Biography of the Waterman Family
This collection details the business and domestic activities of various family members. However, the bulk of this material relates to Capt. Martin Waterman (1793-1860), a ship master and maritime businessman from Duxbury, Massachusetts. Present are bills, receipts, correspondence (both business and personal), and account books, providing information on Martin Waterman’s maritime career.
Martin Waterman married Joan Cushing (1795-1845) in 1819, and Lydia F. Soule in 1848. He was the father of five children: Joan Otis (b. 1820), Martin T. (b. 1823), Joseph L. (b. 1825), Lauretta L. (b. 1829), and Lucius A. (1832-1895).
A large number of the early papers involved Martin’s parents, Eliphalet Waterman (1764-1836) and his wife Silvinia (1772-1835). An additional lot of the later papers deal with Martin’s youngest son, Lucius A., who married Harriet Case in 1865.
The greatest concentration of material in this collection is between the years 1820-1850, and deals with, among other subjects, approximately thirty vessels in which Capt. Waterman held varying degrees of ownership, or of which he was Master. As was the case with many shipmasters of his day, Waterman owned at least a partial interest in most of the vessels he commanded.
Scope and Content
This collection duplicates, and to a limited extent supplements, a collection which the library has on microfilm – also identified as the Waterman Family Papers.
Originally, this material was loaned to Mystic Seaport for microfilming. However, when this project had been completed the owner decided to give the collection to the library; but not before a substantial portion was removed by the donor and kept with the family. The donor then gave some additional material that had not been a part of the initial loan, and was thus not included in the microfilmed edition.
Because of the unusual divided nature of this collection, two box and folder descriptions have been created for this inventory: one for the originals (Coll. 141), and the other for the microfilm edition, which also incorporates an index.
Restrictions
Restrictions on Access
Available for use in the Manuscripts Division
Restrictions on Use
Various copying restriction apply. Guidelines are available from the Manuscripts Division.
Related Material
The logs that can be found in this collection on microfilm reel MR138 can also be found under the call numbers of Log 27 and Log 39.
Log 27 contains journeys of MINOTAUR (1887 Jan-Nov), NORTHUMBERLAND (1887-1888), HIMALYA (1888 Apr-Jun), and RALEIGH (1888 Jun-Dec).
Log 39 contains journeys of Ship THOMAS WILLIAMS (1845 May-Jun), Ship CALEDONIA (1846-1848) and Bark PRUDENT (1848 Jun 19).
Index Terms
This collection is indexed under the following headings in the catalog of the G. W. Blunt White Library. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons or places should search the catalog using these headings.
Persons:
Waterman family
Waterman, Eliphalet, 1764-1836
Waterman, Lucius A., 1832-1895
Waterman, Martin, 1793-1860
Waterman, Silvinia, 1772-1835
Subjects:
Shipping–Massachusetts
Ships – Massachusetts–Duxbury
Document Types:
Account books–Massachusetts–Duxbury
Family papers–Massachusetts–Duxbury
Hymns
Photographs
Poems
Occupations:
Shipmasters–Massachusetts–Duxbury
Administrative Information
Coll. 141, Manuscripts Collection, G. W. Blunt White Library, Mystic Seaport Museum, Inc.
Detailed Description of the Microfilm Collection
The following section contains a detailed listing of the materials in the microfilm collection.
