This Day in Military History

5 July 1801: David Glasgow Farragut was born at Campbell’s Station, Tennessee, near Knoxville. Known for the rousing command, “Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!” during the Battle of Mobile Bay in 1864 (see August 5), he was appointed Vice Admiral by President Abraham Lincoln in 1864. He was the first-ever commissioned admiral in the Navy. Remarkably, his naval career began at the age of seven, when he was commissioned a midshipman. At age 12, he saw action in the War of 1812 and was wounded at age 13. In 60 years of service, he also fought in the Mexican-American War. He died August 14, 1870, at Portsmouth, New Hampshire. His Tennessee hometown renamed itself Farragut in his honor.

Brandus, Paul. This Day in U.S. Military History (pp. 166-167). Bernan Press. Kindle Edition.