General Ulysses S. Grant against Fort Henry on the Tennessee River. Despite heavy damage to one of the gunboats, Foote was able to quickly subdue the fort. When the Confederate garrison commander, Brig. Gen. Lloyd Tilghman, sent out a flag of truce asking the terms of surrender, Foote sent back a blunt reply, “No sir, your surrender will be unconditional!” Several days later Grant, with three divisions, and Foote with his fleet of ironclads, along with the assistance of Captain Seth Ledyard Phelps and his fleet of timberclad warships, moved against Fort Donelson on the Cumberland River. Hoping for a repeat of the success at Fort Henry, General Grant urged Foote to attack the fort's river batteries. Fort Donelson's guns, however, were better-placed than Fort Henry's were. Three of Foote's gunboats were damaged including the flagship, USS St. Louis. Foote himself received a wound in his foot. For his service at Forts Henry and Donelson, Foote received the Thanks of Congress. After repairing his flotilla, Foote joined with General John Pope in a campaign against Island Number Ten on the Mississippi River. In July 1862 Foote received a second Thanks of Congress, this time for the battles of Fort Henry, Fort Donelson and Island Number Ten. Later in 1862, Foote was promoted to rear admiral. In 1863, on his way to take command of the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron, he suddenly died, struck down by Bright's disease. His untimely death in New York shocked the nation. He was interred at Grove Street Cemetery in New Haven. Namesakes Three ships were named USS Foote for him. Civil War Fort Foote on the Potomac, now a National Park, was named for him on September 17, 1863. Foote Street NE (and Foote Place) in Washington, DC is named for him, part of a series of streets named for Civil War generals. See also Bibliography of Naval history of the American Civil War Bibliography of American Civil War military leaders List of ships captured in the 19th century List of ships of the Confederate States Navy African Squadron Notes References Bibliography Crofut, Florence S. Marcy; "Guide to the history and the historic sites of Connecticut, Volume 2", Yale university press, (1937) Further reading Fowler, William M., Under Two Flags: The American Navy in the Civil War, Norton and Company, 1990, . Gott, Kendall D., Where the South Lost the War: An Analysis of the