David Allen Mosher was the son of Allen Mosher and Mercy Rider. The Mosher's are listed in the book "Descendants of Hugh Mosher and Rebecca Maxson through Seven Generations" (1990) by Chamberlain & Clarenbach. Contributing to the book was David's great-great-granddaughter Carol Barron Karajohn who did the primary research on this branch of Hugh Mosher and Rebecca Maxson descendants.
David's father was a descendant of Pilgrims Francis Cooke, his son John Cooke, and Richard Warren, who arrived in Cape Cod aboard the Mayflower in 1620.
Family tradition tells us David and his wife Rebecca Whiting Mosher's descendants have Native American ancestry through the Cape Cod Mashpee Tribe of Wampanoag Indians, possibly through David's mother Mercy Rider/Ryder who may have had ties to the Mashpee tribe through her mother Hannah. Family folklore tells us that in the late 1700's a Native American woman married into the family.
In 1891, David died of cancer at age 63, his occupation was listed as "carpenter". However, New Bedford whaling ship archives tell us that in June 1844, just after David's 16 birthday, he became a mariner and sailed around the world for 5-1/2 years aboard two whaling ships, the "Junior" from 1844-47, and the "Roman 2d" from 1847-1850. David achieved the rank of 3rd Mate during his years at sea, and was planning a third voyage at the end of 1850 but instead married Rebecca Whiting and started a family.
January 10, 1846 David's sister Sarah died at age 15 from pleurisy. This occurred when David was aboard the Junior near the Cook Islands in the south Pacific heading toward Hawaii. It was noted on Sarah's death certificate that her mother, Mercy Ryder Mosher, was born in Cape Cod.
November 23, 1856 David's mother Mercy died of dysentery, her death certificate noted she was born in Westport Massachusetts (next to Dartmouth).
May 22, 1885 David's father died.
The 1849 New Bedford directory listed David's father living at 134 Ray Street (now Acushnet Ave) and listed David at sea "in ship Roman 2d". The 1850 census listed David as a "sailor" living with his parents. David had arrived home in April, the census was taken in September.
After arriving home in 1850 David married Rebecca E. Whiting. David was 22, Rebecca was 16. Their marriage date has never been discovered. Their first child Allen Mosher was born the following year in June 1851.
In 1850, Rebecca and her mother Martha (Tallman) Whiting were living across the street from David's parents on Ray Street in New Bedford, located near the wharfs where Allen (and later David) worked as a stevedores loading ships.
By 1852, Allen Mosher and his son David Allen Mosher purchased a home on the corner of Rural & Grape Street in New Bedford Massachusetts (now listed as 13 Rural Street). David resided there until his death in 1891. At the time of David's death he owned the house on Rural Street and 5 acre pasture nearby. Family tradition states that the Mosher's sold land to St. Luke's Hospital in New Bedford; possibly this was a reference to the 5 acre pasture? After David's death the Rural Street home was purchased by David & Rebecca's son James Tallman Mosher, who sold it a few years later.
David Allen Mosher & Rebecca Whiting's children:
Allen Mosher 1851-1904
Martha Mosher 1853-1922
David Allen Mosher Jr. 1855-1934
James Tallman Mosher 1858-1929
Rebecca W. Mosher 1860-1875
New Bedford City Directory:
1852, David A. Mosher was listed as a stevedore (loading ships) and boarding at Rural Street with his father Allen Mosher.
1856, David A. Mosher was listed at Rural Street and working for C. H. Leonard's Candle Works in New Bedford.
1867, David A. Mosher was listed working for W. A. Robinson & Son, a large whale oil and candle factory with locations in New Bedford Massachusetts and Providence R.I.
U.S. Civil War Draft Registrations Records 1863-1865:
June 1863, David A. Mosher, age 35, was enumerated on a list of Class II men between the age of 35-45 years from New Bedford subject to military duty in the First Congressional District, consisting of the counties of Dukes, Barnstable, and parts of Bristol and Plymouth County Massachusetts. David did not see active duty, but his younger brother Frederick P. Mosher was a Class I soldier who mustered out with the Union Army as Private, Company F, 3rd Massachusetts.
In 1875, family tragedy occurred when David and Rebecca's 15 year old daughter Rebecca W. Mosher died of skin cancer. The location of her burial is unknown.
In 1886, Rebecca E. Whiting Mosher died at their home on Rural Street, she was 52 years old and a grandmother.
David's Whaling Voyages:
Six weeks after his 16th birthday, David registered as a mariner at the District of New Bedford by signing a Seaman's
Protection Certificate (SPC) on May 29, 1844 as follows: David A. Mosher age 16, 5'- 5" tall, light skin, brown hair, blue eyes, born in Dartmouth Massachusetts. This certificate was his I.D. card and proof of citizenship incase he was in a foreign port and needed protection by the American Consular office. David's witness to signing his SPC was his brother-in-law George Hicks Jr. who married Phebe Ann Mosher on 21 Dec 1843.
