Background
He was born at Dighton, Bristol County, Massachussets, in 1751, the ninth of fourteen children of Benjamin and Rebecca (Allen) Talbot. At the age of twelve he lost his father, a farmer.
( Title: An historical sketch, to the end of the Revoluti...)
Title: An historical sketch, to the end of the Revolutionary War, of the life of Silas Talbot, Esq., of the state of Rhode-Island : lately commander of the United States frigate, the Constitution, and of an American squadron in the West-Indies. Author: Silas Talbot Publisher: Gale, Sabin Americana Description: Based on Joseph Sabin's famed bibliography, Bibliotheca Americana, Sabin Americana, 1500--1926 contains a collection of books, pamphlets, serials and other works about the Americas, from the time of their discovery to the early 1900s. Sabin Americana is rich in original accounts of discovery and exploration, pioneering and westward expansion, the U.S. Civil War and other military actions, Native Americans, slavery and abolition, religious history and more. Sabin Americana offers an up-close perspective on life in the western hemisphere, encompassing the arrival of the Europeans on the shores of North America in the late 15th century to the first decades of the 20th century. Covering a span of over 400 years in North, Central and South America as well as the Caribbean, this collection highlights the society, politics, religious beliefs, culture, contemporary opinions and momentous events of the time. It provides access to documents from an assortment of genres, sermons, political tracts, newspapers, books, pamphlets, maps, legislation, literature and more. Now for the first time, these high-quality digital scans of original works are available via print-on-demand, making them readily accessible to libraries, students, independent scholars, and readers of all ages. ++++ The below data was compiled from various identification fields in the bibliographic record of this title. This data is provided as an additional tool in helping to insure edition identification: ++++ SourceLibrary: Huntington Library DocumentID: SABCP03395600 CollectionID: CTRG00-B1424 PublicationDate: 18030101 SourceBibCitation: Selected Americana from Sabin's Dictionary of books relating to America Notes: "The prison-ship" by Philip Freneau: p. 111-125. Attributed to Silas Talbot by Sabin. Collation: 6, 147 p
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He was born at Dighton, Bristol County, Massachussets, in 1751, the ninth of fourteen children of Benjamin and Rebecca (Allen) Talbot. At the age of twelve he lost his father, a farmer.
Learning the trade of a stone-mason, he soon abandoned it for sea-going and mercantile pursuits.
Some preliminary drilling with a band of volunteers recommended him as a military man to the Rhode Island government, and, on June 28, 1775, he was appointed captain in one of its regiments. Three days later he received a commission as captain in the Continental Army.
After participating in the siege of Boston and aiding in the transporting of troops to New York, he obtained command of a fireship and made a spirited attempt to burn the warship Asia. This enterprise, though unsuccessful, brought him to the attention of Congress, which on October 10, 1777, promoted him to the rank of major.
In the defense of Hog Island, in the Delaware River, Talbot was so severely wounded that he retired to Rhode Island on leave of absence, but in the summer of 1778 he again saw active service in the Rhode Island campaign of Gen. John Sullivan. Fitting out the Hawke he captured the Pigot in October, again exhibiting initiative and gallantry. On November 14, Congress rewarded him with a promotion to a lieutenant-colonelcy and Rhode Island about the same time recognized his services with the gift of a sword. As commander of the Pigot and later of the Argo, both under the army, he cruised against the small enemy vessels that interrupted the American trade between Long Island and Nantucket and captured more than a dozen of them. In recognition of these exploits Congress made him a captain in the Continental Navy, on September 17, 1779, but when he failed to obtain a ship commensurate with his rank he put to sea as commander of the privateer General Washington.
He had taken but a single prize when he ran into the British fleet off New York and after a chase surrendered to the Culloden, 74 guns.
For a time he was confined on board the famous Jersey prison ship at New York, but later was transported to England and confined in a prison. After undergoing many hardships and making several futile attempts to escape he was exchanged for a British officer and landed at Cherbourg, France, in December 1781. Obtaining pecuniary aid from Franklin, he sailed for America, but before reaching his destination the vessel on which he had taken passage was captured by a British privateer. The British captain, however, considerately put him aboard an English brig bound for New York. The settlement of his claims against the government and a prize case before the Pennsylvania Admiralty led Talbot to spend much time in Philadelphia. Soon after his second marriage he established himself as a farmer in Fulton County, N. Y. , on a section of the forfeited estates of Sir John Johnson.
In 1792-93 he was a member of the New York Assembly, and, in 1793-95, of the federal House of Representatives. On June 5, 1794, President Washington chose him third in a list of six captains of the new navy then under organization. Before the end of his term in Congress he entered upon the superintendency of the construction of the frigate President at New York. From 1796, when work on this vessel was suspended, until the outbreak of the naval war with France in 1798, he was without naval duties.
On May 11, 1798, President Adams reappointed him captain, an unnecessary act that led to a long and bitter controversy between Talbot and Thomas Truxtun over their rank; the President supported Talbot.
As commander of the Santo Domingo station, 1799-1800, he made a rather uneventful cruise in the West Indies on board the Constitution. One exploit that he conceived led to the capture of the Sandwich in the Spanish harbor of Puerto Plata, Santo Domingo. This capture, being illegal, cost the captors dearly. At the end of the cruise Talbot was commended by the secretary of the navy for his services in protecting American commerce and for laying the foundation of a permanent trade with Santo Domingo.
He resigned from the navy on September 23, 1801, and died twelve years later in New York City.
( Title: An historical sketch, to the end of the Revoluti...)
Talbot was an original member of the Society of the Cincinnati.
He is described as tall, with attractive features, impulsive, and fearless.
In 1772 he was married to a Miss Richmond. In Philadelphia, after the death of his first wife, he was married to a Miss Morris, grand-daughter of Gen. Thomas Mifflin. From his third wife, a Mrs. Pintard of New York, he was separated. From his first two marriages he had at least four children.
