ARTIST: William Radford, Comm. James River Flotilla
WORK DATE: 1865
MATERIALS: Paper, ink
SIZE: 13.5" x 8.25"

Original James River Flotilla, Flag Ship "Dunbarton" March 14, 1865. Order for Lt. Commander Jonathan G. Walker
Rear Admiral Radford biography:

William Radford was born at Fincastle, Botetourt County, Virginia, 1 March 1808, a member of the family that founded Radford, Virginia. Appointed midshipman on his seventeenth birthday, he was promoted lieutenant 3 February 1837.
He served in the Pacific during the war with Mexico and commanded the party that cut out the Malek Adel at Mazatlan in 1847. Promoted commander on 14 September 1855, he assumed command of frigate USS Cumberland in 1861. Promoted captain 16 July 1862 and commodore 24 April 1863, he served on court-martial duty at Fort Monroe.
As commanding officer of New Ironsides in the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron, Commodore Radford led the ironclad division of Admiral Porter's squadron—the largest task force of the Civil War—during two attacks on Fort Fisher, defending Wilmington, North Carolina in December 1864 and January 1865.
In action on Christmas Eve, Admiral Porter reported that New Ironsides "took her position in the most beautiful and seamanlike manner, got her spring out, and opened deliberate fire on the fort which was firing at her with all its guns … they were silenced almost as soon as the New Ironsides opened her terrific battery … Commander Radford has shown ability of a very high order, not only in fighting and manoeuvring his vessel, but in taking care of his division. His vessel did more execution than any other in the fleet, and I had so much confidence in the accuracy of his fire that even when our troops were on the parapet he was directed to clear the traverses of the enemy in advance of them. This he did most effectually, and but for this the victory might not have been ours."
Following the war, on 25 July 1866, Commodore Radford was promoted rear-admiral. He commanded the European Squadron from 1869 until his retirement 1 March 1870.
Rear Admiral Radford died in 1890.
Biography of Rear Admiral John G. Walker as Lt Comdr. in this letter, order recipient:
REAR ADMIRAL JOHN G. WALKER
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(1835-1907) Born in Hillsborough, N.H., he graduated #1 in the U.S. Naval Academy class of 1856. During the Civil War, Walker distinguished himself under David D. Porter in the Mississippi River campaigns. He participated in the engagements with Forts St. Philip and Jackson, as well as the Chalmette batteries during the operations which resulted in the fall of New Orleans. He later took part in the Navy's operations against Vicksburg. During the winter of 1862 and 1863, Walker participated in the thrusts against Haines Bluff and Arkansas Post. He also took part in the Yazoo Pass expedition, the attack on Fort Pemberton, and the capture of Yazoo City. At the siege of Vicksburg, Walker commanded the naval gun battery attached to the 15th Army Corps. His subsequent war service included operations which resulted in the capture of Fort Fisher, and he participated in the ensuing bombardments of Forts Anderson and Caswell on the Cape Fear River and in the capture of Wilmington, North Carolina. Walker served as Assistant Superintendent of the Naval Academy from 1866 to 1869, and from 1881 to 1889, held the post of Chief of the Bureau of Navigation, and in 1896, he headed the Lighthouse Board. In 1899, he was appointed President of the Isthmian Canal Commission to look into possible routes for a canal across the Central American isthmus. Two destroyers have been named USS Walker in his honor.