Georgiana (1791 ship)

Georgiana first appears in Lloyd's Register in 1791 with W. Waring, master, St Barbe & Co, owner, and trade London—Turkey.[7]

Captain William Waring received a letter of marque for Georgiana on 29 August 1793.[2] Lloyd's Register for 1793 showed her sailing between London and Turkey.[5]

In 1794 William Waring became master of Amazon, but LR carried the 1793 information unchanged for a number of years.

Reportedly, initially the EIC simply chartered Georgiana, but later it purchased her outright.[1] She served as a packet ship between England and India, and also as a tender to the EIC's station at St Helena. The EIC on 19 April 1794 appointed Captain John Luard captain of Georgiana.[8]

After her return to England, her owners sold Georgiana to Enderby & Co., London. Enderbys appointed Captain W. Pitt as master, and dispatched Georgiana to the South Seas fishery.[6][13]

In early 1813 Captain David Porter entered the Pacific, via Cape Horn, in the thirty-two gun frigate USS Essex.

On 29 April 1813 boats from Essex captured Georgiana off the Galapagos Islands[14][Note 1] That same day Essex captured two more British whalers, Montezuma and Policy.

Porter referred to Georgiana as a "letter of marque ship, armed with six 18-pdrs., 4 swivels, and 6 long blunderbusses". He took her crew off and put some 40 to 60 men and some guns aboard her. On 8 May he commissioned her as the USS Georgiana, under the command of Lieutenant John Downes.[14]

Departing 12 May, Georgiana cruised off the Galapagos in search of British whaling ships. While sailing near James Island 28 May, she met Catharine and Rose and captured them with no resistance. She then chased a third whaler, Hector and engaged in a brief, but sharp, combat that brought down Hector's main-topmast and most of her standing and running rigging. After capturing Hector, Georgiana placed the crews of all three whalers in Rose, under parole, and sent her as a cartel to St Helena. Georgiana, Catherine, and Hector then on 24 June joined Essex at Tumbez, Peru.[14] Also on 28 May, Essex captured the whaler Greenwich; Porter armed her too as and put Lieutenant Gamble of the US Marines on her as captain.

Georgiana departed Tumbez on 30 June and sailed for the Galapagos with Essex and the prizes. On 13 July she aided Greenwich during a spirited encounter with Seringapatam.

The other two whalers the Americans captured that day were Charlton and New Zealander. Porter fitted out Seringapatam to replace Georgiana. Despite her captures, Georgiana had proven to be a "dull sailer". Porter loaded Georgiana with a full cargo of sperm oil from several of the captured whalers. He reduced her armament, manned her by a prize crew under Lieutenant James Wilson. She departed the Galapagos for the United States 25 July.

On 28 November 1813, HMS Barrosa recaptured Georgiana and sent her into Bermuda. Lloyd's Register for 1814 has the notation "captured" crossed out. It also shows Captain B. Boyes replacing Pitt.[17]

On 13 March 1814 Georgiana returned to England. She was carrying almost 3000 barrels of oil as she the combined cargoes of several of the whalers the Americans had captured, as well as her own.[13]

Her recapture gave rise to a court case over whether Georgiana and her cargo were a prize, or salvage. The High Court of Admiralty ruled for salvage for the cargo, but a prize for the vessel.[18]

The Register of Shipping for 1815 shows Georgiana with R. Boyes, master and owner, and trade London-Bremen.[4] Lloyd's Register (1815) shows B. Boyes as master and J. Boyes as owner.[19]

Georgiana put into Funchal, Madeira, on 24 February 1818 as she was sailing from Antwerp for the River Plate. She was leaking badly. She was surveyed at Funchal, condemned, and sold there for breaking up.[1]

Notes

Citations

References

• This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
• Dodson, John (1853). English Admiralty Reports: Reports of cases argued and determined in the High court of admiralty, commencing with the judgments of the Right Hon. Sir William Scott, Trinity term, 1811[-1822]. Boston: Little, Brown.
• Hackman, Rowan (2001). Ships of the East India Company. Gravesend, Kent: World Ship Society. ISBN 0-905617-96-7.
• Hardy, Horatio Charles (1811). A register of ships, employed in the service of the Honorable the United East India Company, from the year 1760 to 1810: with an appendix, containing a variety of particulars, and useful information interesting to those concerned with East India commerce. Black, Parry, and Kingsbury.
• Hardy, Charles (1820). A Register of Ships, Employed in the Service of the Honorable the United East India Company, from the Year 1760 to 1819, with an Appendix: Containing a Variety of Particulars and Useful Information, Interesting to Those Concerned with East India Commerce. (Black, Kingsbury, Parbury and Allen.