Satisfaction (1) Commander John Stevens Armed Sloop 4 November 1776- Privateer Sloop (2) Commander John Wheelwright 10 May 1777-October 1778

Commissioned/First Date: 4 November 1776 Out of Service/Cause: 3 December 1778/sold out of service

Owners: (1) John Cushing and Samuel White of , Massachusetts [ Tr istram Dalton, Joseph Russell et al] ; (2) John Cushing and Samuel White, both of Boston, Massachusetts; and Tristram Dalton of Newburyport, Massachusetts

Tonnage: 90

Battery: Date Reported: 4 November 1776 Number/Caliber Weight Broadside 14/4-pounder 56 pounds 28 pounds Total: 14 cannon/56 pounds Broadside: 7 cannon/28 pounds Swivels:

Date Reported: 25 February 1777 Number/Caliber Weight Broadside 14/ Total: 14 cannon/ Broadside: 7 cannon/ Swivels: sixteen

Date Reported: 10 May 1777 Number/Caliber Weight Broadside 14/ Total: 14 cannon/ Broadside: 7 cannon/ Swivels:

Date Reported: 10 June 1777

©awiatsea.com-posted February 2020 --1-- Number/Caliber Weight Broadside 14/ Total: 14 cannon/ Broadside: 7 cannon/ Swivels:

Date Reported: 28 July 1777 Number/Caliber Weight Broadside 14/ Total: 14 cannon/ Broadside: 7 cannon/ Swivels:

Crew: (1) 4 November 1776: 101 [] total (2) 25 February 1777: 100 [] total (3) 10 May 1777: 51 [] total (4) 10 June 1777: 71 [] total (5) [][] 15 June 1777: 66 total

Description:

Officers: (1) First Lieutenant Joseph Drinkwater, 4 November 1776-; (2 ) First Lieutenant James Brown, [] May 1777-October 1777; (3) Second Lieutenant John Bartlett, 4 November 1776-; (4) Second Lieutenant William Collins Meservee, [] May 1777-October 1777; (5) Master Samuel Brown, 4 November 1776-; (6) Master Jacob Pope, [] May 1777-October 1777; (7) First Mate Robert Oram, [] May 1777-October 1777; (10) Second Mate Abraham Howard, []May 1777-October 1777; (11) Prize Master Thomas Doliber, [] May 1777-; (12) Prize Master Benjamin Tucker, [] May 1777-; (13) Prize Master Nathaniel Lee, [] May 1777-; (14) Prize Master Ebenezer Nicholson, [] May 1777-October 1777; (15) Surgeon Thomas Fling [][] Flint , May 1777-; (16) Surgeon Joseph Martin, [] May 1777-October 1777; (17) Surgeon’s Mate Thomas Oliver []Brewer , []May 1777-; (18) First Lieutenant of Marines Richard Thomas, [ May 1777-; (19) Second Lieutenant of Marines Ezekiel Loring, [ May 1777-;

©awiatsea.com-posted February 2020 --2-- Cruises: (1) Boston, Massachusetts to Boston, Massachusetts, [][]December 1776- March 1777

(2) Boston, Massachusetts to Plymouth, Massachusetts, 21 May 1777-June 1777, with the Hancock -Boston fleet

(3) Plymouth, Massachusetts to []Boston , Massachusetts []15 June 1777-[] 8 October 1777

Prizes: (1) Brigantine Margaret (John Biddlecomb), []Jsnuary 1777, off Portuga

(2) Ship Royal George (Peter Young), 25 January 1777, off the Rocks of Lisbon, Portugal

(3) Brig [] unknown , July 1777

(4) Brig [] unknown , July 1777

(5) Ship Hero (James [][] Richard Tate), August 1777

Actions: (1) Acition with Royal George , 25 January 1777 (2) Action with Hero , [] August 1777

Comments:

The 90-ton 1 Massachusetts Privateer Sloop Satisfaction was commissioned on 4 November 1776 under Commander John Stevens of Boston, Massachusetts. She was listed as being armed with fourteen 4-pounders and twelve swivel guns and as having a crew of 100 men. Joseph Drinkwater served aboard as First Lieutenant, John Bartlett 2 of Marblehead, Massachusetts, 3 as Second

