Perilous Fight

by Stephen Budiansky

1. Pierce, “Journal,” 26, 30; Horsman, “Paradox of Dartmoor”; Palmer, Diary, 136, 141, 151–52.

  2. Palmer, Diary, 159–60, 165, 171, 176; Andrews, Prisoners’ Memoirs, 85–86.

  3. Palmer, Diary, 179; Browne, Yankee Privateer, 266.

  4. Waterhouse, Journal, 226, 231, 234; Palmer, Diary, 182; Adams, Dartmoor Prison, 16–17. The British and American authorities conducted a joint investigation of the massacre that ended up being mostly a whitewash, the American commissioner admitting that “considering it of much importance that the report … should go out under our joint signatures,” he had “forborne to press some of the points.” The American prisoners wrote their own eloquent if impassioned reply setting forth their version of events. All are reprinted in Waterhouse, Journal, 239–56.

  5. “Reminiscences of Dartmoor,” 24: 520.

  6. Palmer, Diary, 219–20; Browne, Yankee Privateer, 302; Andrews, Prisoners’ Memoirs, 120.

  7. “Reminiscences of Dartmoor,” 24: 522, 524.

  8. King quoted in Hickey, War of 1812, 308.

  9. Gore quoted in Adams, Second Administration of Madison, III: 59.

  10. Hickey, War of 1812, 307.

  11. James, Naval History, VI: 106.

  12. Naval Chronicle 33 (1815): 295–96.

  13. Papers Delivered from the Admiralty Relative to the War with America, p. 198, John W. Croker to R. Bickerton, May 31, 1813, CO 42/160, TNA.

  14. Reid, Consequences of Treaty of Paris, 11–12; Petrie, Prize Game, 141–42.

  15. Adams, Second Administration of Madison, I: 19–20.

  16. Hickey, War of 1812, 303–4.

  17. Humphreys, Journal, 19, 23–25.

  18. Charles Stewart to secretary of the navy, May 15, 1815, in Brodine, Crawford, and Hughes, Interpreting Old Ironsides, 106–8; Whipple, Letters, 21; Humphreys, Journal, 31.

  19. “The Frigate Constitution,” Salem Gazette, May 30, 1815.

  20. AC, 13th Cong., 3rd sess. (February 18, 1815), 255–56.

  21. “A Good One!” Yankee, August 4, 1815.

  22. AC, 13th Cong., 3rd sess. (November 15, 1814), 1834; (November 8, 1814), 542–48.

  23. Carter, “Mathew Carey,” 184–87; Bauer, “Naval Shipbuilding,” 34.

  24. Long, “Board of Commissioners,” 66, 76.

  25. Isaac Chauncey to Oliver H. Perry, July 30, 1813, NW1812, II: 530–31; Hickey, Don’t Give Up the Ship, 189–90.

  26. Long, Nothing Too Daring, 181–83.

  27. Long, “Barron–Decatur Duel,” 43–44.

  28. Hull quoted in Maloney, Captain from Connecticut, 274–75.

  29. Bainbridge quoted in ibid., 277, 279.

  30. Hull quoted in ibid., 280; Rodgers quoted in Long, Ready to Hazard, 210.

  31. Long, “Barron–Decatur Duel,” 46–47.

  32. James Barron to James Monroe, March 8, 1819, James Barron papers, WMSC; Morris, Autobiography, 102–3; Stephen Decatur to Barron, November 30, 1819, Barron Papers, WMSC.

