William B . Cushing Commander William Barker Cushing ( 4 November 1842 – 17 December 1874 ) was an officer in the United States Navy , best known for sinking the Confederate ironclad during a daring nighttime raid on 27 October 1864 , a feat for which he received the Thanks of Congress . Early life and career . Cushing was born in Delafield , Wisconsin , and was raised in Fredonia , New York . He was expelled from the United States Naval Academy for pranks and poor scholarship . At the outbreak of the American Civil War , however , he pled his case to United States Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles himself , was reinstated and went on to acquire a distinguished record , frequently volunteering for the most hazardous missions . His heroism , good luck and coolness under fire were legendary . Civil War service . Cushing saw action during the Battle of Hampton Roads and at Fort Fisher , among many others . He was promoted to lieutenant in 1862 , and to commander in 1872 , although many historians believe he deserved even greater honors for his bravery . Two of his brothers died in uniform , one ( Alonzo ) in the Battle of Gettysburg , and another ( Howard ) while fighting the Chiricahua in 1871 . His oldest brother ( Milton ) also served in the Navy as a paymaster . It was Cushing ' s daring plan and its successful execution against the Confederacy ' s ironclad ram that defined his military career . The powerful ironclad dominated the Roanoke River and the approaches to Plymouth through the summer of 1864 . By autumn , the U . S . government decided that the situation should be studied to determine if something could be done . The U . S . Navy considered various ways to destroy " Albemarle " , including two daring plans submitted by Lieutenant Cushing . They finally approved one of his plans and authorized him to locate two small steam launches that might be fitted with spar torpedo es . Cushing discovered two picket boats under construction in New York and acquired them for his mission ( some accounts have them as 45 – 47 feet ) . On each he mounted a 12 - pound Dahlgren howitzer and a spar projecting into the water from its bow . One of the boats was lost at sea during the voyage from New York to Norfolk , Virginia , but the other arrived safely with its crew of seven officers and men at the mouth of the Roanoke . There , the steam launch ' s spar was fitted with a lanyard - detonated torpedo . On the night of 27 and 28 October 1864 , Cushing and his men began working their way upriver . A small cutter accompanied them , its crew having the task of preventing interference by the Confederate sentries stationed on a schooner anchored to the wreck of " Southfield . " When both boats , under the cover of darkness , slipped past the schooner undetected , Cushing decided to use all 22 of his men and the element of surprise to capture " Albemarle " . As they approached the Confederate docks , their luck turned and they were spotted in the dark . They came under heavy sentry fire from both the shore and aboard " Albemarle " . As they closed with " Albemarle " , they quickly discovered she was defended against approach by floating log booms . The logs , however , had been in the water for many months and were covered with heavy slime . The steam launch rode up and then over them without difficulty . When her spar was fully against the ironclad ' s hull , Cushing stood up in the bow and detonated the torpedo ' s explosive charge . The explosion threw everyone aboard the steam launch into the water . Recovering quickly , Cushing stripped off his uniform and swam to shore , where he hid until daylight . That afternoon , having avoided detection by Confederate search parties , he stole a small skiff and quietly paddled down - river to rejoin the Union forces at the river ' s mouth . Of the other men in Cushing ' s boat , one escaped , two were drowned , and eleven were captured . Cushing ' s daring commando raid blew a hole in " Albemarle " s hull at the waterline " big enough to drive a wagon in . " She sank immediately in the six feet of water below her keel , settling into the heavy bottom mud , leaving the upper armored casemate mostly dry and the ironclad ' s large " Stainless Banner " battle ensign flying from its flag staff , where it was eventually captured as a Union prize . Postbellum career . After the Civil War , he served in both the Pacific and Asiatic Squadron s ; he was the Executive Officer of the and commanded the . He also served as ordnance officer in the Boston Navy Yard . Before taking command of USS " Maumee , " while he was on leave at home in Fredonia , that Cushing met his sister ' s friend , Katherine Louise Forbes . ' Kate ' , as she was known , would sit and listen for hours to William ' s stories of adventure . Having