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| Field name | Value |
|---|---|
| Title | Letters and Documents Related to the Sinking of the Ship Essex |
| Reference | MSS 106/Folder 4 |
| Library | Nantucket Historical Association |
| Collection | Thomas Nickerson Collection, 1819-1876 |
| Date | 27 Oct 1876 - 26 Jun 1980 |
| Description | Letters and documents relating to the writing of Thomas Nickerson's account of the sinking of the Essex and the manuscript's discovery over a century later. The first letter is from Thomas to Leon Lewis, who intended to publish Thomas' account. The remaining papers are discussions of authorship following the unpublished manuscript's rediscovery in 1980. |
| Document Type | Correspondence, Ephemera |
| Theme(s) | Trade and Commerce |
| Keywords | shipwreck, survivor, rescue, casting of lots, death, cannibal, family, bereavement |
| Countries | USA |
| Places | South Pacific; Henderson Island |
| Ports | Nantucket, USA |
| Ships | Essex |
| People | George Pollard; Thomas Nickerson |
| Additional Information |
Born in Harwich, Massachusetts, Thomas Nickerson (1805-1883) was brought to Nantucket in 1806 where he was raised by his grandfather, Captain Robert Gibson. In 1819, he sailed for the Pacific in the whaleship Essex under Captain George Pollard. On November 20, 1820, the Essex was sunk by a whale and Nickerson, with nineteen other men, took to three small open boats. After three months of harrowing experiences, he and two others in his boat were picked up by the Brig Indian. He continued a career at sea until the early 1870s when he opened a rooming house on Nantucket. In 1876, he wrote an account of his experiences. Please note that some of the metadata for this document has been drawn from the Nantucket Historical Association catalogue. |
| Copyright | Nantucket Historical Association |
