Prologue

LIFE OF RICHARD SOMERS

By Dr. J. B. Somers, MD

Life of RICHARD SOMERS, A MASTER COMMANDANT IN THE U.S. NAVY, Collated by J.B. Somers, M.D. (Philadelphia, Collins, 1886, 2004, ACHS).

(Dedicated to Mrs. Hannah Somers Davis, now in her ninety first year of her age, whose abiding interest in Somers’s has stimulated the writer to perform this LABOR OF LOVE AND DUTY for a distinguished member of the family.)

THERE are in America two distinct families by the name of Somers. One of English and the other of Germanic origin. The latter are not so numerous as the former, and a tradition exists among them that they too were from English parentage, that the progenitor of their family, sojourning in Germany, married, and hence settled in the Fatherland...

In England, the name is an old and honored one, furnishing a chancellor, according to Campbell, “eminent as a lawyer, a statesman, and a man of letters.” Of the same family was the famous admiral, Sir George Somers, the discover of the Bermudas or Somers Islands...

John Somers, the immigrant to this country, was born in the city of Worester, England, about the year 1640. this was the home also of the chancellor, with whom he was a contemporary...

The Somers family “had long been owners of a small estate in the parish of Seven Stroke, in the county of Gloucester...the site of a dissolved nunnery, called White Ladies. This was situated a short distance beyond the walls of the city of Worester. After the expulsions of the nuns, the dormitory remained entire, and the old hall and refectory had been fitted up into a modern mansion. The property had been granted to the Somers family at the Reformaton, and here they received Queen Elizabeth in 1585; the bed in which she slept, and the cup from which she drank, being preserved by them as precious relicts, even when they took to the Republican side.”

John Somers...embarked for America, fully persuaded of the truth of the principles of George Fox. He is said to have married previously to his departure to a women of Irish extraction, who on her passage to this country gave birth to her first born, but mother and child died and were buried in mid-ocean. Upon his arrival he became a resident of what was then called Upper Dublin, Pennsylvania, now called Somerton. Whilst located there, he married Hannah Hodgkins, who was also a native of the city of Worcester and a member of the Society of Friends. Here their first child was born on October 7, 1685, and duly recorded in the books of the meeting...

We are told by one authority that “in 1681 two ships sailed from London and one from Bristol for the river Delaware, in which there were many Friends.” The probabilities are that one of these bore the progenitor of the Somers’s to our shores.

....at “the first court held at Portsmouth, Cape May County, March 20, 1693, John Somers was appointed supervisor of the roads, and constable or Great Egg Harbor.” He remained a member of the Dublin Meeting long after his settlement at Egg Harbor. In the journeys to and fro the Indian trails and bridle paths were followed from the sea-shore to the Delaware River, the distance being increased by circuitous windings around the heads of rivers and streams. These were not accomplished without considerable danger, as the woods abounded with wolves, panthers, and bears. The times, however, had their compensations, since the deer roamed the forests, wild fowl were abundant, whilst the streams and bays were teaming with fish, oysters and clams.

November 30, 1695, John Somers purchased of Thos. Budd 3000 acres of land for the sum of L240. He died 1723, and was buried on the plantation.

The eldest son of John Somers was Richard 1., born March 1, 1693, who was the grandfather of Lieutenant Richard.

Richard (I) married Miss Judith Letart White, of Acadia French-Canadian extraction….The result of the union of Richard and Judith LEtart was nine children, the sixth one being Richard 2. Somers, the father of the subject of this memoir.

Col. Richard Somers was born November 24, 1737. He was for the times considered a man of extraordinary parts. As a surveyor he located a great deal of land in what is now known as Atlantic County.

He was a colonel in the militia, a judge of the county court, and his name appears among those of the members from his native county in the Provincial Congress for the year 1775; though it would seem that he did not take his seat.

Col. Somers was an active Whig in the Revolution, and was such employed, in the field and otherwise, more especially during the first years of the great struggle for national existence. His influence, in the part of New Jersey where he resided, was of sufficient importance to render him particularly obnoxious to the attacks of the Tories, who were in the practice of seizing prominent Whigs, and of carrying them within the British lines; and Great Egg Harbor being much exposed to descents from the side of the sea, Col. Somers was induced to remove to Philadelphia for protection. As this removal most have taken place after the town had been evacuated by Sir Henry Clinton, it could not have taken place earlier than the summer of 1778; and there is good reason for thinking that it occurred two or three seasons later. Here Col. Somers remained for several years, or nearly down to the period of his death, which event occurred October 22, 1974. He married Sophia Stillwell, of Cape May County, December 3, 1761, by whom he had three children, Constant, Sarah and Richard. 3.

Constant Somers married a Miss Sarah Hand, of Cape May County. He was the first collector for the district and port of Great Egg Harbor, a man of sterling integrity and personal worth. He died in 1797, at the age of thirty-seven years, leaving a son and daughter. The former, who bore his father’s name, was accidentally killed at Cronstadt, Russia, August 29, 1794, whilst yet a youth of seventeen, by falling into the hold of a ship. The daughter, Sarah S. Somers, married first Wm. Leaming and afterward Nicholas Corson, both of Cape May. The hon. J. F. Leaming, M. D. of that county is a son by the first marriage. His mother was the last to bear the name of Somers in that branch of the family, since by her marriage the name became extinct.

