250th Anniversary of the U.S. Merchant Marine's First Trial By Fire

 

On Thursday, the U.S. merchant marine celebrated what might be considered its 250th anniversary. In peace and war, merchant mariners carry the nation's commerce and back up the U.S. military - and in 1775, they proved it for the first time. 

In May and June 1775, shortly after the start of the American Revolutionary War, British forces hired a Loyalist shipowner - Ichabod Jones - to obtain lumber from local suppliers at the port of Machias. The lumber was needed to build barracks for British troops in Boston, which was under siege by what would soon be known as the Continental Army. 

Jones arrived at Machias with the merchant vessels Unity and Polly on June 2, 1775, in the company of the Royal Navy sloop HMS Margaretta. They were carrying pork and flour to trade for the lumber. Patriots among the townspeople disliked the idea of doing business that would benefit the British, and Jones had to use threats of force to compel the trade. 

In response, a local militia under the command of Capt. Jeremiah O'Brien attempted to capture Jones on June 11; this was not successful, so the next day they seized the Unity instead. After making preparations aboard Unity, O'Brien and about 30 men proceeded to chase down HMS Margaretta as well. When Unity came alongside and militia members climbed across, Margaretta's commanding officer was mortally wounded by musket fire, and his second-in-command surrendered. 

It was the first time that patriots had seized a British vessel in the war. At the time, the Continental Navy did not yet exist, and it was a military support action carried out by civilian mariners - the first such engagement in the history of the merchant marine, but far from the last. O'Brien went on to a storied career as a privateer throughout the war, and six ships have been named in his honor - five U.S. Navy warships and the well-known WWII Liberty Ship SS Jeremiah O'Brien.