Jonas Coe Jonas Halstead Coe ( September 21 , 1805 Springfield , New Jersey - October 30 , 1864 Buenos Aires , Argentina ) , sometimes given in Spanish as Comodoro Juan Coe , was an American - born naval commander , notable in the early history of Argentina and Uruguay . Early service in Peruvian waters . In 1824 , at the age of 18 , Coe joined the Chilean fleet , then commanded by Lord Cochrane , and served on board the brig " Protector " during the campaign of Peru . Personal life . On July 7 , 1828 Coe married in Buenos Aires Trinidad Balcarce , daughter of Argentine General Juan Ramon Balcarce and Trinidad García Balcarce . The couple ' s first child , Dolores Coe Balcarce , was born in 1830 . Cisplatine War . Serving as an officer in the Argentine fleet under Admiral William Brown , he achieved distinction in the battles of Juncal and Monte Santiago in the Cisplatine War that led to the Uruguayan independence in 1828 . Service in the Uruguayan Navy . After the war with Brazil , he moved to Montevideo and became a partisan of Fructuoso Rivera and the Colorado Party . At the beginning of the Uruguayan Civil War , he was given the rank of Commodore and placed in command over the fledgling Uruguayan Navy ' s " Escuadra Oriental " , consisting of the flagship " Cagancha " ; the corvette s " Constitución " , " Sarandi " , and " 25 de Mayo " ; the brig " Pereyra " ; and the schooner " General Rivera " . Although Brown ' s fleet was of similar size , Coe remained in harbor at Montevideo under the protection of the shore batteries for two months . On May 24 , 1841 , thinking Brown ' s forces to be scattered , he sailed out of the harbor only to be forced to retreat back in at dusk . He remained in harbor until August 3 , when the Battle of Santa Lucía River saw the " General Rivera " sunk . In his third engagement on December 9 , the Argentine brig " Belgrano " captured the " Cagancha " and all her crew . Following these reverses , President Rivera appointed Italian skipper Giuseppe Garibaldi to the rank of Colonel and created the command of the " 2ª División de la Escuadra Oriental " , transferring most of Coe ' s ships to the new fleet . The new unit achieved some success before being routed by Admiral Brown in the battle of Costa Brava , on the Paraná River . After this , the war simply became a siege of Montevideo , with Argentina and the Blancos in control of the sea , but the supply to the port was granted by Britain . Return to Argentina . With the war in Uruguay over and Rosas overthrown in Argentina , Coe was appointed by Justo José de Urquiza commander of the Confederation fleet which blockaded the city of Buenos Aires , after the later seceded from the central government in September 1852 . Coe , aboard the steamer " Constitución " , defeated a Buenos Aires flotilla 30 miles off Martín García island on April 18 , 1853 , when his squadron captured the enemy brigs " Enigma " and " 11 de Septiembre " , with 22 officers and 200 men . On June 26 , however , Coe deserted to the United States aboard the American sloop USS " Jamestown " after being bribed by Buenos Aires ' citizens . Death and legacy . Coe eventually returned to Buenos Aires , where he died on October 30 , 1864 , the father of ten children . His remains were buried at the family ' s grave in the Recoleta cemetery . He is the namesake of the ROU " Comodoro Coe " ( 07 ) , a French - designed Vigilante - class patrol boat of the Uruguayan Navy commissioned in 1981 .