John Lorimer Worden John Lorimer Worden ( 12 March 1818 – 19 October 1897 ) was a U . S . rear admiral who served in the American Civil War . He commanded " Monitor " against the Confederate vessel " Virginia " ( originally named " Merrimack " ) in first battle of ironclad ship s in 1862 . Background and early career . Worden was born in Sparta , Mount PleasantTownship , Westchester County , New York . He grew up in Swartwoutville , Dutchess County , New York , and was married to Olivia Toffey , the aunt of Daniel Toffey , captain ' s clerk of the USS " Monitor " . He was appointed midshipman in the Navy on 10 January 1834 . He served his first three years in the sloop - of - war " Erie " on the Brazil Station . Following that , he was briefly assigned to the sloop before he reported to the Naval School at Philadelphia , Pennsylvania for seven months of instruction . He returned to sea in July 1840 for two years with the Pacific Squadron . Between 1844 and 1846 , Worden was stationed at the Naval Observatory in Washington , D . C . During the Mexican - American War , he cruised the west coast , primarily in the store ship " Southampton " , but in other ships as well . In 1850 , he returned to the Naval Observatory for another two - year tour of duty . The ensuing nine years were filled with sea duty which took Worden on several cruises in the Caribbean and Mediterranean Seas . Civil War service . Brought to Washington early in 1861 , he received orders in April to carry secret dispatches — regarding the reinforcement of Fort Pickens — south to the warships at Pensacola . During the return journey north , Worden was arrested near Montgomery , Alabama , and was held prisoner until exchanged about seven months later . Taking command of the " Monitor " . Though still ill as a result of his imprisonment , Lieutenant Worden accepted orders to command the new ironclad " Monitor " on 16 January 1862 . He reported to her building site at Greenpoint in Brooklyn on Long Island and supervised her completion . He placed the new warship in commission at the New York Navy Yard on 25 February and two days later sailed for Hampton Roads . However , steering failure forced the ironclad back to New York for repairs . On 6 March , she headed south again , this time under tow by " Seth Low " . On the afternoon of 8 March , Worden ' s command approached Cape Henry , Virginia , while inside Hampton Roads , the Confederacy ' s own ironclad , CSS " Virginia " , wreaked havoc with the Union Navy ' s wooden blockading fleet . During that engagement , the Southern warship sank the sloop " Cumberland " and severely damaged " Congress " and " Minnesota " before retiring behind Sewell ' s Point . Arriving on the scene too late to participate in the engagement , Worden and his command set about assisting the grounded " Minnesota " . The battle of the ironclads . At daybreak on the 9th , " Virginia " emerged once more from behind Sewell ' s Point to complete her reduction of the Federal fleet at Hampton Roads . As the Confederate ironclad approached " Minnesota " , Worden maneuvered " Monitor " from the grounded ship ' s shadow to engage " Virginia " in the battle that revolutionized naval warfare . For four hours , the two iron - plated ships slugged it out as they maneuvered in the narrow channel of Hampton Roads , pouring shot and shell at one another to almost no visible effect . Three hours into the slug fest , Worden received facial wound s when a Confederate shell exploded just outside the pilot house that partially blinded him . He relinquished command to his first officer , Samuel D . Greene . About an hour later , " Monitor " withdrew from the battle temporarily and , upon her return to the scene , found that " Virginia " , too , had withdrawn . The first battle between steam - driven , armored ships had ended in a draw . Other wartime commands . After the battle , Worden moved ashore to convalesce from his wounds . During that recuperative period , he received the accolade of a grateful nation , the official thanks of the United States Congress , and promotion to commander . Late in 1862 , he took command of the ironclad monitor " Montauk " and placed her in commission at New York on 14 December 1862 . Later in the month , Worden took his new ship south to join the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron off Port Royal , South Carolina . On 27 January 1863 , he led his ship in the bombardment of Fort McAllister . A month later , newly promoted Captain Worden took his ship into the Ogeechee River , found the Confederate privateer " Rattlesnake " ( formerly CSS " Nashville " ) , and destroyed her with five well - placed shots . His last action came of 7 April 1863 , when " Montauk " participated in an attack on Charleston , South Carolina . Post - war career and last years . Not long after the Charleston attack , Capt . Worden received orders to shore duty in conjunction with the construction of ironclads in New York . That assignment lasted until the late 1860s . In 1869 , Commodore Worden began a five - year tour as Superintendent of the United States Naval Academy . In 1872 , Worden was promoted to Rear Admiral . During the late 1870s , he commanded the European Squadron , visiting ports in northern Europe and patrolling the eastern Mediterranean during the Russo - Turkish War of 1877 - 78 . He returned ashore and concluded his naval career as a member of the Examining Board and as President of the Retiring Board . When he retired on 23 December 1886 , Congress voted him full sea pay in his grade for life . Admiral Worden was a member of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States , Naval Order of the United States and the Military Order of Foreign Wars . Rear Admiral Worden resided in Washington , D . C . , until his death from pneumonia on 19 October 1897 . After funeral services at St . John ' s Episcopal Church in Washington , he was buried in the Pawling Cemetery in Pawling , New York . He was married to Olivia Toffey ( 1820 – 1903 ) , and she and three of their four children survived him . His oldest son was John Lorimer Worden , Jr . ( 1845 – 1873 ) , who served as a volunteer captain in the U . S . Army during the Civil War and later as a first lieutenant in the regular army until his death in 1873 . The second son was Daniel Toffey Worden ( 1847 – 1914 ) , a Wall Street stock broker . Worden also had two daughters , Grace Worden ( 1852 – 1905 ) and Olivia Steele Worden ( 1856 – 1933 ) . Worden ' s widow and all of his children except Daniel were buried with him in Pawling , New York . Tiffany & Co . Sword . After the battle of the Iron - Clads the state of New York celebrated their hero with the commissioning of a custom - made 37 " gold and silver inlaid sword from Tiffany & Co . The handle was emblazoned with the Roman god of the sea , Neptune and included a gold - plated sheath and gold embroidered belt made at the cost of $ 550 . In 1912 , fifteen years after his death , Worden ' s family donated the sword to the Naval Academy where it rested until 1931 when it was stolen . The subsequent naval investigation yielded no leads . The sword was missing for over six decades until 1998 when the FBI began an investigation into several dealers of the PBS show Antiques Roadshow . By 2002 , three men were in jail for $ 1 million in memorabilia fraud . The FBI continuned to delve further into the records of the appraisers , searching for more stolen items . The sword had been purchased by an appraiser and then resold to a collector . After the FBI verified the sword was stolen , it was confiscated and returned to the Naval Academy . Namesake . Fort Worden , located in Port Townsend , Washington and four United States Navy ships have been named USS " Worden " for him . The parade field at the United States Naval Academy is named in his honor . See also . List of Superintendents of the United States Naval Academy