Comodore James Nicholson

A Patriot of the American Revolution for MARYLAND with the rank of COMMODORE. DAR Ancestor # A083668

James Nicholson (1737 – 2 September 1804) was an officer in the Continental Navy during the American Revolutionary War.

The son of Joseph and Hannah Scott Nicholson, he was born in Chestertown, Maryland. James Nicholson served in the colonial Navy with the British in the assault on Havana in 1762, and was commissioned Captain in the Continental Navy 10 October 1776. He commanded Defense, Trumbull, and Virginia, and when blockaded at Baltimore, Maryland, took his men to join George Washington at the Battle of Trenton to aid in that key victory.

Made the senior captain in the Continental Navy due to political influence, he nevertheless had an undistinguished career, never winning a victory or capturing a prize. He lost his first command, the frigate Virginia, while trying to run past the British squadron blockading the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay. He ran the ship aground and rather than fight the approaching British ships, fled to shore in a boat, leaving the Virginia and her crew to be captured. The next day he approached the captured ship under a flag of truce and asked for his personal effects.

Nicholson styled his flight as an "escape" in his report to Congress, and with the only witnesses confined to British prisons, he was eventually given command of Trumbull. That command he lost to HMS Iris when his crew refused to fight.

Nicholson had one son and five daughters, one of whom married Albert Gallatin. He died at his home in New York City.

The ships named USS Nicholson were named for him, his younger brothers, John Nicholson and Samuel Nicholson, his nephew, William Nicholson and his grandnephew, James W. Nicholson.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Nicholson_%28naval_officer%29
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http://books.google.com/books?id=PS1PAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA117&lpg=PA117&dq...

James Nicholson, son of Joseph Nicholson and Hannah (Smith) Scott, was born in Chestertown, Maryland, in 1737 or 1738. He entered upon a sea-faring life at an early age and was with the British fleet when Havana was captured in 1762. From 1763 until 1771, he was a resident of New York City. At the outbreak of the Revolution, he tendered his services to the navy and was placed in command of the DEFENSE, a Maryland vessel with which, in March, 1776, he recaptured several prize ships from the British. In June, 1776, he was placed in command of the VIRGINIA, a 28 gun ship of war. A resolution of Congress, October 10, 1776, declared that the number of captains in the Continental Navy should be 24 and should rank in the order designated. By this resolution, James Nicholson appeared first on the list and was thus senior captain and Commodore-in-Chief of the Continental Navy.

Naval Officer. Nicholson began his career in the British Navy. He participated in the Battle of Havana against the Spanish in 1762, during the Seven Years' War. During the American Revolution, Nicholson joined the Continental Navy, and was named captain of the "Defense." As the most senior captain in the Navy, Nicholson was named Commodore-in-Chief of the Continental Navy. Nicholson fought at the Battle of Trenton (December 26, 1776), but was later given command of another ship,the "Virginia." This ship he beached in the Chesapeake Bay, and fled to shore, rather than fight the Birtish. Later in the war, Nicholson was given command of the frigate "Trumbull." The men under his command on this ship refused to fight when challenged by HMS "Iris" and Nicholson surrendered his ship. After the war, Nicholson was a U.S. Commissioner of Loans, from 1801-1804. Four U.S. Navy ships have been named after him and his family of sailors.

• Reference: Find A Grave Memorial - SmartCopy: Jun 16 2018, 21:36:04 UTC