Otway Burns
Encyclopedia
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
privateer
Privateer
A privateer is a private person or ship authorized by a government by letters of marque to attack foreign shipping during wartime. Privateering was a way of mobilizing armed ships and sailors without having to spend public money or commit naval officers...
during the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
and later, a North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
State Senator
State Senator
A state senator is a member of a state's Senate, the upper house in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a legislator in Nebraska's one house State Legislature.There are typically fewer state senators than there are members of a state's lower house...
.
Early life
Burns was born at Queen's Creek, near Swansboro, North CarolinaSwansboro, North Carolina
Swansboro is a town in Onslow County, North Carolina, United States. In 2007, the estimated population was 1,540. It is part of the Jacksonville, North Carolina Metropolitan Statistical Area...
. He became a seaman
Seaman
Seaman is one of the lowest ranks in a Navy. In the Commonwealth it is the lowest rank in the Navy, followed by Able Seaman and Leading Seaman, and followed by the Petty Officer ranks....
after learning the trade at the port
Port
A port is a location on a coast or shore containing one or more harbors where ships can dock and transfer people or cargo to or from land....
s in Swansboro and Beaufort
Beaufort, North Carolina
Beaufort is a town in Carteret County, North Carolina, United States. Established in 1709, it is the third-oldest town in North Carolina.The population was 4,189 at the 2008 census and it is the county seat of Carteret County...
, a nearby town situated in Carteret County
Carteret County, North Carolina
Carteret County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of 2010, the population was 66,469. Its county seat is Beaufort. Most of the county is part of the Crystal Coast....
. After acquiring the skills needed to become a merchant captain
United States Merchant Marine
The United States Merchant Marine refers to the fleet of U.S. civilian-owned merchant vessels, operated by either the government or the private sector, that engage in commerce or transportation of goods and services in and out of the navigable waters of the United States. The Merchant Marine is...
, Burns sailed along the East Coast of the United States
East Coast of the United States
The East Coast of the United States, also known as the Eastern Seaboard, refers to the easternmost coastal states in the United States, which touch the Atlantic Ocean and stretch up to Canada. The term includes the U.S...
, all the way north up to Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
. After his voyage, he married his cousin, Joanna Grant, on July 6, 1809. The next year, the couple moved to Swansboro. There, Joanna gave birth to Owen, the couple's only child.
Burns received financial support for his trading activities from Edward Pasteur, a physician and local political leader from New Bern
New Bern, North Carolina
New Bern is a city in Craven County, North Carolina with a population of 29,524 as of the 2010 census.. It is located at the confluence of the Trent and the Neuse rivers...
. In the summer of 1812, just a month after the War of 1812 had commenced, Burns and Pasteur purchased a vessel in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
for eight thousand US dollars
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
, which Burns intended to use for privateering along the coast of The Carolinas
The Carolinas
The Carolinas is a term used in the United States to refer collectively to the states of North and South Carolina. Together, the two states + have a population of 13,942,126. "Carolina" would be the fifth most populous state behind California, Texas, New York, and Florida...
. The 147-ton vessel, named the Zephyr, had been constructed four years earlier on the West River in Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
. The Zephyr measured
Hull (watercraft)
A hull is the watertight body of a ship or boat. Above the hull is the superstructure and/or deckhouse, where present. The line where the hull meets the water surface is called the waterline.The structure of the hull varies depending on the vessel type...
85.5 feet (26.1 m) from bow (ship)
Bow (ship)
The bow is a nautical term that refers to the forward part of the hull of a ship or boat, the point that is most forward when the vessel is underway. Both of the adjectives fore and forward mean towards the bow...
to stern
Stern
The stern is the rear or aft-most part of a ship or boat, technically defined as the area built up over the sternpost, extending upwards from the counter rail to the taffrail. The stern lies opposite of the bow, the foremost part of a ship. Originally, the term only referred to the aft port section...
