Charles Barnard (castaway)
Captain Charles Barnard (1781–c.1840) was a famous castaway.
In 1812, the British ship Isabella, captained by George Higton, was shipwrecked off Eagle Island (part of the Falkland Islands). Most of the crew were rescued by the American sealer Nanina which was built and operated out of the whaling port city of Hudson, NY, and commanded by Captain Charles Barnard. Barnard, realizing that the castaways were unaware of the War of 1812, informed the survivors that they were at war with each other, but agreed to rescue the crew. Realizing that they would require more provisions for the expanded number of passengers, Barnard and a few others went out in a party to retrieve more food on the nearby New Island. During his absence, the Nanina was taken over by the British crew, who left them on New Island. Barnard and his party were finally rescued by the British whalers Asp and Indispensable in November 1814. In 1829, Barnard wrote A Narrative of the Sufferings and Adventures of Capt. Charles Barnard detailing the happenings.
Honours
Barnard Point on Livingston Island in Antarctica is named after him.
References
- A modern reprinting of Captain Barnard's book has been given ISBN number 0-8195-5031-0.
- Ship home port information from National Maritime Digital Library http://nmdl.org/aowv/whvoyage.cfm?VesselNumber=2010
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