Sons of Commodore George Washington Rodgers and Anna Maria Perry

Their three sons all served in the military and two were killed in wars.

CHRISTOPHER RAYMOND PERRY RODGERS (1819-1892)   USNA 1833, Mexican War, Commanded USS Wabash at Battle of Port Royal and capture of Fort Pulaski.  Became rear admiral and commanded USNA 1874-1878.  I'll write more about him in my Running the Blockade blog.

GEORGE WASHINGTON RODGERS  (1822-1863)   Mexican War  Commanded USS Constitution in 1860 and moved Academy  to Newport, R.I. during Civil War.  Killed while in command of monitor USS Catskill 17 August 1863 during Second Battle of Charleston Harbor.  I'll write more about him in my Running the Blockade blog.

ALEXANDER PERRY RODGERS  (1825-1847)   U.S. Army.  Graduated USMA 1845  Killed in Mexican War at the Battle of Chalputepec September 13, 1846, at age 22 while leading his company.

The Navy Tradition Continues.  --Brock-Perry

A Perry Son-in-Law Through Marriage, Commodore George Washington Rodgers

Married Anna Maria Perry, daughter of Christopher R. Perry.

Commodore GEORGE WASHINGTON RODGERS  (1787- 1832)

Born:    22 Feb 1787  Harford County, Maryland

Death:   21 May 1832  Buenos Aires, Argentina    While in the Navy.

Burial:  Cedar Grove Cemetery,  New London, Connecticut.  Wife Anna Maria Perry Rodgers also buried there.

Died in Bueno Aires while in command of U.S. squadron off Brazil.

He also had several sons who served in the U.S. Navy.  I will post about the couple's sons next.

His brother, John Rodgers, was also in the U.S. Navy and commanded during the War of 1812.

--Brock-Perry

Passed 3000 Posts to This Blog

This post marks the 3019th for this blog.  I started it back in 2012 during the bicentennial of the War of 1812.

I started it mostly to find out more about the war, which is often relegated to "forgotten" status.  I found that it was an interesting war and had a lot more about it than just the burning of Washington, D.C., the Battle of Baltimore and "The Star-Spangled Banner" which is about the most many Americans know about the war.

Actually, I had envisioned this blog stopping after the war ended 200 years ago, but as you can see, it continues.

The Brock-Perry sign-off for this blog refers to British and Canadian hero Isaac Brock and American hero  Oliver Hazard "We have met the enemy and they are ours" Perry.

Let's See How Much Longer It Goes.  --Brock-Perry

The USS Constitution Restored in 1930

On March 30, 1930, the USS Constitution left  dry dock with major repairs completed at a cost of $1,000,000.  Approximately two-thirds of the money was raised by patriotic organizations and school children.  Congress had supplied the rest of the funding.

In July 1, 1931, the ship went on a good-will tour of New England ports which proved so popular that the historic warship was sent on a tour of all the coastal states of America.  Between July 2, 1932 and May 1932, the ship visited every port on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts with water deep enough for her 23-foot draft.

She was then towed to Washington Navy Yard to prepare for a long trip to the Pacific Coast via the Panama Canal.  She went on that trip, leaving December 8, 1932, towed by the USS Grebe.

"Aye, Tear Her Tattered Ensign Down."  --Brock-Perry

The USS Constitution After the War of 1812

From History Link:  Frigate USS Constitution, on a tour of the Pacific ports, arrives in Seattle  on May 31, 1933"  by Daryl C. McClary.

After the War of 1812, the Constitution was refitted and served as the flagship of the Mediterranean Squadron.  In 1830, it was determined that the ship was unseaworthy and  Congress considered scrapping her.  But  public sentiment, and especially Oliver Wendell Holmes' memorable poem "Old Ironsides" (I had to memorize it while in fifth grade) saved it.

The Constitution was refitted and repaired, refitted and returned to commissioned status four times between 1832 and 1907.  From 1897 to 1925, she was on exhibition at Boston Naval Shipyard.

In 1924 it was found that she was again in dire need of repairs.  Congress authorized yet another rebuild, but by public subscription and a national voluntary  campaign to raise the necessary funds began.

--Brock-Perry

Remembering the Fallen, Memorial Day 2019-- Part 2: A Great War Memory

Continued from today's Cooter's History Thing blog.

"In fact, Dier has exactly one memory of Jerry Corp, but it's a good one.

