Robert Waterman (sea captain)
Encyclopedia
Robert H. Waterman, known as 'Bully Waterman' or 'Bully Bob Waterman', was an American merchant sea captain. He set three sailing speed records; his time of 74 days from Hong Kong
to New York City
has never been bettered in a sail-powered vessel. He was reputed as a martinet, and was once convicted of assault against a crewman in a controversial California criminal case.
packet Britannia. His captain aboard the Britannia, Charles Marshall, later bought the packet South America and made Waterman the skipper. It was Waterman's first command.
In 1836, Waterman accepted command of the cotton freighter Natchez, owned by Howland & Aspinwall
, a Manhattan
merchant company. He guided the Natchez on several voyages around Cape Horn
to Valparaiso
. In 1842, Howland & Aspinwall switched the Natchez to the China trade, and Waterman sailed her to Macao
. His return trip from Macao to New York took only 78 days, a new record.
. Waterman worked with the ship's designer, John W. Griffiths
, designing much of the Sea Witchs rig and sail plan, specifying 140 feet (42.7 m) masts and more square footage of sail than a 74-gun warship. In 1847, he brought the Sea Witch from Hong Kong to New York in 77 days, beating his previous record by a day.
In 1849, Waterman set his final record for the Hong Kong–New York trip. Leaving New York on April 27, 1848, he went to China by the unusual route of Cape Horn
(most China clippers traveled by way of the Cape of Good Hope
). Loading a cargo of tea at Hong Kong, Waterman took the Sea Witch out of harbor on January 9, 1849. Spending much of the voyage under full sail, he started the Sea Witchs return voyage via the Sunda Strait
, often covering over 200 miles (321.9 km) per day and once reaching 300 miles (482.8 km). He reached the Cape of Good Hope February 16, logging a 308 miles (495.7 km) run for the day, his best of the voyage. Waterman reached New York on March 25, a 74 day passage. Neither he nor any other captain of a sail-powered vessel would ever break this record.
.
Unfortunately for all concerned, N. L. & G. Griswold had failed to provide Challenge with an experienced crew; the huge demand for sailors occasioned by clippers sailing for the California gold fields had left few competent seamen in New York. Half of the ship's 56-man complement had never sailed, and only three were able seamen; many were recent immigrants who could speak no English. Discipline, morale, and seamanship were predictably poor.
Waterman used considerable violence against this crew, personally slashing the cook's scalp with a carving knife, and beating at least two sick sailors for working too slowly. However, the focus of the crew's resentment was the new first mate Douglass, who dealt blows abundantly and with relish. As the Challenge neared Rio de Janeiro
, several crewmen conspired to kill Douglass, inflicting 12 knife wounds on him. Waterman waded into the fray and saved Douglass, then personally flogged the mutineers. The U.S. Congress had outlawed flogging aboard merchant vessels in 1850, but the prohibition was routinely violated, especially aboard the hard-driven clipper ships. After rounding Cape Horn, Waterman discovered another of the mutineers who had been hiding in the forecastle, had him dragged on deck, and broke his arm with a club, then had him shackled in the sick bay by the fractured limb.
Most of the violence that Waterman personally inflicted was directed at the mutineers who had tried to kill Douglass. However, Douglass himself continued to abuse the crew intensely, with Waterman doing little to restrain him and occasionally encouraging him.
When the Challenge reached San Francisco after a 108-day passage, the crew's version of events aboard created an uproar in the city. One newspaper called for Waterman to be "burned alive," and he narrowly escaped lynching.
Waterman defiantly had eight of the alleged mutineers arrested, but only one was tried, and that one was acquitted.
Waterman and Douglass themselves stood trial for their conduct aboard the Challenge. Waterman was convicted by a jury for beating one of the sick crewmen, but the judge
refused to sentence him. Douglass was convicted of murder for beating a crewman to death, and for assault on another crewman, but no sentence is recorded, and he is known to have been released soon afterward, never again to serve aboard a merchantman.
"The Challenge cases ... were the first 'hellship' trials, and by the very fact that they did occur, they made possible, many years later, the freedom of the American merchant sailor from the tyranny of masters and mates," paving the way for the Seamen's Act
of 1915.
