The man they nicknamed "Father Neptune".

major bill

Brev. Brig. Gen'l
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Aug 25, 2012
Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles was nicknamed "Father Neptune". Gideon Welles did not have a great amount of experience in naval matters nor in military matters. It appears he was selected for Secretary of the Navy because he was a strong supported of Lincoln. Welles anti-slavery view were probably another reason Lincoln selected him for the job. Lincoln also needed a New Englander in his cabinet and Welles fit the bill.

Welles did not originally support the concept of the blockade of Southern ports. He did however oversee the rapid growth of the Union Navy which allowed a more effective Union blockade. Welles had to overcome many challenges but probable did a good job as as Secretary of the Navy so perhaps Lincoln made a good choice when he selected Gideon Welles to be Secretary of the Navy.

So my questions:
1. Did not having any real naval or military experience hurt the performance of Welles as Secretary of the Navy?
2. Was there someone else who would have done a better job of running the Navy?
3. How much did Welles performance help or hurt the Union's war effort?
 
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