" 'Someone on the perimeter called in for a routine fire mission asking for illumination, ' Dier plans to say in his speech.  'I dropped a round down the the 81-millimeter mortar tube.  The shot went out, and we waited for the familiar pop and the subsequent intense light that the round would provide as it drifted slowly back to the ground for several hundred feet in the air.

"The descending illumination revealed a nearby hillside covered in jungle.  Jerry and I laughed as the flare drifted toward the hillside, watching a multitude of chirping birds who mistook the flare for sunrise.  The noise from the birds stopped suddenly -- as if a switch had been flipped -- when the flare burned out.' "

Continued on my Down Da Road blog.

Final Resting Places of Family of Christopher R. Perry

FATHER:  Judge Freeman Perry (1732-1813)  Perry Family Cemetery  South Kingstown, Rhode Island

MOTHER:  Mercy Hazard Perry  (1739-1803)    same    So this is where the name Hazard comes from.

******************

CHRISTOPHER R. PERRY  Island Cemetery, Newport, Rhode Island

SARAH WALLACE ALEXANDER PERRY   Same

******************

CHILDREN

Oliver Hazard Perry    Same

Matthew Calbraith Perry   Same

Raymond Henry Jones Perry     Juniper Hill Cemetery   Bristol, Rhode Island

Anna Maria Perry Rodgers     Cedar Grove Cemetery  New London, Connecticut

Sarah Wallace Perry       Same

Nathaniel Hazard Perry     Same

Jane Tweedy Perry Butler     Christ Episcopal Church Cemetery, Greenville, South Carolina.

I couldn't find where Lt. James Alexander Perry was buried.

--Brock-Perry

Lt. James Alexander Perry and Nathaniel Hazard Perry

LT. JAMES ALEXANDER PERRY

Another son of Christopher R. Perry (and brother to Oliver Hazard Perry and Matthew Calbraith Perry) was this man.

According to Wikipedia (1801-1822)  Served in the U.S. navy from  1811 until his death.    Served with brother Oliver Hazard Perry at the Battle of Lake Erie at age 12.

This is all I can find about him.

Another son was Purser NATHANIEL HAZARD PERRY

According to Find A Grave, he was born in 1801, the youngest of C.R. Perry's sons.

Died 1832 (aged 28-29)

Buried Cedar Grove Cemetery, New London, Connecticut.

Inscription:  U.S.N., Youngest son of  Christopher and Sarah Perry of Newport, Rhode Island.

Married Lucretia Thatcher, January 27, 1828.

A daughter of C.R. Perry, Anna Maria Perry Rodgers, is also buried at this cemetery along  with her husband and her sister Sarah Wallace Perry.

--Brock-Perry

Lt. Raymond Henry Jones Perry (1789-1826)

I have already written a lot about Oliver Hazard Perry (and he is the one my signoff Brock-Perry is for) and Matthew Calbraith Perry.   I am going to see what I can find out about Christopher R. Perry's other three sons.  Lt. Raymond Henry Jones Perry, Lt. James Alexander Perry (1801-1822) and Purser Nathaniel Hazard Perry  (1803-1832).

All five sons served in the U.S. Navy and all five died while still in service of it.  And, four of them, including Oliver Hazard Perry,  died quite young, even for those days.

From Find A Grave.

CAPT. RAYMOND HENRY JONES PERRY

Birth:  11 February 1789
Bristol , Bristol County, Rhode Island

Death 12 March 1826
Bristol, Bristol County, Rhode Island

Burial:  Juniper Hill Cemetery
Bristol, Bristol County, Rhode Island

United States Navy.

Married May 16, 1814

Wikipedia lists him as a lieutenant and Find A Grave as a captain.

I am unable to find any other information on him.

--Brock-Perry

Descendants of Christopher R. Perry-- Part 3: A Rough Rider, Confederate General and Union Naval Officer

**  Oliver Hazard Perry Belmont (1858-1908) was a wealthy American socialite and U.S. Representative from New York and second husband to suffragist and socialite Alva Vanderbilt Belmont.

**  William Tiffany (great grandson)  (1868-1898) was 2nd lt. in 1st U.S. Volunteer Cavalry (Roosevelt's Rough Riders), died of yellow fever shortly after returning to the United States following his service in Cuba during the Spanish-American War.

