Alexander Jackson Hill - A Flick of Sunshine: The Remarkable Shipwrecked, Marooned, Maritime Adventures, and Tragic Fate of an American Original

FIRST AND FOREMOST, THERE IS NO ONE MORE IMPORTANT TO THE PUBlication of this book than the late Harriet Crooker Jackson Hill, my mother and Alexanders grandmother.

She had the wisdom and foresight to place the letters and a diary of her uncle, Richard Willis Jackson, in the hands of someone who would do his best to honor this young mans remarkable life story. It has taken a while, but I recall her saying, as she handed me Will Jacksons semilegible, penciled, and fast-fading letters: Im sure you will find a good story in these.

Alex and I want to recognize several individuals who have been very generous and helpful in assistance to us in our research. Their deep knowledge of shipbuilding in Maine and California, their maritime acumen and careful reading of our text steered two landlubbers away from many mistakes and miscalculations in nautical matters and historic events. They include:

James Delgado, former director of the Vancouver Maritime Museum, Director of Maritime Heritage at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and prolific author, historian and advocate of the maritime environment; James L. Nelson, acclaimed author of seafaring books ranging from American naval exploits during the Revolution and the War of 1812 to entertaining novels of Viking adventurers; Gina Bardi, reference librarian for the San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park Research Center, in San Francisco; Dr. Charles Burden, a retired pediatrician and the individual most responsible for establishment of the Maine Maritime Museum, one of the leading nautical museums in the world; Ambassador Laurence E. Pope, distinguished diplomat, Middle East expert, and author of a number of books on topics ranging from American national security to French history; Robin A.S. Haynes, former manager of the Patten Free Librarys Sagadahoc History and Genealogy Room in Bath, Maine, for her deep knowledge of the history of Bath; the Maine Maritime Museum in Bath, especially Nathan Lipfert, curator of the museums excellent library for so many years, and other senior officials, notably Chris Timm and Kelly Page; the Bowdoin College Library and the colleges outstanding Peary-MacMillan Arctic Museum, and its director, Susan A. Kaplan; Dale Greenley, chairman of the Douglas County (Oregon) Museum Advisory Board and Sylvia Rowan, librarian of the History Center of the San Francisco Library. Ms. Rowan and her colleagues searched for records of Will Jacksons accident and death in 1889 despite the loss of many records in the devastating 1906 earthquake. Also our thanks to Tom and Ash Kahrl, owners of the Bath Printing Company.

For other nautical and geographic/map advice, our appreciation goes to James Arsenault, one of the leading rare map and book dealers in North America; Christopher Boyle, a leading digital map expert; Neil Collins, General Manager of Derecktor Robinhood (Maine) Marine Center; Robin Nisbet, a Scottish professional photographer who lived on the remote Norfolk Island for 15 years; and David M. Brown, a writer and medicine man for all seasons who convinced us to retain Conrads original use of flick of sunshine and not alter it to flicker.

We also commend the amazing catalogue of articles and detailed information available from daily and weekly newspapers in California in the California Digital Newspaper Collection. This collection, provided by the University of California, Riverside, contains 17,616,451 articles at last count. It is available at https://cdnc.ucr.edu. They accept donations. Also, the New York Times archive and the Newspaper Archive (www.newspaperarchive.com) proved to be excellent resources for articles from the nineteenth century.

Several authors work provided valuable background to the dynamic period of historic shipbuilding in Maine and the maritime life of San Francisco in the nineteenth century. Notably, they include History of Bath, by Henry W. Owen, and A Maritime History of Bath, Maine and the Kennebec River Region, by William Avery Baker. Among more recent books, we salute the outstanding history of the Sewall family of shipbuilders produced by William H. Bunting, Live Yankees. Bill Buntings book includes a concise account of the 1884 shipwreck in the Marshall Islands of Rainier, a Sewall ship, and the travails that set the stage for Will Jacksons remarkableif short-livedcareer. Bunting called Will Jackson a smart young Mainer.

We benefited from the valuable firsthand witness of Peter Rudiak-Gould, a bold young Californian who like Will Jackson encountered challenges and adventure in the Marshall Islandsin his case by choice, not accident. At twenty-one, a year younger than Jackson at the time of his shipwreck on Ujae, Rudiak-Gould went to the tiny, mile-long island to teach English in 2003. His book Surviving Paradise offers an entertaining and instructive account of modern life on Ujae, and the spirit of a resilient people.

We salute the editors and production leaders at Rowman & Littefields Lyons Press whose prowess and professionalism saw this work through brilliantly in the face of the pandemic, especially Rick Rinehart, editor, Tom McCarthy, and Lynn Zelem.

Our deep appreciation goes to Sarah Hill Schlenker, daughter and sister, whose careful, incisive editing was an essential step in completing this volume. We also thank her son Benjamin Schlenker, who at age nine, gave the first promotion of this book when he hosted the authors presentation of an early draft before his fourth-grade class at Westchester Elementary in Catonsville, Maryland.

Lastly, to Marguerite Pooley Hill (Marty), wife, mother, and close companion, without whose enduring love, support, and technical skills with our computers and joint collaboration on different coasts of the continentboth bizarrely close to Will Jacksons origins and later lifethis project could never have been completed.

Any errors or omissions are solely the responsibility of the authors.

Will Jacksons Ships (1883-1889)