Captain in the Continental Navy during the American Revolution, notably commanding the cutter Dolphin and the frigate Deane
| When Burke met | 1778 |
| Where Burke met | Boston |
| Occupation | Military |
| Interaction with Burke | Capt of the Deane for which Burke recruited Marines |
| Identity Status | Confirmed |
| Genealogy | WikiTree |
| Memoir Pages | 25 |
Notes
Samuel Nicholson (1743–1811) was an American naval officer born in Chestertown, Maryland, to Colonel Joseph Nicholson and Hannah Scott. Following early work as a merchant captain, he joined his brothers James and John as a captain in the Continental Navy during the American Revolution, notably commanding the cutter Dolphin and the frigate Deane. He married Mary Dowse in 1780, raised eight children, and settled in Boston, becoming an original member of the Massachusetts Society of the Cincinnati. Appointed as a captain in the reorganized U.S. Navy in 1794, Nicholson supervised the construction of the USS Constitution and commanded the frigate on its maiden voyage in 1798. In 1803, he became the first superintendent of the Charlestown Navy Yard in Massachusetts, a position he held until his death in 1811, at which time he was the senior officer in the U.S. Navy.
Sources
Burke, William. Memoir of William Burke: A Soldier of the Revolution, Reformed from Intemperance, and for Many Years a Consistent and Devoted Christian; Carefully Prepared from a Journal Kept by Himself; to Which Is Added, an Extract from a Sermon Preached at His Funeral, by Rev. Nathaniel Miner. Hartford, CT: Case, Tiffany, 1837.