  33. Long, “Barron–Decatur Duel,” 49.

  34. Adams quoted in Tucker, Stephen Decatur, 182–83.

  35. Eckert, “William Jones,” 182.

  Bibliography

  MANUSCRIPTS

  Earl Gregg Swem Library Special Collections Research Center, College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, Virginia (WMSC)

  James Barron Papers

  Historical Society of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia (HSP)

  Joshua Barney Papers

  William Begg Journal

  William W. Feltus Journal

  Joshua Humphreys Papers

  William Jones Papers, Uselma Clarke Smith Collection

  Rodgers Family Papers

  Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. (LC)

  Amos A. Evans papers

  Thomas Jefferson Papers, available online at http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/collections/jefferson_papers/

  James Madison Papers, available online at http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/collections/madison_papers/

  Rodgers Family Papers

  Rodgers Papers, Naval Historical Foundation Collection

  George H. Stuart Papers

  Maine Historical Society, Portland (MeHS)

  Fogg Autograph Collection

  The National Archives, London, U.K. (TNA)

  ADM 1, Admiralty: correspondence and papers

  ADM 2, Admiralty: out-letters

  ADM 8, Admiralty: list-books

  ADM 238, Admiralty: Prize Branch

  CO 42, Colonial Office: Canada, formerly British North America, original correspondence

  HCA 32, High Court of Admiralty: Prize Court: papers

  National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, U.K. (NMM)

  AGC/23/7, James Hillyar Correspondence

  COC, Sir George Cockburn Papers

  HUL, George Redmond Hulbert Papers

  LBK/58, letters of Sir Philip Broke to his wife

  WAR, Admiral Sir John Borlase Warren Papers

  South Caroliniana Library, Columbia, South Carolina (SCL) Paul Hamilton Papers, available online at http://www.sc.edu/library/digital/collections/paulhamilton.html

  MEMOIRS, CONTEMPORARY VIEWS, PUBLISHED DOCUMENTS

  Adams, James. Dartmoor Prison; or, A Faithful Narrative of the Massacre of American Seamen. Pittsburgh: S. Engles, 1816.

  Allen, William Henry. “Letters of William Henry Allen, 1800–1813.” Edited by Edward H. Tatum Jr. and Marion Tinling. Huntington Library Quarterly 1 (1937): 101–32; 1 (1938): 203–43.

  The American Patriotic Song-Book: A Collection of Political, Descriptive, and Humorous Songs, of National Character, and the Production of American Poets Only. Philadelphia: W. M’Culloch, 1815.

  American State Papers. Available online at http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/amlaw/lwsp.html.

  Andrews, Charles. The Prisoners’ Memoirs; or, Dartmoor Prison. New York, 1852.

  Andros, Thomas. The Grand Era of Ruin to Nations from Foreign Influence: A Discourse, Delivered Before the Congregational Society in Berkley, Nov. 26, 1812. Boston: Samuel T. Armstrong, 1812.

  Annals of Congress: Debates and Proceedings in the Congress of the United States, 1789–1824. Available online at http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/amlaw/lwac.html.

  “The Arrival of the Chesapeake in Halifax in 1813 as Described by Thomas Haliburton (“Sam Slick”).” American Neptune 57 (1997): 161–65.

  Barclay, Thomas. Selections from the Correspondence of Thomas Barclay, Formerly British Consul-General at New York. Edited by George Lockhart Rives. New York: Harper & Brothers, 1894.

  Baring, Alexander. An Inquiry into the Causes and Consequences of the Orders in Council; and an Examination of the Conduct of Great Britain Toward the Neutral Commerce of America. London: J. M. Richardson, 1808.

  Bayard, James Asheton. “James Asheton Bayard Letters, 1802–1814.” Bulletin of the New York Public Library 4 (1900): 228–48.

  Belcher, Joshua. An Account of the Funeral Honours Bestowed on the Remains of Capt. Lawrence and Lieut. Ludlow; with the Eulogy Pronounced at Salem, on the Occasion, by Hon. Joseph Story. Boston, 1813.

  Bentley, William. The Diary of William Bentley, D. D., Pastor of the East Church, Salem, Massachusetts. 4 vols. Salem, Mass.: Essex Institute, 1905–14.

  Bowers, William. Naval Adventures During Thirty-Five Years’ Service. 2 vols. London: Richard Bentley, 1833.

