James Agustin Greer was a rear admiral

Rear Admiral

Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. It is generally regarded as the lowest of the "admiral" ranks, which are also sometimes referred to as "flag officers" or "flag ranks"...

 in the United States Navy

United States Navy

The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

, who served during the Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

.

Early years

Born in Cincinnati, Ohio

Cincinnati, Ohio

Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...

, Greer enlisted in the Navy in 1848. He entered the United States Naval Academy

United States Naval Academy

The United States Naval Academy is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located in Annapolis, Maryland, United States...

 in 1853 and graduated as a Passed Midshipman

Passed midshipman

A Passed Midshipman, sometimes called as Midshipman, Passed, is an unused and historic term which describes a Midshipman who had passed the Lieutenant exam and was eligible for promotion to Lieutenant as soon as there was a vacancy in that grade....

 the following year. After participating in the Paraguay Expedition

Paraguay expedition

The Paraguay Expedition was a United States Naval mission sent to Asunción, Paraguay in 1858 to demand indemnity and apology from the Paraguayan Government for the 1 February 1855 firing on the US Navy vessel...

, he cruised the west Africa

Africa

Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...

n coast until the outbreak of the Civil War.

Civil War

Greer was serving on board the on 7 November 1861, when she stopped the British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 steamer

Steamboat

A steamboat or steamship, sometimes called a steamer, is a ship in which the primary method of propulsion is steam power, typically driving propellers or paddlewheels...

 Trent and removed the Confederate

Confederate States of America

The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...

 diplomatic commissioners on their way to Britain

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the formal name of the United Kingdom during the period when what is now the Republic of Ireland formed a part of it....

, thereby nearly drawing Great Britain

Great Britain

Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...

 into the war on the Confederate side. This incident became celebrated as the Trent Affair

Trent affair

The Trent Affair, also known as the Mason and Slidell Affair, was an international diplomatic incident that occurred during the American Civil War...

.

Greer served on the from 1862 to 1863, and then was attached to Rear Admiral David Dixon Porter

David Dixon Porter

David Dixon Porter was a member of one of the most distinguished families in the history of the United States Navy. Promoted as the second man to the rank of admiral, after his adoptive brother David G...

's Mississippi Squadron.

While in command of the ironclads and , he participated in the Vicksburg campaign

Battle of Vicksburg

The Siege of Vicksburg was the final major military action in the Vicksburg Campaign of the American Civil War. In a series of maneuvers, Union Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant and his Army of the Tennessee crossed the Mississippi River and drove the Confederate army of Lt. Gen. John C...

 and the shelling of Grand Gulf as well as the abortive Union Red River expedition.

After commanding the Naval Station at Mound City, Illinois

Mound City, Illinois

Mound City is a city located along the Ohio River in Pulaski County, Illinois, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 692. It is the county seat of Pulaski County.-Geography:Mound City is located at ....

, he assumed command of the and was then in charge of conveying Army

United States Army

The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...

 transports up the Tennessee River

Tennessee River

The Tennessee River is the largest tributary of the Ohio River. It is approximately 652 miles long and is located in the southeastern United States in the Tennessee Valley. The river was once popularly known as the Cherokee River, among other names...

.

Post-war service

A tour of duty as Assistant to the Commandant at Annapolis after the war was followed by command of with the Pacific Squadron

Pacific Squadron

The Pacific Squadron was part of the United States Navy squadron stationed in the Pacific Ocean in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Initially with no United States ports in the Pacific, they operated out of storeships which provided naval supplies and purchased food and obtained water from local...

, where Greer was commended for "defending American interests" in Mexico. After a tour of duty at the Naval Academy

United States Naval Academy

The United States Naval Academy is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located in Annapolis, Maryland, United States...

 between 1869 and 1873, Greer returned to the Pacific Station.

In 1873, he commanded the when that ship was sent to find and aid the ship Polaris

USS Periwinkle (1864)

USS Periwinkle was a steamer procured by the Union Navy during the final months of the American Civil War. She served the Union Navy’s struggle against the Confederate States of America as a patrol gunship....

. The Polaris was wrecked on an Arctic expedition which had been led by Charles Francis Hall

Charles Francis Hall

Charles Francis Hall was an American Arctic explorer. Little is known of Hall's early life. He was born in the state of Vermont, but while he was still a child his family moved to Rochester, New Hampshire, where, as a boy, he was apprenticed to a blacksmith. In the 1840s he married and drifted...

.

After special service in during the Paris Exposition

Paris Exposition

Paris Exposition or Paris Exhibition can refer to*The French Industrial Exposition of 1844-World's fair:* Exposition Universelle , The Paris Exposition of 1855* Exposition Universelle , The Paris Exposition of 1867...

, Greer held a variety of shore posts and then served as commander of the European Squadron

European Squadron

The European Squadron, also known as the European Station, was a part of the United States Navy in the late 19th century and the early 1900s. The squadron was originally named the Mediterranean Squadron and renamed following the American Civil War...

 from 1887 to 1889.

Promoted to Rear Admiral in 1892, he retired on 28 February 1895. Admiral Greer died in Washington, D.C, and is buried in Arlington Cemetery.

Namesakes

The destroyer was named for him.

Several Tom Clancy

Tom Clancy

Thomas Leo "Tom" Clancy, Jr. is an American author, best known for his technically detailed espionage, military science, and techno thriller storylines set during and in the aftermath of the Cold War, along with video games on which he did not work, but which bear his name for licensing and...

 novels feature a Vice Admiral James Greer, who is the Deputy Director of Central Intelligence.