Fort Johnston (North Carolina) army and naval forces with weapons, munitions, and supplies imported from Europe, Canada, Bermuda, Cuba, and eventually other Caribbean territories. Railroads carried goods from Wilmington, North Carolina, to Richmond, Virginia, providing critical supplies to Confederate General Robert E. Lee and his Confederate Army of Northern Virginia. The Confederacy in late 1862 renamed Fort Johnston as Fort Branch in honor of Confederate Brigadier General Lawrence O'Bryan Branch, a local who died in Battle of Antietam. In 1863, the Confederate Army renamed Fort Branch as Fort Pender in honor of Confederate Major General William Dorsey Pender, who died of wounds sustained at
Commander of the People's Liberation Army Navy Commander of the People's Liberation Army Navy The Commander of the People's Liberation Army Navy (), is the title of the People's Liberation Army officer who serves as the commanding officer of the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN). The 8th and current, commander of the People's Liberation Army Navy is Vice-Admiral Shen Jinlong. The Navy of PLA East China Military Area Command () was originally established on April 23, 1949, in Baimamiao Township of Tai County, Jiangsu province, General Zhang Aiping was commissioned as commander and political commissar. On April 14, 1950, the PLA Navy Command was established in Beijing,