John Rodgers (July 11, 1772 – August 1, 1838) was a naval officer in the United States Navy who served under six Presidents for nearly four decades during its formative years in the 1790s through the late 1830s, committing the bulk of his adult life to his country. His service took him through many operations in the Quasi-War with France, both Barbary Wars in North Africa and the War of 1812 with Britain. As a senior officer in the young American navy he played a major role in the development of the standards, customs and traditions that emerged during this time. Rodgers was, among other things, noted for commanding the largest American squadron in his day to sail the Mediterranean Sea. After serving with distinction as a lieutenant he was soon promoted directly to the rank of captain. During his naval career he commanded a number of warships, including the USS John Adams, the flagship of the fleet that defeated the Barbary states of North Africa.
During the War of 1812 Rodgers fired the first shot of the war aboard his next flagship, the USS President, and also played a leading role in the recapture of Washington after the capital was burned by the British, while also having to endure his own hometown and house burned and his family displaced.
Rodgers Bastion, was located on Hampstead Hill (now part of Patterson Park), was the centerpiece of a 3-mile-wide earthworks from the outer harbor in Canton, north to Belair Road, dug to defend the eastern approach to Baltimore against the British. The redoubt was assembled and commanded by U.S. Navy Commodore John Rodgers, with General Smith in command of the overall line. At dawn on September 13, 1814, the day after the Battle of North Point, some 4,300 British troops advanced north on North Point Road, then west along the Philadelphia Road (now Maryland Route 7) toward Baltimore, forcing the U.S. troops to retreat to the main defensive line around the city. British commander Col. Arthur Brooke established his new headquarters at the Sterret House on Surrey Farm (today called Armistead Gardens), about two miles east-northeast of Hampstead Hill.
When the British began probing actions on Baltimore's inner defenses, the American line was defended by 100 cannon and more than 10,000 regular troops, including two shadowing infantry regiments commanded by general officers Stricker and Winder as well as a few thousand local militia and irregulars. The defenses were far stronger than the British anticipated. The U.S. defenders at Fort McHenry successfully stopped British naval forces but a few ships were still able to provide artillery support. Once the British had taken the outer defenses, the inner defenses became the priority. The British infantry had not anticipated how well defended they would be so the first attack was a failure; however, Brooke's forces did manage to outflank and overrun American positions to the right. After a discussion with lower ranking officers, Brooke decided that the British should bombard the fort instead of risk a frontal assault and, at 3 AM on September 14, 1814, ordered the British troops to return to the ships.
Commodore Rodgers established a naval "dynasty" that produced several other notable officers. His son John Rodgers (1812–1882) served in theAmerican Civil War, and his great-grandson John Rodgers (1881–1926) served in World War I. Six ships have been named in their honor, three as USS John Rodgers and three as USS Rodgers.
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