United States Navy commodore (1823?1899)
Commodore
Oscar Charles Badger
(August 12, 1823 ? June 20, 1899) was an officer of the
United States Navy
who served in the
Mexican?American
and
American Civil Wars
.
Service in Africa and during the Mexican?American War
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Badger received an appointment as a
midshipman
in the
United States Navy
on September 9, 1841, and, after a tour of duty in the
Independence
, served in
Saratoga
along the Atlantic coast of
Africa
. While serving in the latter ship, he saw his first action in the
punitive expedition
that landed on the west coast of Africa in 1843 and destroyed the
Berribee
villages. In the sidewheel steamer
Mississippi
, during the
Mexican?American War
, he participated in the expedition that captured the Mexican town of
Alvarado
in the spring of 1847.
Attended the Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland
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Badger then attended the Naval School (as the
Naval Academy
was then called) at
Annapolis, Maryland
; completed his course of study there; and was warranted a
passed midshipman
on August 10, 1847.
Posted to the Pacific Squadron
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By 1850, he was posted to the
Pacific Squadron
and served successively in the
Supply
, the
frigate
Savannah
, and the
sloop
Vincennes
. He returned to shore in 1853 for a tour of duty at the
United States Naval Observatory
located in
Washington, D.C.
In 1855, he returned to the Pacific Squadron for duty in the sloop
John Adams
and, that autumn, participated in an expedition to the
Fiji Islands
to redress wrongs suffered by members of the crews of American whalers and merchant ships at the hands of natives. The landing party destroyed the village of
Vutia
. To round out his pre-Civil War service, Badger was assigned in turn to the
Plymouth
,
Macedonian
,
Minnesota
, and, lastly, to the
Washington Navy Yard
.
Service in the American Civil War
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He was serving in the national capital at the outbreak of the Civil War, and took command of the
screw steamer
Anacostia
early in the conflict. In her, he participated in a series of actions against Confederate batteries along the
Virginia
bank of the
Potomac River
. During the
Peninsula Campaign
, he took part in the
siege of Yorktown
, Virginia. In 1862, he was transferred to the western theater to superintend the arming of river
gunboats
. In mid-1863, he was switched to the
South Atlantic Blockading Squadron
and participated in the attack on shore batteries on
Morris Island
on July 11, 1863. A week later, he commanded
Patapsco
in an attack on
Fort Wagner
and, a month after that, led the ironclad in a series of operations against Forts Wagner,
Gregg
, and
Sumter
. On the night of August 22, 1863, he took command of the ironclad
Montauk
on another assault on Fort Sumter.
[2]
Appointed fleet captain of the South Atlantic Blockade
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Soon thereafter, Badger was appointed fleet captain, ad interim, of the
South Atlantic Blockading Squadron
and, in that office, took part in another attack on Fort Sumter while in the
flagship
Weehawken
on the night of September 1, 1863. During that action, he was severely wounded in the leg by a flying metal splinter.
He spent the remaining years of the Civil War ashore performing ordnance duty at the
Philadelphia Navy Yard
and serving as inspector of cannon at
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
. After the war, he became a companion of the District of Columbia Commandery of the
Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States
.
[2]
Post-Civil War service with the fleet
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On December 26, 1866, he took command of the newly commissioned sidewheel steamer
USS
Peoria
?a ship of the
North Atlantic Squadron
?and, in her, rendered assistance to the victims of a fire that destroyed
Basseterre on St. Kitts in the Leeward Islands
. The
Peoria
was decommissioned in September 1867. In 1868, he was assigned to equipment duty at the
Portsmouth Navy Yard
in
New Hampshire
. He returned to sea in 1871 in command of the
Ticonderoga
of the
South Atlantic Fleet
. He commanded the receiving ship
Ohio
at
Boston
,
Massachusetts
, in 1873 and 1874 and served again at the
Washington Navy Yard
between 1875 and 1878.
[2]
Final military service
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Badger's last sea duty came in 1878 and 1879 when he commanded the frigate
Constitution
. He commanded
Constitution
on a voyage to France to represent the United States Navy at the
Paris Exposition of 1878
. The voyage, beset by several mishaps, lasted from March 1878 to May 1879. During 1880, he was stationed in Washington for special duty. While serving at the
Naval Asylum in Philadelphia
, Badger was promoted to commodore in November 1881.
[2]
After commanding the
Boston Navy Yard
between 1881 and 1885, Badger retired in August 1885. He died on June 20, 1899, and was buried at
Arlington National Cemetery
, in
Arlington, Virginia
.
[3]
Family
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Badger married Margaret M. Johnston, daughter of Captain Z. F. Johnston, USN. Their son,
Charles Johnston Badger
, pursued a naval career and retired as a rear admiral.
Memberships
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Commodore Badger was a member of the
Aztec Club of 1847
, the
Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States
and the
Military Order of Foreign Wars
.
Honored in ship naming
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The
Badger
(Destroyer No. 126)
(1919?1945) was named for Commodore Oscar C. Badger, while his son, Admiral
Charles Johnston Badger
was similarly honored by the naming of the
destroyer
Charles J. Badger
(DD-657)
(1943?1957). The destroyer escort
Badger
(DE-1071)
(subsequently rerated as a frigate) (1970?1991) honors the commodore, his son, his grandson, Admiral
Oscar C. Badger II
, and his cousin
George Edmund Badger
, the 12th
United States Secretary of the Navy
.
See also
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Notes
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References
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External links
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