Series 34. Thomas Pattison (1839-1842)
Scope and Content
The collection consists of a manuscript of practical seamanship, including national flags, rigging details, colored drawings of signal flags and rigged vessels, and navigation tables probably produced while Pattison was a midshipman; and a two-volume journal kept aboard USS St. Louis. The journal records daily conditions and events at sea; the handwriting is difficult to read in many places.
Historical Note
After having served as flagship for the Navy's West Indies Squadron from 1832 to 1838 and spent the subsequent 11 months in dry dock, USS St. Louis sailed in June, 1839, to join the Pacific Squadron at Monterey, California. It stopped at San Francisco en route and was the first American man-of-war to carry the flag into that port. From then until returning to Norfolk in September, 1842, St. Louis served along the coast of Peru.