Richard Wainwright was an officer in the United States Navy during the American Civil War.
Background
Richard Wainwright was born in Charlestown, Massachussets, the son of Lieutenant-Colonel Robert Dewar and Maria Montresor (Auchmuty) Wainwright, and a descendant of Richard Wainwright who was a planter in South Carolina in the early eighteenth century. His father, an officer of the United States Marine Corps, is noted for his suppression of a mutiny in the Massachusetts state prison in 1824, an authentic record of which for many years formed one of the standard selections in school readers.
Education
Wainwright entered the navy as a midshipman on May 11, 1831, and after some preliminary training in his profession at Norfolk made a cruise in the Mediterranean. He prepared at the Norfolk naval school for his examination for the grade of passed midshipman, a rank to which he was promoted from June 15, 1837.
Career
After a period of service at the Washington navy yard he was ordered to duty with the United States Coast Survey. In September 1841 he was promoted lieutenant. From 1842 to 1845 he was with the Vincennes of the Home Squadron, and from 1846 to 1847 with the Columbia of the Brazil Squadron. In 1848 he returned to the Coast Survey, serving there until 1856, part of the time as commander of the J. Y. Mason.
After a period of service with the Merrimack of the Pacific Squadron, he was assigned to ordnance duty at the Washington navy yard, where he was stationed in 1861. He was promoted commander from April 24 of that year. In October he commanded the sailors at Fort Ellsworth near Alexandria, and in November he conveyed a detachment of seamen to Cairo, Illinois. On the last day of the year he was detached from the navy yard and ordered to command the Hartford, the flagship of Flag Officer D. G. Farragut, preparing for service on the lower Mississippi.
On April 24, 1862, when the fleet passed Forts St. Philip and Jackson, the flagship was subjected to a galling fire from the forts and was set on fire by a fire raft, being with difficulty saved from the flames. On the following day, when it was steaming up the river, shots were exchanged with the batteries on shore. The flagship arrived off New Orleans much riddled, with a loss of thirteen men. Later when she passed and repassed the batteries at Vicksburg she gave a good account of herself.
On July 15 below Vicksburg she engaged the enemy's ram Arkansas and suffered a loss of nine men. In all of the operations of the squadron Wainwright until the last days of July had a distinguished part. He then suffered an attack of remittent fever which proved fatal within two weeks. His death occurred on board his vessel at Donaldsville, Louisiana.
Achievements
Connections
On March 1, 1849, he was married to Sally Franklin Bache, a great-granddaughter of Benjamin Franklin and a granddaughter of Richard Bache and Alexander J. Dallas. Richard Wainwright was the eldest of his four surviving children.