**  Matthew Calbraith Perry (1836-1909), son of Captain Perry's daughter Jane Tweedy Perry Butler was an American military leader and politician from South Carolina who served as major general in the Confederate Army in the Civil War, a post-bellum three term U.S. senator and was a major general in the U.S. Army during the Spanish-American War.

**  Commander George Washington Rodgers (1822-1863), a grandson of Captain Raymond Perry, and brother of Rear Admiral C.R.P. Rodgers, "was distinguished for his bravery in silencing Fort Sumter and the batteries of Morris Island (Charleston, S.C.)" during the Civil War.

As I Said, Quite the Distinguished Family.  --Brock-Perry

Descendants of Christopher R. Perry-- Part 2: Aviators and Horse Racing

**   Great Grandson, Rear Admiral S. Rodgers (1858-1931) Spanish-American War and World War I.

Two other descendants came through Christopher Perry's daughter, Anna Maria Perry Rodgers

 **  Calbraith Perry Rodgers  (1879-1912), a pioneer American  aviator who was the first civilian to own a Wright Flyer and the first to make a transcontinental flight.

**   Commander John Rodgers (1881-1926), Navy officer and early aviator.

Through his son Matthew's daughter, Caroline Slidell Belmont, he was great grandfather to:

**  Perry Belmont, a statesman who also served in the Army  during the Spanish-American War and World War I.

**  August Belmont Jr (1853-1924) was an American financier and builder of New York's Belmont  racetrack and a major breeder/owner of thoroughbred racehorses.  (Part of horse racing's Triple Crown.)

Still More to Come.  This Is Quite a Family.    --Brock-Perry

Descendants of Christopher R. Perry-- Part 1: Oliver, Matthew, Alexander and Raymond

From Wikipedia.

To say the family of this man was important in U.S. Naval and Military History is an understatement.  Besides his children, of whom all five sons were in the Navy and one daughter married a Navy man, he had many others descendants who served their country.

SONS:  The best known are, of course, Oliver Hazard Perry and Matthew Calbraith Perry.

OTHERS:

Brevet Brig. Gen. Alexander James Perry (1828-1913)  Career Army officer, West Point graduate and served in the Civil War.

Rear Admiral Christopher Raymond Perry Rodgers (1819-1892).  Served in Mexican War and Civil War,  Was Superintendent of the USNA and Commander of the Pacific Squadron.

Rear Admiral Raymond Perry Rodgers (1849-1925), son of the above, Spanish-American War.

And, We're Just Beginning.  --Brock-Perry

The Family of Christopher Perry-- Part 2: Two More Sons in the Navy and a Daughter Married a Navy Officer

**  Anna Maria Perry  ((1797-1858)  Married Commodore George Washington Rodgers (1787-1832)

**  Jane Tweedy Perry  (1799-1876)  Married William Butler Jr. (1790-1850) a surgeon  an U.S. Congressman in 1819.

**  Lieutenant  James Alexander Perry  (1801-1822)  U.S. Navy from 1811 to his death.  Served with his brother Oliver Hazard Perry at the Battle of Lake Erie at age 12.

**  Purser Nathaniel Hazard Perry (1803-1832)    U.S. Navy from 1820 until his death.

Quite A Group of Children.  --Brock-Perry

The Family of Christopher R. Perry-- Part 1: Oliver, Raymond, Sarah and Matthew

From Wikipedia.

To say this family has had an impact on the U.S. Navy is an understatement.  They had five sons who all died while in Navy service.

Here are the children of Christopher and Sarah Perry:

**  Captain Oliver Hazard Perry  (1785-1819)  Married Elizabeth Champlin Mason in 1811.

**  Lieutenant Raymond Henry Jones Perry  (1787-1826)  Served in the U.S. Navy from 1807 until his death

**  Sarah Wallace Perry  (1791-1855) who never married.

**  Captain Matthew Calbraith Perry  (1794-1858)  Who married Jane Slidell  Perry (1816-1864).

It is kind of a coincidence that Oliver and Matthew married women with the same last names of the Confederate commissioners in the Trent Affair during the Civil War.

--Brock-Perry

Christopher R. Perry-- Part 4: Personal Life, Five Sons in Navy

Christopher Perry returned to the United States in July 1800 and the crew was discharged.  The General Greene was placed in ordinary at Washington Navy Yard and reduced to a hulk in 1805 before being burned Aug. 24. 1814, to prevent capture by the British.