, had a beam of 22.5 feet (6.9 m) and a depth of almost nine feet (2.7 m). The vessel was armed with one pivot gun
Pivot gun
A pivot gun was a type of cannon mounted on a fixed central emplacement which permitted it to be moved through a wide horizontal arc. They were a common weapon aboard ships and in land fortifications for several centuries but became obsolete after the invention of gun turrets...
and between five and seven gun carriages. Also on board were a number of small arms: cutlass
Cutlass
A cutlass is a short, broad sabre or slashing sword, with a straight or slightly curved blade sharpened on the cutting edge, and a hilt often featuring a solid cupped or basket shaped guard...
es, pistol
Handgun
A handgun is a firearm designed to be held and operated by one hand. This characteristic differentiates handguns as a general class of firearms from long guns such as rifles and shotguns ....
s, musket
Musket
A musket is a muzzle-loaded, smooth bore long gun, fired from the shoulder. Muskets were designed for use by infantry. A soldier armed with a musket had the designation musketman or musketeer....
s, boarding pike
Pike (weapon)
A pike is a pole weapon, a very long thrusting spear used extensively by infantry both for attacks on enemy foot soldiers and as a counter-measure against cavalry assaults. Unlike many similar weapons, the pike is not intended to be thrown. Pikes were used regularly in European warfare from the...
s, pickaxe
Pickaxe
A pickaxe or pick is a hand tool with a hard head attached perpendicular to the handle.Some people make the distinction that a pickaxe has a head with a pointed end and a flat end, and a pick has both ends pointed, or only one end; but most people use the words to mean the same thing.The head is...
s and blunderbuss
Blunderbuss
The blunderbuss is a muzzle-loading firearm with a short, large caliber barrel, which is flared at the muzzle and frequently throughout the entire bore, and used with shot and other projectiles of relevant quantity and/or caliber. The blunderbuss could be considered to be an early form of shotgun,...
es. After rechristening the vessel as the Snap Dragon, Burns and Pasteur obtained official letters of marque
Letter of marque
In the days of fighting sail, a Letter of Marque and Reprisal was a government licence authorizing a person to attack and capture enemy vessels, and bring them before admiralty courts for condemnation and sale...
for the vessel in New York on August 27, 1812. After sailing back to New Bern, the men sold their 50 shares
Share (finance)
A joint stock company divides its capital into units of equal denomination. Each unit is called a share. These units are offered for sale to raise capital. This is termed as issuing shares. A person who buys share/shares of the company is called a shareholder, and by acquiring share or shares in...
in the ship at a price of US$260 per share to eight other investor
Investor
An investor is a party that makes an investment into one or more categories of assets --- equity, debt securities, real estate, currency, commodity, derivatives such as put and call options, etc...
s from New Bern, Tarboro
Tarboro, North Carolina
Tarboro is a city located in Edgecombe County, North Carolina. It is part of the Rocky Mount, North Carolina Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010, the town had a total population of 13,121. It is the county seat of Edgecombe County. Tarboro is located in North Carolina's Inner Banks region...
and Edenton
Edenton, North Carolina
Edenton is a town in Chowan County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 4,966 at the 2008 census. It is the county seat of Chowan County. Edenton is located in North Carolina's Inner Banks region. In recent years Edenton has become a popular retirement location and a destination for...
.
Privateering career
Pasteur and Burns, on the Snap Dragon, headed to New Bern to recruit men to join the vessel's crew. To their surprise, some of New Bern's political leaders treated privateering like piracy, and they tried to complicate matters for the two privateers. The leaders convinced new recruits to borrow money, upon which, they would be arrested for their debt. Burns twice retaliated against the politicians. In one incident, the crew of the Snap Dragon sank a boat with constableConstable
A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions.-Etymology:...
s who were planning on boarding
Boarding (attack)
Boarding, in its simplest sense, refers to the insertion on to a ship's deck of individuals. However, when it is classified as an attack, in most contexts, it refers to the forcible insertion of personnel that are not members of the crew by another party without the consent of the captain or crew...
the ship. Subsequently, a local attorney labeled the vessel as a "licensed robber". Burns responded by rowing to land and throwing the lawyer into a river.
With a 25-man crew, Burns left New Bern for Norfolk
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
. On October 14, 1812, Snap Dragon and another vessel, Revenge, sailed south. The vessels separated a week later.
The Snap Dragon encountered success early in the cruise. In one situation, she outran a British frigate
Frigate
A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...
and sloop
Sloop
A sloop is a sail boat with a fore-and-aft rig and a single mast farther forward than the mast of a cutter....
