Manlove Pictures

A 22-year-old commodore during the War of 1812? Just as those who claim to be reincarnated always were kings, queens, or great warriors, never peasants, pimps, or pirates, many amateur genealogists have a tendency to either clean up or gussy up their ancestors' status. So I had to take Cap 'n David's rank with a grain - no, make that a pound - of salt.

I looked into several sources with no success. Then, from nowhere, we were contacted by a lady in Delaware who had traced the Manlove ancestory back to 16th century England. She also had found a David Manlove in her family tree and had information that put him in Cape May in the 1800s, but had no further information about him.

From that chance encounter we were able to solve the mystery of the youngest commodore in naval history. Records indicate that he, indeed, served in the Delaware Bay Flotilla. After he died at sea in 1830, his widow applied for and received a widow's pension from the government. One pension record indicated he was a seaman, while another listed him as Captain David Manlove.

What was probably the case was that since he owned and commanded a sailing vessel he was a sailing master, the maritime title for captains of merchant vessels. He and his vessel were probably conscripted by the navy. The equivalent of sailing master in the navy is captain. There is also another naval oddity: whomever is in command of a naval vessel is called captain, regardless of rank.

After the war he continued at sea trading between Philadelphia and the Caribbean islands. He commissioned a new pirate-proof schooner. In 1830 he sailed the new schooner from Philadelphia with a cargo bound for St Thomas and never returned. He was presumed lost at sea.

Were pirates able to capture his new schooner? Was he caught in a violent hurricane? Or was he an early victim of the Bermuda triangle? No one really knows. His widow spent every evening on the internet, but none of the search engines could find a trace of him or his crew.

The mystery is solved. Now if we can just find a peasant, pimp, or pirate in the family or, better yet, a druid. But that would be asking too much. The closest we've come was linking to a witch from East Hampton, Long Island. East Hampton, that's where money meets the Atlantic. But her witchcraft trial is another story.

Sailing Master Daniel Stevens Manlove: b. 16 January 1830 Cape May, NJ, d.20 January 1904 Cape May, NJ, buried Cold Spring Cemetery, Lot 497, Cape May. M. 29 September 1853 Lydia Elizabeth Truitt b. 5 September 1833 Wilmington, DE, d. 28 January 1915 Cape May, NJ, buried Cold Spring Cemetery, Cape May.

Children: George H., b. 19 January 1855; John B. C., b. 10 April 1858; Daniel S., b. 27 November 1859; Charles Henry Weeks Manlove, b. 8 October 1862; Abraham L. b. 26 September 1865; Mary E., b. 11 April 1868; Augustus, b. 18 January 1870; and Mary Rebecca, b. 25 May 1872.

Abraham Lincoln (Uncle Link) Manlove: b. 26 September 1865 Philadelphia, PA; d. 28 February 1949Cumberland, MD

Sarah Elizabeth: b. 14 May 1877 d. 14 May 1956 W. Cape May, NJ, buried Cold Spring Cemetery, Cape May.

Children: Anne May Meyer, b. 22 November 1900 d. September 1956, buried Cold Spring Cemetery, Cape May; George William Meyer, b. 3 January 1902 d. 7 October 1969; Elizabeth Mecray Meyer b. 29 December 1910.