Samuel Phillips Lee

Lee was born on February 13, 1812,[1] at the Sully Plantation in Fairfax County, Virginia, to Francis Lightfoot Lee II and Jane Fitzgerald.[2] He was the grandson of Richard Henry Lee,[2] great-nephew of Francis Lightfoot Lee I, brother-in-law of Francis Preston Blair Jr., and of Montgomery Blair, and was third cousin of Robert E. Lee.

Portrait of Lee by Thomas Sully, 1845

He was appointed a midshipman in the U.S. Navy in November 1825 and subsequently saw extensive service at sea, including combat action during the Mexican–American War and exploration, surveying, and oceanographic duty.[1]

At the outbreak of the American Civil War in 1861, Lee held the rank of commander and was captain of the sloop-of-war Vandalia in the East Indies, sailing her home on his own initiative to join the blockade of the Southern coast.[1] Commander Lee commanded the new steam sloop Oneida during the New Orleans campaign and subsequent operations on the Mississippi River in the first half of 1862.[1]

When asked about his loyalty, Lee famously replied, "When I find the word Virginia in my commission I will join the Confederacy."[3] This quote is often referenced by historians in contrast to the actions of his cousin Robert E. Lee, to show how the war divided families.

In September 1862, Lee was placed in command of the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron with the rank of Acting rear admiral. He led this force for over two years, during which it was responsible for the blockade of the North Carolina coast and operations on North Carolina and Virginia inland waters, all areas of very active combat between Union and Confederate forces. Acting Rear Admiral Lee transferred to the command of the Mississippi River Squadron in October 1864 and led it to the end of the Civil War in 1865.[1]

Reverting to his permanent rank of captain after the Civil War, Lee extensively served in the Washington, D.C., area. He was promoted to rear admiral in 1870 and retired from active service in February 1873.[1]

Elizabeth Blair Lee, portrait by Thomas Sully, when she was 19

Lee married Elizabeth Blair on April 27, 1843. During the Civil War, he was away for long periods. Elizabeth's letters to her husband describe wartime life in her homes of Washington, D.C., and Silver Spring, Maryland. Her letters are published in the book Wartime Washington : the Civil War letters of Elizabeth Blair Lee.[4] Lee became well known in Washington society due to the influence of his wife, the former Elizabeth Blair of Maryland.

In 1859, Lee's father-in-law, Francis Preston Blair, built a house for Lee and his wife Elizabeth next door to his own. These two houses, within a block of the White House in Washington, D.C., were later combined into one house and became the property of the U.S. government. Today they are the Blair-Lee House, used by the president as his guest house. Upon retirement, he moved to the family home in Silver Spring, Maryland, where he died on June 5[5][6] or June 7, 1897.[1]

Two U.S. Navy ships have been named in honor of Rear Admiral Samuel Phillips Lee, the destroyer S. P. Lee (DD-310), which was commissioned in October 1920 and lost by stranding in September 1923, and the research vessel USNS S. P. Lee (T-AGS-31) (later T-AG-192), which was in naval service between 1968 and 1974.[1]