DULANEY A. FORREST, 1LT, CSN

Dulaney Forrest '47

Date of birth: 1824

Age: ~39

Biography & Loss

Dulaney A. Forrest, born Maryland; citizen of, and appointed from Virginia; original service in the United States Navy, from March 3, 1841; resident of Portsmouth, Virginia; held as a prisoner of war at Fort Warren, Boston harbor, 1861; paroled and exchanged, January, 1862; entered the Confederate States Navy, February 8, 1862, as 1st lieutenant; served on the Richmond station, 1862; captured, and later exchanged, September, 1862; on Army duty, 1862; reported aboard the CSS Florida, as executive officer, October 9, 1862; served on the CSS Arctic, 1863; indicated to have been in delicate health at the start of the war, and went to North Carolina to recuperate; died at Oxford, North Carolina, August 10, 1863.

From researcher Kathy Franz:

In 1847 Dulaney resided in Martinsburg, Virginia. He then served on the Constitution and the St. Mary’s. In the 1850 census, he was in the Naval Hospital in New York, and in 1852, he served on the Raritan. The next year, he was at the National Observatory when he requested permission to wear a mustache to cover the scar on his lip. He remained at the Observatory until ordered to the steamer Massachusetts in 1856. In June 1857, he was back at Observatory and then ordered to the Water Witch in 1858. He made a $100/month allotment in 1859 for his family.
From June 1859 through June 1860, he was stationed at the Navy Yard in Norfolk. He then sailed on the steam sloop Dacotah. On her return, Dulaney was detained for not taking the Union oath and dismissed on 12/6/1861. He reported as executive officer on the CSS Florida. He was later captured and then exchanged at Aiken’s Landing for Captain G. W. Dawson on September 21, 1862. The next month, he was detached and sent to Army duty. On August 10, 1863, he died at Oxford, North Carolina.
Dulaney was listed in the September 21, 1860, census of Jackson Ward, Portsmouth County, Virginia. He lived there with his wife Sally (Butt) Forrest, age 29, and their daughter Florence, age 6. (She lived to be 87.) The home belonged to Sally’s family which included midshipman Walter Butt. (Walter was dismissed from the Union Navy two months before Dulaney.) Dulaney’s parents were Major Joseph and Elizabeth French Forrest. His brothers were Joseph, Thomas, Alexander, and Bladen, and his sisters were Isabella, Lucy, and Sophia. His brother Bladen named one of his sons Dulaney. He was born in Washington, D. C., in 1860.

Career

From Officers in the Confederate States Navy:

Forrest, Dulaney A. Born in Maryland. Appointed from Virginia. Formerly lieutenant, U.S. Navy. First lieutenant, February 8, 1862. Died, August 10, 1863.
Reported as executive officer of C.S.S. Florida, October (?) 9, 1862; detached October 20, 1862. Army duty, 1862-63.

From the Naval History and Heritage Command:

Forrest, Dulaney A. (formerly Joseph A. Forrest)
Midshipman, 3 March, 1841. Passed Midshipman, 10 August, 1847. Master, 15 September, 1855. Lieutenant, 16 September, 1855. Dismissed 7 December, 1861.

Confederates in Memorial Hall

This alumni is included on this site because he is listed in Memorial Hall. Pursuant to Section 377 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, the Naming Commission found, per Part II of their final report to Congress, that "Due to the limited factual nature of [Memorial Hall], the Commission believes it may remain as structured."