Commodore Charles William Skinner

Cedar Grove Cemetery
2nd Alley West, Lot 21
(    - 1860)

Commodore Charles William Skinner attended William & Mary College in Williamsburg, Virginia.  He married Clara Whitehead Skinner (1804 – 1877), daughter of Reverend James Whitehead and Clarissa Stark.  Reverend Whitehead was once the rector of Christ Church in Norfolk, Virginia.  Skinner became a Lieutenant in the Navy in 1813 and came up through the ranks to be promoted to Captain in 1837.  He became Commodore soon after that.  Commodore Skinner was in command of US naval vessels operating off the western coast of Africa to suppress the slave trade.* The vessel “Jamestown” was his flagship.  He served as Naval Base Norfolk Shipyard Commander from 1846 to 1847** and then served as the Chief of the Bureau of Construction and Repair (US Navy) from 1847 to 1852***.  During this time, he was awarded a patent for a “method of ventilating vessels.” ****

Other Skinner family members interred on the family lot include:  Clara, d. 1877; Francis, d. 1913, James, d. 1898.

*www27.brinkster.com/ussjamestown/history.html
**www.navsea.navy.mil/shipyards/norfolk
***www.manningfamily.org/Cassell_Family/d2.htm  

Biographical information provided by Norfolk Cemeteries.

Biographical information provided by Norfolk Bureau of Cemeteries.

Visitor Information

Visitor Hours: Sunrise to Sunset

Office hours: Monday to Friday 9:00 AM to 4:30 PM
Saturday 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM

Free parking inside cemetery.

Admission Cost: Free

Address: 238 E. Princess Anne Road, Norfolk, VA 23510

Official web site for more information: www.norfolk.gov/cemeteries

Norfolk Society for Cemetery Conservation Web Site: www.norfolksocietyforcemeteryconservation.org