Throughout his 52-year career, Rear Adm. John Lorimer Worden was always the right officer for the job. After delivering secret dispatches in 1861 that kept Fort Pickens in Florida for the Union, Worden attempted to return to Washington, D.C., and was arrested by Confederate authorities, thus becoming the first prisoner of war during the Civil War. After six months in captivity, he returned to command the USS Monitor—the “little ship that saved the nation”—at the historic Battle of Hampton Roads. There, he faced the Confederate CSS Virginia in the first-ever clash of ironclads, suffering severe wounds while fighting the battle to a standstill. Upon recovery, he returned to command the USS Montauk. After the war, Worden became superintendent of the U.S. Naval Academy, where he trained the next generation of naval officers and co-founded the U.S. Naval Institute. Worden capped his career by ably serving as commander-in-chief of the European Squadron during a time of upheaval on that continent. Dr. John V. Quarstein, Director Emeritus of the USS Monitor Center at The Mariners’ Museum and Park will examine Worden’s eventful, interesting life.