Scope and Content Note
The papers of Colby Mitchell Chester (1844-1932) span the years 1913-1928, with the bulk of the material dating from 1913 to 1917. The papers are arranged in two series: Correspondence and Book File.
The collection is devoted primarily to research, correspondence, and unpublished manuscripts concerning Dudley Saltonstall (1738-1796) and the Penobscot Bay Expedition. Saltonstall was the American naval commodore who led an ill-fated attempt to recapture Bagaduce (now Castine) in Penobscot Bay from the British in 1779. Commanding nineteen vessels outfitted by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Saltonstall failed to move against the three British sloops of war in the bay while he still outnumbered them, and, upon the arrival of the British fleet, fled the area. After two of his ships were captured and the others were destroyed to prevent capture, Saltonstall was dismissed from the navy. In preparing the manuscripts, Chester was writing a critical analysis of the expedition and a defense of Saltonstall.