No official record of the birth of Lucius can be found, but census reports (1870 and 1880) allow approximating his date of birth between 1820 and 1822, in Stonington CT. No information could be found about his parents. On May 25, 1842 in New London CT, he married Emily Bailey, daughter of William (1790-1858) and Matilda (Wheeler) (1794-1887) Butler. They had nine children: Charles (1846-1849, buried in Cedar Grove Cemetery in New London), Isabel (1849- ), Anne (1851-1923), Charles (1853-1918), Helen (1855-1933), Robert (1857-1922), James (1859-1946), Maria (1864- ), and Ameley (1866- ). The census reports for Chicago IL for 1870 and 1880 show the family living in Chicago. In 1870 Lucius is shown as age 50, ”Ship Captain”, Emily as age 45; in 1880 Lucius is shown as age 58, “Laborer”, Emily as age 55. Several children are shown in each report. Cook County IL records show that Emily died in Chicago on August 13, 1886 at age 61. Lucius died on October 31,1889 in Chicago.
Before becoming master, Lucius served on the crew of SHAW PERKINS (AS2383) for her 1840-1842 voyage, then joined the crew of HAND (see below) for her 1842-1844 voyage.
Lucius served as master for five voyages on four whaling ships with New London as home port:
HAND (AS1520: (schooner, 86 tons, built in Dorchester County MD in 1834,). After serving on her crew, Lucius became her master, departing on June 5, 1844 for the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans. HAND was lost off of NomansLand MA while homeward bound on May 23, 1847, not a good way to end one first service as master. Perkins & Smith were the agents. AV06107.
FRANKLIN (AS1406): (schooner, 119 tons, built in Eastport ME in 1835, condemned and broken up in 1895). Sailed on July 28, 1846 for the South Atlantic, returned on July 19, 1847. Perkins & Smith were agents. AV05245
EXILE (AS1333): (schooner, 83 tons, built in Dorchester County MD in 1834). Sailed on August 14, 1848 for Desolation Island, returned on July 2, 1852. AV04741. Sailed again August 18, 1852 for the same place, returned on July 12, 1859. Lucius left the ship, when (see PERUVIAN below) and for reasons not known, to be succeeded by Jerome (last name not known) (AM2899) as replacement master E.V. Stoddard was master of both voyages. AV04742.
PERUVIAN (AS2174): (ship, 388 tons, broken up in 1859). Sailed on May 15, 1855 for the South Atlantic, returned April 7, 1856. Lucius had to have left EXILE soon enough that he could get back to New London in time for PERUVIAN’s May 1855 departure. AV11468
Lucius then became master of ALFRED (AS0016), home port Fairhaven MA, when she sailed on August 16, 1856 for Desolation Island. The ship was lost on Hurd’s Island on December 29, 1856.
A source on Family Search provides some tantalizing information about the birth of two of his children and the possibility of a later voyage not otherwise found. This source gives the middle name of Lucius’ son Robert, born February 2, 1857, as “Robert Agustus Kergelen Butler”, Kerguelen being an island in the south Indian Ocean where Lucius may well have gone for whales or elephant seals. The Chicago census for 1870 shows Robert as born “at sea”. Was Lucius celebrating the place of Robert’s birth at Kerguelen Island? Robert’syounger brother, James, is shown in a more reliable source as born on November 1, 1859 at Cape of Good Hope, another source says Cape Town. Lucius took several of his commands to the south Indian Ocean areas of Desolation Island, Hurd’s Island and Kerguelen Island, and he certainly may have stopped at the Cape of Good Hope or Cape Town on the way to or from whaling grounds. Unfortunately, the records above show that his last command, ALFRED, was lost in 1856, and no record was located of his sailing on any subsequent voyages. Furthermore, no record could be found that Emily accompanied him of any relevant voyage so that she could give birth to two sons in the Southern Hemisphere. This issue must remain a teasing mystery.
Sources used: see sidebar and sources cited in text
George Shaw (Mystic Seaport Museum) August 2024