James Cochrane Dobbin

James Cochran Dobbin (January 17, 1814 – August 4, 1857) was a nineteenth-century American politician and lawyer who served as United States Secretary of the Navy from 1853 to 1857. A prominent North Carolina Democrat, he played a significant role in national politics in the 1850s and was instrumental in strengthening and modernizing the U.S. Navy in the years immediately preceding the Civil War.

Dobbin was born in Fayetteville, Cumberland County, North Carolina, on January 17, 1814. He was the grandson of James Cochran, who had served as a member of the United States Congress, and he grew up in a family with established political connections. Dobbin received his early education at Fayetteville Academy and later attended the William Bingham School, one of the leading preparatory institutions in the state. He then enrolled at the University of North Carolina, from which he graduated in 1832. While at the university, he distinguished himself as a member of the Philanthropic Assembly, one of the campus’s principal literary and debating societies, an experience that helped develop his skills in oratory and public affairs.

After completing his formal education, Dobbin studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1835. He commenced the practice of law in his native Fayetteville, where he quickly established himself as a capable attorney. His legal practice, combined with his family background and his reputation as an effective speaker, brought him into the public eye and laid the groundwork for his entry into politics. During this period, he became active in the Democratic Party, aligning himself with its principles and emerging as a rising figure in North Carolina’s political life.

Dobbin’s national political career began when he was elected as a Democrat to the Twenty-ninth Congress, representing North Carolina and serving from March 4, 1845, to March 3, 1847. In Congress he participated in the debates of the era, which were dominated by issues such as territorial expansion and the consequences of the Mexican-American War. After his single term in the U.S. House of Representatives, he returned to state politics. He was elected to the North Carolina House of Commons in 1848, 1850, and 1852. In 1850 he was chosen speaker of the House of Commons, a position that reflected the confidence his colleagues placed in his leadership and parliamentary ability.

Dobbin’s influence extended to the national Democratic Party. In 1852 he served as a delegate to the Democratic National Convention, where he played a notable role in securing the nomination of Franklin Pierce, a relatively little-known “dark horse” candidate, for the presidency. His efforts at the convention and in the subsequent campaign were rewarded when President-elect Pierce selected him to serve as United States Secretary of the Navy. Dobbin assumed that office on March 8, 1853, and remained in the post for the duration of the Pierce administration, until March 4, 1857.

As Secretary of the Navy, Dobbin was a firm believer in maintaining a strong naval establishment as an essential safeguard for national security and as an “insurance for peace.” He undertook a program of reform and expansion throughout the Navy, seeking to modernize its organization and improve its readiness. During his tenure, eighteen of the finest ships of their class in the world were constructed for the U.S. Navy, significantly enhancing American naval capabilities. Under his auspices, the Perry expedition to Japan, led by Commodore Matthew C. Perry, was brought to a successful conclusion, culminating in the signing of a treaty that opened Japan to American trade and marked a major milestone in U.S. foreign relations. Dobbin also ordered U.S. Navy Lieutenant Isaac Strain to command the U.S. Darién Exploring Expedition, which was tasked with mapping and surveying the Darién Gap as a potential route for a canal linking the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, reflecting his interest in strategic maritime routes and global commerce.

At the close of the Pierce administration in 1857, Dobbin’s term as Secretary of the Navy expired, and he returned to Fayetteville. His health, which had been declining, worsened after he left office. He died in Fayetteville on August 4, 1857, at the age of forty-three. Dobbin was interred at Cross Creek Cemetery in his hometown. His service to the nation was later commemorated by the naming of the USS Dobbin (AD-3), a destroyer tender that was present at the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, ensuring that his name remained associated with the United States Navy he had worked to strengthen.