Mulford to Mulford on Whaling

What was it like living in East Hampton during the whaling industry boom? On Oct. 7, 1838, 180 years ago this month, Jonathan Mulford Jr. wrote his son Henry on the ship Harvest. The letter, seen here, was addressed in care of Jonathan Stratton, with a notation that “Capt. John Godby” was master of the ship. 

While there were multiple ships named Harvest on the waters in 1838, Mulford probably meant that Capt. James Godbee was the ship’s master. If so, then this particular Harvest was a bark that sailed out of Bridgeport, Conn., on a two-year voyage, as per Judith Lund’s “Whaling Masters and Whaling Voyages Sailing From American Ports.”

Mulford’s letter carried routine news of home, capturing a slice of life in East Hampton during Sag Harbor’s whaling heyday. Mulford sent his son news from the last few months, referencing a severe drought and very hot weather throughout August and revealing that he had not been in contact with his son for more than two months. The news is mundane: reports on who died and who married, the prices of potatoes, the state of crops, etc.

Jonathan also conveyed news from his other son, Jeremiah, also at sea. Jeremiah expected his voyage to last one season, probably because of damage the ship experienced in “a gale” in the Gulf of Mexico. Jonathan hoped Henry would share his brother’s good fortune in having a short voyage with a good mate and captain. He worried that his son would become sick when he was “off in your boats,” presumably a reference to the rowboats used to pursue whales, and urged Henry to put on flannel to keep warm.

Most poignantly, Jonathan wrote about the affection he hoped his sons would show each other “should you meet again,” expressing the uncertainty that came from the dangerous work of the whaling industry.

Andrea Meyer is a librarian and archivist in the East Hampton Library’s Long Island Collection.