Barry (1745-1803) was born in Ireland and emigrated to the American colonies while he was in his twenties. After the battles at Lexington and Concord, he renamed his ship the Alfred and offered it to the Continental Congress to help fight the British. His ship was later commanded by naval hero John Paul Jones.

In 1776, when no ships were available for command, he raised troops and fought on land at Trenton, NJ.

Because of his role in building the first U.S. Navy and in training other naval leaders such as Stephen Decatur, Barry is sometimes called "the father of the U.S. Navy."