Provincetown in Barnstable County, Massachusetts — The American Northeast (New England)
H.M.S. Somerset
Photographed By Alan M. Perrie, September 14, 2016
1. H.M.S. Somerset Marker
Of all the enemy ships that haunted Provincetown Harbor during the Revolutionary War, perhaps the most fearsome was the huge British man-of-war H.M.S. Somerset. With her 64 mounted guns and crew of 400, she symbolized British tyranny where-ever she appeared along the New England coast.
On November 2, 1778, a tempest drove the Somerset onto the shallow Peaked Hill Bars that lay just offshore (about 3 miles / 5 km to your right). Fifty crewmen drowned as storm waves battered the great ship, yet most survived to be taken prisoner by Cape Cod militia. After stripping the frigate of its armament, defiant patriots burned the ship down to the waterline.
Fragments of the Somerset remain buried along the shore, where wave action occasionally exposes them to view.
Built in Chatham, England in 1748, the Somerset saw action in the French and Indian War, and the Revolutionary War. She transported some of the British who marched on Lexington and Concord, and her guns were heard at Bunker Hill.
Erected by Cape Cod National Seashore.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Disasters • War, US Revolutionary • Waterways & Vessels. A significant historical date for this entry is November 2, 1778.
Location. 42° 4.449′ N, 70°
this page online
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Provincetown (here, next to this marker); Pilgrim Memorial Stone (approx. 1.8 miles away); Mayflowers Passengers Memorial (approx. 1.8 miles away); Provincetown Veterans Memorial (approx. 1.8 miles away); Provincetown AIDS Memorial (approx. 1.8 miles away); Sons of Provincetown (approx. 1.8 miles away); #286 Commercial St. (approx. 1.8 miles away); Rose Dorothea (approx. 1.8 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Provincetown.
Also see . . .
1. H.M.S. Somerset. Wreckhunter website entry (Submitted on December 18, 2017, by Alan M. Perrie of Unionville, Connecticut.)
2. H.M.S. Somerset (1748). Wikipedia entry (Submitted on December 18, 2017, by Alan M. Perrie of Unionville, Connecticut.)
3. H.M.S. Somerset. Waymarking website entry (Submitted on December 18, 2017, by Alan M. Perrie of Unionville, Connecticut.)
4. Dune Shacks of Peaked Hill Bars Historic District. Wikipedia entry (Submitted on May 24, 2021, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York.)
Photographed By Alan M. Perrie, September 14, 2016
2. View of the Atlantic. Peaked Hill Bars is on the Bay side
via United States Naval Institute, unknown
3. H.M.S. Somerset
HMS Somerset, the remains of which have resurfaced on the Cape Cod shoreline, was guarding Boston Harbor on the fateful night of 18 April 1775.
Above, Tim Thompson's "Revere Crosses to Charlestown" depicts the moonlit warship as Paul Revere sneaks past in the rowboat on the right.
Above, Tim Thompson's "Revere Crosses to Charlestown" depicts the moonlit warship as Paul Revere sneaks past in the rowboat on the right.
Credits. This page was last revised on May 24, 2021. It was originally submitted on December 18, 2017, by Alan M. Perrie of Unionville, Connecticut. This page has been viewed 641 times since then and 95 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on December 18, 2017, by Alan M. Perrie of Unionville, Connecticut. 3. submitted on May 24, 2021, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.