Perry and most of the other officers of the U.S. Navy were laid off by the Naval Peace Establishment Act of 1801 which reduced the size of the Navy.  Only nine of the 42 captains of the Navy retained their commissions.

PERSONAL LIFE

Perry married  Sarah Wallace Alexander on August 2, 1784.  She was the descendant of an uncle of famed Scottish hero William Wallace.  They had eight children.  All five of the sons were officers in the U.S. Navy who died in the service.  The two most famous are Oliver Hazard Perry and Matthew Calbraith Perry.

I was unable to find out anything about Christopher Perry in the War of 1812.

In 1800, he became the owner of a large house in Newport, Rhode Island, that still stands and is called the Knowles-Perry House which is probably where he lived for the rest of his life.  He died in 1818. and is buried in the Belmont-Perry plot in the Island Cemetery in Newport.

--Brock-Perry

Christopher R. Perry-- Part 3: Becomes a Rich Man and Commands USS General Greene in Quasi War

After the American Revolution, he served on a merchant ship and sailed to Ireland where he was able to bring his beloved Sarah to the United States where they were married in Philadelphia in 1784.  (That must have been an interesting story of his meeting his future wife while a prisoner.

They moved to South Kingston, Rhode Island where his parents had a 200 acre estate.  Their first child, Oliver Hazard Perry was born there in August 1785.)

Christopher Perry then  pursued his career as a merchant ship captain, making voyages all over the world and making a small fortune in the process.  He was able to move his family to the fast-growing Newport, Rhode Island and by 1797, he was rich enough to retire.

On January 7, 1798, he was commissioned as a captain in the U.S. Navy during the Quasi War with France.  Given command of the frigate USS General Greene, he brought along his son, 13-year-old midshipman Oliver Hazard Perry.

You can read the rest of the story about his time on the USS General Greene on my May 4 and May 6 blogs.

--Brock-Perry

Christopher R. Perry-- Part 2: Service in the American Revolution

Born in Newport, Rhode Island.  His mother was a descendant of two of the Mayflower Compact signers.

AMERICAN REVOLUTION

He enlisted in a local militia company at age 14 early in the American  Revolution.  He then served on two privateers, but the second one was captured  and Perry was confines on the infamous prison hulk, the Jersey in New York Harbor for three months before escaping.

In 1779. he joined the Continental Navy as a seaman on the 30-gun frigate USS Trumbull.  He was aboard this ship when it engaged the 32-gun British letter of marque Watt in a hard-fought, but indecisive battle.

  After that, Perry enlisted on another privateer which was captured and Perry was again imprisoned, this time  at Newry Barracks in Ireland where he met his future wife, Sarah Wallace  Alexander. he was able to make another escape, this time by posing as a British seaman.  He arrived back in the U.S.  shortly before the end of the war in 1783.

(In case you're wondering, the Perry in my sign-off below comes from Christopher's son, Oliver Hazard Perry.  The Brock is from British/Canadian War of 1812  hero Isaac Brock.)

--Brock-Perry

Christopher R. Perry, USN-- Part 1: Father of Some Famous Sons

I'm sure I knew that Oliver Hazard Perry had a father, but never thought anything about him until I was doing posts about ships that had been burned in the Washington Navy Yard in 1814 to prevent them from being captured by the British.  One of them was the frigate USS General Greene, another ship I had never heard of as well.

And, not only was Christopher Perry the father of Oliver Hazard, but also quite a list of other naval officers.

Here's his story.

From Wikipedia.

CHRISTOPHER RAYMOND PERRY  (December 4, 1761 - June 1, 1818)

Was an officer in the United States Navy, appointed Chief Justice of the Court of Pleas for Washington County, R.I., in 1780 and served until 1791.  He was the father of Oliver Hazard Perry and Matthew Calbraith Perry.

The Perry in my sign-off below is for Oliver Hazard Perry.

--Brock-Perry

The Three USS Columbias in the Civil War

I am writing about three U.S. Navy ships named the Columbia which took part in the Civil War in my Running the Blockade:  Civil War Navy blog.

One of them was the second frigate by that name and this one was launched from the Washington Navy Yard in the 1830s.  However, it was burned when the Confederates captured the Norfolk Navy Yard.  The second one was a former blockade runner that was captured on its maiden voyage, turned into a Union blockader and ran aground and sank after just one month's service.

