In the letter shown here, Joseph Hand writes to Nathaniel Huntting (1793-1863) on April 3, 1813, describing the sighting of British ships off Montauk Point. The letter was written during the War of 1812, as the Northeast coast experienced a British blockade designed to cut off all local commerce and shipping.
Hand's letter reflects the recent extension of the blockade lines by British Admiral John Warren (1753-1822), which moved British patrols past Delaware Bay and Chesapeake Bay on March 30, 1813, and increased the number of British vessels surrounding New York ports.
On the morning of March 31, 1813, as Hand describes it, a large British brig appeared near Montauk Point. The ship captured two sloops, single-mast sailboats, and then returned out to sea. The next evening, a 74-gun British ship flying French flags (a common practice used to mislead other vessels), was seen exploring a boiling spring at "Shagwonganock Reef." A frigate arrived to signal the return of the gunship and then both moved back out to sea.
On April 2, two British frigates came in from sea and captured a departing schooner. Joseph Hand saw these ships continue to Block Island, where they stopped.
The day after the incident with the two frigates, Hand wrote this letter, reporting that the frigates remained nearby. In it he predicts they will return to the Montauk area soon. Hand hopes that Huntting will be gratified to receive his report of these events, and apologizes for his brevity, explaining that he would give more detail about each ship but lacked the time to do so.
He concludes with a more positive note that the British ships did not harass the local fishermen.
