William Radford ( – ) was a rear admiral of the United States Navy who served during the Mexican–American War and the American Civil War, in which he remained loyal to the Union, despite his Virginia birth. Radford commanded the Ironclad Division in the attacks on Fort Fisher (December 1864/January 1865) to assert Union control of Cape Fear.

Ancestry and early life

On December 23, 1806, John Radford [ – ] married Harriet Kennerly [ – ] in Fincastle, Virginia, at Santillane, the estate of her uncle George Hancock. On or after January 5, 1807, William Clark arrived at Greenfield, the estate of army buddy William Preston, missing Harriet's wedding. Instead, Clark asked George Hancock for Julia Hancock's hand in marriage. John and Harriet remained in Fincastle to attend the January 8, 1808, marriage between William and Julia (Harriet's cousin). Then they departed in the spring for Lewis County, Kentucky to live on their 1,000-acre farm between Vanceburg and Concord on the bank of the Ohio River, where William and his two siblings were born.

In 1817, John Radford was killed by the wild boar he was hunting. Widow Harriet moved her three children to join her brothers and first cousin in Saint Louis, Missouri. The Radfords resided with her brother James Kennerly.

Julia Clark succumbed on June 27, 1820. Widower William Clark married Harriet November 28, 1821 in Saint Louis and adopted the Radford children and then added to their combined family:

  • Harriet Clark [dates unknown; died as infant].
  • Jefferson Kearny Clark [ – ]
  • Edmund Clark [ – ]

After his mother's second marriage, Radford initially refused to move into the Clark house, so he was sent to a school in Perth Amboy, New Jersey, where he became acquainted with the sea. He asked stepfather William Clark for a recommendation to the U.S. Navy. Clark sent a personal request to President John Quincy Adams. Family records and the U.S. Federal Census forms support the 1809 date.

William Clark's diaries mention Radford accompanying him in 1824 from Saint Louis to Washington, D.C. Before returning home, they diverted to New York City to observe the hero's welcome for Marquis de Lafayette. On April 29, 1825, Lafayette paid a visit to Saint Louis, where William Clark hosted his stay and Radford introduced himself as a Midshipman in the crew sailing Lafayette back to France. He reported 1 August 1825 to Captain Charles Morris for duty aboard at Washington Navy Yard.

Lafayette was delivered to Le Havre on October 9, 1825. From there Brandywine was attached to the Mediterranean Squadron under Commodore John Rodgers. Upon the departure of Brandywine February 25, 1826, Radford transferred to to remain in the Mediterranean monitoring the Greek War of Independence and coup against the Janissaries. Rodgers was succeeded by Commodore William Crane March 30, 1827. Constitution, in need of major repairs, was recalled to Boston Navy Yard arriving on July 4, 1828.

Warren left Mazatlán with dispatches from Washington, D.C. and arrived at Monterey on August 17, 1846, to find Commodore Robert Stockton in charge of the Pacific Squadron. Ordered back to resume the blockade of Mazatlán, Warren arrived early morning of September 7 to find the Mexican warship Malek Adhel in the harbor. Radford commanded the boarding party which inserted during the siesta hour and securely fastened the hatches while the entire crew was below deck. Over the course of the next months, "13 or 14" additional ships were captured by the blockade, eliminating further threat from the Mexican Navy.

North Atlantic and European Squadrons

thumb|right|USS Franklin in 1864

Commodore Radford was appointed April 28, 1865, to command the North Atlantic Squadron as Acting Rear Admiral. He transferred his flag May 15, 1865, from Phlox to , which remained his flagship during his tenure. He was called October 10, 1865, to oversee the Washington Navy Yard. He moved his wife, two daughters and three sons from New Jersey to a Washington, D.C. home in November.

In March 1866, Radford was elected as a companion of the Pennsylvania Commandery of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States. He was promoted to rear admiral on July 25, 1866.

Children of William and Elizabeth (all born in Morristown, New Jersey except Henry who was born in Washington, D.C.) were: Mary Lovell Radford; William Radford; Sophie Adelaide Radford; Stephen Kearny Radford; George Reginald Radford; Edmund Ironsides Radford; and Henry Carlton Radford.

Daughter Sophie became a writer including a play produced on Broadway and her father's biography Old Naval Days.

Son George Reginald and grandson William Radford Coyle (from daughter Mary Lovell Radford Coyle's lineage) married sisters. Mary and Jane Dodson respectively were daughters of Weston Dodson, founder of Weston Dodson & Company in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Coyle served three terms from Pennsylvania as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives.

Granddaughter Mary Lovell Radford (from son Stephen Kearny Radford's lineage), on April 5, 1918, during World War I, launched , a named for her grandfather.

Granddaughter Edith Lovell Coyle (from daughter Mary Lovell Radford Coyle's lineage) married François E. Matthes. On May 13, 1942, during World War II, she launched the , a in the United States Navy named for her grandfather.

Great-granddaughter (from son Stephen Kearny Radford's lineage) Rosemary Radford Ruether pioneered feminist theology.

Radford died on January 8, 1890. He was interred at Oak Hill Cemetery in Washington, D.C.

Legacy

When the Brandywine arrived in France in 1825, Radford purchased a set of dining room chairs which he shipped back to the Clark household in St. Louis, Missouri. The Clark family referred to them as the "Lafayette Chairs" per the trip's famous passenger.

Radford, as a witness, signed at least three treaties between the United States and American Indian nations. He had attended the ceremonies with stepfather William Clark, who was serving as Superintendent of Indian Affairs.

Radford built an elegant Victorian mansion during 1875 at 1736 (now 1734) N Street NW in the DuPont Circle neighborhood of Washington, D.C. It is now the General Federation of Women's Clubs Headquarters.

References

Two ships of the U.S. Navy were named in his honor.

  • USS Radford (DD-120) : William Radford
  • USS Radford (DD-446) : William Radford