THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
by J. Fenimore Cooper
This is a very comprehensive work in two volumes of the history of the early U.S. Navy. Beginning in 1605 and continuing through 1815, Cooper thoroughly lays out the story of this great service. The work is enlivened by its very contemporary nature. There is a large quantity of information here about the early ships and about their officers, including such ships as the Essex and her adventures in the Pacific, (a young person's history of this cruise can be found in The Young Shellback's Library, The Cruise of the Essex , Midshipman Stuart or; The Last Cruise of the Essex , and a booklet on the Building of the Esex ; the famous privateer.), as well as narratives of the battles engaged in by the young service. These include not only the major engagements, such as the Battle of Tripoli, but also a number of smaller, yet important conflicts, such as the attack on the French post of St. Saveur, in Nova Scotia in 1613, which was the first conflict between the colonists and their neighbors. This force of eleven small vessels, set sail from Virginia under the pretense of fishing, but the armament indicated otherwise. The French were subdued and, Captain Aragal, the commander of this expedition, was later sent forth against the French and laid waste all of their possessions upon the Eastern seaboard. He subsequently also entered the Bay of New York and demanded possession of that territory also, under the plea that it had been discovered by an Englishman. The Dutch had no force to resist such a claim and were forced to submit this time, though they persevered in possession for some years more. These were the first warlike expeditions undertaken by the American colonists, and these volumes are filled with this kind of history!
One of the 100 Best Books on the American Sailor (Elbridge S. Brooks).
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