Gideon Welles

Gideon Welles
Gideon Welles in c. 1855–65
24th United States Secretary of the Navy
In office March 7, 1861 – March 4, 1869
President	Abraham Lincoln Andrew Johnson
Preceded by	Isaac Toucey
Succeeded by	Adolph E. Borie
Personal details
Born	(1802-07-01)July 1, 1802 Glastonbury, Connecticut, U.S.
Died	February 11, 1878(1878-02-11) (aged 75) Hartford, Connecticut, U.S.
Political party	Democrat, Republican
Spouse(s)	Mary Jane Hale Welles
Children	Edgar Thaddeus Welles Thomas Glastonbury Welles John Arthur Welles Herbert Welles Samuel Welles Edward Gideon Welles Anna Jane Welles Mary Juanita Welles
Alma mater	Military Academy at Norwich, Vermont
Profession	Politician, lawyer, writer, journalist
Religion	Episcopalian
Signature

Gideon Welles (July 1, 1802 – February 11, 1878) was the United States Secretary of the Navy from 1861 to 1869, a cabinet post he was given after supporting Lincoln in the 1860 election. Although opposed to the Union blockade of Southern ports, he duly carried out his part of the Anaconda Plan, largely sealing off the Confederate coastline and preventing the exchange of cotton for war supplies. This is viewed as a major cause of Union victory in the Civil War, and his achievement in expanding the Navy almost tenfold was widely praised. Welles was also instrumental in the Navy's creation of the Medal of Honor.

Gideon Welles, the son of Samuel Welles and Ann Hale, was born on July 1, 1802, in Glastonbury, Connecticut. His father was a shipping merchant and fervent Jeffersonian; he was a member of the Convention, which formed the first state Connecticut Constitution in 1818 that abolished the colonial charter and officially severed the pre-American Revolution political ties to England. In contrast to the Fundamental Orders of Connecticut, the successor constitution of 1818 provided for freedom of religion. He was a member of the seventh generation of his family in America. His original immigrant ancestor was Thomas Welles, who arrived in 1635 and was the only man in Connecticut's history to hold all four top offices: governor, deputy governor, treasurer, and secretary. He was also the transcriber of the Fundamental Orders. Welles was the second great grandson of Capt. Samuel Welles and Ruth (Rice) Welles, the daughter of Edmund Rice, a 1638 immigrant to Sudbury and founder of Marlborough, Massachusetts.