. A few days later, Snap Dragon captured its first prize, a British merchant ship armed with 14 guns. Soon after, Burns and Pasteur led the vessel to St. Thomas
Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands
Saint Thomas is an island in the Caribbean Sea and with the islands of Saint John, Saint Croix, and Water Island a county and constituent district of the United States Virgin Islands , an unincorporated territory of the United States. Located on the island is the territorial capital and port of...
in the Virgin Islands
Virgin Islands
The Virgin Islands are the western island group of the Leeward Islands, which are the northern part of the Lesser Antilles, which form the border between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean...
. To fool enemy British ships, they disguised the Snap Dragon as a merchant ship by putting up old, ragged sails and moving the guns out of view. The Snap Dragon ran into five British men of war
Man of war
The man-of-war was a Royal Navy expression for a powerful warship from the 16th to the 19th century. The term often refers to a ship armed with cannon and propelled primarily by sails, as opposed to a galley which is propelled primarily by oars...
. One of the ships, the frigate HMS Garland
HMS Garland (1807)
HMS Garland was a 22-gun Royal Navy Laurel-class post ship. She was built by Richard Chapman at Bideford and launched on 5 May 1807. She saw action in the War of 1812 and was sold in 1817.-Career:...
, fired a warning shot and signaled the other ships to chase down the Snap Dragon. For over two hours, Burns led the Snap Dragon away from danger, toward Ship Rock passage, which unknowingly, was blocked by two British brigs. The HMS Sophie
HMS Sophie (1809)
HMS Sophie was an 18-gun Cruizer class brig-sloop of the Royal Navy. She served during the Napoleonic Wars and the War of 1812. During the War of 1812 Sophie participated in the economic war against American trade, capturing or destroying numerous small merchant vessels, and in an unsuccessful...
immediately launched an attack on the Snap Dragon. Burns told his crew to lie down on the deck while the vessel was being fired upon. Fortunately, Burns was able to command the vessel away from the British ships, unscathed. The next morning, Burns and his crew encountered HMS Dominica, another British man of war, but again they successfully escaped. The crew of the Snap Dragon made their way to St. Croix
Saint Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands
Saint Croix is an island in the Caribbean Sea, and a county and constituent district of the United States Virgin Islands , an unincorporated territory of the United States. Formerly the Danish West Indies, they were sold to the United States by Denmark in the Treaty of the Danish West Indies of...
, where they made "several small captures" of coastal traders.
Burns commanded Snap Dragon on her next two cruises, during which he had several encounters with British men-of-war and took numerous prizes.
Life after privateering
Months before he completed his third cruise in 1814, Burns' wife Joanna and son Owen left him to live with relatives in Jones CountyJones County, North Carolina
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 10,381 people, 4,061 households, and 2,936 families residing in the county. The population density was 22 people per square mile . There were 4,679 housing units at an average density of 10 per square mile...
. In September, Joanna died, leaving her son in the custody of her family for five years before Burns obtained legal guardianship over Owen.
Three months later, Burns married Jane Hall, a 20-year-old from Beaufort
Beaufort, North Carolina
Beaufort is a town in Carteret County, North Carolina, United States. Established in 1709, it is the third-oldest town in North Carolina.The population was 4,189 at the 2008 census and it is the county seat of Carteret County...
. In April 1815, Burns purchased a property in Beaufort, on which he built a house, that would be his family's residence for the next 20 years.
Business
From the wealth he gained from privateering, Burns became a shipbuilderShipbuilding
Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to before recorded history.Shipbuilding and ship repairs, both...
at Beaufort, North Carolina
Beaufort, North Carolina
Beaufort is a town in Carteret County, North Carolina, United States. Established in 1709, it is the third-oldest town in North Carolina.The population was 4,189 at the 2008 census and it is the county seat of Carteret County...
and made investments in local businesses. In 1818, he built the Prometheus, the first steamboat
Steamboat
A steamboat or steamship, sometimes called a steamer, is a ship in which the primary method of propulsion is steam power, typically driving propellers or paddlewheels...
in North Carolina, which ran on the Cape Fear River
Cape Fear River
The Cape Fear River is a long blackwater river in east central North Carolina in the United States. It flows into the Atlantic Ocean near Cape Fear, from which it takes its name. The overall water quality of the river is continuously measured and monitored by and conducted by the , , and the...
