Sylvanus was born in Windham VT in 1807. No information could be found concerning his parents. He married Mary Ann Bolles of New London on July 14, 1840. The 1850 census for New London records Sylvanus (“mariner”) as age 41 and Mary Ann as age 42 and lists two children, William (22) and Nathaniel (20). They had a daughter Anna who died at age four on June 17, 1846. The 1860 census records Sylvanus (“seaman”) and Mary Ann, but by then no children were living with them. City directories for New London record Sylvanus (“mariner”) residing there in 1855 and 1859. Sylvanus died on November 28, 1861 in Campeche, Mexico. The death record shows him as “Capt.” and age 55. No explanation was found as to how and when he got to Mexico.
Sylvanus served as master for three voyages on two ships with New London as home port:
JULIUS CAESAR (AS1737): (ship, 347 tons, length 100 ft., built in Sag Harbor NY in 1816, rig changed to bark in 1856, broken up in 1869). JULIUS CAESAR made two voyages to the Indian Ocean, sailing on July 25, 1840 and returning on June 21, 1841, then only a few weeks later, sailing on August 2, and returning on March 15, 1843. Dennis Wood Abstract 1-278 provides some details. N. & W.W. Billings was the agent for both voyages. AV07949 and AV07950 respectively.
CERVANTES (AS1061): (bark, 232 tons, length 92 ft., built in Bath ME in 1836). CERVANTES sailed on June 23, 1843 to the So. Atlantic. It was lost off the coast of New Holland (Australia) on June 29, 1844. New London’s The People’s Advocate (3/19/1845) reports what happened. CERVANTES was “driven upon a reef and lost…while endeavoring to get into a small bay on the W. coast of New Holland, about 150 North of [Perth], the wind blowing a gale at the time. The crew with great difficulty reached the shore in safety, saving nothing but what they had on”. One crew member died on shore of exhaustion. The survivors reached New Bedford in March 1845. Benjamin Brown was the agent. AV02514.
Sylvanus served as a crew member on four ships, three with its home port in New London: FLORA (AS1369) for its 1839-1840 voyage; GEORGE & MARY (AS1450) for its 1845-1847 voyage; SARAH SHEAFE (AS0617 home port New Bedford) for its 1851-1855 voyage; and ZOE (AS2648) for its 1855-1857 voyage.
A review of his several voyages shows that from his departure on FLORA in 1839 until his return on ZOE in 1857, a period of about 18 years, Sylvanus was mostly at sea. The only significant gap were the four years between the voyages of GEORGE & MARY and SARAH SHEAFE during which interval between them, he sailed as a passenger on the schooner ANDES to California (New London Democrat (8/25/1849). Aboard were the captain, six crew members, and Sylvanus. The purpose and duration of this trip to California were not determined.
Sources used: see sidebar and sources cited in text.
George Shaw
American Institute for Maritime Studies
Mystic Seaport Museum
November 2025