president title profession signature term_start order image article_title term_end name alma_mater
abraham welles samuel welles edward gideon welles anna jane welles mary lincoln juanita welles thomas glastonbury welles john arthur welles herbert united states secretary of the navy politician , lawyer , writer , journalist gideon welles signature.svg march 7 , 1861 24th gideon welles - ambrotype.jpg gideon welles
 march 4 , 1869 gideon welles military academy at norwich , vermont
gideon welles

gideon welles -lrb- july 1 , 1802 -- february 11 , 1878 -rrb- was the united states secretary of the navy from 1861 to 1869 , a cabinet post he was given after supporting lincoln in the 1860 election .
although opposed to the union blockade of southern ports , he duly carried out his part of the anaconda plan , largely sealing-off the confederate coastline and preventing the exchange of cotton for war supplies .
this is viewed as a major cause of union victory in the civil war , and his achievement in expanding the navy almost tenfold was widely praised .
welles was also instrumental in the navy 's creation of the medal of honor .