  Brannan, John, ed. Official Letters of the Military and Naval Officers of the United States, During the War with Great Britain in the Years 1812, 13, 14, & 15. Washington, D.C.: Way & Gideon, 1823.

  Brighton, John G. Admiral of the Fleet, Sir Provo W. P. Wallis: A Memoir. London: Hutchinson, 1892.

  [Browne, Benjamin Frederick]. The Yarn of a Yankee Privateer. Edited by Nathaniel Hawthorne. New York: Funk & Wagnalls, 1926.

  Carden, John Surman. A Curtail’d Memoir of Incidents and Occurrences in the Life of John Surman Carden, Vice Admiral in the British Navy. Edited by Christopher Thomas Atkinson. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1912.

  Cases Decided in
the District and Circuit Court of the United States for the Pennsylvania District: and Also a Case Decided in the District Court of Massachusetts Relative to the Employment of British Licences on Board of Vessels of the United States. Philadelphia: R. Fisher, 1813.

  Chamier, Frederick. The Life of a Sailor. London: Richard Bentley, 1850.

  Clark, Thomas. Naval History of the United States, from the Commencement of the Revolutionary War to the Present Time. 2 vols. Philadelphia: M. Carey, 1814.

  Cobb, Josiah [A Younker]. A Green Hand’s First Cruise. 2 vols. Boston: Otis, Broaders, 1841.

  Codrington, Edward. Memoir of the Life of Admiral Sir Edward Codrington with Selections from His Public and Private Correspondence. London: Longmans, Green, 1873.

  Coggeshall, George. “Journal of the Letter-of-Marque Schooners ‘David Porter’ and ‘Leo’: A Yankee Skipper Who Preyed on British Shipping Relates His Wartime Experiences.” American Heritage, October 1957, 66–85.

  A Collection of Sundry Publications, and Other Documents, in Relation to the Attack Made During the Late War upon the Private Armed Brig General Armstrong. New York: J. Gray, 1833.

  The Columbian Naval Melody: A Collection of Songs and Odes Composed on the Late Naval Victories and Other Occasions. Boston: Hans Lund, 1813.

  Congreve, William. The Details of the Rocket System. London: J. Whiting, 1814.

  Cowdery, Jonathan. American Captives in Tripoli; or, Dr. Cowdery’s Journal in Miniature: Kept During his Late Captivity in Tripoli. Boston: Belcher & Armstrong, 1806.

  Croker, John Wilson [Nereus]. The Letters on the Subject of the Naval War with America, Which Appeared in the Courier, Under the Signature of Nereus. London: B. M. Swyny, 1813.

  ________. The Croker Papers: The Correspondence and Diaries of the Late Right Honourable John Wilson Croker, LL.D., F.R.S., Secretary of the Admiralty from 1809 to 1830. Edited by Louis J. Jennings. 2 vols. New York: Scribner’s Sons, 1884.

  Crowninshield, Jacob. “Some Remarks on the American Trade: Jacob Crowninshield to James Madison, 1806.” Edited by John H. Reinoehl. William and Mary Quarterly 3rd ser. 16 (1959): 83–118.

  Dalton, Samuel. “Letters of Samuel Dalton of Salem, an Impressed American Seaman.” Essex Institute Historical Collections 68 (1932): 321–29.

  Decatur, Susan. Documents Relative to the Claim of Mrs. Decatur: with Her Earnest Request that the Gentlemen of Congress Will Take the Trouble to Read Them. Georgetown, D.C.: James C. Dunn, 1826.

  Dunham, Josiah. An oration delivered at Hanover, in the vicinity of Dartmouth college, before the several Washington benevolent societies of Hanover, Lebanon, Lime, Norwich, and Hartford, on the thirty-eighth anniversary of American independence. Hanover, N.H.: Charles Spear, 1814.

