OBITUARIES, UNITED STATES. 



695 



arriet Lane, then fitting out to join Admiral 

 Porter's mortar flotilla in the bombardment of 

 Forts Jackson and St. Philip. 



Jan. 3. GWTN, Commander WILLIAM, of the 

 United States navy, died in the hospital of his 

 vessel, from wounds received in the action 

 against the batteries on Haines's Bluff. He was 

 born in Columbus, Indiana, iu 1831, and en- 

 red the U. S. naval service as a midshipman 

 in 1847, in which capacity he made one cruise 

 oif the coast of Brazil in the frigate Brandy- 

 wine, flagship of the squadron, and off the coast 

 of Africa. In June, 1853, he passed a satisfac- 

 tory examination at the Naval Academy, and, 

 with the rank of passed midshipman, was order- 

 ed to the Bainbridge, in which vessel he cruised 

 off the coast of Brazil until 1856. On the 15th 

 of September he was promoted to a lieutenancy. 

 He was next ordered to the Pacific squadron, 

 and, after a brief visit home in 1859, was as- 

 signed to the Mediterranean squadron. On 

 the breaking out of the war he was ordered 

 home, and assigned to the Cambridge, on block- 

 ading duty on the Atlantic coast. From this he 

 was detached, January, 1862, and assigned to the 

 command of the gunboat Tyler, of the Western 

 flotilla, in which vessel he participated in the 

 battles of Fort Henry and Fort Donelson. He 

 also took part in the battle of Shiloh, at 

 the time when the gunboats fired at night 

 among the enemy, his vessel discharging one 

 hundred and eighty-eight shells. On the 16th 

 of July, 1862, he was made a lieutenant-com- 

 mander under the late act of Congress in rela- 

 tion to officers in the navy. He distinguished 

 himself in the expedition up the Yazoo river in 

 company with the Carondelet, to meet the fa- 

 mous Confederate ram Arkansas ; and his ves- 

 sel, though sadly disabled, did not cease firing 

 until she had passed through the entire squad- 

 ron. After the explosion on the Mound City 

 at St. Charles, by which her commander, Capt. 

 Kelly, was so badly scalded, Lieutenant-Com- 

 mander Gwin took the command of that vessel, 

 which he held until assigned to the Benton, the 

 largest and most powerful vessel of the river 

 fleet. While in charge of this gunboat he par- 

 ticipated in the attack upon Haines's Bluff, dur- 

 ing which he was mortally wounded. 



Jan. 4. BRANCH, Hon. JOHN, ex-governor 

 of North Carolina, died at Edgefield, N. C., in 

 the 86th year of his age. He was a State sen- 

 ator from 1811 to 1817, also in 1822, and again 

 in 1834. He was elected governor in 1817, and 

 from 1822 to 1829 was a United States senator. 

 In 1829 he was appointed Secretary of the Navy 

 by President Jackson. In 1835 he was a mem- 

 ber of the North Carolina Constitutional Con- 

 vention, and in 1843 was appointed Governor 

 of Florida. Since then he has lived in private 

 life. 



Jan. 4. KENDALL, Hon. BENJAMIN FRANK- 

 LIN, was assassinated at Olympia, Washington 

 Territory. He was born in Bethel, Oxford 

 county, Maine, about 1830, and by his own ex- 

 ertions procured a collegiate education, gradu- 



ating at Bowdoin College in 1852. After his 

 graduation he was for a time a clerk in one of 

 the departments at Washington, and afterward 

 joined the expedition, sent out under the late 

 Gen. Isaac I. Stevens, to explore a route for the 

 Pacific railroad, as astronomer, and having ter- 

 minated his labors in connection with that ex- 

 pedition/settled as a lawyer in Olympia, Wash- 

 ington Territory, where he speedily became the 

 leading lawyer of the territory, was secretary 

 of the Territorial Legislature, and largely en- 

 gaged in lumbering and navigation. At the 

 commencement of the war he came to the East, 

 and finding that it was necessary that Gen. 

 Scott and the War Department should have a 

 more thorough knowledge of the aim and 

 plans of the Southern leaders, and of the real 

 condition of the South, he volunteered to go on 

 an exploring expedition through the Southern 

 States. His offer was accepted, and he made a 

 tour of four months, and, returning, reported to 

 Gen. Scott a very minute and detailed account 

 of the condition, resources, and war material 

 of each of the Southern States, and the plans 

 and purposes of the leaders. For this he re- 

 ceived the most hearty thanks of Gen. Scott and 

 the War Department. He was, soon after his 

 return, appointed Superintendent of Indian 

 Affairs for Washington Territory, but having 

 been removed, in the winter of 1862, through 

 the influence of the delegate from the terri- 

 tory, returned at once to the practice of his 

 profession. He was assassinated by a man 

 named Howe, whose father had been impli- 

 cated in the burning of some valuable build- 

 ings, and had been exposed by Mr. Kendall in 

 the columns of a journal he edited. 



Jan. 7. WHITTLESET, Hon. ELISHA, died in 

 Washington, D. C., in the 80th year of his age. 

 He was born in Connecticut, but in early man- 

 hood removed to Ohio. In the war of 1 81 2 he was 

 aide-de-camp to Gen. Wadsworth ; was a pros- 

 ecuting attorney for sixteen years, and- served 

 in the State Legislature in 1820 and 1821. He 

 served seven terms as a representative in Con- 

 gress. In 1841 he was appointed by President 

 Harrison, Auditor of the Post Office Depart- 

 ment and in 1849 was appointed by President 

 Taylor, First Comptroller of the Treasury, which 

 position he relinquished in 1857, but was reap- 

 pointed by President Lincoln in 1861. His 

 whole public career was marked by an un- 

 swerving integrity and untiring devotion to 

 duty. 



Jan. . CRAWFORD, RICHARD R., Judge of 

 the Levy Court for Washington county, died at 

 Georgetown, aged 77 years. He was born in 

 the District of Columbia, and for many /ears 

 was in public office. 



Jan. . .KIRK, Brig.-Gen. EDWARD N"., 

 an officer of volunteers in the U.- S. service, 

 died from wounds received at the battle of 

 Stone river. He was born in Ohio, but sub- 

 sequently removed to Sterling, Whiteside coun- 

 ty, Illinois. In the autumn of 1861 he was in- 

 strumental in raising and organizing the 34th 



