William Augustin Webb was an American sailor and Mexican–American War veteran who resigned his United States Navy commission after more than 20 years of service to join the Confederate States Navy in the American Civil War. Webb was decorated for his service as Captain of the CSS Teaser, part of the James River Squadron, during the Battle of Hampton Roads (1862). In 1863, his orders sent him to Savannah, where he commanded a squadron that included the ironclad CSS Atlanta. He was captured in June 1863 and imprisoned in Boston. He was released as part of a prisoner exchange in October 1864 and returned to action on the CSS Richmond. Early life and career William A. Webb grew up in Virginia. He joined the United States Navy at an early age and attained the rank of Midshipman on January 26, 1838. His young wife Elizabeth Ann Webb endured the lonely life of a navy spouse. He was the brother-in-law to another naval officer John Randolph Tucker On July 2, 1845, Webb was promoted to Passed Midshipman. He served in the Mexican–American War on the 6-gun storeship USS Southampton. Webb departed from Norfolk, Virginia on February 7, 1847, traveling to the Pacific Ocean by way of Cape Horn, eventually reaching Japan in 1854. He was afterwards appointed as Master on October 9, 1853 and Lieutenant on June 12, 1854. Civil War Webb resigned his commission on May 17, 1861, four months after the Secession, enrolling instead in the Confederate Navy as a First Lieutenant in June. He served at Fernandina, Florida in mid-1861 and then Richmond Station from 1861 to 1862. CSS Teaser and the Battle of Hampton Roads In early 1862, First Lieutenant Webb was made commander of the armed gunboat CSS Teaser (or Teazer). Prior to the secession it was the property of the Virginia State Navy (then called the York River). The 64 ton, 80 by 18 foot tugboat was armed with a 32 and a 12-pounder rifled cannon. The CSS Teaser was part of the James River Squadron, operating on the homonymous river from Norfolk. The squadron's chieftain was Flag-Officer Franklin Buchanan, on the ironclad steamer CSS Virginia (ex-Merrimack). The squadron consisted of 3 steamers (24 guns in all) and 3 supporting gunboats, each with one gun. On March 8–9, 1862, at the Battle of Hampton Roads, the Confederate flotilla tried to break a blockade maintained by