June 6, 1844, David sailed from New Bedford with Capt. Silas Tinkham and the crew of the whaling ship Junior for a voyage to the Indian and Pacific Ocean that lasted nearly 3 years. He returned home in May 1847 and 5 months later joined the crew of the whaling ship Roman 2d under Capt. Seth Blackmer for a voyage to the Indian and North West Pacific Ocean that lasted 2-1/2 years.
Whaling Ship Junior:
David was listed as a "greenhand" aboard the Junior. The voyage lasted from June 4, 1844 - May 21, 1847. The ship had 34 crew members and was reported at the following locations:
June 20, 1844 - at Fayal, Azores, took on 3 crew members - Amarantes, Periera, Roza
Sept 5, 1844 - at Lahaina Maui
Dec 24, 1844 - at Bay of Island's on New Zealand's North Island, took on 1 crew member named Coburn
Jan 24, 1844 - at Pitts Island south-east of New Zealand's Chatham Island's Lat 44.52s - Lon 174.54w
Feb 1844 - Huntz Island (near New Zealand)
June 24, 1845 - off Chatham Island's (located 860 km east of Christchurch New Zealand)
Sept. 9, 1845 - at Lahaina Maui bound for New Zealand, discharged 3 crew members - Wait, Lewis, Coburn
Nov 1, 1845 - at Rarotonga (largest island of the Cook Island's, south of the Samoa Island's between Fiji and Tahiti)
Jan 14, 1846 - bound for Sandwich Island's (Hawaii)
July 15, 1846 - reported on North West Coast (north of Japan off Russia) - 4 whales taken
Oct 22, 1846 - at Honolulu, reported boiled barrels of whale oil (bbls) - 350sp (high grade) 2200wh (low grade)
Nov 17, 1846 - sailed from Honolulu, Oahu - home bound
April 7/8, 1847 - at Pernambuco Brazil (the eastern most point of central Brazil on the Atlantic side)
Junior arrived home in New Bedford with 2,600 barrels of whale oil. Based on 30 gallons per barrel, this was about
78,000 gallons valued at .95-sp and .34-wh. The ship also carried 25,000 lbs of whale bone valued at .28 per lbs.
The total gross value was about $40,840 (approximately $1,361 per month at sea).
Whaling Ship Roman 2d:
Roman 2d: Built at New Bedford in 1835, 374 tons, owner Abraham barker, Capt. Seth Blackmer
David's second voyage was aboard the Roman 2d from October 20, 1847 - April 2, 1850. The ship locations were:
Nov 20, 1848 - Cape Verde Island's - fastened to a large sperm whale but lost him do to a parting of the line
Dec. 3, 1848 - at Lat 48s - Lon l63e - Auckland Island's, off New Zealand's Southern Island - 1000 bbls whale oil
Jan 25,1848 - Lat 52-1/2s - Lon 63w - near Kerguelen Island (midway between Africa & Australia, sub Antarctica)
July 21, 1848 - at Upolu, Samoa - between Fiji and Tahiti - 800 miles west of Fiji & 1500 miles east of Tahiti
July 1848 - reported on the North West PacifIc Coast (off Russia) 700 bbls of whale oil
Feb 9, 1849 - at Bay ofIsland's New Zealand, 200sp 1000wh
July 4, 1849 - Okhotsk Sea (PacifIc north west coast - off Russia, north of Japan)
Oct 13, 1849 - Lahiana Maui, home bound (for New Bedford)
April 2, 1850: The Roman 2d arrived home in New Bedford with 3,167 barrels of whale oil (about 95,000 gal.) valued at about $50,633, and 34,500 lbs of whale bone valued at $10,350. The total gross value was about $60,983 (about $2,032 per month at sea). In April 1850, whale oil was $1.17/gal sp; AO/gal wh and .30/lbs for whale bone (the jaw bone of baleen whales).
Whaling Ship Globe, September 9, 1850:
The New Bedford Whaling Museum Crew List Records has tantalizing records that show David A. Mosher was listed as 3rd mate aboard the whale ship Globe under Capt. William Handy Jr., departing New Bedford on September 9, 1850. However, if David sailed with the ship he soon returned home because all records after 1850 indicate he was married to Rebecca E. Whiting and raising a family in New Bedford.
Source reference:
Ancestry.com
RootsWeb WorldConnect:
Rick Tallman, Glenn Russell
New Bedford Whaling Museum Crew Records
New Bedford Public Library:
Joan Barney, Paul Cyr
The Whalemen's Shipping List newspaper 1844-1914
City of New Bedford vital records
Spinner Publications New Bedford:
Joe Thomas, Jay Avila
Whaling City: New Bedford city directories
Town of Dartmouth vital Records
Hugh Mosher & Rebecca Maxson through Seven Generations,1990, by Chamberlain & Clarenbach
Carol Barron Karajohn, records, photos and much more
Anne Mosher Wessler, photos & family history
Donna Mosher Lawlor, photos & family history
Lori Mosher Murphy, photos & family history
David A. Ross, photos & family history
Sherry Barnhurst, Director LDS Family History Center
And many others...
