David Glasgow Farragut, born July 5, 1801, became the first rear admiral, vice admiral, and admiral of the United States Navy and is remembered for his order at the Battle of Mobile Bay, usually paraphrased as “Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!” His birthplace was off Northshore Drive in Knoxville, less than five miles from this site, on land his father George owned in the 1790s while operating a ferry at Stoney Point, later known as Lowe’s Ferry. Farragut lived in this area until 1807, when his family moved to New Orleans. The home where he was born disappeared long ago, and only archeological evidence is believed to remain, but the site is likely one of Knox County’s most nationally significant places. Farragut died on August 14, 1870. Admiral George Dewey, who had served with Farragut during the Civil War and admired him greatly, dedicated a monument to him on May 15, 1900. Dewey had served with Farragut at the beginning of 1862 as executive lieutenant on the USS Mississippi, which was attached to Farragut’s fleet for the capture of New Orleans. During that attack, Farragut led his ships up the Mississippi River past the Confederate defenses at Fort St. Philip and Fort Jackson, with the Mississippi third in Farragut’s first division and Dewey at the helm.