The third one was a former Cofederate ironclad captured at Charleston.

Three USS Columbias and not much service.

You can go to the Civil War Navy blog to read about them.

--Brock-Perry

A Recap of Ships Burned at Washington Navy Yard Aug. 24, 1814

Five ships were burned that day.  Two of them were nearing completion, the frigate USS Columbia and brig USS Argus.

The three others were either in ordinary or a hulk.  They were frigates:  USS New York, USS Boston and USS General Greene.  The first two were subscription ships built by those cities for use in the U.S. Navy.

--Brock-Perry

USS General Greene-- Part 2: Quasi War, Haitian Revolution, Burned At Washington Navy Yard

While in San Domingo (today's Dominican Republic), the General Greene was with the USS Boston (later burned with the Greene at Washington navy Yard in 1814).  On December 1, 1799,  the Greene assisted in the capture of the schooner Flying Fish and then retook the American schooner Weymouth, which had been captured by the French privateer  Hope.

After that, much of her time was spent keeping an eye on the Haitian Revolution and gave artillery support to General Toussaint.  In April 1800, she carried two representatives of Toussaint to an audience with President John Adams and later convoyed 12 merchant ships to Havana

Afterwards, the Greene went to Newport, Rhode Island, where its crew was discharged.  Captain Christopher R. Perry was retired under the Peace Establishment Act of 3 April 1801.  After that, the general Greene was laid up in ordinary at Washington Navy Yard where she served as a floating sick bay for the frigate USS Constellation in 1801.

In 1805, the ship was reduced to a sheer hulk.  It was burned to prevent capture by the British August 24, 1814.

That Covers All the Ships That I Found Were Burned At the Washington Navy Yard When the British Captured Washington, D.C..

Brock-Perry

The USS General Greene-- Part 1: Also Burned At Washington Navy Yard Aug. 24, 1814

From Wikipedia.

The USS General Greene was a 124-foot long frigate mounting 30 cannons and manned by a crew of 250.

It was built under government contract by Benjamin Talman and James De Wolf in Rhode Island   It was launched  21 January 1799 and first commanded by Christopher R. Perry, whose son, Oliver Hazard Perry, was a midshipman on his father's ship.

Its first mission in 1799 resulted in damage during a heavy gale, putting into Havana, Cuba, for repairs and the crew being struck with yellow fever with more than twenty dying.  It returned to the U.S. to clean up the illness and then took station at San Domingo for six months.

--Brock-Perry

The USS Boston Also Burned At Washington Navy Yard

From Wikipedia.

The USS Boston was a 32-gun, wooden-hulled, three-masted frigate built by public subscription in Boston which took part in the Quasi War with France and the First Barbary War.  It was launched in 1700 and commissioned the same year.

The Boston protected American commerce ships from French privateers in the Quasi War, capturing eight prizes (two with the USS General Greene).  In the Barbary War the ship  battled Barbary ships.

Laid up in 1802 at Washington Navy Yard, it was deemed in such bad shape that it was not worth repairing.  She was burned August 24, 1814, to prevent capture by the British.

--Brock-Perry

Four USS New York's Destroyed by U.S.-- Part 2

From Wikipedia.

The fourth USS New York destroyed by the United States was the battleship USS New York (BB-34) which fought in World War I and World War II.  It is believed to be the only U.S. ship to sink a U-boat in WW I.

During WW II, it was involved in the invasion of North Africa, convoy duty, a training ship and then went to the Pacific where it was at Iwo Jima and Okinawa.

It then became part of Operation Crossroads as a test ship, surviving two atom bomb blasts before being used as naval target practice and being sunk.

An Interesting and Full Career.  --Brock-Perry

Four USS New York's Destroyed By the United States-- Part 1

So, we had a USS New York burned in the War of 1812, and another USS New York burned in the Civil War, but I just came across two more USS New Yorks destroyed by Americans.

The USS New York (ACR-2/CA-2) was an armored cruiser in service 1893 to 1938 and was in the Spanish-American War and World War I and had her name changed to the USS Saratoga to free up the name New York for the battleship USS New York (BB-34).  Later, she became the USS Rochester to free up the name for the battlecruiser USS Saratoga which eventually became the aircraft carrier Saratoga (CV-3).

Decommissioned in 1938 and based in the Philippines, it was scuttled December 24, 1941, to prevent capture by the Japanese.

--Brock-Perry