Background
Francis Munroe Ramsay was born on April 5, 1835 in Washington, D. C. , the only son of Frances Whetcroft (Munroe) Ramsay and George Douglas Ramsay.
Francis Munroe Ramsay was born on April 5, 1835 in Washington, D. C. , the only son of Frances Whetcroft (Munroe) Ramsay and George Douglas Ramsay.
He spent one year at the United States Naval Academy. Returning to the Naval Academy, he was graduated on June 20, 1856, with a promotion the same month to passed midshipman.
Appointed a midshipman on October 5, 1850, he went to sea on the practise-ship Preble and on the St. Lawrence, Pacific Station.
During the next six years, he served on the Falmouth, Brazil Squadron; the Merrimac, Pacific Squadron; at the Washington navy yard, ordnance duty; and on the Saratoga, African Squadron. He was made a lieutenant on January 23, 1858, and lieutenant commander on July 16, 1862. In the Civil War, he commanded the ironclad Choctaw, Mississippi Squadron, 1863-64, under David Dixon Porter.
From May 18 to May 23, the Choctaw, the DeKalb, and four light draught vessels ascended the Yazoo River, attacking a strong position at Haynes' Bluff, and at Yazoo City where the well-equipped Confederate navy yard and three formidable war vessels, in process of construction, were destroyed.
Later, at Milliken's Bend, Mississippi River, the Choctaw, at a critical time on June 7, repulsed a Confederate attack on the garrison. During the siege of Vicksburg, Ramsay commanded a battery of three heavy guns, mounted on scows in an exposed position and gained Porter's warm official commendation. From July 1863 to September 1864, he commanded the Mississippi River Third District, leading an expedition of six gunboats of the "tin clad" fleet up the Red River and thence up the Black River to Trinity, Louisiana, where an engagement was fought. He then proceeded up the Ouachita River to Harrisonburg, Louisiana, where he had a second engagement. Porter recommended Ramsay for promotion to Secretary Welles on May 19, 1864, and, in a letter to the Secretary, he called him "one of my best officers".
Commanding the gunboat Unadilla, North Atlantic Blockading Squadron, also under Porter, he participated in the attacks on Fort Fisher in December 1864 and in January 1865, and later in several engagements with Fort Anderson and other forts on the Cape Fear River. In April he was with the flotilla which removed torpedoes from the James River, and was present at the capture of Richmond. He was assistant to the commandant, Stephen Bleecker Luce, and senior instructor in gunnery at the Naval Academy while Admiral Porter was superintendent.
Made commander on July 25, 1866, he was, in turn, on navigation duty at the Washington navy yard; fleet captain and chief of staff, South Atlantic Squadron, flagship Guerriere; commander of the Guerriere; on ordnance duty, Washington navy yard; in the Bureau of Ordnance; naval attaché in London, 1872-73; commander of the Ossipee, North Atlantic Station, and of the Lancaster; at the Naval Asylum, Philadelphia; and inspector of ordnance, New York navy yard.
He was promoted to the rank of captain on December 1, 1877, commanded the Torpedo Station, Newport, Rhode Island, from 1878 to 1881, and the Trenton, European Station, 1881. After promotion to commodore in March 1889, he commanded the Boston, and the New York navy yard, and was Chief of the Bureau of Navigation, 1889-97. He became a rear admiral on April 11, 1894, and retired on April 5, 1897. He died in Washington and was buried in Arlington Cemetery.
He was a member of the Schley Court of Inquiry with Admiral Dewey and Rear Admiral Benham.
Quotes from others about the person
At Drumgould's Bluff, Yazoo River, April 30, 1863, the Choctaw was under very heavy fire, and Kidder Randolph Breese, writing Porter on May 1, said, "Ramsay is worthy of all you old commanders; fought his ship very handsomely and on deck all the time".
On June 9, 1869, he married, in the United States Legation at Buenos Aires, Anna Josephine, the daughter of Patrick and Mary (Powers) McMahon of Ireland. They had three children, two boys and one girl.