Benjamin F. Tracy
Benjamin Franklin Tracy (1830-1915) was a United States political figure who served as Secretary of the Navy from March 6, 1889 - March 4, 1893, during the administration of President Benjamin Harrison.
A native of Owego, New York, Tracy was a lawyer active in Republican Party politics during the 1850s. During the Civil War, he served as a Union brigadier general. He reentered the law after the war and became active in New York state politics, serving as a U.S. District Attorney and as an New York State appeals court judge.
Tracy was noted for his role in the creation of the "New Navy", a major reform of the service, which had fallen into obsolescence after the Civil War. Like President Harrison, he supported a naval strategy focused more on offense, rather than on coastal defense and commerce raiding. A major ally in this effort was naval theorist Captain Alfred Thayer Mahan, who had served as a professor at the new Naval War College (founded 1884). In 1890, Mahan published his major work, The Influence of Sea Power upon History, 1660-1783--a book that achieved an international readership. Drawing on historical examples, Mahan supported the construction of a "blue-water Navy" that could do battle on the high seas.
Tracy also supported the construction of modern warships. On June 30, 1890, Congress passed the Navy Bill, a measure which authorized the construction of three battleships. The first three were later named USS Indiana (BB-1), Massachusetts (BB-2), and Oregon (BB-3). The battleship Iowa (BB-4) was authorized two years later.
After leaving the Navy Department, Tracy again took up his legal practice. He also helped negotiate a settlement to the boundary dispute between Venezuela and Great Britain. Tracy died in 1915.
