1850 and 1852. He served one tour in the Pacific Ocean from 1842 to 1843 and one in the East Indies from 1845 to 1848. During his time in the Brazil Squadron, stationed out of Rio de Janeiro, he served as a midshipman aboard the

frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and maneuvera ...

. He attained the rank of Lieutenant in February 1838 and served aboard the schooner . His two years in the Pacific were served aboard the schooner . He had shore duty assignments at the

Naval Observatory The United States Naval Observatory (USNO) is a scientific and military facility that produces geopositioning, navigation and timekeeping data for the United States Navy and the United States Department of Defense. Established in 1830 as the D ...

in Washington, D.C., and at 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 ...

. Promoted to commander in September 1855, Drayton served as a staff officer during the Paraguay Expedition aboard the frigate . In 1859, he returned to the United States and was assigned as a member of the Board of Examiners to 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 ...

in Annapolis, Maryland. At the beginning of the Civil War in 1861, he was stationed at the

Philadelphia Navy Yard The Philadelphia Naval Shipyard was the first United States Navy shipyard and was historically important for nearly two centuries. Construction of the original Philadelphia Naval Shipyard began during the American Revolution in 1776 at Front ...

, where he directed the construction and renovation of ships for war service. In the fall of 1861, Drayton was placed in command of the

gunboat A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies. History Pre-steam ...

; he participated in the capture of

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 ...

. His older brother Thomas F. Drayton, a graduate of

West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as Officer_(armed_forces)#United_States, comm ...

and classmate of

Jefferson Davis Jefferson F. Davis (June 3, 1808December 6, 1889) was an American politician who served as the only President of the Confederate States of America, president of the Confederate States from 1861 to 1865. He represented Mississippi in the Unite ...

, had resigned with the secession of South Carolina. He was a

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 ...

of the

Confederate army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fi ...

and commanded the forts destroyed in this engagement. The Union forces captured Hilton Head, Beaufort and Parris Island and used them as a base to continue operations against Savannah, Georgia and Charleston, South Carolina. Drayton became commanding officer of the

and was active in inshore operations in the waters of

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

and northern Florida through the summer of 1862. He was promoted to Captain in July 1862. In September 1862, he was given command of the

ironclad An ironclad was a steam engine, steam-propelled warship protected by iron armour, steel or iron armor constructed from 1859 to the early 1890s. The ironclad was developed as a result of the vulnerability of wooden warships to explosive or ince ...

. He oversaw her outfitting and worked with

John Ericsson John Ericsson (born Johan Ericsson; July 31, 1803 – March 8, 1889) was a Swedish-American engineer and inventor. He was active in England and the United States. Ericsson collaborated on the design of the railroad steam locomotive Novelty (lo ...

to improve elements of

monitor Monitor or monitor may refer to: Places * Monitor, Alberta * Monitor, Indiana, town in the United States * Monitor, Kentucky * Monitor, Oregon, unincorporated community in the United States * Monitor, Washington * Monitor, Logan County, Wes ...

design. In April 1863, Drayton commanded his ship as part of a nine ironclad attack on Forts McAllister and

Sumter Sumter may refer to: People Given name * Sumter S. Arnim (1904–1990), American dentist * Sumter de Leon Lowry Jr. (1893–1985), United States Army general Surname * Rowendy Sumter (born 1988), Curaçaoan footballer * Shavonda E. Sumt ...

. The attack was unsuccessful and reinforced his opinion concerning the limitations of the monitor type ship for use against well-defended fortifications. Drayton's next assignment was as Superintendent of Ordnance at the New York Navy Yard. In December 1863 he began a year as Fleet Captain to the commander of the

, Rear Admiral David Glasgow Farragut. He commanded the squadron

flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of navy, naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically ...

, the big sloop-of-war and took part in the August 1864

and the following operations within

Mobile Bay Mobile Bay ( ) is a shallow inlet of the Gulf of Mexico, lying within the state of Alabama in the United States. Its mouth is formed by the Fort Morgan Peninsula on the eastern side and Dauphin Island, a barrier island on the western side. T ...

. It was to Drayton that Farragut shouted his famous command, "Damn the torpedoes! Full steam ahead!". Percival Drayton gravestone

He was appointed Chief of the

Bureau of Navigation The Bureau of Navigation, later the Bureau of Navigation and Steamboat Inspection and finally the Bureau of Marine Inspection and Navigation — not to be confused with the United States Navys Bureau of Navigation — was an agency of the Unite ...

in late April 1865. Drayton died of an obstructed bowel in Washington, D.C., on 4 August 1865 and was interred at

Laurel Hill Cemetery Laurel Hill Cemetery, also called Laurel Hill East to distinguish it from the affiliated West Laurel Hill Cemetery in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania, Bala Cynwyd, is a historic rural cemetery in the East Falls, Philadelphia, East Falls neighborhood ...

in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Namesakes

The U.S. Navy has named two destroyers in honor of Percival Drayton, including: ''Drayton'' (Destroyer # 23, later DD-23) of 1910–1935; and of 1936–1946.

References

External links

Hagley Digital Archives - Percival Drayton to Samuel Francis du PontThe New York Public Library Archives & Manuscripts - Percival Drayton Family Papers
{{DEFAULTSORT:Drayton, Percival 1812 births 1865 deaths 19th-century American naval officers Burials at Laurel Hill Cemetery (Philadelphia) Drayton family Military personnel from Charleston, South Carolina People of South Carolina in the American Civil War Southern Unionists in the American Civil War Union Navy officers United States Navy officers Deaths from bowel obstruction

Early life and family

Military career

Namesakes

References

Further reading

External links