On October 1, 1825 The Niles' Weekly Register reported on the status of the West India Squadron. Captain Lewis Warrington had replaced Captain David Porter as the commanding officer of the squadron and as President John Quincy Adams reported, his services "have been crowned with signal success". There were no major battles, quite the opposite things were relatively quiet, and as the Niles' Register described it, "they have not made much noise, but silently stopped piracy".
"We have detailed accounts of the various services of the different vessels under the command of com. Warrington, since he has been on the West India station. They have not made much noise, but silently stopped piracy, by vigilance - the very thing that was hoped for them;" (Niles, 1825)
On December 2nd, 1825 the Secretary of the Navy submitted to President Adams a report that "Several captures of pirates were made in the early part of the year, of which the documents annexed furnish an account. Since that time, the principal places where piracy existed, have been diligently watched, and no complaints have been made to the knowledge of the Department." The Secretary continued to describe Captain Warrington as "an active, systematic, and enterprising officer" who deserved "commendable zeal". Perhaps, Warrington's legacy had preceded before him. Whether it was the confidence of his men, or the fear in the hearts of the pirates, it seems the pirates scurried like cockroaches when entering a room. In the early days of the War of 1812, Lewis proved himself a ware hero, when his sloop-of-war Peacock engaged in a battle with the British brig Epervier off Cape Canaveral, Florida. After a brisk 45 minute exchange where the Peacock inflicted 10 times more damage on the Epervier than she took, the peacock emerged victoriously. Warrington received the a Congressional Gold Medal and a gold-hilted sword from the State of Virginia in honor of his role in the victory. Many successes followed, as Warrington racked up his prizes (captured vessels) during the remainder of the war.
But, it wasn't all good news in the West Indies. While signs of pirates off Cuba and Puerto Rico were no more, yellow fever persisted, especially on Thompson's island (Key West Florida) where an outbreak of the fever almost took Commodore David Porter and many of his men. The Secretary of the Navy reported that there were 13 deaths among the officers of Warrington's West India Squadron who had contracted the fever either in the vessels or in the ports of the West Indies. As the Niles Register further reported, the battles that Warrington and his men faced were "nothing compared with the hardships and diseases of this service"
"but their toils and sufferings have been severe, and the loss of life greater than would have attended the most brilliant cruises ever made. A battle is nothing compared with the hardships and diseases of this service". (Niles, 1825)
In his first State of the Union address, President John Quincy Adams praised the work of the West India Squadron and specifically Captain Warrington. Adams was especially happy to report, that the participation of American merchants or any vessels bearing the American flag in the African slave trade had long been eradicated. He praised the "unremitted energy" of Captain Warrington and his men in their protection of our commerce against the "vessels of piratical character". Under Captain Warrington, the West India Squadron had "signal success", but despite the peace, it was not a time to relent or relax. The value of commerce in the West Indies was too valuable to risk, and Adams called for the continuation of the West India Squadron for years to come.
"The objects of the West India Squadron have been to carry into execution the laws for the suppression of the African slave trade; for the protection of our commerce against vessels of piratical character, though bearing commissions from either of the belligerent parties; for its protection against open and unequivocal pirates. These objects during the present year have been accomplished more effectually than at any former period. The African slave trade has long been excluded from the use of our flag, and if some few citizens of our country have continued to set the laws of the Union as well as those of nature and humanity at defiance by persevering in that abominable traffic, it has been only by sheltering themselves under the banners of other nations less earnest for the total extinction of the trade of ours.
The active, persevering, and unremitted energy of Captain Warrington and of the officers and men under his command on that trying and perilous service have been crowned with signal success, and are entitled to the approbation of their country. But experience has shown that not even a temporary suspension or relaxation from assiduity can be indulged on that station without reproducing piracy and murder in all their horrors; nor is it probably that for years to come our immensely valuable commerce in those seas can navigate in security without the steady continuance of an armed force devoted to its protection."Following his service, Lewis Warrington became the first chief of the Bureau of Navy Yards and Docks. In 1827, a village outside the navy yard was founded and named after him. While not an official town, Warringon still exists to day as a census-designated place in Escambia County Florida, located between downtown Pensacola and the state line of Alabama. In 1844, Warrington served briefly as Secretary of the Navy and sat on a panel that helped to choose the area that became the Naval Air Station Pensacola.
References
Presidency.ucsb.edu. (2018). John Quincy Adams: First Annual Message. [online] Available at: http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=29467 [Accessed 26 Jan. 2018].Niles, H. (1825). Niles' weekly register volume 29. [Place of publication not identified]: Rarebooksclub Com, p.65.
United States Naval Institute Proceedings, Volume 43, Issues 7-12. (1917). The Institute, pp.pg. 2028-2029.
Wagner, D. (2018). 1814 James Madison - Captain Porter, Battle of Valparaiso. [online] Stateoftheunionhistory.com. Available at: http://www.stateoftheunionhistory.com/2016/11/1814-james-madison-captain-porter.html [Accessed 26 Jan. 2018].
Wagner, D. (2018). 1823 James Monroe - Yellow Fever at Thompson's Island (Key West, Florida). [online] Stateoftheunionhistory.com. Available at: http://www.stateoftheunionhistory.com/2017/09/1823-james-monroe-yellow-fever-at.html [Accessed 26 Jan. 2018].
En.wikipedia.org. (2018). Battle of Ayacucho. [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Ayacucho [Accessed 24 Jan. 2018].
En.wikipedia.org. (2018). Lewis Warrington. [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Warrington [Accessed 26 Jan. 2018].
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