David's father was a descendant of Pilgrims Francis Cooke, his son John Cooke, and Richard Warren, who arrived in Cape Cod aboard the Mayflower in 1620.
Family tradition tells us David and his wife Rebecca Whiting Mosher's descendants have Native American ancestry through the Cape Cod Mashpee Tribe of Wampanoag Indians, possibly through David's mother Mercy Rider/Ryder who may have had ties to the Mashpee tribe through her mother Hannah. Family folklore tells us that in the late 1700's a Native American woman married into the family.
In 1891, David died of cancer at age 63, his occupation was listed as "carpenter". However, New Bedford whaling ship archives tell us that in June 1844, just after David's 16 birthday, he became a mariner and sailed around the world for 5-1/2 years aboard two whaling ships, the "Junior" from 1844-47, and the "Roman 2d" from 1847-1850. David achieved the rank of 3rd Mate during his years at sea, and was planning a third voyage at the end of 1850 but instead married Rebecca Whiting and started a family.
January 10, 1846 David's sister Sarah died at age 15 from pleurisy. This occurred when David was aboard the Junior near the Cook Islands in the south Pacific heading toward Hawaii. It was noted on Sarah's death certificate that her mother, Mercy Ryder Mosher, was born in Cape Cod.
November 23, 1856 David's mother Mercy died of dysentery, her death certificate noted she was born in Westport Massachusetts (next to Dartmouth).
May 22, 1885 David's father died.
The 1849 New Bedford directory listed David's father living at 134 Ray Street (now Acushnet Ave) and listed David at sea "in ship Roman 2d". The 1850 census listed David as a "sailor" living with his parents. David had arrived home in April, the census was taken in September.
After arriving home in 1850 David married Rebecca E. Whiting. David was 22, Rebecca was 16. Their marriage date has never been discovered. Their first child Allen Mosher was born the following year in June 1851.
In 1850, Rebecca and her mother Martha (Tallman) Whiting were living across the street from David's parents on Ray Street in New Bedford, located near the wharfs where Allen (and later David) worked as a stevedores loading ships.
By 1852, Allen Mosher and his son David Allen Mosher purchased a home on the corner of Rural & Grape Street in New Bedford Massachusetts (now listed as 13 Rural Street). David resided there until his death in 1891. At the time of David's death he owned the house on Rural Street and 5 acre pasture nearby. Family tradition states that the Mosher's sold land to St. Luke's Hospital in New Bedford; possibly this was a reference to the 5 acre pasture? After David's death the Rural Street home was purchased by David & Rebecca's son James Tallman Mosher, who sold it a few years later.
David Allen Mosher & Rebecca Whiting's children:
Allen Mosher 1851-1904
Martha Mosher 1853-1922
David Allen Mosher Jr. 1855-1934
James Tallman Mosher 1858-1929
Rebecca W. Mosher 1860-1875
New Bedford City Directory:
1852, David A. Mosher was listed as a stevedore (loading ships) and boarding at Rural Street with his father Allen Mosher.
1856, David A. Mosher was listed at Rural Street and working for C. H. Leonard's Candle Works in New Bedford.
1867, David A. Mosher was listed working for W. A. Robinson & Son, a large whale oil and candle factory with locations in New Bedford Massachusetts and Providence R.I.
U.S. Civil War Draft Registrations Records 1863-1865:
June 1863, David A. Mosher, age 35, was enumerated on a list of Class II men between the age of 35-45 years from New Bedford subject to military duty in the First Congressional District, consisting of the counties of Dukes, Barnstable, and parts of Bristol and Plymouth County Massachusetts. David did not see active duty, but his younger brother Frederick P. Mosher was a Class I soldier who mustered out with the Union Army as Private, Company F, 3rd Massachusetts.
In 1875, family tragedy occurred when David and Rebecca's 15 year old daughter Rebecca W. Mosher died of skin cancer. The location of her burial is unknown.
In 1886, Rebecca E. Whiting Mosher died at their home on Rural Street, she was 52 years old and a grandmother.
David's Whaling Voyages:
Six weeks after his 16th birthday, David registered as a mariner at the District of New Bedford by signing a Seaman's
Protection Certificate (SPC) on May 29, 1844 as follows: David A. Mosher age 16, 5'- 5" tall, light skin, brown hair, blue eyes, born in Dartmouth Massachusetts. This certificate was his I.D. card and proof of citizenship incase he was in a foreign port and needed protection by the American Consular office. David's witness to signing his SPC was his brother-in-law George Hicks Jr. who married Phebe Ann Mosher on 21 Dec 1843.
