Benjamin Crowninshield

Benjamin Williams Crowninshield (1772 - 1851), a member of the prominent Crowninshield family of Massachusetts, served as the fifth United States Secretary of the Navy between 1815 and 1818, during the administrations of Presidents James Madison and James Monroe.

Crowninshield served in Congress from 1823-1831 as a United States Representative from Massachusetts. He also served several terms in the Massachusetts state legislature, both before and after holding national office.