Johnston Blakeley | |
|---|---|
 Blakeley in 1846 lithograph, entitledNaval Heroes of the United States | |
| Born | October 1781 Seaforde, County Down, Ireland |
| Died | October 1814 (aged 32–33) Atlantic Ocean |
| Place of burial | Lost at sea |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch |  United States Navy |
| Service years | 1800–1814 |
| Rank | Captain (posthumous) |
| Commands | |
| Conflicts | |
| Awards | |
| Relations | Charles Adams Blakely (great-grandnephew) |
| Signature | .png) |
Johnston Blakeley (October 1781 – October 1814) was aUnited States Navy officer who served during theQuasi-War and theWar of 1812. He is considered to be one of the most successful American naval officers of the period.[1]
Blakeley was born nearSeaforde, County Down, Ireland. Brought to the United States as a child in 1783, he graduated from theUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he was a member of theDialectic and Philanthropic Societies, in 1800, then joined the Navy and was appointed aMidshipman in 1800.
After service inPresident during the Quasi-War with France and command ofEnterprise early in the War of 1812,Master Commandant Blakeley was appointed to command of the newly builtsloop-of-warWasp.
In 1814, he made a very successful cruise which in June included thesinking of HMSReindeer. In September, in a similar action, Blakeley sunkHMS Avon. That month he also captured the mercantile brigAtalanta.Wasp was last heard of 9 October 1814 and is believed to have foundered in a gale.[1] Blakeley received theThanks of Congress, agold medal, andposthumous advancement to the rank of Captain for his last cruise.
Captain Blakeley was married, in December, 1813, to Miss Jane Hoope, the daughter of his father's old friend, Mr. Hoope, ofNew York; and has left an only daughter, who received one of the most noble and substantial and affecting tributes of national gratitude which has occurred in the history of this country. The legislature ofNorth Carolina, on 27 December 1816, after prescribing the destination of the sword they had voted to Captain Blakeley, "Resolved, unanimously, That Captain Blakeley's child be educated at the expense of this State; and that Mrs. Jane Blakeley be requested to draw on the Treasurer of this State, from time to time, for such sums of money as shall be required for the education of the said child."
Three ships have been namedUSS Blakely in Captain Blakeley's honor:
Also part of the San Juan Islands chain are a group of islands to which Wilkes bestowed the name "Wasp Islands" after theWasp. Their namesake, however, was not the same vessel commanded by Blakely, but an earlierWasp, also a sloop-of-war, which was commissioned in 1807 and captured by the British in the early months of the War of 1812.[4]
This article incorporates text from thepublic domainDictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be foundhere.| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
