Edward Middleton

Edward Middleton (December 11, 1810, Charleston, South Carolina – April 27, 1883, Washington, D.C.) of the South Carolina Middleton family was a U.S. Navy rear admiral most known for his service defending the United States Pacific borders during the Civil War.

He was descended from an English family, the first of whom also named Edward Middleton came to America in 1678.

Career After being educated in England and France, Edward joined his father and mother in Russia in 1827. He then served six months with the Admiral of the Russian Fleet, Pyotr Ivanovich Ricord, on board his ship.

From that time, he was promoted and reassigned several times including as First Lieutenant and Executive Officer of the USS Decatur. He fought in the Battle of Seattle, January 26, 1856.

After the war, he was appointed on special duty in New York, where he married Ellida, the daughter of Edward Davison. He went on to commanded the USS Pensacola and then the steam sloop USS Lackawanna. His last command was Pensacola Navy Yard before he retired from active service at sixty-two.

Personal life Middleton was married to Ellida Juell Davison (1839–1910). Together, they were the parents of:

Emeline Middleton (1869–1948), who married Edgar Mora Davison (d. 1927), a banker with August Belmont & Co. and a director of the Museum of the City of New York. Arthur E. H. Middleton (1872–1919).

Middleton died on April 27, 1883, in Washington, D.C. His wife was quoted in his obituary as saying, "upon no subject was he uninformed and his erudition was remarkable, and as a linguist he was one of the finest in the country". He was buried at Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York.