Silas Casey III

Casey was born at his family's property in Washington County, Rhode Island in 1841. He was the son of U.S. Army officer Silas Casey, so his family moved along with his father's changing military assignments. The younger Casey entered the United States Naval Academy as an acting midshipman from New York state on 25 September 1856. He graduated as a midshipman in June 1860.{{cite book |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=G0hEAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA80 |chapter=Captain Silas Casey, U.S.N. |title=Officers of the Army and Navy (Regular) Who Served in the Civil War |first1=William H. |last1=Powell |first2=Edward |last2=Shippen |date=1892 |page=80 |publisher=L. R. Hamersly & Co. |location=Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |access-date=2023-12-25}}{{cite book |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qv1BAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA9 |chapter=Silas Casey |title=The Records of Living Officers of the U. S. Navy and Marine Corps: Compiled from Official Sources |first=Lewis Randolph |last=Hamersly |date=1902 |pages=9–10 |publisher=L. R. Hamersly Co. |location=New York, New York |access-date=2023-12-25}}

After graduation, Casey was assigned to the steam frigate {{USS|Niagara|1855|6}} from 1860 to 1862. After the outbreak of the American Civil War, he was promoted to master on 31 August 1861 and participated in an engagement with the shore batteries at Pensacola, Florida in October 1861. Promoted to lieutenant effective 16 July 1862, Casey served as executive officer of the gunboat {{USS|Wissahickon|1861|6}} in the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron from 1862 to 1863. He participated in several engagements with Fort McAllister at Savannah, Georgia in 1862 and the first naval attack on Charleston, South Carolina in April 1863.

From 1863 to 1865, Casey served as executive officer on the sidewheel steamship {{USS|Quaker City}} in the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron, participating in the first and second naval attacks on Fort Fisher at Wilmington, North Carolina in December 1864 and January 1865. After the war, he served as navigating officer on the gunboat {{USS|Winooski|1863|6}} in the Atlantic Squadron from 1865 to 1867. Casey was promoted to lieutenant commander on 25 July 1866. He next served on the staff of the Naval Academy as a seamanship instructor from 1867 to 1870.

From 1870 to 1873, Casey served as executive officer on the screw frigate {{USS|Colorado|1856|6}}, which was the flagship of Rear Adm. John Rodgers in the Asiatic Squadron. During the Battle of Ganghwa, he led a battalion of sailors in the attack on Korean Fort Sondolmok (later called Fort McKee) near the mouth of the Han River in June 1871. From 1873 to 1874, Casey was an ordnance officer at the Philadelphia Navy Yard. On 14 June 1874, he was promoted to commander.

From 1875 to 1876, Casey served as commanding officer of the training ship {{USS|Portsmouth|1843|6}} along the Pacific coast. From 1876 to 1879, he was inspector for the Twelfth Lighthouse District. From 1880 to 1882, Casey served in the European Squadron, commanding the screw sloop {{USS|Wyoming|1859|6}} and the screw corvette {{USS|Quinnebaug|1875|6}}. From 1882 to 1884, he was an equipment officer at the Washington Navy Yard. From 1884 to 1889, Casey was inspector for the Fifth Lighthouse District and commander of the receiving ship {{USS|Dale|1839|6}} at the Washington Navy Yard.

On 12 February 1889, Casey was promoted to captain.{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=K-ZAoi8HOHwC&pg=PA4 |title=Register of the Commissioned and Warrant Officers of the Navy of the United States and of the Marine Corps to January 1, 1899 |date=1899 |pages=4–5 |publisher=Government Printing Office |location=Washington, D.C. |access-date=2023-12-25}} In July 1890, he was assigned to the fitting out of the protected cruiser {{USS|Newark|C-1|6}} and then served as her first commanding officer from February 1891 to May 1893. From April 1894 to February 1897, Casey was commanding officer of the receiving ship {{USS|Vermont|1848|6}} at the New York Navy Yard. from February to November 1897, he served as commanding officer of the armored cruiser {{USS|New York|ACR-2|6}}.

