U.S. Naval Academy quarters named to honor Adm. Farragut
Farragut’s namesake has received yet another honor.
Admiral David Glasgow Farragut — born in 1801 along what is now Fort Loudoun Lake near Northshore Drive and commissioned as the U.S. Navy’s first real admiral, vice admiral and admiral — now has his name bestowed on the official quarters of the U.S. Naval Academy’s superintendent in Annapolis, Maryland, according to a press release.
That residence will be known as Farragut House in honor of the Civil War hero, who fought for the Union and led the fleet most notably during the Battle of Mobile Bay, where he courageously said “Damn the torpedoes — full speed ahead!” before capturing two Confederate ships.
“Admiral Farragut was a true American hero,” current U.S. Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro stated. “He had a choice during the Civil War, and he chose loyalty to the Union, which required moral courage.
‘He fearlessly left Norfolk, despite being home to him for the past 40 years,” Del Toro added. “This was an incredibly pivotal point in the war because his success in Mobile Bay hastened the end of the war. It is important we name our historic institutions after those that inspire us and will continue to do so for generations.”
The recent renaming occurred in the wake of ongoing removal of Confederate names from military bases and facilities. Before the name change, the superintendent’s house had been named after Franklin Buchanan, the academy’s first superintendent who joined the Confederacy and later commanded several naval battles that killed hundreds of U.S. sailors.
The 34-room residence was named after Buchanan in 1976, according to the Navy.
The renaming comes as the result of a Defense Department Naming Commission, which has in recent years outlined a host of military assets across the branches that required renaming due to their Confederate ties.
The Navy has already renamed two ships and another academy building.
