Peter C. Assersen

Last updated
Peter C. Assersen
Born 1839
Eigersund, Rogaland, Norway
Died 1906 (aged 6667)
New London, Connecticut
BuriedNaval Academy in Annapolis
AllegianceFlag of the United States.svg  United States
Service/branch Seal of the United States Department of the Navy (alternate).svg United States Navy
Years of service 1862–1869
1872–1901
Rank Rear Admiral
Battles/wars American Civil War

Peter Christian Assersen (January 5, 1839 – December 6, 1906) was Norwegian-born civil engineer and Rear Admiral in the United States Navy.

Rear admiral in the United States refers to two different ranks of commissioned officers — one-star flag officers and two-star flag officers. By contrast, in most nations, the term "rear admiral" refers to an officer of two-star rank.

United States Navy Naval warfare branch of the United States Armed Forces

The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most capable navy in the world and it has been estimated that in terms of tonnage of its active battle fleet alone, it is larger than the next 13 navies combined, which includes 11 U.S. allies or partner nations. with the highest combined battle fleet tonnage and the world's largest aircraft carrier fleet, with eleven in service, and two new carriers under construction. With 319,421 personnel on active duty and 99,616 in the Ready Reserve, the Navy is the third largest of the service branches. It has 282 deployable combat vessels and more than 3,700 operational aircraft as of March 2018, making it the second-largest air force in the world, after the United States Air Force.

Contents

Background

Assersen was born January 5, 1839, the youngest of twelve children, on the Midbrød farm in Egersund parish, today located in the municipality of Eigersund, in Rogaland county, Norway. His parents were Asser Johannessen and Malene Rasmusdatter. He left Norway at age 17 as a cabin boy on a bark sailing from the port of Stavanger. He came to the United States in 1859 at age 20. [1] [2] [3]

Eigersund Municipality in Rogaland, Norway

Eigersund is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is in the traditional district of Dalane. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Egersund. The town was known for its pottery factory and it is among Norway's biggest fishing ports. The villages of Helleland, Hellvik, and Hestnes are also in Eigersund.

Rogaland County (fylke) of Norway

Rogaland[²ruːɡɑlɑn](listen) is a county in Western Norway, bordering Hordaland, Telemark, Aust-Agder, and Vest-Agder counties. Rogaland is the center of the Norwegian petroleum industry. In 2016, Rogaland had an unemployment rate of 4.9%, one of the highest in Norway. In 2015, Rogaland had a fertility rate of 1.78 children per woman, which is the highest in the country.

Norway constitutional monarchy in Northern Europe

Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe whose territory comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula; the remote island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard are also part of the Kingdom of Norway. The Antarctic Peter I Island and the sub-Antarctic Bouvet Island are dependent territories and thus not considered part of the kingdom. Norway also lays claim to a section of Antarctica known as Queen Maud Land.

Military service

During the Civil War, he enlisted in the United States Navy as a Master's Mate on May 27, 1862, at age 23. He took part in several battles as commander of gunboats. He was made an acting ensign on November 24, 1862, and was appointed an engineer in the United States Naval Marine Corps. [4]

Ensign is a junior rank of a commissioned officer in the armed forces of some countries, normally in the infantry or navy. As the junior officer in an infantry regiment was traditionally the carrier of the ensign flag, the rank acquired the name. This rank has generally been replaced in army ranks by second lieutenant. Ensigns were generally the lowest ranking commissioned officer, except where the rank of subaltern existed. In contrast, the Arab rank of ensign, لواء, liwa', derives from the command of units with an ensign, not the carrier of such a unit's ensign, and is today the equivalent of a major general.

United States Marine Corps Amphibious warfare branch of the United States Armed Forces

The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or U.S. Marines, is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations with the United States Navy as well as the Army and Air Force. The U.S. Marine Corps is one of the four armed service branches in the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States.

Assersen was honorably discharged on February 28, 1869, and returned to naval service as a civil engineer on 6 March 1874. Assersen became a lieutenant, captain and in 1889, rear admiral in the United States Navy. Assersen was the chief engineer of Brooklyn Navy Yard and the Norfolk Navy Yard, specializing in building drydocks. [5]

Lieutenant is a commissioned officer rank in many nations' navies. It is typically the most senior of junior officer ranks. The rank's insignia usually consists of two medium gold braid stripes and often the uppermost stripe features an executive curl.

Captain (United States O-6) rank in the United States uniformed services, O-6

In the United States Navy, United States Coast Guard, United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps (USPHS), and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps, captain is the senior-most commissioned officer rank below that of flag officer. The equivalent rank is colonel in the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps.

Brooklyn Navy Yard shipyard located in Brooklyn, New York

The Brooklyn Navy Yard is a shipyard and industrial complex located in northwest Brooklyn in New York City, New York. The Navy Yard is located on the East River in Wallabout Bay, a semicircular bend of the river across from Corlears Hook in Manhattan. It is bounded by Navy Street to the west, Flushing Avenue to the south, Kent Avenue to the east, and the East River on the north. The site, which covers 225.15 acres (91.11 ha), is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

He retired from military service on January 5, 1901, with the rank of rear admiral, and continued on active duty. He died of angina pectoris December 6, 1906 [6] and was buried at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis. [7]

United States Naval Academy The U.S. Navys federal service academy

The United States Naval Academy is a four-year coeducational federal service academy adjacent to Annapolis, Maryland. Established on 10 October 1845, under Secretary of the Navy George Bancroft, it is the second oldest of the United States' five service academies, and educates officers for commissioning primarily into the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps. The 338-acre (137 ha) campus is located on the former grounds of Fort Severn at the confluence of the Severn River and Chesapeake Bay in Anne Arundel County, 33 miles (53 km) east of Washington, D.C. and 26 miles (42 km) southeast of Baltimore. The entire campus is a National Historic Landmark and home to many historic sites, buildings, and monuments. It replaced Philadelphia Naval Asylum, in Philadelphia, that served as the first United States Naval Academy from 1838 to 1845 when the Naval Academy formed in Annapolis.

Personal life

In August 1864 Assersen married Mary Ann Wilson from Brooklyn. She was born May 11, 1867, and died May 10, 1910. They had 7 children, 3 boys and 4 girls. His sons all served in the United States military:

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References

  1. Midbrød gard i Egersund Sogn (Egersund farm names in Rygh)
  2. Norwegians in the Civil War (Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum)
  3. Rogaland. Eigersund herad. Midtbrøt (Matrikkelutkastet av 1950)
  4. Federal Officers of the Civil War (Military Order of The Loyal Legion of The United States)
  5. U.S. Navy Officers: 1798-1900 (Naval Historical Center)
  6. Peter C. Asserson - Certificate of death
  7. Peter C. Asserson's grave
  8. Obituary. Asserson, Peter (Brooklyn Standard Union, 7 December 1906)
  9. Norwegians in the Civil War (Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum)
  10. The Navy Cross to Members of the US Navy World War I

Other sources