Manchester and The War at Sea
We are thrilled to invite visitors to check out our Summer 2025 special exhibition about Manchester's role in the American Revolution. Many Manchester men served in the war at sea as privateers, preying on enemy ships. Explore this map to discover which homes once belonged to some of these daring privateers!
William Tuck House
44 Harbor St.




William Tuck (1740-1826) was a native of Beverly whose father had come from Manchester. William, an ambitious young mariner, married (in 1763) Polly Lee, of a wealthy Manchester family. Her father, Samuel Lee Jr., was Capt. John Lee Jr.’s uncle. In the years 1766-1769 William commanded Salem vessels in trade with the Caribbean. He and Polly would have 10 children in Manchester. By October 1772, William Tuck was sailing in command of vessels owned by his wife’s cousin, Col. Jeremiah Lee of Marblehead. In September 1774, he sailed for Spain in command of the large Lee schooner “Manchester,” and he arrived in Marblehead Harbor in March 1775, from Cadiz. It is likely that his return cargo (and perhaps the one prior) was gunpowder for the coming war, which began in April 1775.
In 1776, he was chosen to command a merchant vessel on a perilous voyage to Bilbao, Spain, There, acting in secrecy as the agent of the independent state of Massachusetts, he exchanged a load of salt fish for a cargo of gunpowder, essential to the fighting capability of the rebel army. In 1778, Capt. William Tuck was given command of the Newburyport-based privateer brigantine “Bennington, “mounting 18 guns. On one 90-day cruise ending in January, Tuck and his men captured several British vessels, including a ship from Jamaica laden with rum and sugar, which was sent safely into Gloucester, and a 12-gun privateer schooner, which may have put up a bloody fight. In between voyages, Tuck served as the town’s representative to the General Court and, by 1780, as moderator of town meeting. Later in the war, in March 1782, he commanded the large 400-ton privateer ship “Lyon,” carrying 29 deck guns and 90 men, sailing from Salem. Something like that actually happened. The “Lyon” was a letter-of-marque (privateer and trader) owned by Francis Cabot of Beverly. Only one day out of Salem, she was captured by the British frigate HMS “Blonde.” Captain Tuck and 60 men were put on board the “Blonde,” which sailed for Halifax but was wrecked off Yarmouth, NS. They escaped to Seal Island, 3 miles off, and soon were discovered by two American privateers. A deal was struck, and the British sailors were put ashore in a Tory part of Nova Scotia, while the prisoners were set ashore in Yankee-friendly Yarmouth, where they were given three vessels, fitted with provisions, in which about 100 men got home to Salem (Petition of William Tuck, May, 1782).
Following the war, Tuck served as Customs Collector for the Gloucester District, was a justice of the peace, and even practiced medicine. William Tuck died at age 86 in 1826, and Tuck’s Point is named in his honor. His house is still standing as a private residence at 44 Harbor St., Manchester.
Jeremiah Hibbert House
1-3 School St.




One of Manchester’s privateer commanders was Jeremiah Hibbert (1753-1778), of 1 School Street, who, in October 1776, had married Martha (Patty) Lee, sister of his fellow privateer captain, John Lee Jr. A privateer lieutenant on board the privateer schooner “Franklin” out of Marblehead, Captain Hibbert was given command of the 75-ton privateer schooner “Hawke,” of Newburyport, carrying 10 cannons and eight swivel-guns, in June 1777. By October 1777, they were off Bilbao, Spain, capturing British vessels coming in with cargoes of fish. After many adventures, naval and diplomatic, Hibbert left Spain for home, having captured several very valuable prizes.
In 1777, Jeremiah had purchased part of a house at 3 School Street for him and Martha to live in, but unfortunately he wasn’t destined to live in it long. In early summer, 1778, he took command of the privateer brigantine “Civil Usage,” 14 guns and 75 men, and cleared away from Newburyport for more adventures on the high seas. The vessel and her men ran into a terrible gale off Portland; heavily laden with food and munitions, she battled to fight her way through high cresting waves, but at last was smashed in. Captain Hibbert, just 25, and all of his men were lost in the sinking of the “Civil Usage.” Jeremiah and Martha did not have any children. The Hibbert’s house was located near 1-3 School Street, Manchester. Although the building has since been renovated over, the original house was built at least before 1774, as on June 8th of that year Nehemiah Lee sold 2/3 of the house and land with the front yard and one well in common, to Jeremiah Hibbert.
Dr. Joseph Whipple House
8 Washington St.

![8 Washington St. sh[2]](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/297b70_64dca6d8bcef4eb0948d1d145f0a6c48~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_980,h_1339,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_avif,quality_auto/297b70_64dca6d8bcef4eb0948d1d145f0a6c48~mv2.jpg)

Among the military leaders of the town was its physician, Dr. Joseph Whipple, of the old Whipple family from Ipswich. Joseph Whipple and his wife, Eunice (Fairfield) Whipple of Wenham, moved to Manchester in 1756. The couple had several young children, with the family residing at now-8 Washington Street (then called High Street). Joseph Whipple served as a town selectman from 1762 through 1766. In the face of war, Whipple also decided to serve the cause for independence from the British. In July 1777, 19 Manchester men and boys—including Doctor Whipple, bidding farewell to his pregnant wife Eunice—joined a large crew on board the privateer brig “Gloucester.” They had success at first, capturing two British vessels that arrived in port as prizes, but then came silence. The silence persisted, and dread set in, and then despondency visited the towns of Cape Ann, for the “Gloucester” never returned—she had gone to the bottom with all on board. Whipple’s sacrifice, along with the other men on board, illustrates the bravery and tenacity of these privateers to fight for their young nation.
The home that the Whipple family lived in can still be viewed at 8 Washington St., Manchester, and is currently a private residence.