1 History of Newburyport, Mass : 1764-1905, Volume 1, 639

2 NDAR, “Petition for Commission for John Stevens to Command the Massachusetts Privateer Sloop Satisfaction ,” 8:33

3 Howe, Beverly Privateers in the Revolution , 425

©awiatsea.com-posted February 2020 --3-- Lieutenant and Samuel 4 []James 5 Brown as Master. 6 Dr. Thomas Fling 7 []Flint 8 was aboard as Surgeon, and Thomas Oliver 9 []Brewer 10 as Surgeon’s Mate. 11 Other officers aboard were First Lieutenant of Marines Richard Thomas, Second Lieutenant of Marines Ezekiel Loring, and Prize Masters Thomas Doliber, Benjamin Tucker, and Nathaniel Lee. 12

The owners are given as Tristram Dalton of Newburport, and Joseph Russell, Joseph Barrel and Job Prince of Boston. 13 Her $5000 Continental bond was executed by Stevens and by John Cushing and Samuel White, both of Boston. 14

As was usual before sailing a division of prize shares was drawn up. There were 127 shares in total. The captain was to get eight shares and First Lieutenant Drinkwater seven. The Second Lieutenant, the Master, Surgeon Fling and his mate, Oliver, all got four each. 15

Stevens’s initial voyage seems to have been across the ocean to European waters. One report indicates that she cruised off the Irish coast. 16 In the course of the cruise he captured two prizes. These were the brigantine Margaret and the ship Royal George , but the order of capture is unknown.

The 160 17 or 200-ton brigantine Margaret (John Biddlecomb) 18 was bound from St. Ubes, Portugal

4 NDAR, “Petition for Commission for John Stevens to Command the Massachusetts Privateer Sloop Satisfaction ,” VII, 33

5 Clayton, W. Woodford, History of Cumberland Co., , with Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of It’s Prominent Men and Pioneers . : Everts & Peck, 1880, p. 343

6 NDAR, “Petition for Commission for John Stevens to Command the Massachusetts Privateer Sloop Satisfaction ,” VII, 33

7 McManemin, Captains of the Privateers , 247

8 Clayton, History of Cumberland Co. , 343

9 McManemin, Captains of the Privateers , 247

10 Clayton, History of Cumberland Co. , 343

11 McManemin, Captains of the Privateers , 247

12 Clayton, History of Cumberland Co. , 343. Clayton prints the full crew list of eighty-seven names.

13 NDAR, “Petition for Commission for John Stevens to Command the Massachusetts Privateer Sloop Satisfaction ,” VII, 33

14 Allen, Massachusetts Privateers of the Revolution , 274

15 McManemin, Captains of the Privateers , 247

16 Claytond, History of Cumberland Co. , 343

17 Lloyd’s Register of Shipping 1776

18 The Boston Gazette, and Country Journal , Monday, April 14, 1777

--4-- to Pool, England. 19 Margaret had been built in Newfoundland in 1773 and was owned by J. And B. Lester of Pool. 20 She had a cargo of salt aboard 21 when she was captured by the privateer. The crew was removed and put on a French ship which took them into Lisbon, Portugal. The released prisoners reported that the Satisfaction was armed with fourteen guns and sixteen swivel guns and had a crew of 100 men. 22 Margaret was sent into Boston, arriving on 17 February 1777. 23 Margaret was libeled in the Massachusetts Maritime Court of the Middle District onn 14 April 1777, and tried on 19 April. 24

The 220-ton ship Royal George 25 (Peter 26 []John Young) 27 was captured by the Satisfaction , off the Rocks of Lisbon, Portugal, on 25 January 1777. 28 She was bound from London, England to Venice in the Republic of Venice, 29 or to Constantinople, 30 with a very assorted cargo of alum, dry goods, earthen ware, pipes, hardware, pepper, sasparilla, Epson salts, tin plates and assorted items. Royal George was armed with twenty-four guns, between 1-pounders and 3-pounders, and was reported to measure 300 tons. 31 Young made a running fight of it, and only surrendered after he and two of the crew were wounded. The crew was later released aboard a French ship. 32 She was libeled and tried at the same time as the Margaret .33