June 6, 1844, David sailed from New Bedford with Capt. Silas Tinkham and the crew of the whaling ship Junior for a voyage to the Indian and Pacific Ocean that lasted nearly 3 years. He returned home in May 1847 and 5 months later joined the crew of the whaling ship Roman 2d under Capt. Seth Blackmer for a voyage to the Indian and North West Pacific Ocean that lasted 2-1/2 years.
Whaling Ship Junior:
David was listed as a "greenhand" aboard the Junior. The voyage lasted from June 4, 1844 - May 21, 1847. The ship had 34 crew members and was reported at the following locations:
June 20, 1844 - at Fayal, Azores, took on 3 crew members - Amarantes, Periera, Roza
Sept 5, 1844 - at Lahaina Maui
Dec 24, 1844 - at Bay of Island's on New Zealand's North Island, took on 1 crew member named Coburn
Jan 24, 1844 - at Pitts Island south-east of New Zealand's Chatham Island's Lat 44.52s - Lon 174.54w
Feb 1844 - Huntz Island (near New Zealand)
June 24, 1845 - off Chatham Island's (located 860 km east of Christchurch New Zealand)
Sept. 9, 1845 - at Lahaina Maui bound for New Zealand, discharged 3 crew members - Wait, Lewis, Coburn
Nov 1, 1845 - at Rarotonga (largest island of the Cook Island's, south of the Samoa Island's between Fiji and Tahiti)
Jan 14, 1846 - bound for Sandwich Island's (Hawaii)
July 15, 1846 - reported on North West Coast (north of Japan off Russia) - 4 whales taken
Oct 22, 1846 - at Honolulu, reported boiled barrels of whale oil (bbls) - 350sp (high grade) 2200wh (low grade)
Nov 17, 1846 - sailed from Honolulu, Oahu - home bound
April 7/8, 1847 - at Pernambuco Brazil (the eastern most point of central Brazil on the Atlantic side)
Junior arrived home in New Bedford with 2,600 barrels of whale oil. Based on 30 gallons per barrel, this was about
78,000 gallons valued at .95-sp and .34-wh. The ship also carried 25,000 lbs of whale bone valued at .28 per lbs.
The total gross value was about $40,840 (approximately $1,361 per month at sea).
Whaling Ship Roman 2d:
Roman 2d: Built at New Bedford in 1835, 374 tons, owner Abraham barker, Capt. Seth Blackmer
David's second voyage was aboard the Roman 2d from October 20, 1847 - April 2, 1850. The ship locations were:
Nov 20, 1848 - Cape Verde Island's - fastened to a large sperm whale but lost him do to a parting of the line
Dec. 3, 1848 - at Lat 48s - Lon l63e - Auckland Island's, off New Zealand's Southern Island - 1000 bbls whale oil
Jan 25,1848 - Lat 52-1/2s - Lon 63w - near Kerguelen Island (midway between Africa & Australia, sub Antarctica)
July 21, 1848 - at Upolu, Samoa - between Fiji and Tahiti - 800 miles west of Fiji & 1500 miles east of Tahiti
July 1848 - reported on the North West PacifIc Coast (off Russia) 700 bbls of whale oil
Feb 9, 1849 - at Bay ofIsland's New Zealand, 200sp 1000wh
July 4, 1849 - Okhotsk Sea (PacifIc north west coast - off Russia, north of Japan)
Oct 13, 1849 - Lahiana Maui, home bound (for New Bedford)
April 2, 1850: The Roman 2d arrived home in New Bedford with 3,167 barrels of whale oil (about 95,000 gal.) valued at about $50,633, and 34,500 lbs of whale bone valued at $10,350. The total gross value was about $60,983 (about $2,032 per month at sea). In April 1850, whale oil was $1.17/gal sp; AO/gal wh and .30/lbs for whale bone (the jaw bone of baleen whales).
Whaling Ship Globe, September 9, 1850:
The New Bedford Whaling Museum Crew List Records has tantalizing records that show David A. Mosher was listed as 3rd mate aboard the whale ship Globe under Capt. William Handy Jr., departing New Bedford on September 9, 1850. However, if David sailed with the ship he soon returned home because all records after 1850 indicate he was married to Rebecca E. Whiting and raising a family in New Bedford.
Source reference:
Ancestry.com
RootsWeb WorldConnect:
Rick Tallman, Glenn Russell
New Bedford Whaling Museum Crew Records
New Bedford Public Library:
Joan Barney, Paul Cyr
The Whalemen's Shipping List newspaper 1844-1914
City of New Bedford vital records
Spinner Publications New Bedford:
Joe Thomas, Jay Avila
Whaling City: New Bedford city directories
Town of Dartmouth vital Records
Hugh Mosher & Rebecca Maxson through Seven Generations,1990, by Chamberlain & Clarenbach
Carol Barron Karajohn, records, photos and much more
Anne Mosher Wessler, photos & family history
Donna Mosher Lawlor, photos & family history
Lori Mosher Murphy, photos & family history
David A. Ross, photos & family history
Sherry Barnhurst, Director LDS Family History Center
And many others...
