From Reefer to Rear-Admiral; Reminiscences and Journal Jottings of Nearly Half a Century of Naval Life, 1827-1874

Format is approximately 5.25 inches by 7.75 inches. xv, [1], 308 pages. Frontis illustration. Index. Pencil erasure residue inside front cover. Rear Admiral Benjamin F. Sands (February 11, 1811 - June 30, 1883) was an officer in the United States Navy during the Mexican-American War and the American Civil War. During hostilities between the United States and Mexico, he was attached to the Home Squadron and served off Tabasco and Tuxpan on the brig USS Washington. In the 1850s, he commanded the steamer Walker in the Gulf of Mexico on coast survey duty and invented a deep sea sounding apparatus and other hydrographic instruments. Commissioned captain in 1862, he joined the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron as commander of Dacotah in 1863. Served as Superintendent of the Naval Observatory. Commissioned Rear Admiral on April 27, 1871, he remained at the Observatory until he retired in 1874. From 1834 to 1841, he was engaged in coastal survey work and during the mid-40s was attached to the Bureau (Depot) of Charts and Instruments at the Naval Observatory. In 1861, Sands served on west coast survey duty as commander of the Active. In February 1863, Sands participated in the engagement at Fort Caswell. He remained off the Carolinas for another two years, commanding the steamer Fort Jackson during the attacks on Fort Fisher. In February 1865, he was transferred to the West Gulf Blockading Squadron and assigned to duty off the Texas coast. Through the end of the American Civil War, he commanded a division off that coast; and, on June 2, 1865, took formal possession of Galveston, Texas for the Union. After the war, Sands, appointed Commodore in July 1866, served at the Boston Navy Yard.…