Richard Henry Dana, Jr
Richard Henry Dana, Jr. was an influential American author and lawyer born on August 1, 1815, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Initially a Harvard University student, he left due to health issues and embarked on a significant voyage as a common sailor aboard the brig Pilgrim. This experience inspired his renowned work, "Two Years Before the Mast," published in 1840, which vividly depicted the challenges of a sailor's life and offered insights into 19th-century California. After completing his education in law, Dana specialized in maritime law and published "The Seaman's Friend," a widely used manual addressing sailors' rights and responsibilities.
Dana was active in politics, aligning with the Free Soil movement and the early Republican Party, and held the position of U.S. district attorney for Massachusetts. His legal career was marked by notable cases, including one that solidified the legality of blockading Southern ports during the Civil War. Although he faced challenges, including a prolonged plagiarism lawsuit, Dana remained a prominent figure in legal and political circles. He later served on a diplomatic commission and spent his later years focused on writing and travel until his death in Rome on January 6, 1882. Today, Dana is primarily remembered for his literary contributions, particularly his firsthand account of maritime life.
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Richard Henry Dana, Jr.
American lawyer and novelist
- Born: August 1, 1815
- Birthplace: Cambridge, Massachusetts
- Died: January 6, 1882
- Place of death: Rome, Italy
Biography
Richard Henry Dana, Jr., was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on August 1, 1815, the son of Richard Henry Dana, critic and editor of the North American Review. The younger Dana enrolled at Harvard University in 1831, but bad health and failing eyesight caused him to resign. Instead of taking a pleasure trip to Europe, he sailed before the mast as a common sailor on the brig Pilgrim. This voyage around Cape Horn to California and Oregon furnished the material for his celebrated work, Two Years Before the Mast. Published in 1840, this book had a wide influence on other writers about the sea, and its realistic approach was much imitated. In this volume, Dana was successful in bringing to public attention the hardships of a sailor’s life. Today, the book is also valuable as a picture of life in California in the nineteenth century.
After returning home from his trip, Dana finished at Harvard in 1837 and entered the law school there. After graduation, he opened his law offices, specializing in maritime law. In 1841, he married Sarah “Sally” Watson and published The Seaman’s Friend, dealing with the responsibilities, duties, and legal rights of the sailor. As a manual, it was widely recognized and used both in the United States and in England. In 1859, after a short trip to Cuba, he published To Cuba and Back.
Interested in politics, Dana early joined the Free Soil movement. He was also an early member of the Republican Party. In 1860, he was interested in the presidential campaign and in 1861 was appointed to the office of United States district attorney for Massachusetts by President Abraham Lincoln. Meanwhile, Dana won the Amy Warwick case, which helped establish the legality of blockading Southern ports. In 1866, he published his edition of Wheaton’s International Law and was subsequently sued for plagiarism by William Bach Lawrence, an earlier editor. Thirteen years of litigation followed. Dana was eventually acquitted, but only after his reputation had been damaged. In 1868, he ran for Congress unsuccessfully. In 1876, he was nominated by President Ulysses S. Grant as minister to England, but Congress did not confirm the appointment. He also courted controversy when he was asked to prosecute Confederate president Jefferson Davis but advised the government against it for political reasons. In 1877, Dana was a member of a commission which met in Nova Scotia concerning problems of fisheries which arose between Britain and the United States.
In 1878, he retired from his duties as a lawyer to spend the rest of his life writing and traveling. His death occurred in Rome on January 6, 1882. Though he achieved his greatest fame during his lifetime as a lawyer, he is chiefly remembered for his famous story of life at sea, Two Years Before the Mast.
Bibliography
Adams, Charles Francis. Richard Henry Dana: A Biography. 2 vols. 1890. Reprint. Detroit: Gale Research, 1968. A classic biography.
Cox, James. “Richard Henry Dana’s Two Years Before the Mast: Autobiography Completing Life.” In The Dialectic of Discovery: Essays on the Teaching and Interpretation of Literature Presented to Lawrence E. Harvey, edited by John D. Lyons and Nancy J. Vickers. Lexington, Ky.: French Forum, 1984. Examines the connection between Dana’s life and art.
Egan, Hugh. “‘One of Them’: The Voyage of Style in Dana’s Two Years Before the Mast.” American Transcendental Quarterly 2 (1988). Provides an analysis of Dana’s famous work.
Gale, Robert L. Richard Henry Dana. New York: Twayne, 1969. A good account of Dana’s life and work.
Hart, James D. “The Education of Richard Henry Dana, Jr.” New England Quarterly 9 (1936). Offers information on Dana’s time at Harvard.
Lawrence, D. H. Studies in Classic American Literature. 1923. Reprint. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 2003. Provides a strong if idiosyncratic reading of Two Years Before the Mast.
Shapiro, Samuel. Richard Henry Dana, Jr., 1815-1882. East Lansing: Michigan State University Press, 1961. Includes a bibliography.