Porter, David Dixon

Life Span
to
Full name
David Dixon Porter
Place of Birth
Birth Date Certainty
Exact
Death Date Certainty
Exact
Gender
Male
Race
White
Sectional choice
North
Origins
Free State
No. of Children
10
Family
David Porter (father), Evelina Anderson (mother), George Ann Patterson (wife)
Education
Columbia (King’s College)
Occupation
Military
Military
US military (Pre-Civil War)
Union Navy
Foreign military

David Dixon Porter (American National Bibliography)

Scholarship
Dissatisfied with the slow progress of his career, by 1860 Porter was once again giving consideration to leaving the service for more promising civilian pursuits. Abraham Lincoln's election and the ensuing crisis altered the situation dramatically, however. In the spring of 1861, as the Union disintegrated, Porter, brash and ambitious, concocted a plan for reinforcing Fort Pickens at Pensacola and presented it to Secretary of State William Seward. Seward persuaded Lincoln to endorse the plan, and Porter was given command of the steamer Powhatan with orders to sail to the relief of Fort Pickens. When Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles learned that his department had been completely bypassed in this venture, he took immediate steps to stop the expedition. Porter boldly pushed ahead, defied his recall orders, sailed to Pickens, and provided reinforcement. Not surprisingly, from this point on Welles was always suspicious and distrustful of Porter. Thanks to his abilities and aggressiveness, Porter nonetheless soon became one of the darlings of the naval service and was promoted to commander.
William M. Fowler, "Porter, David Dixon," American National Biography Online, February 2000, http://www.anb.org/articles/05/05-00629.html.
Chicago Style Entry Link
Symonds, Craig L. Lincoln and his Admirals: Abraham Lincoln, the U.S. Navy, and the Civil War. New York: Oxford University Press, 2008. view record
How to Cite This Page: "Porter, David Dixon," House Divided: The Civil War Research Engine at Dickinson College, https://hd.housedivided.dickinson.edu/index.php/node/12608.