A portrait of Stephen Decatur is on display in the Stephen Decatur room in City Hall. Stephen Decatur was born on Jan. 5, 1779.

Who Was Stephen Decatur?

Decatur was named in honor of Stephen Decatur, a popular early-American naval hero. Stephen Decatur was born in 1779 in Maryland and was raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At the age of 19 he joined the newly formed U.S. Navy, and rose rapidly in rank.

He led some daring raids in the wars against the Barbary pirates along the coast of Africa, and returned home a hero in 1805. He remained in the Navy and commanded several ships during the troubles with Great Britain that led to the War of 1812. While commanding the USS United States, he defeated one of Great Britain's finest ships, the Macedonian.

Following the War of 1812 Stephen Decatur returned to the Mediterranean as commander of a squadron that defeated the Barbary pirates a second time. He returned to the United States again in triumph. Shortly thereafter in a speech in Norfolk, Virginia, he spoke his famous line: "Our Country. In her intercourse with foreign nations may she always be right; but our country right or wrong."

Commodore Stephen Decatur returned to Washington, D.C., and became a highly respected Navy Commissioner. He was killed in a duel on March 22, 1820, and his death was mourned throughout the country.

Three years later, in 1823, the City of Decatur was named in his honor.

This information assembled by Walt Drake from The Story of Decatur, 1823-1899 by Caroline McKinney Clarke, and The History of DeKalb County, Georgia, 1822-1900 by Vivian Price. For more information or to schedule a program on Stephen Decatur, call the DeKalb History Center at 404-373-1088.

U.S. Cities and Counties named for Stephen Decatur:

Cities

• Decatur, Alabama
• Decatur, Arkansas
• Decatur, Georgia
• Decatur, Illinois
• Decatur, Indiana
• Decatur, Michigan
• Decatur, Mississippi
• Decatur, Nebraska
• Decatur, Tennessee
• Decatur, Texas
• Decaturville, Tennessee

 

Counties

• Decatur County, Tennessee
• Decatur County, Georgia
• Decatur County, Indiana
• Decatur County, Iowa
• Decatur County, Kansas