"Seagoing-labor litigation and cases relating to the defense of seamen's rights were heard by district courts with coastal jurisdiction, such as those in San Francisco and Honolulu ... the first 21 criminal cases [of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California
] were connected with the murder or mistreatment of seamen by Captain "Bully" Waterman and other officers of the clipper ship Challenge."
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
has never been bettered in a sail-powered vessel. He was reputed as a martinet, and was once convicted of assault against a crewman in a controversial California criminal case.
Early career
Waterman was born in Hudson, New York, the son of a Nantucket whaling captain. His father died at sea when the boy was eight, and the family moved to Fairfield, Connecticut. Waterman first went to sea at age 12 aboard a China trader, and spent most of the next nine years aboard transatlantic packet ships. By 1829, at the age of 21, he had been promoted to first mate of the Black BallBlack Ball Line (trans-Atlantic packet)
The Black Ball Line initially consisted of four packet ships, the Amity, Courier, Pacific and the James Monroe. All of these were running between Liverpool, England and New York City. This first scheduled trans-Atlantic service was founded in 1817...
packet Britannia. His captain aboard the Britannia, Charles Marshall, later bought the packet South America and made Waterman the skipper. It was Waterman's first command.
In 1836, Waterman accepted command of the cotton freighter Natchez, owned by Howland & Aspinwall
Howland & Aspinwall
Howland & Aspinwall was a merchant firm based in New York City in the 1830s and 1840s. It specialized in the Pacific Ocean trade, especially the importing of goods from China...
, a Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
merchant company. He guided the Natchez on several voyages around Cape Horn
Cape Horn
Cape Horn is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island...
to Valparaiso
Valparaíso
Valparaíso is a city and commune of Chile, center of its third largest conurbation and one of the country's most important seaports and an increasing cultural center in the Southwest Pacific hemisphere. The city is the capital of the Valparaíso Province and the Valparaíso Region...
. In 1842, Howland & Aspinwall switched the Natchez to the China trade, and Waterman sailed her to Macao
Mação
Mação is a municipality in Portugal with a total area of 400.0 km² and a total population of 7,763 inhabitants.The municipality is composed of eight parishes, and is located in the Santarém District....
. His return trip from Macao to New York took only 78 days, a new record.
Captain of the Sea Witch
During the late 1840s, Howland & Aspinwall gave Waterman command of the clipper Sea WitchSea Witch (clipper)
The Sea Witch was an American clipper ship designed by naval architect John W. Griffiths for the China trading firm of Howland & Aspinwall. She was launched in Manhattan on December 8, 1846.-Model for American clipper ship design:...
. Waterman worked with the ship's designer, John W. Griffiths
John W. Griffiths
John Willis Griffiths was an American naval architect who designed the first true clipper ship.His first ship, the Rainbow, was viewed with shock as a difference in design, until she made the round trip from New York to Canton in 180 days instead of the normal year.-Books and...
, designing much of the Sea Witchs rig and sail plan, specifying 140 feet (42.7 m) masts and more square footage of sail than a 74-gun warship. In 1847, he brought the Sea Witch from Hong Kong to New York in 77 days, beating his previous record by a day.
In 1849, Waterman set his final record for the Hong Kong–New York trip. Leaving New York on April 27, 1848, he went to China by the unusual route of Cape Horn
Cape Horn
Cape Horn is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island...
(most China clippers traveled by way of the Cape of Good Hope
Cape of Good Hope
The Cape of Good Hope is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa.There is a misconception that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Africa, because it was once believed to be the dividing point between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. In fact, the...
). Loading a cargo of tea at Hong Kong, Waterman took the Sea Witch out of harbor on January 9, 1849. Spending much of the voyage under full sail, he started the Sea Witchs return voyage via the Sunda Strait
Sunda Strait
The Sunda Strait is the strait between the Indonesian islands of Java and Sumatra. It connects the Java Sea to the Indian Ocean...
, often covering over 200 miles (321.9 km) per day and once reaching 300 miles (482.8 km). He reached the Cape of Good Hope February 16, logging a 308 miles (495.7 km) run for the day, his best of the voyage. Waterman reached New York on March 25, a 74 day passage. Neither he nor any other captain of a sail-powered vessel would ever break this record.