David Allen Mosher was the son of Allen Mosher and Mercy Rider. The Mosher's are listed in the book "Descendants of Hugh Mosher and Rebecca Maxson through Seven Generations" (1990) by Chamberlain & Clarenbach. Contributing to the book was David's great-great-granddaughter Carol Barron Karajohn who did the primary research on this branch of Hugh Mosher and Rebecca Maxson descendants.
David's father was a descendant of Pilgrims Francis Cooke, his son John Cooke, and Richard Warren, who arrived in Cape Cod aboard the Mayflower in 1620.
Family tradition tells us David and his wife Rebecca Whiting Mosher's descendants have Native American ancestry through the Cape Cod Mashpee Tribe of Wampanoag Indians, possibly through David's mother Mercy Rider/Ryder who may have had ties to the Mashpee tribe through her mother Hannah. Family folklore tells us that in the late 1700's a Native American woman married into the family.
In 1891, David died of cancer at age 63, his occupation was listed as "carpenter". However, New Bedford whaling ship archives tell us that in June 1844, just after David's 16 birthday, he became a mariner and sailed around the world for 5-1/2 years aboard two whaling ships, the "Junior" from 1844-47, and the "Roman 2d" from 1847-1850. David achieved the rank of 3rd Mate during his years at sea, and was planning a third voyage at the end of 1850 but instead married Rebecca Whiting and started a family.
January 10, 1846 David's sister Sarah died at age 15 from pleurisy. This occurred when David was aboard the Junior near the Cook Islands in the south Pacific heading toward Hawaii. It was noted on Sarah's death certificate that her mother, Mercy Ryder Mosher, was born in Cape Cod.
November 23, 1856 David's mother Mercy died of dysentery, her death certificate noted she was born in Westport Massachusetts (next to Dartmouth).
May 22, 1885 David's father died.
The 1849 New Bedford directory listed David's father living at 134 Ray Street (now Acushnet Ave) and listed David at sea "in ship Roman 2d". The 1850 census listed David as a "sailor" living with his parents. David had arrived home in April, the census was taken in September.
After arriving home in 1850 David married Rebecca E. Whiting. David was 22, Rebecca was 16. Their marriage date has never been discovered. Their first child Allen Mosher was born the following year in June 1851.
In 1850, Rebecca and her mother Martha (Tallman) Whiting were living across the street from David's parents on Ray Street in New Bedford, located near the wharfs where Allen (and later David) worked as a stevedores loading ships.
By 1852, Allen Mosher and his son David Allen Mosher purchased a home on the corner of Rural & Grape Street in New Bedford Massachusetts (now listed as 13 Rural Street). David resided there until his death in 1891. At the time of David's death he owned the house on Rural Street and 5 acre pasture nearby. Family tradition states that the Mosher's sold land to St. Luke's Hospital in New Bedford; possibly this was a reference to the 5 acre pasture? After David's death the Rural Street home was purchased by David & Rebecca's son James Tallman Mosher, who sold it a few years later.
David Allen Mosher & Rebecca Whiting's children:
Allen Mosher 1851-1904
Martha Mosher 1853-1922
David Allen Mosher Jr. 1855-1934
James Tallman Mosher 1858-1929
Rebecca W. Mosher 1860-1875
New Bedford City Directory:
1852, David A. Mosher was listed as a stevedore (loading ships) and boarding at Rural Street with his father Allen Mosher.
1856, David A. Mosher was listed at Rural Street and working for C. H. Leonard's Candle Works in New Bedford.
1867, David A. Mosher was listed working for W. A. Robinson & Son, a large whale oil and candle factory with locations in New Bedford Massachusetts and Providence R.I.
U.S. Civil War Draft Registrations Records 1863-1865:
June 1863, David A. Mosher, age 35, was enumerated on a list of Class II men between the age of 35-45 years from New Bedford subject to military duty in the First Congressional District, consisting of the counties of Dukes, Barnstable, and parts of Bristol and Plymouth County Massachusetts. David did not see active duty, but his younger brother Frederick P. Mosher was a Class I soldier who mustered out with the Union Army as Private, Company F, 3rd Massachusetts.
In 1875, family tragedy occurred when David and Rebecca's 15 year old daughter Rebecca W. Mosher died of skin cancer. The location of her burial is unknown.
In 1886, Rebecca E. Whiting Mosher died at their home on Rural Street, she was 52 years old and a grandmother.
David's Whaling Voyages:
Six weeks after his 16th birthday, David registered as a mariner at the District of New Bedford by signing a Seaman's
Protection Certificate (SPC) on May 29, 1844 as follows: David A. Mosher age 16, 5'- 5" tall, light skin, brown hair, blue eyes, born in Dartmouth Massachusetts. This certificate was his I.D. card and proof of citizenship incase he was in a foreign port and needed protection by the American Consular office. David's witness to signing his SPC was his brother-in-law George Hicks Jr. who married Phebe Ann Mosher on 21 Dec 1843.
