Adm. George Henry Preble

1816 - 1885  (69 years)

• Name	George Henry Preble
  Prefix	Adm.
  Born	25 Feb 1816	Portland, Cumberland, ME, USA
  Gender	Male
  Military Service	10 Dec 1835
  	US Navy during the Mexican and Civil Wars; highest rank Rear Admiral
  Notable	Prolific writer of historical books and the genealogy of his family
  _UID	9AE89C5332681642B790EF84E40B21699627
  Died	1 Mar 1885
  Person ID	I1503	Irving Genealogy
  Last Modified	21 Nov 2010

  
  

  Father	Enoch Preble,   b. 2 Jul 1763, Falmouth, Cumberland, ME, USA ,   d. 28 Sep 1842  (Age 79 years)
  Mother	Sally Cross,   b. Gorham, Cumberland, ME, USA
  Married	14 Sep 1800
  _UID	1682A81D94981C41AD66C07E9A710E156594
  Family ID	F217	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Event Map		Born - 25 Feb 1816 - Portland, Cumberland, ME, USA  = Link to Google Earth
  Pin Legend	: Address       : Location       : City/Town       : County/Shire       : State/Province       : Country       : Not Set

  
  

• Notes

  He was born in Portland, Maine into a seafaring family; his father was sea captain Enoch Preble, whose brother was the noted Commodore Edward Preble. George entered the Navy as a midshipman on 10 December 1835, serving on the United States until 1838. He was in the Florida war in 1841, and was on the USS St. Louis for its circumnavigation of the world in 1843-1845, taking ashore the first American force to land in China. In the Mexican–American War, he participated in the capture of Alvarado, Veracruz, and Tuxpan. He became master on 15 July 1847, and lieutenant on 5 February 1848. While serving on the frigate USS St. Lawrence, he went with Matthew C. Perry to Japan in 1853, during which Preble surveyed various harbors in the Far East. After a period as lighthouse inspector and at Charlestown Navy Yard, he served on the USS Narragansett, 1859–1861, then took command of the steam-gunboat Katahdin, serving with David Farragut on the Mississippi River, was promoted to commander on 16 July 1862, and given command of the steam-sloop Oneida blockading Mobile Bay. When the Confederate cruiser CSS Florida eluded him, Preble was dismissed from the Navy, but was reinstated after the captain of the Florida testified that superior speed alone had saved him. Preble then commanded the sailing sloop St. Louis, only to have the Florida escape him once again, off Madeira. After the war, Preble commanded the steamer State of Georgia, and rescued 600 passengers from the wrecked steamer Golden Rule. He was at the Boston Navy Yard from 1865 to 1868, where he was promoted to captain on 16 March 1867, then commanded the screw steamer Pensacola until 1870. He became commodore on 2 November 1871, commanded the Philadelphia Navy Yard from 1873 to 1875, became rear admiral on 30 September 1876 and retired in 1878. Preble died while living near Boston, Massachusetts, on 1 March 1885. He was a prolific writer of US History and author of the Preble family history (The First Three Generations of Prebles in America-1868). Author of the history of the Flag of the United States of America. Took possession of the the Star Spangled Banner that flew over Fort McHenry and saved it for future generations.