Confederate Ties Lead Naval Academy To Rename Building In Honor Of Civil War Hero

ANNAPOLIS, MD — The U.S. Naval Academy recently renamed one of its buildings that had Confederate ties. The new name honors a Civil War hero who was a high-ranking Navy officer.

The renamed building is the superintendent's home, which was previously called Buchanan House. The namesake was Franklin Buchanan, a former commander and the Naval Academy's first superintendent. Buchanan later resigned his commission and joined the Confederate States Navy during the Civil War.

The superintendent's home is now called Farragut House. The new name honors Union Navy Admiral David Glasgow Farragut, who defeated Buchanan in the Civil War's Battle of Mobile Bay.

Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro announced the name change on April 29 during the 2023 U.S. Naval Academy Alumni Leadership Forum.

Del Toro called Farragut "a true American hero."

"He had a choice during the Civil War and he chose loyalty to the Union, which required moral courage," Del Toro said in a May 1 press release. "He fearlessly left Norfolk, despite being home to him for the past 40 years. This was an incredibly pivotal point in the war, because his success in Mobile Bay hastened the end of the war. It is important we name our historic institutions after those that inspire us and will continue to do so for generations."

Farragut's Story

Farragut was born in Knoxville, Tennessee in 1801. He was appointed a midshipman at 9 years old and had his first sea service in 1811.

Decades later, Farragut declared his allegiance to the Union during the Civil War and led the Union fleet at Mobile Bay. He captured the ironclad ram CSS Tennessee, led by Buchanan, and gunboat CSS Selma during this battle. He also proclaimed his famous words during the battle: "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!"

Farragut served until he died in 1870 at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine.

Farragut was appointed the Navy's first-ever rear admiral in 1862. President Abraham Lincoln created the rank of vice admiral for Farragut and bestowed it on him in 1864. A Congressional act named Farragut admiral in 1866, making him the first Navy officer to hold that rank as well.

As the son of a Spanish immigrant, Farragut is also the first Hispanic-American to earn these ranks.

Current Naval Academy Superintendent Vice Adm. Sean S. Buck. said he's proud to live in a home named after an early Navy leader.

"As the senior ranking naval officer during our nation’s most trying times, his dedication to our nation and its principles serves as a great example for our midshipmen," Buck said in the release. "I couldn’t be happier to have his legacy memorialized so prominently on our historic Yard."

Renaming Timeline

The name change came after a congressionally mandated commission examined the potential Confederate ties of all Department of Defense assets.

The commission recommended in August 2022 that the Naval Academy rename Maury Hall, Buchanan House and Buchanan Road.

Secretary of Defense Austin Lloyd accepted all the commission's recommendations last September. He gave each service until the end of 2023 to rename their assets and until the end of fiscal year 2023 to rename their streets.

This February, the Navy renamed Maury Hall to Carter Hall to honor former President and Naval Academy graduate Jimmy Carter.

The name of Buchanan Road has not yet been changed, a Naval Academy spokesperson told Patch on Thursday.

Maury Hall

Maury Hall opened in 1907. It was named in 1915 after Matthew Fontaine Maury.

Maury was an early oceanographer and a director of the Naval Observatory. He served in the U.S. Navy for more than 30 years before the Civil War.

"Despite these contributions, he viewed African Americans as unworthy of life, liberty, or the pursuit of happiness," the renaming commission's report said of Maury. "Maury envisioned a series of vast American territories in Central and South America, where enslaved humans would produce commodity crops like cotton, rubber, and sugar."

Maury resigned his commission in the Union Navy to serve in the Confederate Navy.

Maury was a political lobbyist in Europe during the Civil War. He urged foreign nations to recognize the Confederacy, and he bought ships for the Confederate Navy.

Carter Hall is currently home to the Naval Academy’s Systems and Weapons Engineering Department.

The Navy estimated that it would cost $12,000 to rename the building.

Buchanan House, Buchanan Road

Buchanan House was completed in 1909 at a cost of $77,500. The home has 34 rooms and spans 15,000 square feet.

Buchanan Road is the 510-foot-long street that leads to the residence. The road got its name in 1915. The superintendent's home was officially dubbed Buchanan House in 1976 to match the street approaching it.

Both sites got their name from Franklin Buchanan, the first superintendent of the Naval Academy. Over his 45-year career, Buchanan also served as an officer in the Mexican-American War and a steamboat commander in Commodore Matthew C. Perry ’s expedition to Japan.

"Shortly after the start of the Civil War, Buchanan joined the Confederacy, quickly rose to the rank of admiral and commanded the CSS Virginia," the commission said. "Under his command in several naval battles, his efforts killed hundreds of U.S. Navy sailors."

The Navy estimated that it would cost $12,000 to rename Buchanan House and $3,000 to rename Buchanan Road.

Memorial Hall

Memorial Hall has a column with a list of Naval Academy graduates who died during naval
operations. The roll call only states United States or Confederate service after each name.

The commission said there are limited facts to back up each listing, so the group thinks the roll call can remain as is.

Renaming Process

Congress established the naming commission in the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021. This law established the U.S. Department of Defense's budget for that fiscal year.

As part of the budget, Congress ordered officials to create a commission to examine all the assets of the Department of Defense that commemorate the Confederacy.

The team held its first meeting in March 2021 and submitted its findings last summer and fall.

The group met with defense and local leaders, visited the military academy campuses and spoke with community stakeholders while researching Annapolis and West Point. The public comment period was open from Sept. 4, 2021 to Dec. 1, 2021, garnering more than 34,000 submissions.

The commission said all of its recommendations met the renaming criteria set by the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021.

The commission, therefore, recommended that the secretary of defense authorize the secretaries of the Navy and the Army to start the removal and renaming processes. The Naval Academy and the Military Academy both have long-standing procedures for memorialization, so the commission said the institutions should follow those existing policies.

The full report is posted here.

Related:

• Naval Academy Changes Confederate Building Name To Honor Jimmy Carter
• Confederate Names At Naval Academy Should Be Changed, Commission Recommends