The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-03-17
%SELFRIDGES I'm THE NAVY
GREAT MADE BY ONE FAM
lily OF SAILORS.
Oldest Living Rear Admiral Appointed
i'm 1864, Second Grandson This Year.


Mckinley of a grandson of our oldest' re-
tired rear admiral to a cadetship at the Ma
val Academy has called attention to the fact
that there will soon be four members of
the Selfridge family represented in the
navy, extending their record back nearly
one hundred years. There has been a great
deal said of late about the so-called "Vic-
torian era" which has been made to COM
prehend almost everything notable in the
century past, but it is far excelled by the
Selfridgian era, which began the year be-
fore Victoria was born. when Midshipman
Thomas Oliver Selfridge entered our navy
at the age of fourteen. Born in 1904 during
Jenerson's first administration, he carries
us back almost TO the beginning of our
presidential era, and. had he been so IA
vored, might have seen all our Presidents
but one, Washington having died five years
before his birth, but John Adams surviv-
ing 1t more than twenty years.
He lived during the times of Decatur,
Perry, cambridge, Preble, Napoleon, Nell
son, Lord Pitt and a host of others whose
names have been but a memory the past
half century and more. He was in service
While Napoleon was a prisoner at st.
Helena, having entered thirteen years aft
er the battle Of Trafalgar, and so on,
having lived through all the greatest
events of the nineteenth century. 1t hap
pened that during all the long period of
the first Selfridge's service there were no
great naval battles, and his only partici-
patton in active operations was on the
west coast of Mexico, where he received a
wound that incapacitated him from sea
duty in the year 1S4S.
Soon after the outbreak of our civil
war he was assigned to the Charlestown
and Mare Island navy yards, was pro-
NOTED to a captaincy in 1855, TO commo-
dore in 1862 and retired in April, 1866, be-
ing promoted TO rear admiral in July of
that year. He is now the senior rear
admiral on the retired list, and, like all
his brother heroes ION the shelf" draws
an annual salary OF $4,000 and emolu-
ments. as he has been doing for the past
thirty-five years.
1t would seem, in fact, thai if one de-
see something of the world in his early
manhood and attain to a green old age,
perhaps within hail of the century mark.
he has only to secure a position in our
navy or army in line for promotion, be-
have decently and trust to Providence
and time.
RETIRED LIST.
Presidential favor may count for some
eHAhS III thC OAiSiidi appointments, Oul,
barring accidents, the age limit at six
ty-two does the rest, for on the retired
list of our army and navy registers may
be- found a vast excess of officers over
the number actually in active service.
At the beginning of this century there
We're. for example, forty-three rear adj
mirals retired and only eighteen in active
service, while eight commodores were en-
oDin~ tho ;poro,,.ftio- IS Iii --.-;.oLI.
sailors snug harbor' long after their
grade had been abolished.
Rear Admiral T. O.. Selfridge, ST., is
now ninety-seven years old, for he and
But twenty-three numbers below him in
the list of retired rear admirals is his
son; Thomas In ma and o; S Sefired sf jr' who MAS WAS
years ago. Unlike his father, A. O.. Sell
fridge, jr.. had the benefit of technical
training, having entered the Naval Acad-
envy at Annapolis, graduating at the head
of his class in 1854. Both, of course, en-
tered the navy with a full appreciation
of their responsibilities. but it CHANGED
that of the two the son was the one who
saw the fighting. He graduated from
the academy in time TO participate in the
tremendous struggle between the different
lieutenant, was on the old Cumberland
when she was rammed and sunk by the
Merrimac in Hampton Roads. His own
account of the affair is mighty interest
ing reading.
"If the Cumberland he said. had had
steam, she might have had some sort Of
show in fighting the Merrimac. We had
ten guns to her four, and the hail of big
hot we poured at her produced consider
able effect, knocking away her smoke
stacks and making large dents in her
armor. AS il was. the Merrimac struggled
for two or three minutes and then broke
free, leaving her ram in the Cumberland,
which, as she backed away, settled steadily
as the water poured into her through the
great holes in her side, While We were
sinking L kept on directing the fire of our
guns at the Merrimac. When the word
came for every one to save himself as best
he could, / found the hatchways crowded
with men, and, seeing small chance of es-
Gaping that way. L hastily stripped myself
to my shirt and trousers and crawled
through a portfolio just as the ship went
under the water. / went down with her;
but, being a first-rate swimmer, l came TO
the surface again and succeeded in reach
ing a boat"
Promoted to lieutenant commander in
July, 1862, Selfrfdge had charge of the iron
clad Cairo, which was blown up by a tor
pedo in the Yazoo. Then he commanded
the Usage in the Red river expedition, and
next the Vindicator and the fifth division
of the Mississippi river fleet until 1864.
While in command of the steamer Conesto-
ga his boat went to the bottom through
coming in contact with a Confederate ram,
this making three times that Selfridge met
with accidents of that nature. He had
command of the steamer Huron in both at
tacks on Fort Fisher, and also of the third
division of the landing party of sailors that
stormed the fort. He was promoted to a
commander in 1869, and during the next
three years conducted the survey of a ship
canal route across Darien. Later he had
in the north Atlantic and
Asiatic squadrons, and in 1886 was tried by
court-martial for criminal carelessnesS'
in target practice off the coast of Japan,
when four natives were killed by the burst
ing of an unexploded shell. He was ex-
point TO the story that he had been sent TO
the bottom twice and blown up twice, hav-
ing suffered from the sinking of his ships
when on the Cumberland and Conestoga,
having been blown up" by a torpedo when
ON the Cairo and also as the result of tar
get practice. AS IL this were not enough,
he had tempted fate by accepting the COM
mand of a torpedo station, but when the
period arrived for his retirement-January,
lS9S-he was in European waters.
With two of its members on the retired
list as rear admirals, ii might seem thaS
any family should be satisfied, but there
is vet another son of the old admiral in
naval service in the person of Command
er j. r. Selfridge, who entered the navy IL
1854 and worked valiantly throughout the
Spanish-American war and of late has
filled the position of lighthouse inspector
for the Second district. with headquarters
I'm Boston. Like his father and brother,
he was Massachusetts, born and educated.
and he forms the third of the illustriOus