Daniel Ammen

Daniel Ammen
Born	May 15, 1820 Brown County, Ohio
Died	July 11, 1898(1898-07-11) (aged 78) Washington, D.C.
Place of burial	Arlington National Cemetery
Allegiance	United States
Service/branch	United States Navy
Years of service	1836–1878
Rank	Rear Admiral
Battles/wars	American Civil War • Battle of Port Royal • Battle of Fort McAllister (1863) • Second Battle of Fort Sumter • Battle of Fort Fisher
Other work	Author

Daniel Ammen (May 15, 1820 – July 11, 1898) was a U.S. naval officer during the American Civil War and the postbellum period, as well as a prolific author.

Biography

Born in Brown County, Ohio, his older brother was Jacob Ammen, who became a brigadier general in the Union Army. They both attended the same school as Ulysses S. Grant, who was best friends with Daniel. As children, Ammen rescued Grant from drowning.

Ammen entered the Navy as a midshipman on 7 July 1836. He served on Vandalia during 1838.

In February, 1852 Ammen was ordered to pick out a new location for the navy yard in California. He arrived in San Francisco around April 30, 1852 for that purpose.

In 1861–62, he commanded the gunboat Seneca in the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron. His bravery was conspicuous in the Battle of Port Royal, November 7, 1861. Later, under Samuel F. Dupont's command, he took part in all the operations on the coasts of Georgia and Florida. In the engagements with Fort McAllister, March 3, 1863, and with Fort Sumter, April 7, 1863, he commanded the monitor Patapsco. In the attacks on Fort Fisher, in December 1864, and January 1865, he was commissioned captain of the Mohican July 26, 1866.

He was promoted to Rear Admiral in 1877, and was retired June 4, 1878. Two years later, he wrote The American Inter-Oceanic Ship Canal Question. Afterwards he was a member of the board to locate the new Naval Observatory, and a representative of the United States at the Interoceanic Ship Canal Congress in Paris. He designed a cask balsa to facilitate the landing of troops and field artillery, a life-raft for steamers, and the steel ram Katahdin in 1893.

His publications include The Atlantic Coast in The Navy in the Civil War Series; Recollections of Grant; and The Old Navy and the New.

He died in Washington, D. C., and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

Namesake

Two ships in the United States Navy have been named USS Ammen for him.

See also

	Biography portal
	American Civil War portal
	United States Navy portal

References

• (1901) Encyclopaedia of United States History

This article includes text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.

Persondata
Name	Ammen, Daniel
Alternative names
Short description	United States Navy admiral
Date of birth	May 15, 1820
Place of birth	Brown County, Ohio
Date of death	July 11, 1898
Place of death	Washington, D. C.