Essex (1799 whaleship)

Essex was an American whaler from Nantucket, Massachusetts, launched in 1799. While under the command of Captain George Pollard, Jr., in 1820 a sperm whale attacked and sank her her. The sinking stranded the twenty-man crew in the southern Pacific Ocean with little food and water. During the 95 days that the survivors were at sea, they ate the bodies of five crewmen who had died. When that was insufficient, members of the crew drew lots to determine who they would sacrifice so that the others could live. A total of seven crew members were cannibalized before the eight survivors were rescued. First mate Owen Chase and cabin boy Thomas Nickerson wrote accounts of their ordeal; these accounts inspired Herman Melville to write his famous 1851 novel Moby-Dick.

Ship and crew

Essex was an old ship, but because so many of her voyages were profitable she gained the reputation as a "lucky" vessel. Captain George Pollard and his first mate, Owen Chase, had served together on a previous, successful trip, which led to their promotions. Only 29, Pollard was one of the youngest men ever to command a whaling ship. Owen Chase was 23, and the youngest member of the crew was the cabin boy, Thomas Nickerson, who was 14.

Essex

Essex /ˈɛsᵻks/ is a county in England, immediately north-east of London. It borders the counties of Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south and London to the south-west. The county town is Chelmsford, which is the only city in the county. Essex occupies the east of the pre-England Kingdom of Essex. As well as rural areas, the county also includes the Lakeside Shopping Centre, London Stansted Airport and the new towns of Basildon and Harlow.

History

The name Essex originates in the Anglo-Saxon period of the Early Middle Ages and has its root in the Old English Ēastseaxe (i.e. the "East Saxons"), the eastern kingdom of the Saxons (cf. Middlesex and Sussex) during the Heptarchy. Originally recorded in AD 527, Essex occupied territory to the north of the River Thames, incorporating all of what later became Middlesex (which probably included Surrey) and most of what later became Hertfordshire. Its territory was later restricted to lands east of the River Lea.Colchester in the north east of the county is Britain's oldest recorded town, dating back to before the Roman conquest, when it was known as Camulodunum and was sufficiently well-developed to have its own mint. In AD 824, following the battle of Ethandun, the kingdoms of the East Saxons, the South Saxons and the Kentish were absorbed into the kingdom of the West Saxons, uniting Saxland under King Alfred's grandfather Egberht. In changes before the Norman conquest the East Saxons were subsumed into the Kingdom of England and, following the Norman conquest, Essex became a county.

Essex, Massachusetts

Essex is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, 26 miles (42 km) north of Boston. The population was 3,504 at the 2010 census.

The central village areas of Essex and South Essex make up the census-designated place of Essex.

History

Essex was incorporated as a town in 1819. It was previously a part of the town of Ipswich and was then called Chebacco Parish. The first European settlers arrived in 1634. At that time, the land formed part of an area inhabited by Native Americans of the Agawam tribe. The name Chebacco is Agawam in origin and refers to a large lake whose waters extend into neighboring Hamilton. Conomo Point, the easternmost part of the town, is named for the Sagamore or Chief of the Agawams, Masconomo, the leader of the tribe in the late 17th century. Early on, Chebacco Parish lobbied for status as an independent town, asking for permission to build a meeting house. In colonial times, the existence of a meeting house in a settlement conferred de facto autonomy, so Chebacco Parish was denied permission to build such a structure. Popular history tells that one written dictate was issued stating that "no man shall raise a meeting house", so the residents of the settlement interpreted it as to mean that women would be allowed to do so. It is reported that a local woman, Madam Varney, assembled the town's women and construction of a meeting house was carried out by them while the men looked on. Jeremiah Shepard was a minister at the church in Chebacco Parish from 1678 to 1680. He was succeeded by John Wise, who was pastor of Chebacco Parish from 1680 to his death in 1725.

Essex (provincial electoral district)

Essex is a provincial electoral district in southwestern, Ontario, Canada. It elects one member to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario.

It existed from 1867 to 1874 and was re-created in 1999 from Essex South, Essex—Kent and Windsor—Sandwich.

When the riding was recreated, it included all of Essex County except for Windsor, Old Tecumseh, St. Clair Beach, Leamington and Mersea Township.

In 2007, it lost the parts of Tecumseh that had since been amalgamated (South Sandwich Township).

Member of Provincial Parliament

This riding has elected the following members of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

Election results

1999-present

1867-1871

2007 electoral reform referendum

Sources

Coordinates: 42°07′41″N 82°47′13″W / 42.128°N 82.787°W / 42.128; -82.787