Master Samuel Chester Reid USN
(1783-1861)

Samuel Chester Reid, born in Norwich, Conn., 24 August 1783, entered the U.S. Navy in 1794. He served in USS Constellation with Commodore Truxtun and in 1803 became master of the brig Merchant. During the War of 1812 he commanded the privateer General Armstrong and at Fayal, Azores, in 1814 engaged gunboats from British men-of-war en route to Jamaica and New Orleans. Although eventually forced to scuttle and abandon his ship, Reid's action delayed the British squadron and aided General Jackson's defense of New Orleans. He was appointed master in the Navy in 1844 and died at New York 28 January 1861.



Page revised Feb. 2, 2007