Captain John Manley — Naval hero

Jim Bayne
Published: October 4, 2008

Editor’s note: This is the first part of a two-part series on Captain John Manley. Part two will be published in the Oct. 12 edition of Culpeper Living.

We, who have been the chroniclers of the struggle for our independence from British rule, have failed to recognize the many contributions made by our brothers who served at sea. This story is about a man from Marblehead, Mass. who was resolute in his duty and whose exploits need to be remembered.

In July of 1775, Gen. George Washington had been appointed commander of the Army and shortly thereafter rode to the outskirts of Boston to take command of the forces gathered there to contain the British. What he found was a ragtag assemblage of men, patriots all, but who were poorly clothed, fed, armed and with but the scantest of military training. As summer faded and winter approached there was little good news for our fledgling army.

With Washington’s arrival in the Boston area he quickly evolved a plan which left the British unable to obtain supplies by land, but their control of the seas allowed supplies to arrive in Boston.

Col. John Glover of Marblehead was a fisherman and owner of several fishing vessels. Glover took one of his vessels and outfitted her with several cannon and Washington assigned Nicholas Broughton as her commander. In October Washington ordered Glover to outfit several more vessels and we soon had the ships “Hannah,” “Franklin,” “Warren,” and “Lee.” The “Lee” was placed under the command of Capt. John Manley as a result of Glover’s recommendation.

Up to this point Washington had not received authority from the Congress to undertake such actions. However, on Oct. 12 he was directed by the Congress to intercept two British vessels in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. He ordered the “Hannah” and “Franklin” to this mission while the “Warren” and “Lee” were ordered to cruise off Boston harbor. In late November occurred a most welcome event. The “Lee” captured a British brig, the “Nancy,” and its cargo of muskets, cannon, mortars, flints, bayonets and shot. With the capture of that British brig, Capt. John Manley became our first naval hero.

It is of interest to note that each of these naval captains and their men were in fact members of Washington’s Continental Army and were paid by the Army paymaster. The ships were under the control of Washington in his capacity as Commander of the Continental Army. This initial success by Manley was followed up immediately with the capture of the “Concord” on Dec. 8 and on Dec. 9 the “Jenny” and the brig “Little Hannah.” The captain of the “Little Hannah” mistook the “Lee” and needing a pilot to guide him into port asked Manley for assistance. Capt. Manley was only too happy to oblige and guided her into our hands. On Dec. 17 he captured the sloop “Betsey.”

Gen. Washington recognized the ability of Manley and on Jan. 1, 1776 appointed him commodore of the fleet. Manley turned the “Lee” over to Waters and raised his pennant on the “Hancock.” His command now covered six vessels which became the foundation of the United States Navy. On Jan. 25 he captured the “Happy Return” and then the “Norfolk.” On each ship he placed a crew from the “Hancock” and sent them on to Plymouth. He then spotted a British schooner coming toward him. Although he was outgunned and outmanned (due to the number of crew he had placed on the captured ships), he fought well and the British schooner broke off the engagement after a short period of intense fighting. Shortly after arriving in port he received a letter from Washington praising his service and urging him to inspire the captains of the other ships to emulate his actions.

After being icebound in port for several days, Manley set sail again on Jan. 30 but had barely cleared port when he was set upon by the British frigate “Falcon,” a much larger vessel than the “Hancock” with far greater firepower. Manley tried to run for it up the coast but was quickly overtaken so he beached the “Hancock” just north of Scituate. The British began a furious firing of their cannon but their marksmanship was poor.

After firing some 400 rounds the British decided to send their men in small craft to board the “Hancock.” Capt. Manley and his men had left the ship and gathered men from the area and armed with muskets stood facing the approaching British. The British realizing the risk returned to their ship and set sail. The following day Manley and his crew repaired their ship and refloated her. In early March he captured another two British ships but in the second engagement the “Hancock” was severely damaged and that evening ran aground while attempting to make port.

The British started their evacuation of Boston on March 17 via the ocean and Manley captured the brig “Elizabeth” on April 2. Commodore Manley relinquished command of the “Hancock” in early April and on April 17 was appointed to command the new 32-gun frigate “Hancock” which was being built at Newburyport as a part of the 13 new frigates authorized by the Congress. Throughout the summer and into fall Manley awaited completion of his new ship. In October he was given his orders but his ship was not complete. It was not until April of 1777 that his ship was ready and in early May set out from port. After four days at sea Manley caught sight of a British frigate coming toward him. The British ship turned and made haste to escape, however Manley and the “Hancock” soon overtook them. After a battle lasting less than two hours the British ship struck its colors and Manley had his prize, the frigate “Fox.”

In May while sailing in the area of Halifax harbor with the “Boston” he encountered three British frigates and being outgunned they attempted to escape. The “Boston” was successful but Manley and the “Hancock” was soon in such circumstances as to have no chance so Manley struck his colors and was captured. We hear of Manley next in December of 1778 when he is placed in command of the privateer “Cumberland.” Setting sail for the Caribbean he fell afoul of the British frigate “Pomona”, which was vastly superior in firepower, and was again captured. He and his crew were taken to Barbados as prisoners where they made their escape and seizing a sloop anchored in the harbor made their way to Martinique and gained passage back home to Boston in April of 1779.

Jim Bayne is the immdediate past president of the Virginia Society, Sons of the American Revolution. He can be reached at .