From January 1898 to January 1901, Casey was commandant of the League Island Navy Yard. He was promoted to commodore on 11 May 1898 and rear admiral on 3 March 1899. In January 1901, Casey assumed command of the Pacific Squadron from Rear Adm. Albert Kautz.{{cite news |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1900/10/13/102618153.pdf |title=Admiral Casey for Pacific Station. |date=13 October 1900 |page=11 |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=2023-12-25}} His flagship was the battleship {{USS|Wisconsin|BB-9|6}} until 9 December 1902, when he shifted his flag to his former command, the USS New York.{{cite news |url=https://cdnc.ucr.edu/?a=d&d=SFC19021210.2.25&srpos=4 |title=Admiral Casey Leaves Wisconsin and Hoists Flag on the New York |date=10 December 1902 |volume=XCIII |issue=10 |page=4 |newspaper=The San Francisco Call |access-date=2023-12-25}} On 11 September 1903, he retired from active duty, having reached the mandatory retirement age of sixty-two.{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4oFaAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA106 |title=Register of the Commissioned and Warrant Officers of the Navy of the United States and of the Marine Corps to January 1, 1904 |date=1904 |pages=106–107 |publisher=Government Printing Office |location=Washington, D.C. |access-date=2023-12-25}}

Casey was the son of Silas Casey and Abby Perry (Pearce) Casey. His older brother was U.S. Army engineer Thomas Lincoln Casey.

Casey married Sophie Gray Heberton (1 March 1843 – 8 August 1922){{cite news |title=Sophie Gray Heberton Casey |issue=17246 |date=10 August 1922 |magazine=Certificate of Death |publisher=Bureau of Vital Statistics, State Board of Health, Commonwealth of Virginia |location=Richmond, Virginia}}{{cite book |chapter-url=https://catalog.archives.gov/id/136911477?objectPage=842 |chapter=Casey, Sophie Gray Heberton |title=Interment in the Arlington, Va. National Cemetery |date=11 August 1922 |publisher=Quartermaster Corps, War Department |access-date=2023-12-27}} on 4 October 1865. They had two daughters.{{cite news |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gecNAQAAMAAJ&pg=RA2-PA105 |title=Silas Casey |date=April 1893 |volume=3 |issue=2 |pages=105–106 |magazine=Magazine of New England History |access-date=2023-12-25}}{{cite book |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0WQZAQAAIAAJ&pg=PA243 |chapter=Miss Sophie Pearce Casey |title=Lineage Book: National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution. |first1=Mary Cooley |last1=Bassett |first2=Sarah Hall |last2=Johnston |date=1912 |volume=XXXIV |pages=243–244 |publisher=Telegraph Printing Company |location=Harrisburg, Pennsylvania |access-date=2023-12-25}}

Casey and his wife lived in Washington, D.C. after his retirement. In 1913, he died at Warm Springs, Virginia and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.{{cite news |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/145252884 |title=Rear Admiral Casey Dead.: Civil War Veteran Retired From Active Service in 1903. |date=15 August 1913 |page=5 |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=2023-12-25|id={{ProQuest|145252884}} }}{{cite web |url=https://ancexplorer.army.mil/publicwmv/index.html#/search-all/results/1/CgVDYXNleRIFU2lsYXM-/ |title=Casey, Silas |website=ANCExplorer |publisher=U.S. Army |access-date=2023-12-25}} His wife and eldest daughter were later interred beside him.{{cite book |chapter-url=https://catalog.archives.gov/id/136198367?objectPage=1903 |chapter=Casey, Sophie Pearce |title=Interment in the Arlington National Cemetery |date=11 September 1945 |publisher=Quartermaster Corps, War Department |access-date=2023-12-27}}

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Category:1841 births

Category:1913 deaths

Category:People from Washington County, Rhode Island

Category:United States Naval Academy alumni

Category:Military personnel from New York (state)

Category:People of New York (state) in the American Civil War

Category:Union Navy officers

Category:United States Naval Academy faculty

Category:United States Navy admirals

Category:Military personnel from Washington, D.C.

Category:Burials at Arlington National Cemetery