O'Bannon, Presley

O'Bannon, Presley (Neville)

(1776–1850) Marine officer; born in Fauquier County, Va. Leading the Marine detachment in the expedition to capture Derna, Libya, during the Tripolitan War in April 1805, he helped raise the first American flag ever to fly over foreign soil—hence the "shores of Tripoli" reference in the "Marine Hymn." He resigned in 1807 and lived quietly in Kentucky for more than four decades.