Last month, the CWN 150 announced that it will begin a poll to decide who was the greatest naval officer of the Civil War. The polls will stretch over a few months, ultimately with a showdown between Union and Confederate officers. This past week, we highlighted our third poll with four Union officers: Andrew H. Foote, Silas Stringham, Winfield Scott (U.S. Army), and Richard W. Meade. After a week of voting, Andrew H. Foote won with 9 votes.We will be posting the third round of the poll today. Please vote, and encourage others to! We will be posting the fifth week of the poll today, finally introducing our first four Confederate naval officers. Reproduced again is Andrew H. Foote's brief biography from the Naval History and Heritage Command:Andrew H. Foote
Andrew Hull Foote, born 12 September 1806 at New Haven, Conn., entered the Navy 4 December 1822 as a midshipman. Commanding Portsmouth in the East India Squadron on 20 and 21 November 1856, Foote led a landing party which seized the barrier forts at Canton, China, in reprisal for attacks on American ships. From 30 August 1861 to 9 May 1862, Foote commanded the Naval Forces on Western Rivers with distinction, organizing and leading the gunboat flotilla in the capture of Forts Henry and Donelson and Island No. 10. Wounded in action at Fort Donelson, Foote was commissioned Rear Admiral 16 July 1862, and was on his way to take command of the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron when he died at New York 26 June 1863.