June 6, 1844, David sailed from New Bedford with Capt. Silas Tinkham and the crew of the whaling ship Junior for a voyage to the Indian and Pacific Ocean that lasted nearly 3 years. He returned home in May 1847 and 5 months later joined the crew of the whaling ship Roman 2d under Capt. Seth Blackmer for a voyage to the Indian and North West Pacific Ocean that lasted 2-1/2 years.
Whaling Ship Junior:
David was listed as a "greenhand" aboard the Junior. The voyage lasted from June 4, 1844 - May 21, 1847. The ship had 34 crew members and was reported at the following locations:
June 20, 1844 - at Fayal, Azores, took on 3 crew members - Amarantes, Periera, Roza
Sept 5, 1844 - at Lahaina Maui
Dec 24, 1844 - at Bay of Island's on New Zealand's North Island, took on 1 crew member named Coburn
Jan 24, 1844 - at Pitts Island south-east of New Zealand's Chatham Island's Lat 44.52s - Lon 174.54w
Feb 1844 - Huntz Island (near New Zealand)
June 24, 1845 - off Chatham Island's (located 860 km east of Christchurch New Zealand)
Sept. 9, 1845 - at Lahaina Maui bound for New Zealand, discharged 3 crew members - Wait, Lewis, Coburn
Nov 1, 1845 - at Rarotonga (largest island of the Cook Island's, south of the Samoa Island's between Fiji and Tahiti)
Jan 14, 1846 - bound for Sandwich Island's (Hawaii)
July 15, 1846 - reported on North West Coast (north of Japan off Russia) - 4 whales taken
Oct 22, 1846 - at Honolulu, reported boiled barrels of whale oil (bbls) - 350sp (high grade) 2200wh (low grade)
Nov 17, 1846 - sailed from Honolulu, Oahu - home bound
April 7/8, 1847 - at Pernambuco Brazil (the eastern most point of central Brazil on the Atlantic side)
Junior arrived home in New Bedford with 2,600 barrels of whale oil. Based on 30 gallons per barrel, this was about
78,000 gallons valued at .95-sp and .34-wh. The ship also carried 25,000 lbs of whale bone valued at .28 per lbs.
The total gross value was about $40,840 (approximately $1,361 per month at sea).
Whaling Ship Roman 2d:
Roman 2d: Built at New Bedford in 1835, 374 tons, owner Abraham barker, Capt. Seth Blackmer
David's second voyage was aboard the Roman 2d from October 20, 1847 - April 2, 1850. The ship locations were:
Nov 20, 1848 - Cape Verde Island's - fastened to a large sperm whale but lost him do to a parting of the line
Dec. 3, 1848 - at Lat 48s - Lon l63e - Auckland Island's, off New Zealand's Southern Island - 1000 bbls whale oil
Jan 25,1848 - Lat 52-1/2s - Lon 63w - near Kerguelen Island (midway between Africa & Australia, sub Antarctica)
July 21, 1848 - at Upolu, Samoa - between Fiji and Tahiti - 800 miles west of Fiji & 1500 miles east of Tahiti
July 1848 - reported on the North West PacifIc Coast (off Russia) 700 bbls of whale oil
Feb 9, 1849 - at Bay ofIsland's New Zealand, 200sp 1000wh
July 4, 1849 - Okhotsk Sea (PacifIc north west coast - off Russia, north of Japan)
Oct 13, 1849 - Lahiana Maui, home bound (for New Bedford)
April 2, 1850: The Roman 2d arrived home in New Bedford with 3,167 barrels of whale oil (about 95,000 gal.) valued at about $50,633, and 34,500 lbs of whale bone valued at $10,350. The total gross value was about $60,983 (about $2,032 per month at sea). In April 1850, whale oil was $1.17/gal sp; AO/gal wh and .30/lbs for whale bone (the jaw bone of baleen whales).
Whaling Ship Globe, September 9, 1850:
The New Bedford Whaling Museum Crew List Records has tantalizing records that show David A. Mosher was listed as 3rd mate aboard the whale ship Globe under Capt. William Handy Jr., departing New Bedford on September 9, 1850. However, if David sailed with the ship he soon returned home because all records after 1850 indicate he was married to Rebecca E. Whiting and raising a family in New Bedford.
Source reference:
Ancestry.com
RootsWeb WorldConnect:
Rick Tallman, Glenn Russell
New Bedford Whaling Museum Crew Records
New Bedford Public Library:
Joan Barney, Paul Cyr
The Whalemen's Shipping List newspaper 1844-1914
City of New Bedford vital records
Spinner Publications New Bedford:
Joe Thomas, Jay Avila
Whaling City: New Bedford city directories
Town of Dartmouth vital Records
Hugh Mosher & Rebecca Maxson through Seven Generations,1990, by Chamberlain & Clarenbach
Carol Barron Karajohn, records, photos and much more
Anne Mosher Wessler, photos & family history
Donna Mosher Lawlor, photos & family history
Lori Mosher Murphy, photos & family history
David A. Ross, photos & family history
Sherry Barnhurst, Director LDS Family History Center
And many others...
