Ashley Bowen (1728–1813) was the first

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

sailor A sailor, seaman, mariner, or seafarer is a person who works aboard a watercraft as part of its crew, and may work in any one of a number of different fields that are related to the operation and maintenance of a ship. The profession of the s ...

to write an

autobiography An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life. It is a form of biography. Definition The word "autobiography" was first used deprecatingly by William Taylor in 1797 in the English peri ...

. Although Bowen's career as a sailor was not particularly remarkable, his writings are of great value in understanding the life of an average sailor at that time. Bowen was a sailor from the age of 13 to the age of 35.

Youth

Ashley Bowen was born on January 8, 1728. He grew up in the town of

Marblehead, Massachusetts Marblehead is a coastal New England town in Essex County, Massachusetts, along the North Shore (Massachusetts), North Shore. Its population was 20,441 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. The town lies on a small peninsula that extends ...

, until going to sea at age eleven. Bowen's mother died when he was twelve, and he suffered personal turmoil when his father remarried soon after. At the age of "13 year and three month" Bowen was apprenticed to

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

Peter Hall of

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Seafaring years

Bowen went to sea as a living from the age of 13 on, suffering cruelly under the harsh beatings of his master. Although repeated escape attempts failed, Bowen was finally able to escape Hall at the age of 17. Finally away from his master, Bowen spent the next eighteen years in the employment of several organizations, including the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

and British traders. During this time, Bowen made money transporting

cargo Cargo consists of bulk goods conveyed by water, air, or land. In economics, freight is cargo that is transported at a freight rate for commercial gain. ''Cargo'' was originally a shipload but now covers all types of freight, including trans ...

, serving in the British navy, and trading goods. Bowen was also held prisoner during the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754� ...

by the French.

Family life and giving up the sea

In 1758, Bowen married Dorothea Chadwick, who bore him six children during their marriage. At the time, Bowen was 30 years old, and the fact that he had a wife on land made him think of retirement. Eventually, Bowen gave up seafaring at the age of 35, and set up a rigging business in Marblehead,

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. The business was a moderate success, providing enough income to get by, but never by much. Dorothea died in 1771; the same year, Bowen married Mary Shaw. Shaw died in 1781, and the next year Bowen married Hannah Graves. Bowen's final child was born in 1797. Although Bowen had amassed some wealth through his business and his adventures at sea, as he grew elderly, he was completely dependent upon his children for his upkeep. Bowen died in 1813.

Impact of Bowen's life and autobiography

Although Bowen did not become a master of his own ship or have notable seafaring adventures for his time, his historical contribution is important. Because Bowen was the first

sailor to write an autobiography, his account gives historians valuable insight into life as an 18th-century sailor. Bowen's autobiography and journal had been an important archival source for scholars and in 1973 it was edited by Phillip Chadwick Foster Smith and published by the Colonial Society of Massachusetts. More recently, in 2006, ''The Autobiography of Ashley Bowen'' was published by itself by Broadview Editions, edited with an Introduction by Daniel Vickers.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bowen, Ashley American sailors 1813 deaths 1728 births People from Marblehead, Massachusetts