John M. Whitall - Early Years

Early Years

Whitall was born in Woodbury, New Jersey, in 1800 into a Quaker family and was obliged to drop schooling at the age of 15, when due to a business loss the family was forced to sell their home and move to a farm outside of Woodbury. Whitall worked as a farmhand for a year but found the life hard and uninspiring. At the age of 16, he apprenticed as a ship hand on the William Savery, for a 1-year voyage to Calcutta, India, and in 1818, for another voyage on the same ship carrying cotton from Charleston, South Carolina, to Liverpool, England. On board the ship, Whitall wore plain Quaker dress, avoided the common use of profane language, and was an outspoken advocate of honesty and respectful dealing with everyone on board. On his third voyage, in 1819, from Liverpool to Canton, China, the ship's captain asked him to help make a nautical observation, and after performing this duty well, he was taught navigation. On his fourth voyage, to Calcutta and Madras in 1820, the ship was capsized by a squall and demasted, losing some of the sailors. At Calcutta, due to his good performance and ill health of one of the ship's officers, he was promoted to Second Mate and gained the respect of the ordinary sailors by treating them well. On his fifth voyage in 1822, to Canton, he was chief mate on the ship Dorothea, and on his sixth and seventh voyages, to Antwerp and the far east, he was chief mate on the ship America. These voyages, carrying items such as ginseng, silk, and spices, were very profitable for the owners and the ship's officers.