Radford arrived back in Saint Louis on August 28, 1847.
 He was ordered December 20, 1847, to testify in the court-martial of John C. Frémont at the Washington Arsenal.
 A leave was approved March 2, 1848, which indicated Radford intended to revisit Mexico with General Kearny but his letter of July 3, 1848, was sent from New York requesting a three-month extension.
 He went to see his cousin William Preston Griffin at Morristown, New Jersey, met Mary Lovell, married her and settled there.
 He commuted to his assignment at the Rendezvous in New York through January 21, 1851.

On July 26, 1851, Radford took command of Lexington and sailed again to the Pacific Squadron.
 By March 1852 he arrived in San Francisco where he met with brother John and brother-in-law Benjamin Lovell.
 On the way home, a letter from his father-in-law Joseph Lovell advised that Radford's infant son, Willie, had died.
 Detached from Lexington on September 22, 1852, Radford returned to Morristown.

For the period 1852 until 1860, Radford was assigned shore duties in New York despite his applications for a command.
 For three years, he worked at the Brooklyn Navy Yard and witnessed for numerous courts-martial.
In June 1855, he was given command of U.S. steamer City of Boston to prevent ships connected with filibustering expeditions from leaving the harbor.
 On July 20 he was appointed a member of a committee to "examine and report on the different Life Boats."
 Finally, Radford had a brief stint as Inspector of the Third Lighthouse District.
During these years, he again shuttled from his residence in Morristown.

Radford was fortunate to receive a commission as commander September 14, 1855.
Throughout 1855 and early 1856, promotions were at a standstill in the Navy partly due to the shortage of ships.
Many officers were given leave to take command of merchant ships (such as U.S. Mail steamers) at significantly higher pay.
To overcome this quandary, a Naval Retiring Board was formed which upset the older officers but cheered younger members of the service.

He took command of Dacotah April 23, 1860, and sailed to Hong Kong as a unit of the East India Squadron for Commodore Cornelius Stribling.
 However, after the onset of the Civil War, both Radford and Stribling were relieved of their commands and ordered to return Washington, D.C. despite their declarations of allegiance to the Union.
 Commodore Samuel Du Pont in Washington, D.C. explained to Radford's wife Mary that, with the number of defections from both the Army and Navy, all officers from slave states must be evaluated for risk.
 Radford arrived home October 12, 1861, seriously ill with smallpox but recovered quickly.
After an interview with Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles, he was reappointed Inspector of the Third Lighthouse District at New York.
Radford arrived back in Saint Louis on August 28, 1847.  He was ordered December 20, 1847, to testify in the court-martial of John C. Frémont at the Washington Arsenal.  A leave was approved March 2, 1848, which indicated Radford intended to revisit Mexico with General Kearny but his letter of July 3, 1848, was sent from New York requesting a three-month extension.  He went to see his cousin William Preston Griffin at Morristown, New Jersey, met Mary Lovell, married her and settled there.  He commuted to his assignment at the Rendezvous in New York through January 21, 1851.
On July 26, 1851, Radford took command of Lexington and sailed again to the Pacific Squadron.  By March 1852 he arrived in San Francisco where he met with brother John and brother-in-law Benjamin Lovell.  On the way home, a letter from his father-in-law Joseph Lovell advised that Radford's infant son, Willie, had died.  Detached from Lexington on September 22, 1852, Radford returned to Morristown.
For the period 1852 until 1860, Radford was assigned shore duties in New York despite his applications for a command.  For three years, he worked at the Brooklyn Navy Yard and witnessed for numerous courts-martial. In June 1855, he was given command of U.S. steamer City of Boston to prevent ships connected with filibustering expeditions from leaving the harbor.  On July 20 he was appointed a member of a committee to "examine and report on the different Life Boats."  Finally, Radford had a brief stint as Inspector of the Third Lighthouse District. During these years, he again shuttled from his residence in Morristown.
Radford was fortunate to receive a commission as commander September 14, 1855. Throughout 1855 and early 1856, promotions were at a standstill in the Navy partly due to the shortage of ships. Many officers were given leave to take command of merchant ships (such as U.S. Mail steamers) at significantly higher pay. To overcome this quandary, a Naval Retiring Board was formed which upset the older officers but cheered younger members of the service.
He took command of Dacotah April 23, 1860, and sailed to Hong Kong as a unit of the East India Squadron for Commodore Cornelius Stribling.  However, after the onset of the Civil War, both Radford and Stribling were relieved of their commands and ordered to return Washington, D.C. despite their declarations of allegiance to the Union.  Commodore Samuel Du Pont in Washington, D.C. explained to Radford's wife Mary that, with the number of defections from both the Army and Navy, all officers from slave states must be evaluated for risk.  Radford arrived home October 12, 1861, seriously ill with smallpox but recovered quickly. After an interview with Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles, he was reappointed Inspector of the Third Lighthouse District at New York.
William Radford