RICHARD W. M. GRAHAM, MIDN, USN
Richard Graham '55
Photographs
Photograph from the collection of the Nimitz Library at the US Naval Academy.
Loss
From The New England Historical & Genealogical Register, 1867:
Richard Worsam Meade Graham, b. July 14, 1838. He entered the Naval Academy in Oct. 1851. He graduated at the head of his class as a midshipman in 1855, and sailed, in the Constellation, to the Mediterranean. While on his way to the Bosphorus he was stricken with typhoid fever, and died at Constantinople, Nov. 19, 1856. He is buried in the Protestant Cemetery at Pera. A monument was raised immediately to his memory by the officers, messmates and men of the Constellation.
Other Information
From researcher Kathy Franz:
Richard was first buried in the Protestant Cemetery at Pera which was part of the European sector of the Grand Champs des Morts. In July 1863, those buried in this cemetery were re-interred at The Ferikoy Protestant Cemetery, official name Evangelicorum Commune Coemeterium in Constantinople, now Istanbul. Their monuments were brought over as well.
Born in Washington, D. C., Richard was the second son of U. S. Army officer James Duncan Graham and his wife Charlotte Hustler (Meade). Richard was named for his grandfather Richard Worsam Meade.
Richard's father was a graduate of the U. S. Military Academy in 1817. He was a founder of the Corps of Topographical Engineers, and he directed the re-survey of the Mason-Dixon line. His friend Lt. William Emory, a topographer in 1846, named a mountain for him southwest of Safford, Arizona. Mount Graham is in the County of Graham, which is also named for Richard's father.
Richard's mother was the sister of General George Gordon Meade. He graduated from the U. S. Military Academy in 1835, but he left his Army position after the first year of required service. He then worked for Richard's father for a brief time in Florida in 1837. He re-enlisted in 1842 and served with distinction during the Civil War.
Richard's sisters were Salvadora, Margaret, and Catesby. His brothers were Army Major General William Montrose Graham and Navy commander James Duncan Graham, Jr. (Class of 1862).
He was appointed to the Naval Academy from the territory of New Mexico.
Richard is buried in Istanbul, Turkey.
Career
From the Naval History and Heritage Command:
Midshipman, 9 June, 1855. Died 19 November, 1856.
Memorial Hall Errors
Richard is listed in Memorial Hall as an Ensign; however, this rank did not exist until 1862. His rank was Midshipman. More significantly, illness is not a criteria for inclusion in Memorial Hall.
Richard is one of 7 members of the Class of 1855 on Virtual Memorial Hall.
The "category" links below lead to lists of related Honorees; use them to explore further the service and sacrifice of alumni in Memorial Hall.
