| Simon Metcalfe | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1735 Yorkshire, England |
| Died | 1794 Queen Charlotte Islands |
| Occupation | Maritime fur trader |
| Spouse | Catherine Humphrey |
| Parents | Simon Metcalf Elizabeth Colton |
| Signature | |
Simon Metcalfe (also spelled Metcalf) (c. 1735–1794) was a British American surveyor and one of the first American maritime fur traders to visit the Pacific Northwest coast. As early visitors to the Hawaiian Islands, Metcalfe and his son Thomas unwittingly provided Western military weapons and advisors for Kamehameha I,[1] helping him win strategic battles and unify the Hawaiian Islands.
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Simon Metcalfe was born in Yorkshire, England, in September 1735, the son of Simon and Elizabeth Colton Metcalf.[2][3] In 1763 he married Catherine Humphrey, and together they had at least nine children. The family moved to the Province of New York about 1765, settling first in New York City.[3] Metcalfe found employment as a surveyor and worked on the survey of the Fort Stanwix Treaty line in about 1769, and was promoted to Deputy Surveyor in the Province of New York by 1770.[3]
In 1771 Governor Dunmore of New York granted 30,000 acres (120 km2) of land to Simon Metcalfe and his wife. This land was called Prattsburgh and is now part of Swanton and Highgate, Vermont.[4] His family settled on this land and he established a fur trading post at the mouth of the Missisquoi River.[3]
During the American Revolutionary War Metcalfe supported the American cause. He was taken prisoner by the British and held in Montreal. Two of his children were born in Montreal around 1778 and 1779. Property he owned on Lake Champlain was destroyed during the war.[5] After the war was over Metcalfe settled his family in Albany.[3]
In the 1780s, Metcalfe took a consignment of seal furs from the Falkland Islands that were being stored in New York City. In 1787 he acquired the brig Eleanora (sometimes spelled Eleanor). In September 1787 he set sail on the Eleanora with a cargo of furs for China. He continued as a maritime fur trader for the next seven years. He probably did not return to New York after leaving in 1787.
Metcalfe might have been the first American to sail to the Pacific Northwest coast in search of furs.[6] In command of the Eleanora, he may have been on the Northwest Coast in 1787 or 1788, perhaps before the arrival of Robert Gray and John Kendrick in August and September 1788.[7]
In 1789 both Simon Metcalfe and his son Thomas Humphrey Metcalfe were caught up in the Nootka Crisis at Nootka Sound. Although the events at Nootka were mainly directed toward British merchant vessels, the Spanish naval officer Esteban José Martínez seized Thomas Metcalfe's small schooner, the Fair American. Simon Metcalfe approached Nootka Sound and the Eleanora was almost captured as well, but he managed to escape. The Fair American and its crew were taken to the Spanish naval base at San Blas. They were quickly released. The Metcalfes had planned to spend the winter in the Hawaiian Islands. After being released,Thomas Metcalfe sailed the Fair American to Hawaii, hoping to join his father.[8]
The Eleanora under Simon Metcalfe arrived in the islands first. In Kohala on the island of Hawaiʻi, Metcalfe was greeted by local chief Kameʻeiamoku.[9] Metcalfe had the chief flogged for some infraction. Metcalfe believed in strong and immediate punishment when his rules were broken. By most accounts he was irascible and harsh. Metcalfe then sailed to the neighboring island of Maui to trade along the coast.[10] Kameʻeiamoku vowed revenge on whatever ship next came his way.[9]
Metcalfe ran into more trouble on the coast of Maui when a boat and sailor went missing. It was discovered that the boat had been stolen and the sailor killed. His punishment in this case became known as the Olowalu Massacre. He sailed to the village of the suspected thieves, Olowalu. Feigning peaceful intent, he invited the villagers to the Eleanora for trade. Many canoes gathered at the ship. Metcalfe directed them to come to one side, where he had loaded his cannon with ball and shot. He ordered a broadside fired at point-blank range, which blasted the vessels to pieces. About one hundred Native Hawaiians were killed and several hundred wounded.[11] Because Hawaiians considered Olowalu a pu'u honua, or place of refuge, this attack had profound and long-lasting consequences, ultimately undermining the site's cultural stability.[9][12] After the massacre, Metcalfe weighed anchor and sailed back to the island of Hawai'i. At Kealakekua Bay he began what seemed to be friendly trade for provisions.[9]
Meanwhile, Thomas Humphrey Metcalfe, arrived near Kawaihae Bay, in the Fair American. By coincidence the Fair American was the next ship to visit the territory of chief Kameʻeiamoku, who was eager for revenge. The schooner's was manned by only four sailors plus its relatively inexperienced 19 year-old captain. It was easily captured by the Hawaiians. Thomas Metcalfe and his crew were killed. The only survivor was Isaac Davis, who was badly injured but for some reason spared. Kameʻeiamoku appropriated the ship, its guns, aummunition, and other valuable goods, as well as Isaac Davis himself. At the time no one was aware of the family relation between the captain of the Fair American and Simon Metcalfe, whose Eleanora was anchored at Kealakekua Bay, about 30 miles (48 km) away.[9][13] The Fair American and Davis were eventually given to King Kamehameha I.[11]
When Kamehameha learned about the capture of the Fair American he prohibited further contact between the natives and the Eleanora.[9] Metcalfe sent the boatswain John Young ashore to investigate. Young was captured, and Metcalfe was puzzled by the sudden silence.[9] He waited two days for Young to return, firing guns in hope that the sound would guide Young back. Finally, sensing danger or becoming frustrated, Metcalfe left and set sail for China, not knowing that his son had been killed not far away. He never learned about the attack on the Fair American or the fate of his son.[14]
These events mark a turning point in Hawaiian history. John Young and Isaac Davis were instrumental in Kamehameha's military ventures and his eventual conquest and unification of the Hawaiian Islands.[9] Young and Davis became respected translators and military advisors for Kamehameha. Their skill in gunnery, as well as the cannon from the Fair American, helped Kamehameha win many battles, including the Battle of Kepaniwai later in 1790 which defeated the forces of Maui. They married members of the royal family, raised families and received valuable lands.[10]
Little is known about Simon Metcalfe after he left Hawaii in 1790. He was on the Northwest Coast again in the summer of 1794 on the Eleanora. He visited Houston Stewart Channel, at the southern end of the Queen Charlotte Islands, and anchored in Coyah's Sound. Friendly trading with the local Haida natives of Chief Koyah began. Metcalfe let a great number come aboard the Eleanora. The Haida took advantage of their superiority in numbers and attacked.[15] Within a few minutes, and with no loss on the side of the natives, every man on board had been killed save one who fled into the rigging. The natives ordered the man to come down, which he did. He was kept as a slave for about a year. Eventually he was ransomed to a visiting ship and taken to Hawaii where he told his story to John Young, who passed it on to other captains who visited the islands.[16] The Eleanora was not the only ship captured by the Haida in 1794. The brig Resolution, under captain Josiah Roberts, was seized by the Haida of Chief Cumshewa and, as with the Eleanora, all but one of the crew killed.[16]