John Ancrum Winslow (19 November 1811 – 29 September 1873) was an officer in the United States Navy during the Mexican–American War and the American Civil War. He was in command of the steam sloop of war during her historic 1864 action off Cherbourg, France, with the Confederate sea raider .
Early life and career
Although born in Wilmington, North Carolina, Winslow was a member of the old New England Winslow family, a descendant of Mayflower passenger Mary Chilton and her husband John Winslow, who was a brother of Pilgrim father Edward Winslow. One of his first cousins was Francis Winslow (I) (1818–1862), who also joined the Navy, becoming a Commander, who also fought in the Civil War and who died of yellow fever in 1862 while in command of the . Winslow's descendants included grandson Eben Eveleth Winslow, a U.S. Army brigadier general. John Winslow was educated in the North and became an ardent abolitionist.
He entered the Navy as a midshipman on 1 February 1827, became a passed midshipman on 10 June 1833, and was commissioned a lieutenant on 9 February 1839. During the Mexican War he took part in the expeditions against Tabasco, Tampico, and Tuxpan, and was present at the fall of Veracruz. For his gallantry in action he was allowed to have command of the schooner , which had been captured at Tampico in November 1846 and was taken into service, but she was poorly equipped and was lost on a reef off Veracruz on 16 December 1846. While serving at Tabasco during the Mexican–American War, he was commended for gallantry in action by Commodore Matthew Perry. He shared a shipboard cabin with his later adversary, Raphael Semmes. The two officers served together on , Semmes as the ship's flag lieutenant and Winslow as a division officer. The two, however, never mention this fact in their respective autobiographies.
He was executive of the sloop in the Gulf of Mexico in 1848–49, at the Boston Navy Yard in 1849–50, and in the frigate of the Pacific Squadron in 1851–55. He was promoted to commander on 14 September 1855. At Ferrol, Spain, Winslow learned that was at Brest, France, undergoing overhaul; he promptly sailed for that port to prevent her from slipping out to sea again. While keeping track of the progress of the repair work on the Southern warship through the U.S. diplomatic and espionage network, he also made runs along the coast of western Europe, checking on rumors of other Confederate raiders in the area. He also rigorously drilled his crew in naval gunnery, which stood them in good stead in the battle to come.
In January 1864, Kearsarge returned to Cádiz for naval stores and repairs, and while she was away from Brest, Florida put to sea on 18 February. When Kearsarge returned and learned that the quarry had escaped, she shifted to Calais, France, where was moored. On 12 June, while moored in the Scheldt off Vlissingen (Flushing), Winslow received a telegram informing him that Alabama was at Cherbourg, a French naval port.
Battle with Alabama
Capt. Winslow arrived off Cherbourg 14 June 1864, where he found the Alabama and blockaded her in the harbor. The Alabama made preparations for battle, and Capt. Raphael Semmes caused Winslow to be informed of this intention through the U. S. consul. On Sunday, 19 June 1864, he was lying off the eastern entrance of the harbor when the Alabama came out, escorted by a French iron-clad and the English yacht Deerhound. Winslow steamed off from the shore so as to be beyond the neutral ground, and then steamed toward the Alabama. The armament of the Kearsarge was seven guns, and that of the Alabama eight guns, including a 100-pound Blakely rifle. The Kearsarge was slightly faster, and had 163 men, while the Alabama had 149. The Kearsarge had a definitive advantage over the Confederate ship in that it had a concealed iron chain over its wooden hull, but victory over the Alabama was not certain.
He was the father of Rear Admiral Herbert Winslow (1848–1914).
Dates of rank
- Midshipman - 1 February 1827
- Passed Midshipman - 10 June 1833
- Lieutenant - 9 December 1839
- Commander - 14 September 1855
- Captain - 16 July 1862
- Commodore - 19 June 1864
- Rear Admiral - 2 March 1870
- Died - 29 September 1873
See also
- Bibliography of early United States naval history
- Bibliography of the American Civil War
- List of ships captured in the 19th century