United States Exploring Expedition - Route of The Expedition

Route of The Expedition

Upon clearing the Cape Henry Light at 09:00 on Saturday, August 19, 1838, Wilkes laid in his course for Rio de Janeiro. By orders, he was to survey certain reported vigias, or shoals at latitude 10° south and between longitudes 18° and 22° west. Due to the prevailing winds at this season, the squadron made an easterly tack of the Atlantic.

The squadron arrived at the harbor of Funchal in the Madeira Islands on September 16, 1838. After completing some repairs the group moved southward and arrived on October 7 at the bay of Porto Praya, Cape Verde Islands, eventually arriving at Rio de Janeiro on November 23. The entire passage from the United States to Brazil taking ninety-five days, about twice the time normally for a vessel proceeding directly. Due to repairs needed by the Peacock, the Squadron did not leave Rio de Janerio until January 6, 1839. From there they moved southward to Buenos Aires and the mouth of the Río Negro, passing a French naval blockade of Argentina's seaports. The European powers at the time, with the aid of Brazil, were involved in the internal affairs of the Argentine Republic. However, since the Americans had reduced its military profile prior to its departure from the United States, they were not molested by the French warships.

Following this beginning, the squadron visited Tierra del Fuego, Chile, and Peru. The USS Sea Gull and its crew of fifteen were lost during a South American coastal storm in May, 1839. From South America, the expedition visited the Tuamotu Archipelago, Samoa and New South Wales, Australia. In December 1839, the expedition sailed from Sydney into the Antarctic Ocean and reported the discovery "of an Antarctic continent west of the Balleny Islands". That part of Antarctica was later named Wilkes Land. Because of discrepancies in the logs of the various ships of the Wilkes expedition, and suggestions that these may have been subsequently altered, there is a controversy between the Wilkes expedition who saw an "ice island" 175 km from the coast on January 16 then the coast itself on January 25 and the French expedition of Jules Dumont d'Urville who saw the coast about 400 km westward on January 20 and disembarked on an islet of Geologie Archipelago, 4 km from the mainland, on January 22 to take mineral, algae and animal samples, on who was the first to sight the Antarctic mainland coast in this vicinity. The controversy was added too by the actions of the commander of the USS Porpoise, Lieutenant Cadwalader Ringgold, who, after sighting d'Urville's Astrolabe deliberately avoided contact.

In February 1840, some of the expedition were present at the initial signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in New Zealand.

After sighting the Astrolabe, the expedition visited Fiji. In July 1840, two members of the party, Lieutenant Underwood and Wilkes' nephew, Midshipman Wilkes Henry, were killed while bartering for food in western Fiji's Malolo Island. The cause of this event remains equivocal. Immediately prior to their deaths the son of the local chief, who was being held as a hostage by the Americans, escaped by jumping out of the boat and running through the shallow water for shore. The Americans fired over his head. According to members of the expedition party on the boat, his escape was intended as a prearranged signal by the Fijians to attack. According to those on shore the shooting actually precipitated the attack on the ground. The Americans landed sixty sailors to attack the hostile natives. Close to eighty Fijians were killed in the resulting American reprisal and two villages were burned to the ground.

In 1841, the expedition explored the west coast of South America and North America, including the Strait of Juan de Fuca, Puget Sound, and the Columbia River. After Fiji, the expedition sailed to Hull Island, later known as Orona, and the Hawaiian Islands. Like his predecessor, British explorer George Vancouver, Wilkes spent a good deal of time near Bainbridge Island. He noted the bird-like shape of the harbor at Winslow and named it Eagle Harbor. Continuing his fascination with bird names, he named Bill Point and Wing Point. Port Madison, Washington and Points Monroe and Jefferson named in honor of former United States presidents. Port Ludlow was assigned to honor Lieutenant Augustus Ludlow, who lost his life during the War of 1812.

In April 1842 USS Peacock, under Lieutenant William L. Hudson, and USS Flying Fish, surveyed Drummond's Island, which was named for an American of the expedition. Lieutenant Hudson heard from a member of his crew that a ship had wrecked off the island and her crew massacred by the Gilbertese. A woman and her child were said to be the only survivors so Hudson decided to land a small force of marines and sailors, under William M. Walker, to search the island. Initially the natives were peaceful and the Americans were able to explore the island, without results, it was when the party was returning to their ship that Hudon noticed a member of his crew was missing. After making another search the man was not found and the natives began arming themselves. Lieutenant Walker returned his force to the ship, to converse with Hudson, who ordered Walker to return to shore and demand the return of the sailor. Walker then reboarded his boats with his landing party and headed to shore. Walker shouted his demand and the natives charged for him, forcing the boats to turn back to the ships. It was decided on the next day that the Americans would bombard the hostiles and land again. While doing this a force of around 700 Gilbertese warriors opposed the American assault but were defeated after a long battle. No Americans were hurt but twelve natives were killed and others were wounded, two villages were also destroyed. A similar episode occurred two months before in February when the Peacock and the Flying Fish briefly bombarded the island of Upolu, Samoa following the death of an American merchant sailor on the island.

The Peacock was lost in July 1841 on the Columbia River, though with no loss of life, thanks to a canoe rescue by John Dean, an African American servant of the Vincennes purser, and a group of Chinook Indians. Dean also rescued the expedition's artist, Alfred Agate, along with his paintings and drawings. Upon learning that the Peacock had foundered on the Columbia River Bar, Wilkes interrupted his work in the San Juan Islands and sailed south. He never returned to Puget Sound.

From the area of modern-day Portland, Oregon, an overland party headed by George F. Emmons was directed to proceed via an inland route to San Francisco Bay. This Emmons party traveled south along the Siskiyou Trail, including the Sacramento River, making the first official recorded visit by Americans to and scientific note of Mount Shasta, in northern California.

The Emmons party rejoined the ships, which had sailed south, in San Francisco Bay. The expedition then headed back out into the Pacific, including a visit to Wake Island in 1841, and returned by way of the Philippines, the Sulu Archipelago, Borneo, Singapore, Polynesia and the Cape of Good Hope, reaching New York on June 10, 1842.

The expedition throughout was plagued by poor relationships between Wilkes and his subordinate officers. Wilkes' self-proclaimed status as captain" and commodore, accompanied by the flying of the requisite pennant and the wearing of a captain's uniform while being commissioned only as a Lieutenant, rankled heavily with other members of the expedition of similar real rank. His apparent mistreatment of many of his subordinates, and indulgence in punishments such as "flogging round the fleet" resulted in a major controversy on his return to America. Wilkes was court-martialled on his return, but was acquitted on all charges except that of illegally punishing men in his squadron.