David's father was a descendant of Pilgrims Francis Cooke, his son John Cooke, and Richard Warren, who arrived in Cape Cod aboard the Mayflower in 1620.
Family tradition tells us David and his wife Rebecca Whiting Mosher's descendants have Native American ancestry through the Cape Cod Mashpee Tribe of Wampanoag Indians, possibly through David's mother Mercy Rider/Ryder who may have had ties to the Mashpee tribe through her mother Hannah. Family folklore tells us that in the late 1700's a Native American woman married into the family.
In 1891, David died of cancer at age 63, his occupation was listed as "carpenter". However, New Bedford whaling ship archives tell us that in June 1844, just after David's 16 birthday, he became a mariner and sailed around the world for 5-1/2 years aboard two whaling ships, the "Junior" from 1844-47, and the "Roman 2d" from 1847-1850. David achieved the rank of 3rd Mate during his years at sea, and was planning a third voyage at the end of 1850 but instead married Rebecca Whiting and started a family.
January 10, 1846 David's sister Sarah died at age 15 from pleurisy. This occurred when David was aboard the Junior near the Cook Islands in the south Pacific heading toward Hawaii. It was noted on Sarah's death certificate that her mother, Mercy Ryder Mosher, was born in Cape Cod.
November 23, 1856 David's mother Mercy died of dysentery, her death certificate noted she was born in Westport Massachusetts (next to Dartmouth).
May 22, 1885 David's father died.
The 1849 New Bedford directory listed David's father living at 134 Ray Street (now Acushnet Ave) and listed David at sea "in ship Roman 2d". The 1850 census listed David as a "sailor" living with his parents. David had arrived home in April, the census was taken in September.
After arriving home in 1850 David married Rebecca E. Whiting. David was 22, Rebecca was 16. Their marriage date has never been discovered. Their first child Allen Mosher was born the following year in June 1851.
In 1850, Rebecca and her mother Martha (Tallman) Whiting were living across the street from David's parents on Ray Street in New Bedford, located near the wharfs where Allen (and later David) worked as a stevedores loading ships.
By 1852, Allen Mosher and his son David Allen Mosher purchased a home on the corner of Rural & Grape Street in New Bedford Massachusetts (now listed as 13 Rural Street). David resided there until his death in 1891. At the time of David's death he owned the house on Rural Street and 5 acre pasture nearby. Family tradition states that the Mosher's sold land to St. Luke's Hospital in New Bedford; possibly this was a reference to the 5 acre pasture? After David's death the Rural Street home was purchased by David & Rebecca's son James Tallman Mosher, who sold it a few years later.
David Allen Mosher & Rebecca Whiting's children:
Allen Mosher 1851-1904
Martha Mosher 1853-1922
David Allen Mosher Jr. 1855-1934
James Tallman Mosher 1858-1929
Rebecca W. Mosher 1860-1875
New Bedford City Directory:
1852, David A. Mosher was listed as a stevedore (loading ships) and boarding at Rural Street with his father Allen Mosher.
1856, David A. Mosher was listed at Rural Street and working for C. H. Leonard's Candle Works in New Bedford.
1867, David A. Mosher was listed working for W. A. Robinson & Son, a large whale oil and candle factory with locations in New Bedford Massachusetts and Providence R.I.
U.S. Civil War Draft Registrations Records 1863-1865:
June 1863, David A. Mosher, age 35, was enumerated on a list of Class II men between the age of 35-45 years from New Bedford subject to military duty in the First Congressional District, consisting of the counties of Dukes, Barnstable, and parts of Bristol and Plymouth County Massachusetts. David did not see active duty, but his younger brother Frederick P. Mosher was a Class I soldier who mustered out with the Union Army as Private, Company F, 3rd Massachusetts.
In 1875, family tragedy occurred when David and Rebecca's 15 year old daughter Rebecca W. Mosher died of skin cancer. The location of her burial is unknown.
In 1886, Rebecca E. Whiting Mosher died at their home on Rural Street, she was 52 years old and a grandmother.
David's Whaling Voyages:
Six weeks after his 16th birthday, David registered as a mariner at the District of New Bedford by signing a Seaman's
Protection Certificate (SPC) on May 29, 1844 as follows: David A. Mosher age 16, 5'- 5" tall, light skin, brown hair, blue eyes, born in Dartmouth Massachusetts. This certificate was his I.D. card and proof of citizenship incase he was in a foreign port and needed protection by the American Consular office. David's witness to signing his SPC was his brother-in-law George Hicks Jr. who married Phebe Ann Mosher on 21 Dec 1843.