  Dunlap, William. Yankee Chronology, or Huzza for the Constitution—a Musical Interlude. 1812. Reprint. Tarrytown, N.Y.: William Abbatt, 1931.

  Durand, James R. The Life and Adventures of James R. Durand During a Period of Fifteen Years, from 1801 to 1816: In Which Time He Was Impressed on Board the British Fleet, and Held in Detestable Bondage for More Than Seven Years. 1820. Reprint. Sandwich, Mass.: Chapman Billies, 1995.

  Eggleston, George Cary, ed. American War Ballads and Lyrics: A Collection of the Songs and Ballads of the Colonial Wars, the Revolution, the War of 1812–15, the War with Mexico, and the Civil War. New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1889.

  The Elements and Practice of Rigging and Seamanship. London: D. Steel, 1794.

  Essex Institute. American Vessels Captured by the British During the Revolution and War of 1812: The Records of the Vice-Admiralty Court at Halifax, Nova Scotia. Salem, Mass.: Essex Institute, 1911.

  Evans, Amos A. “Journal Kept on Board the United States Frigate ‘Constitution,’ 1812, by Amos A. Evans, Surgeon United States Navy.” Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography 19 (1895): 152–69, 374–86, 468–80.

  Farragut, Loyall, and David Glasgow Farragut. The Life of David Glasgow Farragut: First Admiral of the United States Navy, Embodying His Journal and Letters. New York: D. Appleton, 1879.

  Fay, H. A. Collection of the Official Accounts, in Detail, of All the Battles Fought by Sea and Land, Between the Navy and Army of the United States and the Navy and Army of Great Britain, During the Years 1812, 13, 14, & 15. New York: E. Conrad, 1817.

  Firth, C. H., ed. Naval Songs and Ballads. London: Navy Records Society, 1908.

  Foster, Augustus John. “Caviar Along the Potomac: Sir Augustus Foster’s ‘Notes on the United States,’ 1804–1812.” Edited by Margaret Bailey Tinkcom. William and Mary Quarterly 3rd ser. 8 (1951): 68–107.

  ________. Jeffersonian America: Notes on the United States of America, Collected in the Years 1805–6–7 and 11–12. Edited by Richard Beale Davis. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1980.

  Foster, Vere, ed. The Two Duchesses: Family Correspondence of and Relating to Georgiana Duchess of Devonshire, Elizabeth Duchess of Devonshire. London: Blackie & Son, 1898.

  Gamble, John Marshall. The Memorial of Lieut. Colonel J. M. Gamble, of the United States’ Marine Corps, to Congress, 1828. New York: Geo. F. Hopkins & Son, 1828.

  Gilje, Paul A., ed. “A Sailor Prisoner of War During the War of 1812.” Maryland Historical Magazine 85 (1990): 58–72.

  Gillespy, Edward. The Columbian Naval Songster; Being a Collection of Original Songs, Odes, etc. Composed in Honor of the Five Great Naval Victories, Obtained by Hull, Jones, Decatur, Bainbridge and Lawrence; Over the British Ships Guerriere, Frolic, Macedonian, Java and Peacock. New York, 1813.

  Gilliam, Henry. “Letters of Henry Gilliam, 1809–1817.” Edited by Lilla M. Hawes. Georgia Historical Quarterly 38 (1954): 46–66.

  Goldsborough, Charles Washington. The United States’ Naval Chronicle. Washington, D.C.: J. Wilson, 1824.

  Hall, Basil. Fragments of Voyages and Travels. 3 vols. Edinburgh: Robert Cadell, 1832.

  Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 1970. Washington, D.C.: GPO, 1975.

  Holbrook, Samuel F. Threescore Years: An Autobiography, Containing Incidents of Voyages and Travels, Including Six Years in a Man-of-War. Boston: James French, 1857.

