In October 1865, Charles Gridley was transferred to the USS Brooklyn, the flagship of the South Atlantic Squadron. The end of the war brought a spate of promotions, as the Navy returned to peacetime footing and many officers left the service. Gridley remained and rose through the ranks rapidly.
He was promoted to master on November 10, 1866, to lieutenant on February 21, 1867 and lieutenant commander on March 12, 1868. By this time, however, the Navy had entered a long period of decline. The number of ships declined, new state-of-the-art ships were not built and the need for officers declined.
Promotions of lower rank officers depended on the retirement or demise of officers in the higher ranks. As was common with the times, Gridley did not get his next promotion until 1882.
By 1868, Charles Gridley was serving aboard the famed USS Kearsarge (which had defeated the CSS Alabama), cruising in the South Pacific. Three years later, he was serving aboard the USS Michigan in te Great Lakes. This warship was the only U.S. Navy vessel on the Great Lakes and it operated out of the port of Erie, Pennsylvania.
--Cooter
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