. In 1823, he built the Warrior in Beaufort, followed by the brig Henry, eight years later.
During much of the 1820s, he managed a store and taproom
Bar (establishment)
A bar is a business establishment that serves alcoholic drinks — beer, wine, liquor, and cocktails — for consumption on the premises.Bars provide stools or chairs that are placed at tables or counters for their patrons. Some bars have entertainment on a stage, such as a live band, comedians, go-go...
on his Beaufort property, and also had a partnership in a Taylor's Creek salt distribution company. Burns possessed a number of vessels, such as a schooner
Schooner
A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....
, seiner, sailboat
Sailboat
A sailboat or sailing boat is a boat propelled partly or entirely by sails. The term covers a variety of boats, larger than small vessels such as sailboards and smaller than sailing ships, but distinctions in the size are not strictly defined and what constitutes a sailing ship, sailboat, or a...
and a mullet boat. Among other things, he also co-owned brick kilns
Kiln
A kiln is a thermally insulated chamber, or oven, in which a controlled temperature regime is produced. Uses include the hardening, burning or drying of materials...
used by the federal government to build Fort Macon, in the largest public works
Public works
Public works are a broad category of projects, financed and constructed by the government, for recreational, employment, and health and safety uses in the greater community...
project in the history of the area, and 11 slaves, who helped him run his businesses and his 340 acres (1.4 km²) plantation in Carteret County.
Political career
Burns' political career started with his 1821 election to represent Carteret County in the North Carolina House of CommonsNorth Carolina General Assembly
The North Carolina General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of North Carolina. The General Assembly drafts and legislates the state laws of North Carolina, also known as the General Statutes...
and his appointment to serve as the commissioner of a local canal connecting Neuse
Neuse River
The Neuse River is a river rising in the Piedmont of North Carolina and emptying into Pamlico Sound below New Bern. Its total length is approximately , making it the longest river entirely contained in North Carolina. The Trent River joins it at New Bern. Its drainage basin, measuring in area,...
and Newport River
Newport River
The Newport River is a small river in North Carolina that runs approximately twenty kilometers southeast through the town of Newport with its mouth opening into Bogue Sound, between Morehead City and Beaufort. It is popular for flatwater paddling and canoeing....
s. He served 11 terms in the legislature — seven in the House of Representatives
North Carolina House of Representatives
The North Carolina House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the North Carolina General Assembly. The House is a 120-member body led by a Speaker of the House, who holds powers similar to those of the President pro-tem in the state senate....
and four in the Senate
North Carolina Senate
The North Carolina Senate is one of the two houses of the North Carolina General Assembly.Its prerogatives and powers are similar to those of the other house, the House of Representatives. Its members do, however, represent districts that are larger than those of their colleagues in the House. The...
— over a course of 14 years.
Later life
In 1835 President Andrew JacksonAndrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson was the seventh President of the United States . Based in frontier Tennessee, Jackson was a politician and army general who defeated the Creek Indians at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend , and the British at the Battle of New Orleans...
appointed him keeper of the Brant Island Shoal Light, a position he held until his death.
Legacy
Two destroyerDestroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
s have been named in his honor: the USS Burns (DD-171)
USS Burns (DD-171)
USS Burns was a Wickes class destroyer in the United States Navy following World War I, later redesignated DM-11. She was named for Otway Burns.-History:...
and the USS Burns (DD-588)
USS Burns (DD-588)
USS Hugh Burns , a , was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for Captain Hugh Otway Burns , a privateer in the War of 1812....
, in service during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, respectively. In 1834, Burnsville, North Carolina
Burnsville, North Carolina
Burnsville is a town in Yancey County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 1,623 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Yancey County.-Geography:Burnsville is located at ....
was founded and named in his honor. A statue of him was placed in the town square in 1909. The town of Otway
Otway, North Carolina
Otway is a small town located in Carteret County, North Carolina, United States. Currently Otway holds a population of 413 residents. It is currently the only city that is incorporated and is the most economical area of the region of Down East, North Carolina. The Governor of Otway is Republican...
, in Carteret County, North Carolina, is also named for him. He still has descendants in the area of Beaufort NC and Atlantic Beach NC. Still living today.