  Humphreys, Assheton. The USS Constitution’s Finest Fight, 1815: The Journal of Acting Chaplain Assheton Humphreys, US Navy. Edited by Tyrone G. Martin. Mount Pleasant, S.C.: Nautical & Aviation Publishing, 2000.

  Inderwick, James. Cruise of the U.S. Brig Argus in 1813: Journal of Surgeon James Inderwick. Edited by Victor Hugo Paltsits. New York: New York Public Library, 1917.

  Isaacs, Nicholas Peter. Twenty Years Before the Mast; or, Life in the Forecastle. New York: Beckwith, 1845.

  James, William. A Full and Correct Account of the Chief Naval Occurrences of the Late War Between Great Britain and the United States of America. London: T. Egerton, 1817.

  ________. The Naval History of Great Britain, from the Declaration of War by France in 1793, to the Accession of George IV. Vol. 6. London: Richard Bentley, 1837.

  Jones, Noah [A Wanderer]. Journals of Two Cruises Aboard the American Privateer Yankee. New York: Macmillan, 1967.

  Lathrop, John. The Present War Unexpected, Unnecessary, and Ruinous. Two Discourses Delivered in Boston: The First on the 23d of July, 1812, the Fast Appointed by the Governor of Massachusetts; the Second on the 20th of August, the Fast Appointed by the President of the United States, in Consequence of the Present War. Boston: J. W. Burditt, 1812.

  Latta, John E. A Sermon Preached at New-Castle, (Del.) on the Thirteenth Day of April, 1815: A Day Recommended by the President of the United States, to be Observed as a Day of Public Thanksgiving and Praise to God for the Restoration of Peace. Wilmington, Del.: Robert Porter, 1815.

  Leech, Samuel. Thirty Years from Home; or, A Voice from the Main Deck. Boston: Tappan, Whittemore & Mason, 1843.

  Lever, Darcy. The Young Officer’s Sheet Anchor; or, A Key to the Leading of Rigging and to Practical Seamanship. 1819. Reprint, Mineola, N.Y.: Dover, 1998.

  Little, George. Life on the Ocean; or, Twenty
Years at Sea: Being the Personal Adventures of the Author. Boston: C. D. Strong, 1851.

  “Log of the Chasseur: Journal of the Private Armed Brig Chasseur, Thomas Boyle Commanding.” Maryland Historical Magazine 1 (1906): 165–80, 218–40.

  Lovell, William Stanhope. Personal Narrative of Events, from 1799 to 1815, with Anecdotes. London: W. Allen, 1879.

  Lowell, John [A Yankee Farmer]. Peace Without Dishonour—War Without Hope: Being a Calm and Dispassionate Enquiry into the Question of the Chesapeake, and the Necessity and Expediency of War. Boston: Greenough and Stebbins, 1807.

  Lowell, John [A New England Farmer]. Mr. Madison’s War. A Dispassionate Inquiry into the Reasons Alleged by Mr. Madison for Declaring an Offensive and Ruinous War Against Great-Britain. Boston: Russell & Cutler, 1812.

  Madison, James. Letters and Other Writings of James Madison. 4 vols. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott, 1865.

  Massachusetts Historical Society. Microfilms of the Adams Papers. Boston: Massachusetts Historical Society, 1954–1959.

  Monroe, James. James Monroe Papers, 1772–1836. New York: New York Public Library, Manuscript Division, 1963. Microfilm.

  Montagu, Montagu. England Victorious—A Poem upon the Capture of the American Frigate Chesapeake by the British Frigate Shannon, June 1st 1813. London, 1814.

  Morris, Charles. The Autobiography of Commodore Charles Morris, U.S. Navy. 1880. Reprint. Annapolis, Md.: Naval Institute Press, 2002.

  Napier, Henry Edward. New England Blockaded in 1814: The Journal of Henry Edward Napier, Lieutenant in the H.M.S. Nymphe. Edited by Walter Muir Whitehill. Salem, Mass.: Peabody Museum, 1939.