lieutenant sea captain clipper-ship captain
William Crowninshield Rogers was born at Salem, Massachussets, the eldest son of Richard Saltonstall and Sarah (Crowninshield) Rogers. Through his father he was descended from Rev. John Rogers, president of Harvard College in 1682-84; through his mother he was a grandson of Jacob Crowninshield
He attended the Salem Latin School and in 1839 entered Harvard College. In the spring of his junior year he left, apparently because of a weakness which had developed in his lungs, and went to sea as supercargo.
In 1865 he received the degree of A. B. from Harvard.
He made several voyages, principally to the East Indies, in ships of N. L. Rogers & Brother, of which firm his father was a member. Thereafter, for several years, he commanded the Thomas Perkins, one of the "lucky ships" of Salem, and was one of few successful masters who had never served as seaman or subordinate officer on a vessel. In this ship he made a passage during 1849 from New York to San Francisco in 126 days, a remarkable feat for a full-built ship of that type. Leaving the Perkins, he took command in 1851 of the new clipper ship Witchcraft, of 1310 tons, one of the largest and handsomest clippers then afloat. Sailing from New York, April 4, 1851, he ran to San Francisco in 103 days, net sailing time, the shortest passage but one that had been made up to that time. He was dismasted and compelled to put into Rio de Janeiro for repairs, making the run from that port to San Francisco in 62 days, at the time. At the outbreak of the Civil War, Rogers enlisted and was assigned to the command of the clipper barque Wm. G. Anderson, with the rank of volunteer lieutenant. On April 12, 1862, he was placed in command of the U. S. S. Huntsville. On February 11, 1864, he was attached to the Eastern Gulf Squadron, in command of the U. S. S. Iuka. He was promoted to volunteer lieutenant-commander, October 24, 1864. From June 15, 1865, to July 16, 1866, when he resigned from the service, he was engaged in shore duty. With the death of his father, Rogers was left financially independent. He had retired from business before the war, because of his health, and did not thereafter engage in it actively, although he was a silent partner in the Boston branch of the London banking house of J. S. Morgan & Company and continued to be interested in a number of enterprises. He was instrumental in bringing about the consolidation of several small lines to form the Eastern Railroad Company, in which matter he acted as cotrustee with W. B. Bacon and Willard P. Phillips.
On July 6, 1871, he married Mary Ingersoll Bowditch. His only child, William Bowditch Rogers, was born on the Island of Madeira, September 14, 1874. His wife died at Funchal twelve days later. Rogers died of pleurisy in London on the 2nd day of July, 1888.
