William Badger (May 26, 1752 – February 22, 1830) was a master

shipbuilder Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other Watercraft, floating vessels. In modern times, it normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation th ...

operating in

Kittery Kittery is a town in York County, Maine, United States, and the oldest incorporated town in Maine. Home to the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard on Seavey's Island, Kittery includes Badger's Island, the seaside district of Kittery Point, and part of th ...

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

who was rumored to have built 100 vessels.

Life and career

The eldest of six children, he was born to William Badger and Anstisa Emerson Badger at what is now

Newfields Newfield, New Field, Newfields, or ''variant'', may refer to: People * Alexa Newfield (born 1991), U.S. soccer player * Heidi Newfield (born 1970), U.S. country music singer * Jack Newfield (1938-2004), U.S. journalist * Marc Newfield (born 1972) ...

New Hampshire New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

.William Badger Papers -- The Portsmouth Athenæum
/ref> Trained by master shipbuilder Colonel James K. Hackett at

John Langdon John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second Ep ...

's shipyard on Rising Castle Island (or Langdon's Island) in Kittery, he helped build the USS ''Ranger''. In 1782, he worked with Hackett to complete the USS ''America''. About 1788, Badger established a shipbuilding business with David Colcord and Stilmon Tarleton on the

Squamscott River The Squamscott River is a tidal river in southeastern New Hampshire, in the United States, fed by the Exeter River. The first of freshwater river from Chester to downtown Exeter is known as the Exeter River, and the subsequent of saltwater ...

at Newfields, but returned to work with Hackett from 1794 until 1799 as a master

carpenter Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction of buildings, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc. Carpenter ...

on the USS ''Crescent'' and USS ''Congress''. In 1797, Badger acquired 3 acres (1.3 hectares) on Rising Castle Island from his wife's family. He built a house and began shipbuilding on what would thereafter be called

Badger's Island Badger's Island is located in the Piscataqua River at Kittery, Maine, United States, directly opposite Portsmouth, New Hampshire. It carries U.S. Route 1 between the states, connecting to the Kittery mainland by the Badger's Island Bridge, and to ...

. In 1800, Commodore Isaac Hull, commander of the new

Portsmouth Naval Shipyard The Portsmouth Naval Shipyard (PNS), often called the Portsmouth Navy Yard, is a United States Navy shipyard on Seavey's Island in Kittery, Maine, bordering Portsmouth, New Hampshire. The naval yard lies along the southern boundary of Maine on ...

down the

Piscataqua River The Piscataqua River (Abenaki language, Abenaki: ''Pskehtekwis'') is a tidal river forming the boundary of the U.S. states of New Hampshire and Maine from its origin at the confluence of the Salmon Falls River and Cochecho River to the Atlant ...

on Fernald's Island, contracted William Badger and his nephew Samuel Badger to build a 74-gun

ship of the line A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed during the Age of Sail from the 17th century to the mid-19th century. The ship of the line was designed for the naval tactics in the Age of Sail, naval tactic known as the line of battl ...

. Dissatisfied with the latter shipwright, however, Hull fired both Badgers in November. A dozen years then passed at the federal shipyard without the completion of a single vessel. Hull rehired William Badger in 1813, and the USS ''Washington'', first ship produced at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, launched in 1814. Meanwhile, upriver at his own shipyard, Badger was constructing approximately two ships a year, including

naval vessel A naval ship (or naval vessel) is a military ship (or sometimes boat, depending on classification) that is used by a navy. Naval ships are differentiated from civilian ships by construction and purpose. Generally, naval ships are Damage control ...

merchant vessel A merchant ship, merchant vessel, trading vessel, or merchantman is a watercraft that transports cargo or carries passengers for hire. This is in contrast to pleasure craft, which are used for personal recreation, and naval ships, which a ...

s and

privateer A privateer is a private person or vessel which engages in commerce raiding under a commission of war. Since robbery under arms was a common aspect of seaborne trade, until the early 19th century all merchant ships carried arms. A sovereign o ...

s, while also repairing others. He entered

shipping Freight transport, also referred to as freight forwarding, is the physical process of transporting commodities and merchandise goods and cargo. The term shipping originally referred to transport by sea but in American English, it has been ...

, owning the

brig A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square rig, square-rigged. Brigs originated in the second half of the 18th century and were a common type of smaller merchant vessel or warship from then until the l ...

''Fanny'' between 1816-1822, and half-owning at least 17 other vessels, most of which he had built. Between 1801-1850, shipbuilding was the principal industry in the Piscataqua region, where shipbuilders altogether made about 9 vessels per year, each averaging 200 tons. But William Badger, generally called Master Badger, achieved the greatest renown. He died in 1830 after a long illness, and was buried on the island which bears his name. The USS ''William Badger'', a

whaling ship A whaler or whaling ship is a specialized vessel, designed or adapted for whaling: the catching or processing of whales. Terminology The term ''whaler'' is mostly historic. A handful of nations continue with industrial whaling, and one, Jap ...

acquired by the U.S. Navy during the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

, was named after him, an honor reserved for his last vessel built in 1828. The Ship ''America'' and John Paul Jones
/ref>

References

External links

Kittery Historical & Naval Museum

Grave of William Badger
on Find a Grave {{DEFAULTSORT:Badger, William 1752 births 1830 deaths People from Newfields, New Hampshire American shipbuilders American shipwrights People from Kittery, Maine People from colonial New Hampshire 18th-century American merchants

Life and career

See also

References

External links