The British newspaper reported her loss on 11 March 1777. The British reported that the privateer

19 New-Lloyd’s List [] London , February 25, 1777

20 Lloyd’s Register of Shipping 1776

21 The Pennsylvania Gazette [] Philadelphia , Sunday, March 19, 1777, datelined Boston, February 24

22 New-Lloyd’s List [] London , February 25, 1777

23 The Pennsylvania Gazette [] Philadelphia , Sunday, March 19, 1777, datelined Boston, February 24

24 The Boston Gazette, and Country Journal , Monday, April 14, 1777

25 The Boston Gazette, and Country Journal , Monday, April 14, 1777

26 The Pennsylvania Gazette [] Philadelphia , Sunday, March 26, 1777, datelined Boston, March 13

27 The Boston Gazette, and Country Journal , Monday, April 14, 1777

28 McManemin, Captains of the Privateers , 248

29 The Pennsylvania Gazette [] Philadelphia , Sunday, March 26, 1777, datelined Boston, March 13

30 McManemin, Captains of the Privateers , 248

31 The Pennsylvania Gazette [] Philadelphia , Sunday, March 26, 1777, datelined Boston, March 13

32 McManemin, Captains of the Privateers , 248

33 The Boston Gazette, and Country Journal , Monday, April 14, 1777

©awiatsea.com-posted February 2020 --5-- had fourteen guns and a crew of ninety-eight men. The Margaret was in company with the Satisfaction when she was taken. On 27 January 1777, the privateer’s position was 14 EW,35 EN. 34

According to the autobiography of Philip Besom, he “shipped on board the privateer Satisfaction of fourteen guns, Captain John Stevens. We went to sea immediately, and, during that cruise, captured four English ships, one of which carried sixteen guns . . .” Nothing is know of the other two vessels, which may have been sold in Europe. 35

Satisfaction was re-commissioned under Commander John Wheelwright of Portsmouth, New Hampshire on 10 May 1777. She was listed as being armed with fourteen guns and as having a crew of fifty men. Her $5000 Continental bond was signed by Wheelwright and by Cushing and White. 36 Satisfaction was owned by John Cushing and Samuel White of Boston, Massachusetts, 37 and Tristram Dalton of Newburyport, Massachusetts. 38

Satisfaction sailed with the Hancock and Boston 39 on 21 May 1777, 40 as part of the mixed fleet led by Captain John Manley. She was disabled in a gale and returned to refit in early June. 41 She was fitting out at Plymouth in June 1777. Wheelwright reported on 10 June that he had seventy men aboard and would soon sail. He noted he needed no provisions as he had "fed them Chiefly on grog." The sloop had fourteen guns and was owned by Cushing & White. 42

Satisfaction sailed on her second cruise in June 1777. Officers aboard for this cruise were First Lieutenant James Brown, Second Lieutenant William Collins Meserve, Master Jacob Pope, Prize Master Ebenezer Nicholson, First Mate Robert Oram, Second Mate Abraham Howard, and Surgeon Joseph Martin. There were a total of sixty-six men in the crew. 43

34 New-Lloyd’s List [] London , Tuesday, March 11, 1777

35 McManemin, Captains of the Privateers , 248

36 Allen, Massachusetts Privateers of the Revolution , 274. See also NDAR, “The Boston Gazette, and Country Journal , Monday, October 6, 1777, 10:14-15 and 15 note

37 NDAR, “The Boston Gazette, and Country Journal , Monday, October 6, 1777,” 10:14-15 and 15 note; “Tristram Dalton to John Cushing and Samuel White,” 10:134-135

