Norman von Heldreich Farquhar | |
|---|---|
 Captain Farquhar | |
| Born | (1840-04-11)April 11, 1840 |
| Died | July 3, 1907(1907-07-03) (aged 67) |
| Place of burial | |
| Allegiance | United States of America |
| Branch |  United States Navy |
| Service years | 1859–1902 |
| Rank |  Rear Admiral |
| Commands | Triton USS Kansas USS Santee USS Portsmouth USS Quinnebaug USS Wyoming USS Constellation USS Trenton Bureau of Yards and Docks League Island Navy Yard USS Newark Norfolk Navy Yard North Atlantic Squadron |
| Conflicts | American Civil War |
| Signature | .png) |
Rear AdmiralNorman von Heldreich Farquhar (April 11, 1840 – July 3, 1907) was an officer in theUnited States Navy during theAmerican Civil War. He is best known for commanding a naval squadron which waswrecked with threeGerman warships atApia,Samoa, in 1889.
Born inPottsville, Pennsylvania,[1] Farquhar entered theUnited States Naval Academy in 1855.[2] After graduating from the Naval Academy in June 1859,[3] he served with theAfrica Squadron until September 1860 when he sailed the prize slaverTriton home to theUnited States.[4]
Lieutenant Farquhar spent most of the Civil War off the U.S. Atlantic coast and in theWest Indies, serving in thegunboatsMystic,Sonoma andMahaska, and thecruiserRhode Island. At the close of the war, he was executive officer of the gunboatSantiago de Cuba. He was promoted to the rank of lieutenant commander in August 1865, a few months after the fighting ended, and was on duty at the U.S. Naval Academy from then until September 1868. For the rest of the 1860s and into the next decade, Farquhar served in thescrew sloopSwatara, was executive officer of the sloopSevern and the frigatePowhatan, and commanding officer of the gunboatKansas. He also had two tours at theBoston Navy Yard on ordnance duty and as executive officer.
Advanced in rank to commander in December 1872, Farquhar spent nearly five years at the Naval Academy, which included command of the gunnery training shipSantee. He commanded the training shipPortsmouth in 1877–78, and the steam sloopsQuinnebaug andWyoming inEuropean waters in 1878–1881. Five more years of Naval Academy duty, including service as thecommandant of midshipmen and command of the training shipConstellation, were followed by torpedo instruction atNewport, Rhode Island, in 1886.[5]
In March 1886, Farquhar was promoted to captain.[5] From May 1887 until her loss in theMarch 1889 Samoan hurricane, he commanded the steam frigateTrenton. Farquhar was commended for his fine handling of his ship during that disastrous 1889 hurricane atApia, Samoa, in which she and a number of other American and foreign naval vessels were lost.
He then served on several of the Navy's boards and, in March 1890 became the chief of theBureau of Yards and Docks. During 1894–97, he was commandant of theLeague Island Navy Yard, commanding officer of the cruiserNewark, and president of theNaval Examining Board.
While holding the ranks of commodore and rear admiral, Farquhar was commandant of theNorfolk Navy Yard in 1897–99, commanded theNorth Atlantic Squadron during 1899–1901 and was chairman of theLighthouse Board in 1901–02.
Admiral Farquhar was a companion of theMilitary Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States (insignia number 9937) and a member of theNaval Order of the United States.
Rear Admiral Farquhar retired on April 11, 1902, having reached the mandatory retirement age of sixty-two.[1] He had his winter residence inWashington, D.C. and died at his summer residence inJamestown, Rhode Island, on July 3, 1907.[6][7] Farquhar was buried in Section 1 ofArlington National Cemetery.[8] His wife, Addie Whelan Pope Farquhar (1845–1909), is buried with him.[9]
Two ships have been namedUSS Farquhar for him.
TheFarquhar Glacier in Greenland was named after him byRobert Peary.
This article incorporates text from thepublic domainDictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be foundhere.| Military offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Commander-in-Chief,North Atlantic Squadron October 1899–1 May 1901 | Succeeded by |