Ship's Log for the USS Southampton, 1851, Kept by Lt. Peter Turner 

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Jun 12, 2015 - Jun 13, 2015

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• Lot Description
  Letter book, 8.5 x 13 in., 236pp. First two pages are directions for keeping the log, first entry is for Monday, Dec. 30, 1850, at Brooklyn Navy Yard, and entries continue daily until Friday October 31, 1851, at San Francisco Harbor. Each page with the heading Log of the U.S. Ship Southampton / Lieut. Peter Turner Commanding. Southampton left Brooklyn Navy Yard February 2, 1851, reached Rio de Janeiro March 22, and stayed until the 27th, spent April 5-11 in Montevideo, rounded Cape Horn on May 12, spent two and a half months in Valparaiso, June 10 to August 26, harbored at Callao, Peru, September 3-9, and reached San Francisco October 18.  Every entry at sea includes the ship's coordinates and course, the wind direction and strength, the weather, air and water temperature, atmospheric pressure, water expended, and the sick report, plus remarks as to the movements of the sails, maintenance work on the ship, and sightings and correspondence with passing ships.  Entries in harbor include the winds and things such as deliveries, supplies acquired, and men discharged, transferred, and disciplined.  An entry in Rio includes discontinuing use of the ship's boat due to the fear of yellow fever, and one in San Francisco notes the desertion of several men.
  
  Southampton was laid down in Norfolk, VA, in October 1841, purchased by the United States in early 1845, and commissioned May 27 of that year with Lt. Henry W. Morris in command. She sailed for Africa on June 27 and served as a storeship for the cruiser's African Squadron until returning to Norfolk in December 1846.  In 1847 she was sent around Cape Horn to California to supply the ships protecting the newly won territory of the United States, and remained until returning to New York on September 2, 1850.  The log offered here begins on the day of her recommissioning for a similar mission to California, which lasted until August 5, 1852, after which she was assigned to Commodore Matthew Perry's squadron and was part of the expedition to Japan before being decommissioned and entering merchant service in 1855.
  
  The William Turner Family
  
  Lots 1-29
  
  Cowan’s is pleased to offer selection of items from the William Turner family of Newport, Rhode Island, some of which have been passed down several generations. Items offered in this sale include photographs, manuscripts, signed documents, relics, and uniform accoutrements, most related to the naval careers of prominent members of the family. Photographs and other items related to less noteworthy members of the family will be offered in our July 2 to July 13 American History Timed Online Only auction, and many more items from the family, including furniture, silver, scrimshaw, painted portraits, and other fine art and decorative items will be offered in Cowan’s June 20 Americana sale. Below are brief biographies of members of the Turner family relevant to this sale.
  
  1st Generation: Dr. William Turner (1712-1754) grew up in Newport, Rhode Island where, according to family history, he studied medicine under Dr. Norbent Vigneron (French, 1669-1764). After completing his apprenticeship, Dr. Turner relocated to Newark, New Jersey, where he opened a successful professional practice. William married Mehitable Foster (b. 1715) with whom he had four children, including Daniel (1750-1837), and Peter (1751-1822).
  
  2nd Generation: Daniel Turner (1750-1837), known as Captain Daniel, married his first cousin Sarah Foster (1754-1809) before serving in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War. Together, they had ten children, including William (1775-1837), Peter (1781-1812), and Daniel (1794-1850).
  
  2nd Generation: Dr. Peter Turner (1751-1822), Captain Daniel's younger brother, served as a surgeon in the 1st Rhode Island Regiment of the Continental Army under General James Varnum (American, 1748-1789) and Colonel Christopher Greene (American, 1737-1781). Family tradition tells us that he served on General George Washington's staff at Valley Forge where he established a friendship with the Marquis de Lafayette (French, 1757-1834), who also stayed at Washington's encampment. Following the war, Dr. Turner and his wife Eliza Child settled in East Greenwich, Rhode Island at 21 Courthouse Lane, across the street from their brother-in-law General Varnum, whose wife Martha Child was Eliza's sister. Peter and Eliza had nine children, including Mehitable Foster (1780-1853).
  
  3rd Generation: Commodore Daniel Turner (1794-1850), the son of Captain Daniel, began his career in the U.S. Navy as a midshipman at the age of fourteen, subsequently earning the rank of lieutenant on March 12, 1813. Two days later, he joined Oliver Hazard Perry's (American, 1785-1819) squadron at Sackett's Harbor, New York where he took command of the brig Caledonia in the Battle of Lake Erie. On September 10, 1813, Turner distinguished himself by providing suppressive fire for Perry's flagship Lawrence, thereby earning a Congressional medal and a sword from the State of New York. After serving under Perry's command on the frigate Java and the schooner Nonsuch, Turner commanded the USS Erie and the USS Constitution.
  
  3rd Generation: Dr. William Turner (1775-1837), the son of Captain Daniel and the older brother of Commodore Daniel, served as a surgeon in the United States Navy. William married his first cousin Mehitable Foster (1780-1853), the daughter of Dr. Peter (1751-1822), and they had nine children, including Peter (1803-1871).
  
  3rd Generation: Benjamin Bourne Turner (1780-1807), the son of Captain Daniel and brother of Commodore Daniel and Dr. William, appointed midshipman in the United States Navy Sept. 27, 1800, and lieutenant March 9, 1807. Unmarried, he was killed in a duel with Master John Rush, US Navy, Oct. 31, 1807, in New Orleans, over an argument about William Shakespeare.
  
  4th Generation: Commodore Peter Turner (1803-1871) began his career in the U.S. Navy as a midshipman at the age of twenty, subsequently earning the rank of lieutenant on December 20, 1832. From 1834 to 1835, he served on the USS Columbus within his uncle Commodore Daniel Turner's (1794-1850) Brazil Squadron. He also served aboard the USS Constitution in the Pacific and afterward on special duty at Portsmouth Navy Yard. His final cruise was on the USS Southampton before serving as commander of the U.S. Naval Asylum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was commissioned as a commodore in 1867. He married Sarah Stafford Jones (1826-1875) and had five children, including Hettie Foster (1850-1937).
  
  5th Generation: Hettie Foster Turner (1850-1937) married Henry Harlan (1848-1898) and they had three children, including James Turner (1881-1931), through whose descendants the Turner family collection is being offered for sale. 
  
  Provenance:Descended in the Turner Family of Newport, RI

  Condition

  All pages in very good condition and clearly legible.  Binding tight.  Light shelf wear, with the only significant issue being some mold damage to the front cover.
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