June 6, 1844, David sailed from New Bedford with Capt. Silas Tinkham and the crew of the whaling ship Junior for a voyage to the Indian and Pacific Ocean that lasted nearly 3 years. He returned home in May 1847 and 5 months later joined the crew of the whaling ship Roman 2d under Capt. Seth Blackmer for a voyage to the Indian and North West Pacific Ocean that lasted 2-1/2 years.
Whaling Ship Junior:
David was listed as a "greenhand" aboard the Junior. The voyage lasted from June 4, 1844 - May 21, 1847. The ship had 34 crew members and was reported at the following locations:
June 20, 1844 - at Fayal, Azores, took on 3 crew members - Amarantes, Periera, Roza
Sept 5, 1844 - at Lahaina Maui
Dec 24, 1844 - at Bay of Island's on New Zealand's North Island, took on 1 crew member named Coburn
Jan 24, 1844 - at Pitts Island south-east of New Zealand's Chatham Island's Lat 44.52s - Lon 174.54w
Feb 1844 - Huntz Island (near New Zealand)
June 24, 1845 - off Chatham Island's (located 860 km east of Christchurch New Zealand)
Sept. 9, 1845 - at Lahaina Maui bound for New Zealand, discharged 3 crew members - Wait, Lewis, Coburn
Nov 1, 1845 - at Rarotonga (largest island of the Cook Island's, south of the Samoa Island's between Fiji and Tahiti)
Jan 14, 1846 - bound for Sandwich Island's (Hawaii)
July 15, 1846 - reported on North West Coast (north of Japan off Russia) - 4 whales taken
Oct 22, 1846 - at Honolulu, reported boiled barrels of whale oil (bbls) - 350sp (high grade) 2200wh (low grade)
Nov 17, 1846 - sailed from Honolulu, Oahu - home bound
April 7/8, 1847 - at Pernambuco Brazil (the eastern most point of central Brazil on the Atlantic side)
Junior arrived home in New Bedford with 2,600 barrels of whale oil. Based on 30 gallons per barrel, this was about
78,000 gallons valued at .95-sp and .34-wh. The ship also carried 25,000 lbs of whale bone valued at .28 per lbs.
The total gross value was about $40,840 (approximately $1,361 per month at sea).
Whaling Ship Roman 2d:
Roman 2d: Built at New Bedford in 1835, 374 tons, owner Abraham barker, Capt. Seth Blackmer
David's second voyage was aboard the Roman 2d from October 20, 1847 - April 2, 1850. The ship locations were:
Nov 20, 1848 - Cape Verde Island's - fastened to a large sperm whale but lost him do to a parting of the line
Dec. 3, 1848 - at Lat 48s - Lon l63e - Auckland Island's, off New Zealand's Southern Island - 1000 bbls whale oil
Jan 25,1848 - Lat 52-1/2s - Lon 63w - near Kerguelen Island (midway between Africa & Australia, sub Antarctica)
July 21, 1848 - at Upolu, Samoa - between Fiji and Tahiti - 800 miles west of Fiji & 1500 miles east of Tahiti
July 1848 - reported on the North West PacifIc Coast (off Russia) 700 bbls of whale oil
Feb 9, 1849 - at Bay ofIsland's New Zealand, 200sp 1000wh
July 4, 1849 - Okhotsk Sea (PacifIc north west coast - off Russia, north of Japan)
Oct 13, 1849 - Lahiana Maui, home bound (for New Bedford)
April 2, 1850: The Roman 2d arrived home in New Bedford with 3,167 barrels of whale oil (about 95,000 gal.) valued at about $50,633, and 34,500 lbs of whale bone valued at $10,350. The total gross value was about $60,983 (about $2,032 per month at sea). In April 1850, whale oil was $1.17/gal sp; AO/gal wh and .30/lbs for whale bone (the jaw bone of baleen whales).
Whaling Ship Globe, September 9, 1850:
The New Bedford Whaling Museum Crew List Records has tantalizing records that show David A. Mosher was listed as 3rd mate aboard the whale ship Globe under Capt. William Handy Jr., departing New Bedford on September 9, 1850. However, if David sailed with the ship he soon returned home because all records after 1850 indicate he was married to Rebecca E. Whiting and raising a family in New Bedford.
Source reference:
Ancestry.com
RootsWeb WorldConnect:
Rick Tallman, Glenn Russell
New Bedford Whaling Museum Crew Records
New Bedford Public Library:
Joan Barney, Paul Cyr
The Whalemen's Shipping List newspaper 1844-1914
City of New Bedford vital records
Spinner Publications New Bedford:
Joe Thomas, Jay Avila
Whaling City: New Bedford city directories
Town of Dartmouth vital Records
Hugh Mosher & Rebecca Maxson through Seven Generations,1990, by Chamberlain & Clarenbach
Carol Barron Karajohn, records, photos and much more
Anne Mosher Wessler, photos & family history
Donna Mosher Lawlor, photos & family history
Lori Mosher Murphy, photos & family history
David A. Ross, photos & family history
Sherry Barnhurst, Director LDS Family History Center
And many others...
