Civil War Union Naval Officer. His family were Oregon Trail pioneers of 1847 settling in the Willamina area of Oregon Territory. He received his education at Oregon Institute in Salem, then was appointed to the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland in 1858, the first Oregonian to receive an appointment. At the start of the Civil War in 1861 he was commissied into the Union Navy. He completed his last year of studies and final examinations at sea, graduating second in the Class of 1862. Lieutenant Lamson went on to command more ships and flotillas than any other officer of his rank or age in the Civil War, climaxed by his captaincy of the navy's fastest ship, the “USS Gettysburg”. He also commanded the “USS Mount Vernon” in joint Army-Navy operations on the Wansemont River, and he played an important role in the capture of batteries at Hills Point. While in command of “USS Gettysburg”, he was in the forefront of the attack on Fort Fisher, North Carolina. First, he piloted the powder boat “USS Louisiana” in near the fort in December 1864 in an unsuccessful attempt to blow up the Confederate stronghold. Then, on January 15, 1865, he gallantly led a party of 70 sailors and Marines in the storming party that helped captured the fort. Lamson was wounded four times during the war. He resigned from the Navy in 1866 and returned to Oregon where he was appointed Clerk of United States Customs. In 1999 historians James and Patricia McPherson published his wartime letters in the book "Lamson of the Gettysburg". Three United States Navy warships have been named in his honor – the Smith-class destroy “USS Lamson” (DD-18), the “Clemson”-class destroyer “USS Lamson” (DD-328) and the “Mahan”-class destroyer “USS Lamson” (DD-367).
Civil War Union Naval Officer. His family were Oregon Trail pioneers of 1847 settling in the Willamina area of Oregon Territory. He received his education at Oregon Institute in Salem, then was appointed to the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland in 1858, the first Oregonian to receive an appointment. At the start of the Civil War in 1861 he was commissied into the Union Navy. He completed his last year of studies and final examinations at sea, graduating second in the Class of 1862. Lieutenant Lamson went on to command more ships and flotillas than any other officer of his rank or age in the Civil War, climaxed by his captaincy of the navy's fastest ship, the “USS Gettysburg”. He also commanded the “USS Mount Vernon” in joint Army-Navy operations on the Wansemont River, and he played an important role in the capture of batteries at Hills Point. While in command of “USS Gettysburg”, he was in the forefront of the attack on Fort Fisher, North Carolina. First, he piloted the powder boat “USS Louisiana” in near the fort in December 1864 in an unsuccessful attempt to blow up the Confederate stronghold. Then, on January 15, 1865, he gallantly led a party of 70 sailors and Marines in the storming party that helped captured the fort. Lamson was wounded four times during the war. He resigned from the Navy in 1866 and returned to Oregon where he was appointed Clerk of United States Customs. In 1999 historians James and Patricia McPherson published his wartime letters in the book "Lamson of the Gettysburg". Three United States Navy warships have been named in his honor – the Smith-class destroy “USS Lamson” (DD-18), the “Clemson”-class destroyer “USS Lamson” (DD-328) and the “Mahan”-class destroyer “USS Lamson” (DD-367).
Bio by: Randy Fletcher
Family Members
Advertisement
