Little information could be found about Henry. Even his name is confusing. Some sources show has last name as Chapell (Colby, Decker, Starbuck). His middle initial is sometimes “Y” (Colby, some crew lists). His birth date can only be approximated from his reported (not always accurate) age as shown in census reports and crew lists. Extrapolating from that information, he appears to have been born between 1819 and 1822. Information about his place of birth and his parents could not be located.
Census reports for New London provide some information about him. The 1850 census for his ship BENJAMIN MORGAN (see below) records him as Henry G., age 28, “mariner.” The 1870 records Henry as age 50, “mariner”, married to Mary E. Chapel, age 45, born in NH, the couple with two children, Henry, age 7, and Edith, age 3. By the 1880 census, Henry is shown as 56, Edith 45, Henry 17, and Edith 13. A series of New London city directories from 1865 to 1890 show Henry living in that city, described as Henry or Henry Y, identified variously as “captain”, “seaman”, or “mariner.”
He served as master for one voyage on each of three ships with New London as home port:
PIONEER (AS2196): (brig, 225 tons, 84’ in length, built in Charlestown MD, sunk in Hudson Straits on July 6, 1867). It sailed about May 20, 1862 to Cumberland Inlet, returned about October 13, 1863. The crew list dated May 20, 1862 shows Henry as age 40, making his date of birth about 1822. The crew list shows his middle initial as “Y”. Dennis Wood Abstract 3-628 shows the sailing and return dates. Williams & Haven was the agent. AV11698.
ANNE MARIE (AS00889): All that is known is that it sailed about December 2, 1863 and returned in about May 1, 1864. Starbuck does not record a ship by this name. Decker shows the voyage but no master. The ship is not recorded in the CT Ship Database. Williams & Haven was the agent. AV06327.
HELEN F. (AS1563): (schooner, 107 tons, 76’ in length, built Portsmouth NH in 1851). It sailed as tender to MONTICELLO (AS1978) about July 1, 1864 to Hudson Bay, returned about September 18, 1865. The crew list dated July 6, 1864 shows Henry as age 45, making his date of birth about 1819. The crew list shows his middle initial as “Y”. Dennis Wood Abstract 4-356 shows the sailing and return dates. Richard H. Chapell was the agent. AV06327
Henry also served as master of ANSEL GIBBS (AS0046), home port Fairhaven MA, for its 1860-1861 voyage.
Prior to becoming a master, Henry served as a crew member on at least four voyages on three ships: METEOR (AS1937) for its 1842-1844 voyage; MORRISON (AS1984) for its 1844-1848 voyage; and BENJAMIN MORGAN (AS0970) for its 1848-1851 and 1851-1856 voyages.
No record could be found of the date or place of his death.
Sources used: see sidebar and sources cited in text.
George Shaw
American Institute of Maritime Studies
Mystic Seaport Museum
September 2024