Purser Gardner Thomas

I represent Gardner Thomas. I held the rank of Purser aboard the U.S. Sloop of War HORNET. I received my commission on July 22, 1815; I first reported aboard the HORNET on January 1, 1820, in New York. Not only did the HORNET participate in the changing of the flag ceremony on July 17, 1821, gaily decked out in Pensacola Bay for the festivities, we brought James G. Forbes from Havana to Pensacola with the official orders from the Captain General of Cuba authorizing the transfer. We were also one of the vessels that evacuated Spanish officers and citizens who were leaving Pensacola when it became American.