Isaac Hull
Born March 9, 1773, in Derby, Connecticut, Isaac Hull served for 45 years in the United States Navy, rising to the rank of commodore, in the process becoming a national hero because of his actions during the War of 1812.
Hull was born into a seafaring family, his father frequently going on trade voyages to the West Indies. From an early age Hull joined his father on these voyages and learned a great deal about ship handling. Unfortunately, Hull’s father died, and the young Hull came into the care of his uncle, William Hull, a Revolutionary War veteran. As he grew older, Hull assumed more and more responsibility, commanding several merchant voyages like his father had before him.
In 1798 Hull joined the infant United States Navy, commissioned as a lieutenant. His first assignment was to the frigate USS Constitution, where he saw his first combat in skirmishes with French warships during the Quasi-War. Frigate warships were designed for scouting, patrolling, and delivering messages. They were typically armed with 30 to 40 cannons. They were not intended to fight in major naval battles and were instead designed to outrun anything they could not fight.
Under Captain Silas Talbot, a Revolutionary War naval hero, Hull learned not only how to sail a warship, but also how to fight one. Talbot, who was at once both the Captain of Constitution as well as the commander of a squadron of warships, left much of the day-to-day management of the ship and crew to Hull, who took quickly to the work. Hull modeled his own leadership style off of Talbot, and the latter’s influence upon him would show throughout his career. Talbot practiced leadership by example through moderation, and took great care to thoroughly train his crew, both traits Hull would carry with him into his own commands. When Talbot retired in 1801 Hull briefly took command of Constitution before being reassigned to other ships.
As First-Lieutenant aboard USS Adams, Hull participated in the First Barbary War, deploying with a squadron of other ships to the Mediterranean to fight the Barbary Pirates, who were capturing American and European trade vessels and enslaving their crews. During this time Hull received his first true command, the schooner USS Enterprise and later the brig USS Argus. After returning from the Mediterranean Hull quickly rose through the ranks, being promoted to captain in 1806. In 1809 Hull took command of the frigate USS Chesapeake, one of six frigates originally constructed for the navy during the Washington presidency.
In May of 1810 Hull left Chesapeake to assume command of USS President. His tenure was brief, as Commodore John Rodgers, the most senior officer in the navy, loathed how poorly the ship handled while at sea. Commodore Rodgers demanded a different, more maneuverable ship. Hull was more than happy to trade, for Rodgers’ ship was none other than his old home: USS Constitution. Hull still had fine memories of his first naval vessel and thought it performed just as well at sea as any other. He called it his "favorite frigate" and told his sister-in-law in a letter that "I now have one of the best ships in our Navy …” He assumed command in June of 1810. After a peacetime cruise to Europe in 1811 Hull and Constitution returned home shortly before the outbreak of the War of 1812.
After a short turnaround in port, Constitution was ordered to sea to fight British ships patrolling off the American coast. While on patrol Hull encountered the British frigate HMS Guerriere. During the battle a British cannonball bounced off the side of Constitution and fell into the sea. The American sailors saw this and cried out “Huzza! Her sides are made of iron!” HMS Guerriere surrendered shortly afterward, and Constitution gained a nickname: “Old Ironsides”.
This victory would become Hull’s last naval battle. The battle made him a national hero, proving that American ships could best their British counterparts in battle. Hull, for his part, was given command of the Portsmouth Navy Yard for the remainder of the war. After the war he served on the Board of Navy Commissioners, responsible for overseeing the operations of the Navy. Hull and his fellow commissioners made many recommendations to improve how shipyards and naval facilities operated, but the work of the board was too political for his liking. He later assumed command of the Charlestown Navy Yard in Boston but found himself lacking in the diplomatic qualities needed when commanding a shore installation manned primarily by civilian laborers, who did not take kindly to his attempt to subject them to military-style discipline. He was disliked by the yard workers, and for his part commented that “I am tired of this kind of life and particularly of this place and have nothing but constant quarrels with the Charleston people.” Unfortunately, Hull, now a commodore, was confined to shore assignments for most of the rest of his naval career.
Hull was transferred to Washington Navy Yard. There he presided over a strike by white workers protesting the use of slave labor in the yard. The workers saw the use of slaves as a threat to their own jobs and salaries. The strike caused a scandal, with President Andrew Jackson siding with the striking workers. The matter was eventually settled when politicians convinced Hull to yield to some of the strikers’ demands and apologize. Hull himself was more tolerant of racial differences and helped several African American workers in his time at the yard. He purchased and then freed the wife of Michael Shiner, and Hull, who kept a slave as a servant, manumitted the enslaved person immediately upon his departure from Washington.
Hull’s last assignment was the command of the ship USS Ohio and the European Squadron from 1839 to 1841. After returning home Hull was deemed unfit for further service due to his age and failing health. He died two years later, still officially in the Navy on leave, on February 13, 1843, aged 69.
