Commander Robert D. Thorburn was a member of the old Naval Service, coming
to Virginia in 1861, and being at once named to take part in the defenses
of the Potomac under Captain Lynch. He later was detailed to duty on the
Gulf Coast, and after the war came to Fredericksburg where he died in
1883. He resided in the house on lower Princess Anne Street, now occupied
by W. D. Scott, Esq.