''Ganges'' was a ship launched in 1798 at Philadelphia, probably for French owners. During the

Peace of Amiens The Treaty of Amiens (french: la paix d'Amiens, ) temporarily ended hostilities between France and the United Kingdom at the end of the War of the Second Coalition. It marked the end of the French Revolutionary Wars; after a short peace it se ...

her registration and homeport became Dunkirk. Her (possibly new) French owners sent her to engage in

whaling Whaling is the process of hunting of whales for their usable products such as meat and blubber, which can be turned into a type of oil that became increasingly important in the Industrial Revolution. It was practiced as an organized industry ...

Delagoa Bay Maputo Bay ( pt, Baía de Maputo), formerly also known as Delagoa Bay from ''Baía da Lagoa'' in Portuguese, is an inlet of the Indian Ocean on the coast of Mozambique, between 25° 40' and 26° 20' S, with a length from north to south of over 90&n ...

, where the British letter of marque whaler captured her in 1803. She then made one whaling voyage to Isle of Desolation before a French squadron captured her in 1806 during a second whaling voyage. Accounts differ as to whether her captors sank her, or released her and she continued to operate as a merchant vessel until 1814.

Career

''Ganges'' was launched at Philadelphia, possibly for the Rotch brothers. After the outbreak of the

French Revolutionary Wars The French Revolutionary Wars (french: Guerres de la Révolution française) were a series of sweeping military conflicts lasting from 1792 until 1802 and resulting from the French Revolution. They pitted French First Republic, France against Ki ...

, a number of French whaling companies transferred their operations to the United States, operating out of

New Bedford New Bedford (Massachusett: ) is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts. It is located on the Acushnet River in what is known as the South Coast region. Up through the 17th century, the area was the territory of the Wampanoag Native American pe ...

and

Nantucket Nantucket () is an island about south from Cape Cod. Together with the small islands of Tuckernuck and Muskeget, it constitutes the Town and County of Nantucket, a combined county/town government that is part of the U.S. state of Massachuse ...

under American colours and with American masters and crews, frequently Nantucket whalers. During the Peace of Amiens (1802–1803), some French owners returned their vessels to French registration, and resumed whaling from France. ''Gange'' was commissioned at Dunkirk circa September 1803 by Louis De Baecque. She departed in late September with Charles Harris (or Harrax), master, for the whaling grounds at

. There she encountered ''Scorpion'', which captured ''Gange'' and a second French whaler, , in late 1803. ''Scorpion'' then escorted both into

St Helena Saint Helena () is a British overseas territory located in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a remote volcanic tropical island west of the coast of south-western Africa, and east of Rio de Janeiro in South America. It is one of three constitu ...

. From there they sailed to Britain, where they arrived in April 1804 and were sold. Their new owners then fitted them out for whaling and armed them. ''Ganges''s new owners were James Milman (mast maker), and James Herbert (cooper), or Milner & Co. She sailed from Britain on 4 August 1804 with master C.W. Hodan, or Bacon or Main, for the Isle of Desolation. She was reported to have been there on 25 February 1805. Reportedly she engaged in sealing and the hunt for "sea elephants". She was then reported at

on 16 August 1805. She returned to Britain on 12 September 1805.British Southern Whale Fishery Database – voyages: ''Ganges''.
/ref>

Loss

''Ganges'', Obed Folger, master, and the same owners as on her previous voyage, left on a whaling voyage shortly after returning from her first voyage. While outward bound, she encountered "a flotilla from Rochefort". The flotilla captured her on 19 December 1805, or 11 March 1806. The French either sank ''Ganges'', or released her, and she continued to operate as a merchant vessel until 1814. ''

Lloyd's Register Lloyd's Register Group Limited (LR) is a technical and professional services organisation and a maritime classification society, wholly owned by the Lloyd’s Register Foundation, a UK charity dedicated to research and education in science and ...

'' for 1807 notes that she was captured. If she returned to service, she did not appear in ''Lloyd's Register'' for 1808 or 1809. Fortuitously, the Rochefort squadron had captured a

West Indiaman West Indiaman was a general name for any merchantman sailing ship making runs from the Old World to the West Indies and the east coast of the Americas. These ships were generally strong ocean-going ships capable of handling storms in the Atlantic ...

named prior to November 1805. This coincidence may be part of the reason for confusion but the fate of the ''Ganges'' of this article.

Notes

Citations

References

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ganges (1798 ship) 1798 ships Whaling ships Captured ships