38 NDAR, “Tristram Dalton to John Cushing and Samuel White,” 10:134-135

39 NDAR, “John Bradford to Robert Morris,” 9:93-94

40 NDAR, “Vice Admiral James Young to Johannes de Graaff,” 9:322-323

41 NDAR, “John Bradford to Robert Morris,” 9:93-94

42 NDAR, “Captain John Wheelwriht to Cushing & White,” 9:80 and note

43 NDAR, “Division of Prize Money for Massachusetts Privateer Sloop Satisfaction ,” 10:7-9 and 9 note

©awiatsea.com-posted February 2020 --6-- She was at sea on 28 July, when she spoke the Dutch ship Spoors (Anthunson) at 38 oN, 40 o30' W. He reported her as fourteen guns, sailing with a brig of twelve guns and a sloop of ten guns, from . They had taken two brigs owned in Liverpool and from Jamaica. 44

Another ship taken on this cruise was the 300 45 (or 130) 46 ton ship Hero 47 (James 48 []Richard 49 Tate 50 []Tare ) owned in Liverpool, England. Hero was armed with twelve 6-pounders and four swivel guns, and had a crew of thirty men. She had a rich cargo of sugar, rum, cotton, indigo, fustic, wine, turtle shell, wood and ivory. Hero fought Satisfaction for two and a half hours before Tate struck. The prize was sent into Bedford in Dartmouth, Massachusetts, arriving before 2 October 1777, 51 but probably in mid-September. 52 She was libeled on 9 October 1777 and tried on 28 October. 53 At least one man, James Allen, was killed in this fight. 54 Hero was libeled on 16 October 1777, in the Massachusetts Maritime Court of the Middle District, and tried on 28 October. 55

In early October 1777 Satisfaction returned to port. This was a very successful cruise for the Satisfaction . In a distribution of prize money about mid-October 1777 (most receipts are dated 14 October), the average sailor received £12.14.0 per share. Wheelwright, with eight shares, received over £ 100. 56

44 NDAR, “Extract of a letter from Dover, Aug. 21,” 9:591-592

45 NDAR, “The Boston Gazette, and Country Journal , Monday, October 6, 1777,” 10:14-15 and 15 note

46 NDAR, “Libels Filed in the Massachusetts Maritime Court of the Middle District,” 10:89-90

47 NDAR, “The Boston Gazette, and Country Journal , Monday, October 6, 1777,” 10:14-15 and 15 note; “Libels Filed in the Massachusetts Maritime Court of the Middle District,” 10:89-90

48 NDAR, “Libels Filed in the Massachusetts Maritime Court of the Middle District,” 10:89-90

49 NDAR, “The Boston Gazette, and Country Journal , Monday, October 6, 1777,” 10:14-15 and 15 note

50 NDAR, “The Boston Gazette, and Country Journal , Monday, October 6, 1777,” 10:14-15 and 15 note; “Libels Filed in the Massachusetts Maritime Court of the Middle District,” 10:89-90

51 NDAR, “The Boston Gazette, and Country Journal , Monday, October 6, 1777,” 10:14-15 and 15 note; “Tristram Dalton to John Cushing and Samuel White,” 10:134-135

52 The Continental Journal, and Weekly Advertiser []Boston , Thursday, September 17, 1778. It was probably from the prize crew of the Hero that the paper learned of the death of James Allen.

53 NDAR, “Libels Filed in the Massachusetts Maritime Court of the Middle District,” 10:89-90

54 The Continental Journal, and Weekly Advertiser [] Boston , Thursday, September 17, 1778

55 The Independent Chronicle, and the Universal Advertiser [] Boston , Thirsday, October 16, 1777

56 NDAR, “Division of Prize Money for Massachusetts Privateer Sloop Satisfaction ,” 10:7-9 and 9 note

©awiatsea.com-posted February 2020 --7-- An advertisement for the sale of the brig appeared in the Boston paper on 27 November 1778, to be sold at auction on 3 December 1778. Also advertised were 4-pound guns and assorted equipment. The advertisement was placed by Job Prince. 57

57 The Independent Chronicle, and the Universal Advertiser [] Boston , Thursday, November 17, 1777

©awiatsea.com-posted February 2020 --8--