Scope and Content Note
The papers of Richard H. M. Settle span the years 1871-1879 and consist primarily of letters from Settle written during three voyages aboard whaling ships from New Bedford, Massachusetts: the Charles W. Morgan (Ship) to the Indian Ocean, the A. R. Tucker (Bark) to the Atlantic Ocean, and the Bounding Billow (Bark) to the Pacific Ocean. His letters are written to Georgeanna, or Georgia, in New Bedford, who became his wife after the first voyage. They discuss Settle's life at sea and provide details about whaling and the activities of crew members. Settle recounts his involvement in several altercations with crew members and others, including one in which he was shot twice. His letters also focus on the loneliness and homesickness felt on the long voyages. In letters from his third voyage, Settle writes of suffering because of long delays in communication from home as he anticipates the birth of a child, finally learns of the birth of his daughter, and, two years later, receives news of her death. The handwritten letters are accompanied by typed transcripts.