Born, January 5th, 1779 Berlin, Maryland
The Town of Berlin is proud to be the birthplace of Stephen Decatur. The Museum offers a small informational brochure on Stephen Decatur that was written in 1921 by Doris Benson Taylor, a resident of Berlin and patron of the Calvin B. Taylor Museum.
For information on purchasing a copy of the brochure, call the museum at 410-641-1019
Stephen Decatur was born in Berlin, raised in Philadelphia, entered the Navy of the United States as Midshipman on April 3rd, 1798. He became Lieutenant on June 3rd 1799. He made Captain for Distinguished Merit on February 16th 1804, passing over the rank of Commander. His title was ‘Commodore Decatur’. He is considered one of our greatest naval heroes. Decatur died as the result of a duel with Commodore Barron, a suspended officer, on March 22, 1820 and is buried in Philadelphia.
His Berlin home has sadly decayed over time and is no longer standing.