MUTINY On The Somers!

SAMUEL, son of Samuel Van Norden and Maria Quackenbush. Samuel G. Van Norden was in the United States Naval Service, and aboard the U. S. Brig "Somers" during the mutiny of 1842, at which time he remained loyal to the officers of the ship. The crew of the "Somers" was composed largely of boy apprentices from the school ships, several of whom, under the leadership of a midshipman, organized a plot with the purpose of murdering the officers and seizing the vessel. But the plot was revealed by the purser's steward, and three of the ringleaders were immediately hanged as a result of a trial by court martial. This summary proceeding on the part of the commanding officer, Captain Mackenzie, evoked a great deal of criticism at the time, and it was not until the following year that a Court of Inquiry fully and honorably acquitted him by deciding that his action was justifiable and in the interest of discipline.