decided that he was in love with her and she with him , Cushing asked her to marry him on 1 July 1867 . Unfortunately , he received orders and was gone before a ceremony could take place . Finally , on 22 February 1870 , Cushing and Forbes would marry . Their first daughter , Marie Louise was born on 1 December 1871 . On 31 January 1872 he was promoted to the rank of commander , becoming the youngest up to that time to attain that rank in the Navy . Two weeks later he was detached to await orders . Weeks of waiting turned into months , but no word came . He had given up hope of another sea command , when early in June 1873 Cushing had an offer to take command of . He took command of his new ship on 11 July 1873 . Cushing commanded the " Wyoming " with his typical flair for being where the action was , performing daring and courageous acts . The Wyoming ' s boilers broke down twice , and in April she was ordered to Norfolk for extensive repairs . On 24 April , Cushing was detached and put on a waiting list for reassignment . He believed that he would be given the " Wyoming " again when she was ready for duty , but in truth , his ill - health would not permit him to command another vessel . Cushing returned to Fredonia to see his new daughter , Katherine Abell , who had been born on 11 October 1873 . His wife was shocked to see the condition of her husband . His health was in apparent decline . Kate remarked to William ’ s mother that he looked to be a man of sixty instead of his thirty - one years . Cushing had begun having severe attacks of pain in his hip as early as just after the sinking of the " Albemarle . " None of the doctors he saw was able to make a diagnosis . The term " sciatica " was used in those days without regard to cause for any inflammation of the sciatic nerve , or any pain in the region of the hip . Cushing may have had a ruptured intervertebral disc . He had suffered enough shocks to dislocate half a dozen vertebrae , and with the passage of time it would come to bear more and more heavily upon the nerve . On the other hand , he may have been suffering from tuberculosis of the hip bone , or cancer of the prostate gland . There was nothing to be done and Cushing continued to suffer . Cushing was next given the post of executive officer of the Washington Navy Yard . He spent the summer of 1874 pretending to be happy with his inactive role . He played with his children and enjoyed their company . On 25 August he was made senior aide at the yard ; in the fall he amused himself by taking an active interest in the upcoming Congressional elections . On Thanksgiving Day , William , Kate and his mother went to church in the morning . That night , the pain in Cushing ’ s back was worse than it had ever been and he could not sleep . The following Monday he dragged himself to the Navy Yard . Kate sent Lieutenant Hutchins , once of the " Wyoming " and now Cushing ' s aide , to bring his superior home . She feared that he wouldn ' t last the day . True to his nature , Cushing stayed at the yard until after nightfall , and went right to bed when he got home . He would not rise again . The pain was constant and terrible . He was given injections of morphine but they only dulled the pain a little . On 8 December 1874 , it became impossible to care for Cushing at home , and he was removed to the Government Hospital for the Insane . His family visited him often , but he seldom recognized them . Cushing died on 17 December 1874 in the presence of his wife and mother . He was buried on 8 January 1875 at Bluff Point , at the U . S . Naval Academy Cemetery in Annapolis , Maryland . Cushing was survived by his mother , his wife , two daughters and one of his brothers . Kate Cushing , his wife , who never remarried , followed William in death thirty - five years later in January 1910 . William Cushing was a first cousin twice removed of Erskine Hamilton Childers . Cushing ' s grandparents , Elisha Smith and Mary Butler Bass , were also the great - grandparents of Mary Osgood , Erskine ' s mother . Elisha Smith was descended from Edward Fuller , and Mary Butler Bass was descended from John Alden through her father and Richard Warren through her mother . Namesakes and honors . Five ships in the U . S . Navy have been named after him , the last one ( DD - 985 ) was decommissioned in September 2005 . His grave is marked by a large , monumental casket made of marble , on which in relief , are the Commander ' s hat , sword and coat . On one side of the stone the word ' Albemarle ' is cut and on the other side , ' Fort Fisher ' . Another memorial to the Commander hangs in Memorial Hall at the U . S . Naval Academy at Annapolis . In the hall hangs a portrait of Commander Cushing in full dress uniform . Nearly all of the other portraits in the hall are of admirals .