Voyage of the Challenge
Handsomely rewarded by Howland & Aspinwall for his unequaled performance aboard the Sea Witch, Waterman briefly retired from seafaring. However, the N. L. & G. Griswold shipping company was seeking a high-quality captain for its new clipper Challenge, offering him a $10,000 bonus if he could get the ship to San Francisco within 90 days of departure. Waterman accepted the Challenge, and took her out of New York on July 13, 1851. That very first day, Waterman quarreled with and dismissed his first mate, and replaced him with James Douglass, hired off the deck of a packet at Sandy HookSandy Hook
Sandy Hook is a barrier spit along the Atlantic coast of New JerseySandy Hook may also refer to:-Places:United States* Sandy Hook , a village in the town of Newtown, Connecticut* Sandy Hook, Kentucky, a city in Elliott County...
.
Unfortunately for all concerned, N. L. & G. Griswold had failed to provide Challenge with an experienced crew; the huge demand for sailors occasioned by clippers sailing for the California gold fields had left few competent seamen in New York. Half of the ship's 56-man complement had never sailed, and only three were able seamen; many were recent immigrants who could speak no English. Discipline, morale, and seamanship were predictably poor.
Waterman used considerable violence against this crew, personally slashing the cook's scalp with a carving knife, and beating at least two sick sailors for working too slowly. However, the focus of the crew's resentment was the new first mate Douglass, who dealt blows abundantly and with relish. As the Challenge neared Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
, several crewmen conspired to kill Douglass, inflicting 12 knife wounds on him. Waterman waded into the fray and saved Douglass, then personally flogged the mutineers. The U.S. Congress had outlawed flogging aboard merchant vessels in 1850, but the prohibition was routinely violated, especially aboard the hard-driven clipper ships. After rounding Cape Horn, Waterman discovered another of the mutineers who had been hiding in the forecastle, had him dragged on deck, and broke his arm with a club, then had him shackled in the sick bay by the fractured limb.
Most of the violence that Waterman personally inflicted was directed at the mutineers who had tried to kill Douglass. However, Douglass himself continued to abuse the crew intensely, with Waterman doing little to restrain him and occasionally encouraging him.
When the Challenge reached San Francisco after a 108-day passage, the crew's version of events aboard created an uproar in the city. One newspaper called for Waterman to be "burned alive," and he narrowly escaped lynching.
Waterman defiantly had eight of the alleged mutineers arrested, but only one was tried, and that one was acquitted.
Waterman and Douglass themselves stood trial for their conduct aboard the Challenge. Waterman was convicted by a jury for beating one of the sick crewmen, but the judge
Ogden Hoffman, Jr.
Ogden Hoffman, Jr. was a United States federal judge.He was born in New York City, son of Ogden Hoffman. He received an A.B. from Columbia University in 1840 and an LL.B. from Harvard Law School in 1842...
refused to sentence him. Douglass was convicted of murder for beating a crewman to death, and for assault on another crewman, but no sentence is recorded, and he is known to have been released soon afterward, never again to serve aboard a merchantman.
"The Challenge cases ... were the first 'hellship' trials, and by the very fact that they did occur, they made possible, many years later, the freedom of the American merchant sailor from the tyranny of masters and mates," paving the way for the Seamen's Act
Seamen's Act
The Seamen's Act, formally known as Act to Promote the Welfare of American Seamen in the Merchant Marine of the United States was designed to improve the safety and security of United States seamen....
of 1915.
"Seagoing-labor litigation and cases relating to the defense of seamen's rights were heard by district courts with coastal jurisdiction, such as those in San Francisco and Honolulu ... the first 21 criminal cases [of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California
United States District Court for the Northern District of California
The United States District Court for the Northern District of California is the federal United States district court whose jurisdiction comprises following counties of California: Alameda, Contra Costa, Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, Marin, Mendocino, Monterey, Napa, San Benito, San Francisco, San...
] were connected with the murder or mistreatment of seamen by Captain "Bully" Waterman and other officers of the clipper ship Challenge."
Retirement
Waterman retired from the sea after leaving the Challenge and settled in California with his wife. There he helped found the town of Fairfield, named after his former home in Connecticut. He raised poultry and cattle, and served as San Francisco's Port Warden and Inspector of Hulls. He died in 1884.See also
- Carrier Pigeon, salvage operation by Capt. Waterman on an 1853 clipper ship wreck
External links
- Logbook of the Challenge, 1849-1850 voyage from Hong Kong to London, Mystic Seaport. The pumps were manned constantly on this voyage, and the ship put into Fayal for repairs.