Dr. Leaming is in the possession of a very valuable souvenir. There are but three locks of the hair of General Washington now known to exist; one is in Richmond Lodge No. 4, A. F. A. M. Another is owned by the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts, and a third is in a ring that was presented by Washington to Lieut. Richard Somers, and through whom it descended to its present owner.

Sarah, the daughter of Col. Somers married Capt. Wm. Jones Keen, of Philadelphia, and died in 1850, leaving no issue.

Lieut. Richard Somers, the youngest child of Col. Richard Somers, was born in Somers Point, September 15, 1778. the house is still standing where he first saw the light, and until recently the door lintels bore dates, and the names of the persons who carved them, of upwards a century ago. It has recently been remodeled, and is now occupied by George C. Anderson.

As a matter of historical interest, to show a portraiture of the home of Somers during his lifetime, and but shortly after the death of his father, I include the following advertisement, clipped from Claypoole’s ‘American Daily Advertiser’ for Friday, January 10, 1800.

TO BE RENTED

That well-known pleasantly situated place at Great Egg-harbor Inlet, formerly the Residence of Col. Richard Somers, containing four hundred acres of upland and three of meadow and marsh.

The dwelling house is commodious, with suitable out buildings, and well calculated for store and tavern keeping.

N. B. There are four apple and one peach orchard all in good repair; other advantages from nature, of fish, fowl and oysters unexcelled by any place in the country.

Apply to WM. JONES KEEN, Front St., or on the premises.

At the time that Mr. Keen was seeking a tenant for the “Old House at Home,” Lieut. Somers was voyaging in the frigate United States with Commodore Barry.

After receiving a preliminary education Somers first went to school in Philadelphia, and was subsequently sent to Burlington, where there was an academy of some merit for the period. At the latter place the boy continued until near the time of the death of his father, if not quite down to the day of that event.

There is considerable uncertainty thrown around the precise period when Somers first went to sea. His nearest surviving relative is of the opinion that he had never entered upon the profession when he joined the navy, but this opinion is met by the precise knowledge of one of his shipmates in the frigate in which he first served, who affirms that the young man was a very respectable seaman on coming on board. The result of our inquiries is to convince us that Somers must have gone to sea somewhere about the year 1794, or shortly after the death of his father, and when he himself was probably between fifteen and sixteen years of age. The latter period indeed agrees with that named by the relative mentioned, as his age when he went to sea, though it is irreconcilable with the date of the equipment of the man-of-war he first joined, and that of his own warrant in the navy.

From the best information in our possession, therefore, we are led to believe that the boy sailed first as a hand and then as a mate, if not as a master, on board a coaster, owned by some of his own family, of which more than one plied between Great Egg Harbor and the ports of New York and Philadelphia. This accords, too with his well-known love of adventure and native resolution, as well as his orphaned condition; though he inherited from his father a respectable property, including a portion of the original family estate, as well as of lands in the interior of Pennsylvania.

In his boyhood and youth Somers was remarkable for a chivalrous sense of honor, great mildness of manner and disposition, mingled with a singular firmness of purpose. His uncle, John Somers, who was the head of the family, and as such maintained an authority that was more usual in the last century than it is to-day, is described as an austere accustomed to meet with the greatest deference amongst his kindred, not only for all of his commands, but for most of his opinions. The firmness and decision shown by his nephew Richard, however, in a controversy about a dog, in which the uncle was wrong and the boy right, are said to have astonished the whole family, and to have created a profound respect in the senior for the junior, that continued as long as the two lived. Richard could not have been more than twelve when this little incident occurred.

Somers received his warrant as a midshipman in the spring of 1798. This was virtually at the commencement of the present navy, the Ganges 24, Capt. Dale, the first vessel that got out, being ordered to sea, May 22d of that year. The Ganges was soon followed by the Constellation 38, and Delaware 20, the three ships cruising on the coast to prevent the depredations committed by the French privateers.

The next vessel out was the Untied States, 44, bearing the broad pennant of Com. John Barry, the senior officer of the service. To this vessel Somers was attached, making his first cruise in her.

The United States was then, as now, one of the finest frigates that floats. Equipped in Philadelphia, then the capitol of the country, and the center of civilization, and commanded by an experienced and excellent officer, no young man could have commenced his professional career under more favorable auspices than was the case with Somers. The ship had four lieutenants, Ross 1st, Mullowney 2d, Barron 3d, Steward, 4th. The two latter are now the senior officers of the service. Among the messmates in the steerage, he had for friends and associates Decatur and Caldwell, both of Philadelphia. It is a proof that Somers had been previously to sea, that, on joining this ship, he was named as master’s mate of the hold, a situation uniformly given in that day to the most experienced and trustworthy midshipman. It was while thus associated that the close connection was generated between Somers and Decatur, which, for the remainder of their joint lives, rendered them generous professional rivals and fast personal friends.

