Roe, Francis Asbury, 1823-1901

Francis Asbury Roe (1823–1901) was a United States Naval officer who served from 1841 to 1885, attaining the rank of Rear Admiral. He is notable for his service on the U.S.S. Sassacus during the Civil War and as an officer of the leading ship in Farragut’s fleet during the Battle of New Orleans.

Biographical Timeline

• 1823, Oct. 4: Born in Elmira, N.Y.
• 1841: Appointed acting midshipman; served on the John Adams (frigate)
• 1844: Duty on the Yorktown (sloop)
• 1846: Duty on the Boston (sloop-of-war)
• 1849: Married Eliza J. Snyder
• 1852: Served on the Porpoise (brig) during the North Pacific and Bering Strait expedition
• 1855: Duty with the United States Coast Survey
• 1858: Duty on the Macedonian (frigate)
• 1861: Duty on the Pensacola (screw steamer)
• 1863: Commanded the Sassacus (side-wheel steamer)
• 1865: Published Naval Duties and Discipline (New York: D. Van Nostrand)
• 1867: Commanded the Tacony (side-wheel steamer) and later the Delaware (side-wheel steamer)
• 1872: Commanded Naval Rendezvous, San Francisco, Calif.
• 1873: Commanded the Lancaster (screw sloop-of-war), Brazil Station
• 1883: Governor, United States Naval Asylum for Retired Seamen, Philadelphia, Pa.
• 1884: Promoted to rear admiral
• 1890: Published Historic Records of an Old Family: Ancestry of Francis Asbury Roe
• 1893: Governor, Society of Colonial Wars of the District of Columbia
• 1900: Published An American Sea Captain of Colonial Times (Washington, D.C.: Historical Papers of the Society of Colonial Wars in the District of Columbia)
• 1901, Dec. 28: Died in Washington, D.C.

Key Publications

• Naval Duties and Discipline (1865)
• Historic Records of an Old Family: Ancestry of Francis Asbury Roe (1890)
• An American Sea Captain of Colonial Times (1900)

Archival Collections

• Francis Asbury Roe Papers, 1864; 1898 – University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Southern Historical Collection
• Papers of Francis Asbury Roe, 1842–1901 (bulk 1846–1869) – Library of Congress, Manuscript Division
• Letter to the McClure Publishing Syndicate, 1894 – University of Virginia Library
• Papers of Francis Asbury Roe, 1842–1901 (bulk 1846–1869) – Colgate University

Associated Vessels and Commands

• John Adams (frigate)
• Yorktown (sloop)
• Boston (sloop-of-war)
• Porpoise (brig)
• Macedonian (frigate)
• Pensacola (screw steamer)
• Sassacus (side-wheel steamer)
• Tacony (side-wheel steamer)
• Delaware (side-wheel steamer)
• Lancaster (screw sloop-of-war)
• Naval Rendezvous, San Francisco, Calif.
• United States Naval Asylum for Retired Seamen, Philadelphia, Pa.

Notable Events

• Served as an officer of the leading ship in Farragut’s fleet during the Battle of New Orleans (Civil War).
• Commanded the Sassacus in engagements against the Confederate ironclad Albemarle.