Edwin De Haven

Edwin Jesse De Haven (May 7, 1816 – May 1, 1865) was a United States Navy officer and explorer of the first half of the 19th century.

He was born in Philadelphia and became a midshipman at the age of 10, serving until 1857. De Haven participated in the Wilkes Expedition, officially known as the United States Exploring Expedition, from 1839 to 1842.

Edwin Jesse De Haven's most notable achievement was serving as captain of the Advance. Together with Rescue, the ship participated in the Arctic search mission to discover the remains of John Franklin's earlier, 1847, Arctic expedition. The two ships left New York on May 5, 1850. De Haven and his crew were at sea for sixteen months, spending the winter inside the Arctic circle.

After returning from the expedition, Edwin Jesse De Haven served in the U.S. Coast Survey, before spending the rest of his career at the United States Naval Observatory under superintendent Matthew Fontaine Maury. He was placed on the retired list in 1862 on account of impaired vision. He died in Philadelphia in May 1865.

Namesakes

The Navy named two destroyers USS De Haven in his honor.

References

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Naval History and Heritage Command.

 This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.

• The Royal Navy in Polar Exploration from Franklin to Scott, E C Coleman, 2006 (Tempus Publishing)

External links

• Biography of De Haven from the Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, U.S. Naval Historical Center
• Biography at the Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online
• See an 1858 map Preliminary chart of entrance to Brazos River, Texas / from a trigonometrical survey under the direction of A. Bache; triangulation by J.S. Williams ; topography by J.M. Wampler; hydrography by the parties under the command of E.J. De Haven & J.K. Duer., hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
• Edwin De Haven at Find a Grave
• Edwin Jesse De Haven Papers, 1832-1928 MS 211 held by Special Collection & Archives, Nimitz Library at the United States Naval Academy