The Saber and Scroll
Esek Hopkins was born on 26 April 1718 in Scituate , Rhode Island . He began to build his fortune from the sea early on when he used money acquired from his marriage to Desire Burroughs to purchase a merchant ship . The ship would prove to be a wise investment , as , during the French and Indian War , Hopkins made the transition from merchant captain to successful privateer . During the interwar years , he commanded the slave ship , Sally , during a calamitous voyage in which 109 of his 196 human cargo perished in transit . By the outbreak of the American Revolution , the Hopkins family had accumulated much political influence in Rhode Island : Esek received a commission as a Brigadier General in the militia , while his brother Stephen was appointed to the Continental Congress . Shortly after Stephen became Chairman of the Naval Committee , Esek was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Fleet of the United Colonies on 5 November 1775 . 1 This rather wordy title was occasionally shortened to “ Admiral ” in contemporary letters and newspapers ( though the United States did not officially appoint an admiral until well into the next century ). However , today ’ s US Navy lists Esek Hopkins as a commodore . 2
Commodore Hopkins received his “ Orders and Directions ” from the Naval Committee on 5 January 1776 . In response to appeals made by the Southern delegates to the Continental Congress , his squadron was to proceed directly to the Chesapeake Bay and determine the strength of British forces in Virginia . If the conditions were favorable , Hopkins and his ships were to “ attack , take or destroy all the Naval force of our Enemies ” 3 that could be found . The squadron was then to repeat the process in the Carolinas and again in Rhode Island upon their return north . The squadron was also under orders to “ seize and make prize of all such Transport Ships and other Vessels as may be found carrying Supplies of any kind to or any way aiding or assisting our Enemies .” 4 A clause toward the end of the Naval Committee ’ s instructions would eventually form the basis of Hopkins ’ s plans : “ if bad Winds , or Stormy Weather , or any other unforeseen accident or disaster disable you to do so You are then to follow such Courses as your best Judgment shall Suggest to you as most useful to the American Cause and to distress the Enemy by all means in your power .” 5
Those were remarkably bold orders given the limited resources of the nascent Continental Navy . The ships of Commodore Hopkins ’ s squadron were all converted merchantmen , coastal traders , or pilot boats . Loading such vessels down with the cannon , military stores , and extra crew necessary to turn them into warships inevitably changed their sailing qualities for the worse . The merchantman Black Prince , for example , logged the fastest day of sailing recorded in the eighteenth century in September 1775 , but crammed with twenty-four guns and rechristened Alfred barely three months later , she proved to be “ clumsey [ sic ] and crank ” throughout her military career . 6 Until the thirteen purpose-built frigates ordered by the Continental Congress in December 1775 were completed , Hop-
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