CSN Forrest, French - Commander

French Forrest​

Born: October 4, 1796

Birthplace: Helen, Maryland

Father: Uriah Forrest 1746 – 1805

(Buried: Oak Hill Cemetery, Washington, D.C.)​

Mother: Rebecca Plater 1765 – 1843

(Buried: Oak Hill Cemetery, Washington, D.C.)​

Wife: Emily Simms Douglas 1810 – Unknown

(Buried: Congressional Cemetery, Washington, D.C.)​

Children:

Douglas French Forrest 1837 – 1902​

(Buried: Congressional Cemetery, Washington, D.C.)​

Occupation before War:

1811 - Became a Midshipman in the United States Navy on June 9​

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Participated in the War of 1812​

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1817 - Promoted to Lieutenant in the United States Navy on March 5​

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1837 - Promoted to Commander in the United States Navy on February 9​

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1844 - Promoted to Captain in the United States Navy on March 30​

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1847 - Forrest commanded the American naval forces in the landing at Veracruz, Mexico​

Civil War Career:

1861: on April 17, when Virginia seceded from the Union, Forrest was made its first and only flag officer in the Virginia Navy and assumed command of the Gosport Shipyard (Norfolk Naval Shipyard).​

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1861 – 1865: Served in Confederate States Navy rising to Commander​

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Directed by Confederate States Secretary of the Navy, Steven R. Mallory to Oversee the Salvage and Reconstruction of the U.S.S. Merrimack into a new ironclad design, what would become the C.S.S. Virginia​

Commander of James River Squadron​

Occupation after War:

Forrest returned to Washington to find that his property there had been seized.​

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1865 – 1866: Suffered from the effects of Typhoid Fever​

Died: November 22, 1866

Place of Death: Georgetown, District of Columbia

Age at time of Death: 70 years old

Cause of Death: Typhoid Fever

Burial Place: Congressional Cemetery, Washington, D.C.

 

[Pollaco]

He observed the fight between the Virginia and the Monitor at Hampton Roads from aboard the tugboat "Harmony".

 

[Pollaco]

He was relieved by John K. Mitchell in early 1864 and dropped from the rolls on the naval register by June of 1864. Forrest was blamed for poor behavior by the James River Squadron in 1863.

 

[Pollaco]

Before becoming commander of the James River Squadron he was chief in the Office of Orders and Detail.

 

[gentlemanrob]

Obit:

 

[Pollaco]

In between the loss of his command in Norfolk and command of the James River Squadron Forrest was a bureau chief at Richmond in the Navy Department.His title was chief in the Office of Orders and Detail.