John Grimes Walker

John Grimes Walker (March 20, 1835 – September 16, 1907) was an admiral in the United States Navy who served during the Civil War. After the war, he served as Chief of the Bureau of Navigation, head of the Lighthouse Board, and commander-in-chief of the Squadron of Evolution and of the North Atlantic Squadron. In retirement, he led commissions to investigate the construction of a Central American canal connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Early life and career Walker was born in Hillsborough, New Hampshire to Alden and Susan (Grimes) Walker. His parents moved to Iowa and Walker spent much of his youth there. His uncle, James W. Grimes, served as Governor of Iowa and represented the state in the United States Senate. Walker was appointed a midshipman on October 5, 1850, and graduated at the head of his class at the Naval Academy in 1856. He served in and in 1858 and 1859; in in 1860 and 1861; in in 1861; and in in 1861 and 1862. Civil War service Walker distinguished himself under David Dixon Porter during the Mississippi River campaigns while serving in Winona, (which he commanded), and . He participated in the engagements with Forts Jackson and St. Philip, as well as the Chalmette batteries during the operations which resulted in the fall of New Orleans.