| Business Papers on microfilm; 1793-1892 | |||||||||||||
| Reel | |||||||||||||
| MR 135 | Papers of Eliphalet Waterman, including broadsides, receipts, bills, accounts, and deeds; 1793-1813 | ||||||||||||
| Papers of Eliphalet Waterman, including receipts, bills, accounts, letters, and estate papers; 1815-1838 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including receipts and bills; 1815-1817 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including receipts, bills, accounts, letters, agreements, and sailing directions; 1822-1823 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including bills of lading, receipts, bills, accounts, letters, and sailing directions; 1824 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including receipts, bills, accounts, letters, charter parties, and sailing directions; 1825 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including bills of lading, bills, accounts, receipts, charter parties, letters, and sailing directions; 1826 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including bills, accounts, receipts, charter parties, letters, and sailing directions; 1827 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, charter parties, letters, and sailing directions; 1828-1929 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, charter parties, letters, and sailing directions; 1830 Jan-May | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, charter parties, letters, and sailing directions; 1830 Jul-Dec | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, letters, and charter parties; 1831 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, letters, and sailing directions; 1832 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, and letters; 1833 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, letters, charter parties, and sailing directions; 1834 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, and letters; 1835 Jan-Jun | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, agreements, broadsides, letters, and sailing directions; 1835 Jul-Dec | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, letters, and a bill of sale; 1836 Jan-Jul | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, letters and a marine insurance policy; 1836 Aug-Dec | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, letters and resolutions; 1837 Jan-Apr | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, and letters; 1837 May-Jun | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, and letters; 1837 Jul-Dec | |||||||||||||
| Reel | |||||||||||||
| MR 136 | Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, and letters; 1838 Jan-May | ||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, and letters; 1838 Jun-Dec | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, and letters; 1839 Jan-Apr | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, letters and an agreement; 1839 May-Jun | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, and letters; 1839 Jul-Sep | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, and letters; 1839 Oct-Nov | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, freight lists and letters; 1839 Dec | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, invoices, bills of lading, and letters; 1840 Jan 1-4 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, and letters; 1840 Jan 7-28 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, and receipts; 1840 Feb | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, and receipts; 1840 Mar | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, invoices, charter parties, and letters; 1840 Apr-May | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, and letters; 1840 Jun-Aug | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, and letters; 1840 Sep-Dec | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, insurance policy, court documents, and letters; 1841 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, seaman’s identification papers, and letters; 1842-1843 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, charter parties, and letters; 1844-1846 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, indentures, seaman’s identification papers, and letters; 1847-1849 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, port papers, seaman’s identification papers, and letters; 1850 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, and letters; 1851 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including bills, receipts, and letters; 1852-1856 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, bills of sale for enrolled vessels, and letters; 1857 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, and letters; 1858 Jan-Jun | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, and letters; 1858 Jul-Dec | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, articles of agreement, and letters; 1859 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, bill of sale for enrolled vessel, and letters; 1860 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of the estate of Martin Waterman, including receipts and letters; 1882-1883, and 1892 | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, bills, receipts, freight lists, and letters; undated | |||||||||||||
| Papers of Martin Waterman, including accounts, broadsides, navigational data, and letters; undated | |||||||||||||
| Reel | |||||||||||||
| MR 137 | Personal Correspondence of Martin Waterman, including letters by Waterman to his wife Joan, and letters from his wife, mother, father and brother; 1815-1822 | ||||||||||||
| Personal Correspondence of Martin Waterman, including letters by Waterman to his wife Joan, and letters from his wife and father; 1823-1827 | |||||||||||||
| Personal Correspondence of Martin Waterman, including letters by Waterman to his wife Joan, and letters from his wife, mother, father, brother and sister-in-law; 1828-1847, and undated | |||||||||||||
| Photographs of paintings of brig HERALD, by Edmund Camillati and Felice Polli (fl. 1821-1850), with descriptive material relative to these works; 1824 and undated | |||||||||||||
| Photograph of painting of Ship DALMATIA by Frederic Roux; 1838 Jul 30 | |||||||||||||
| Account book, of Martin Waterman, pertaining to several vessels, household, profit and loss, interest, and numerous individuals and firms; 1822-1840 | |||||||||||||
| Account book, of Martin Waterman, pertaining to several vessels, household, profit and loss, interest, and numerous individuals and firms; 1822-1839 | |||||||||||||
| Account book, of Martin Waterman, pertaining to ship’s disbursements for vessels commanded by Waterman; 1828-1835 | |||||||||||||
| Account book, of Martin Waterman, pertaining to expenses, profits, and shares of vessels owned by Waterman; 1836-1839 | |||||||||||||
| Reel | |||||||||||||
| MR 138 | Account book, of Martin Waterman, pertaining to expenses, profits, and shares of vessels either owned or commanded by Waterman; 1844-1851 | ||||||||||||
| Account book, of Martin Waterman, pertaining to several vessels, private expenses, profit and loss, interest, and individuals or firms; 1846-1851 | |||||||||||||
| Account book, of Martin Waterman, pertaining to disbursements, expenses, and settlements of a vessel commanded by Waterman; 1822-1840 | |||||||||||||
| Journal, Ship MARATHON, Capt. Martin Waterman of Duxbury, Mass., for a coastwise trading voyage; 1850 Mar 16-Aug 22 | |||||||||||||
| Cash book, of Martin Waterman, pertaining to daily disbursements; 1836-1839 | |||||||||||||
| Typescript copies of Waterman’s letters; undated | |||||||||||||
| Journal fragment, Ship WESTERN STAR; ? Apr 1 | |||||||||||||
| Log 27 with journeys of HMS MINOTAUR (1887 Jan-Nov), HMS NORTHUMBERLAND (1887-1888), HMS HIMALYA (1888 Apr-Jun), and HMS RALEIGH (1888 Jun-Dec); 1887-1888 | |||||||||||||
| Log 39 with journeys of Ship THOMAS WILLIAMS (1845 May-Jun), Ship CALEDONIA (1846-1848) and Bark PRUDENT (1848 Jun 19) 1845-1888 | |||||||||||||