A NAVAL HERO. 151 



A NAVAL HERO. 



The following extract is taken from " The History of our 

 Navy from its Origin to the Present Day 1775-1898" (New 

 York, 1899), by John R. Spears. An account is there given 

 of the last battle fought by the United States frigate " Essex " 

 against two British vessels in the harbor of Valparaiso, on 

 March 28, 18 14. Owing to more men and heavier guns on 

 the part of the enemy. Captain David Porter, the American 

 commander, was obliged to give the order to strike the colors. 



At that, Benjamin Hazen, a Groton seaman (who, though painfully 

 wounded, had remained at his post, and at the last had joined in the 

 request to hand down the flag to save the wounded), bade adieu in 

 hearty fashion to those around him, said he had determined never to 

 survive the surrender of-the Essex, and jumped overboard. He was 

 drowned (HI. 43. 44). 



For several generations the name of Benjamin Hazen has been 

 a familiar one in Groton. Heroes do not spring up, here or 

 elsewhere, in such numbers that the town can afford to forget 

 such a son, who long ago passed into obscurity^ Hazen's 

 name, numbered 180, is given in a list printed in the "Journal 

 of a Cruise made to the Pacific Ocean" (Philadelphia, 18 15), by 

 Captain David Porter. It is found on page 9 of the first volume, 

 where he is rated as a " seaman "; and on page 161 of the second 

 volume it appears again in the list of those killed in action. 



Benjamin Hazen was the third son and fourth child of 

 Benjamin and Lydia (Woods) Hazen, and was born at 

 Groton, on June 13, 1776. In talking with Luther Hazen, a 

 nephew of the seaman, twelve years ago, I found that he was 

 familiar with the facts connected with his uncle's tragic death. 

 He told me that, according to family tradition, the old sailor 

 weighted his pockets with heavy shot before he jumped over- 

 board. Luther, the nephew, was a son of Edward and Esther 

 (Cass) Hazen, and was born on December 27, 1820, at Groton, 

 where he died on November 30, 1901, of heart disease, after 

 an illness of two weeks. His mother was born at Richmond, 

 New Hampshire. 



