Alexander J. Dallas (United States Navy officer)

Alexander James Dallas (May 15, 1791 – June 3, 1844) was an officer in the United States Navy.

Alexander James Dallas
Born(1791-05-15)May 15, 1791
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
DiedJune 3, 1844(1844-06-03) (aged 53)
Callao, Peru
AllegianceUnited States
Service / branchUnited States Navy
Years of service1805–1844
RankCaptain
CommandsWest Indies Squadron; Pensacola Navy Yard (1832–1843)
Battles / warsWar of 1812; Second Barbary War; Second Seminole War
Relations
Signature

Early life

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Dallas was born on May 15, 1791, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His father, also named Alexander James Dallas, was the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury under James Madison.[1] His brother, George M. Dallas was Vice President of the U.S. under James K. Polk.

Career

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Dallas entered the Navy as a Midshipman in November 1805. He served in the War of 1812, the Second Barbary War, and in the suppression of piracy with the West Indies Squadron. Dallas also established and commanded the Pensacola Navy Yard from 1832 to 1843, and served in the Second Seminole War.

Personal life, death and legacy

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In 1821, Dallas married Henrietta Constantia Meade, daughter of merchant Richard W. Meade and the sister of American Civil War general George Meade; she died in Pensacola, Florida, in 1831.[2]

Dallas died on June 3, 1844, in Callao, Peru, and was buried at Cementerio Británico (Antiguo), in Bellavista, Callao, Peru.[3] Fort Dallas in Florida and the U.S. Naval destroyer USS Dallas are named after him.

References

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  1. ^ "Commodore Dallas". The Spirit of Democracy. Woodsfield, Ohio. November 15, 1844. p. 4. Retrieved July 5, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ Hughes, Thomas P. (1895). American Ancestry: Giving the Name and Descent, in the Male Line, of Americans Whose Ancestors Settled in the United States Previous to the Declaration of Independence, A. D. 1776. Vol. X. Albany, N.Y.: Joel Munsell's Sons. pp. 110–111.
  3. ^ "Cementerio Británico". Archived from the original on February 15, 2020. Retrieved September 21, 2020.