Scope and Content Note
The papers of John Shaw (1773-1823) span the years 1798-1895, with the bulk of the material concentrated in the period 1810-1822. Concerned principally with Shaw's command of the New Orleans Station, 1810-1813, and the Boston Navy Yard, 1819-1823, the papers consist of a journal, official and private letterbooks, correspondence, notebooks, reports, a biographical file, and miscellany.
Shaw's letterbooks contain detailed reports to the secretary of the navy concerning the fortification of New Orleans during the War of 1812 and the capture of Mobile. Together with the general correspondence, the letterbooks also relate to Shaw's duties as commandant of the Boston Navy Yard and to his court-martial in 1822.
Correspondents include Samuel Angus, William Bainbridge, James Biddle, Amos Binney, Isaac Chauncey, Henry Denison, Jesse D. Elliott, Thomas Scott Fillebrown, Charles W. Goldsborough, Moses Green, Samuel Hambleton, Isaac Hull, Thomas Macdonough, Alexander Murray, David Porter, James Renshaw, John Rodgers, Joseph B. Shaw, Benjamin Thomas, Smith Thompson, and George A. Wise.