John Barry (1745–1803) was a naval officer and ship owner, frequently called the “Father of the American Navy.” He served in the Continental Navy during the American Revolutionary War and in the United States Navy during the Quasi-War. He was born on March 25, 1745, in Ballysampson near Wexford, Ireland. The designation bestowed upon him by Joseph Dennie in the Port Folio for July 1813, where, in a footnote to a sketch of Barry, he wrote:
“So many of the distinguished naval men of the present day commenced their career under Commodore Barry that he may justly be considered as the ‘father of our navy.’