Rear Admiral Samuel F. Dupont CDV He was appointed Rear Admiral July 16, 1862. In 1846, he was assigned command of sloop-of-war Cyane and captured San Diego for the U.S. on July 29, 1846 during the opening days of the Mexican War. As one of the Navy's first Rear Admirals, he commanded the Union's first major naval victory of the Civil War at Point Royal, South Carolina. Back marked E& HT Anthony Brady’s National Portrait Gallery, NY.