The United States sailed on her first cruise early in July 1798, going to the eastward, where she collected a small squadron, that had come out of the ports of New England, and with which she soon after proceeded to the West Indies……Shortly after Mr. Ross left the ship, and Messrs. Mullowney and Barron were promoted. This occurred in the spring of 1700, when Mr. Stewart became 1st lieutenant of the frigate, Mr. Edward Meade 2d, Somers 3d, Decatur 4th...Mr. Stewart being placed in command of the Experiment 12, in the year 1800, Somers ended the war as a second lieutenant of the ship he had joined as midshipman about three years before...

Lueut. Somers left a journal of a cruise in the frigate United States, commencing with Dec. 13th, 1800……

….By this time, however, the want of small vessels was much felt in carrying on the Tripolitan war, and a law providing for the construction of four vessels of not more than sixteen guns, passed in the session of 1802-3. These vessels were the Siren 16, Argus 16, Nautilus 12, Visen 12. As the country at that day had no proper yards, it was customary to assign certain officers to superintend the building and equipping of vessels on the stocks, the selections being commonly made from those it was intended should subsequently serve in them. On this occasion Decatur was attached to the Argus; it being understood he was to take her to the Mediterranean and give her to Hull, receiving the Enterprise from the latter in exchange, as the junior officer. Stewart was given the Siren, as his due; Smith got the Vixen, and Somers the Nautilus.... (Spring of 1803)

The Nautilus, the first and only command of Somers [other than the Intrepid], was a beautiful schooner of about 160 to 170 tons, and mounted twelve 18 lb. cannonades, with two sixes, having a crew of from 75 to 95 souls. This was a handsome situation for a young sailor of twenty-four, who had followed his profession but about nine years, and who had been in the navy but five, having commenced a midshipman. In that day, however, non one envied Somers, or believed him unduly favored, for he was thought to be an old officer, though he had not been half the time in the service which is now employed in the subordinate situations of midshipman and passed midshipman.

The Mediterranean squadron, which sailed in the summer and autumn of 1803, was that which subsequently became so celebrated under the orders of Preble. It consisted of the Constitution 44, Preble’s own ship, the Philadelphia, 38, Capt. Bainbridge; Argus 16, fist Lieut. Com. Decatur, then Lieut. Com. Hull; Siren 16, Lieut. Com. Stewart; Vixen 12, Lieut. Com. Smith; Enterprise, 12, first Lieut. Com. Hull, then Lieut. Com. Decatur; and Nautilus 12, Lieut. Com. Somers. These vessels did not proceed to their station in squadron, but they left home as they got ready. The Enterprise was already out; but of the ships fitting, the Nautilus was the first equipped and the first to sail. Somers left America early in the summer, and anchored in Gibraltar Bay on 27th of July. The remaining vessels arrived at different times…..

….Preble made a formal declaration of the blockade of Tripoli, before which he believed that the Philadelphia and Vixen were then cruising; though, unknown to him, the latter had been temporarily detached, and the Philadelphia was in possession of the enemy….

A spirit of high emulation existed among the young commanders by whom Preble now found himself supported. Hull was the oldest in years, and he had hardly reached the prime of his life, while Stewart, Smith, Somers and Decatur were all under five and twenty. With the exception of the commodore, no commanding officer was married, and most of them were bound together by the ties of intimate friendships. In a word, their lives, as yet, had been prosperous; the past left little opportunity for that spirit of selfishness which is so apt to generate quarrels, to get possession of minds so free and temperaments so ardent.

This is the proper place to allude to a private adventure of Somers, about the existence of which there would seem to have been no doubt, though like so much that belonged to this interesting man, its details are involved in obscurity. While at Syracuse, where the American vessels made their principle rendezvous, he was walking in the vicinity of the town in the accompany with two brother officers, when five men carrying swords, who were afterwards ascertained to be soldiers of the garrison, made an attack on the party with an intent to rob. One of the gentlemen was provided with a dirk, but Somers and the other were totally unarmed. The officer with the dirk used the weapon so vigorously as soon to bring down one assailant, while Somers grappled with another. In the struggle Somers seized the blade of the antagonist’s sword, and was severely cut in the hand by the efforts of the robber to recover it; but the latter did not succeed, the weapon being wrestled from him, and plunged into his own body. This decided the matter, the three remaining robbers taking to flight….

The harbor of Tripoli lies in a shallow indentation of the coast, being tolerably protected against easterly and westerly gales by the formation of the land, while a reef of rocks, which stretches for a mile and a half in a northeasterly course, commencing at the town itself, breaks the seas that roll in from the northward. The reef extends nearly half a mile from the walls, entirely above water, and is of sufficient height and with to receive water batteries, containing the Lazaretto and one or two forts. It is this commencement of the reef which constitutes what is usually termed the mole, and behind it lies the harbor proper. At its termination is a narrow opening in the reef which is called the western entrance, though which it is possible for a ship to pass, though the channel is not more than two hundred feet in width...

In the bottom of the bay, or at the southeastern angle of the town, stands the Bashaw’s castle, a work of some size and force. It lies rather more than a half mile form the western entrance, and somewhat more than a mile from the outer extremity of the reef....