{{Short description|United States Navy admiral (1821–1887)}} {{Infobox military person | name = James William Augustus Nicholson | image = | caption = | birth_date = {{Birth date|1821|3|10}} | death_date = {{Death date and age|1887|10|28|1821|3|10}} | burial_label = Place of burial | burial_place = | birth_place = [[Dedham, Massachusetts]], U.S. | death_place = New York, U.S. | allegiance = United States | branch = [[United States Navy]] | service_years = 1838–1883 | rank = [[Rear admiral (United States)|Rear admiral]] | unit = | commands = {{ubl|{{USS|Isaac Smith||2}}|{{USS|Shamrock|1863|2}}|{{USS|Manhattan|1863|2}}|{{USS|Mohongo|1864|2}}|[[European Squadron]]}} | battles = {{ubl|[[Mexican–American War]]|[[Opening of Japan]]|[[American Civil War]]|[[Egyptian Expedition (1882)|Egyptian Expedition]]}} | awards = | relations = [[Samuel Nicholson]] (grandfather) | other_work = }}
Rear Admiral '''James William Augustus Nicholson''' (10 March 1821 – 28 October 1887) was an officer in the [[United States Navy]] during the [[Mexican–American War]] and the [[American Civil War]].
==Life and naval career== [[File:Coat of Arms of John Nicholson.svg|175px|thumb|left|Coat of Arms of James W. Nicholson]] The son of [[Nathaniel Dowse Nicholson|Nathaniel Nicholson]] and grandson of [[Samuel Nicholson]], he was born in [[Dedham, Massachusetts]]. Nicholson entered the Navy as a [[midshipman]] in February 1838. As a Lieutenant, he served in [[USS Vandalia (1828)|''Vandalia'']] in Commodore [[Matthew C. Perry]]'s [[Opening of Japan]] from 1853 to 1855.
During the Civil War he served in {{USS|Pocahontas|1852|2}} and {{USS|Pensacola|1859|2}}, and commanded the {{USS|Isaac Smith||2}}, {{USS|Shamrock|1863|2}}, {{USS|Manhattan|1863|2}}, and {{USS|Mohongo|1864|2}}. In 1861, under the command of [[Percival Drayton]] in activities near [[Charleston, South Carolina|Charleston]], he was made supervisor of a colony of over 100 former slaves on Otter Island in December 1861.<ref>Tomblin, Barbara. [https://muse.jhu.edu/book/3710 Bluejackets and Contrabands: African Americans and the Union Navy]. University Press of Kentucky, 2009. – via [[Project MUSE]] {{subscription required}} p. 66–68</ref>
He commanded the [[New York Navy Yard]] during 1876 to 1880.
As Commodore from August 1873, and Rear Admiral from October 1881, he commanded the [[European Squadron]] from 16 September 1881 to February 1883. When the British bombarded [[Alexandria, Egypt]], in 1882, he rescued the records of the American Consulate and took American and other refugees aboard his [[flagship]], {{USS|Lancaster|1858|2}}. Commendation from the [[United States Department of the Navy|Navy Department]] and awards of gratitude from European governments followed.
Nicholson retired on 10 March 1883 and died at his home in New York on 28 October 1887.
==Namesakes== The ships named {{USS|Nicholson}} were named for him and four male relatives in the naval service.
==References== * {{DANFS|http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/n5/nicholson-i.htm}} {{reflist}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Nicholson, James William A}} [[Category:1821 births]] [[Category:1887 deaths]] [[Category:United States Navy admirals]] [[Category:Military personnel from Dedham, Massachusetts]] [[Category:People of Massachusetts in the American Civil War]]