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STORK
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(18) |
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Built in 1796, Deptford.
Sold in 1816. |
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- 1799 C.
LAROCHE, 09/1798, Jamaica. - 1800 Sheerness.
On 23 December her Boatswain, Mr Thomas DOBSON was found guilty of drunkenness, disobedience of orders and neglect of duty and dismissed his ship.
He was rendered incapable of serving again as an officer. - 1801 W. PARKER, Channel.
STORK went into dock at Plymouth for a refit on the 25 May 1801 and such was the activity of her crew that she was out on the 28th. She went down to the Sound three days later and sailed to join the Channel Fleet on the 1 June.
On 4 July she sent into Plymouth the French chasse-maree JULIE, bound for Brest from Bordeaux with flour and brandy. - A brig and a lugger rounding Cape Ortegal on the morning of the 28 July were fired on by CONSTANCE as they passed inside the Firgu rocks.
STORK then stood into the Bay and, by well directed fire, forced the brig ashore on to the rocks under a high cliff where militia kept up an ill directed musket fire.
Lieut. STUPART of CONSTANCE with the boats of STORK pulled her off. She was the privateer CANTARA, mounting eighteen 18-pounders and four sixes and with a crew of 110. She had left Corunna the night before with the lugger which was taken by CONSTANCE.
Two French brigs laden with brandy, prizes taken by CONSTANCE and STORK, were sent into Plymouth on 4 August and, on 15 September, the LEGERE, a French packet of 14 guns and 50 men.
When taken by STORK she was bound for Bordeaux from Guadeloupe with a valuable cargo of coffee, cocoa, indigo and cotton. - On 1 October STORK sailed for the Channel fleet, taking as a passenger Capt. SEYMOUR who had been appointed to BELLEISLE (84).
- 1801 Capt. TAYLOR.
He sailed for Bermuda from Portsmouth on 30 December 1801 with Governor Halkett as a passenger and returned on 12 March 1802. - On 18 March 1802 a court martial was held on board GLADIATOR in Portsmouth harbour on a seaman, George EVERETT, who was charged with stealing three guineas from F. WILSON.
When the charges were part proved he was sentenced to 300 lashes. - STORK sailed again for the West Indies with dispatches on 7 April.
- 1804 George LE GEYT, 28/05/1803, who was promoted out of LEVIATHAN.
On 24 February 1804 he captured the French national schooner COQUETTE (2).
after a chase of 265 miles.
Her captain, Lieutenant de Vaisseau Bouchet had been carrying dispatches from New Orleans to Guadeloupe. - While off Cabo Rojo in the S. W. of Puerto Rico he discovered a schooner lashed alongside a brig in the harbour.
On the night of 23 March 1804 18 seamen from STORK under Lieuts. George ROBINSON and James MURRAY went in with the pinnace and the cutter, to cut them out.
The schooner's five guns were on board the brig and they were defended by a combined crew of at least 40 the majority of whom jumped overboard when the boats came alongside.
Both vessels were taken together with 15 prisoners for the loss of only two slightly wounded on the British side, one being Lieut. MURRAY.
The schooner proved to be the Dutch privateer ANTELOPE.
"A fine vessel and a remarkably fast sailor"
- On 30 March a six hour chase ended off Cape Nicola with the capture of a privateer felucca HIRONDELLE, three months out of Guadeloupe.
Two of her three guns were thrown overboard as she attempted to escape. - On 25 August 1806 a small squadron consisting of STORK and SUPERIEURE with the schooners FLYING FISH and PIKE, sailed from Port Royal to attack privateers off Cuba.
On the 25th. they chased and captured a Spanish coastguard schooner off the Isle of Pines.
LE GEYT then discovered that STORK'S draught was too great to permit her entering the Gulf of Batabano so he reinforced the other three vessels with his boats and men and sent in an expedition under Edward RUSHWORTH of SUPERIEURE.
He landed on 2 September with a force of 18 seamen from STORK and 35 from SUPERIEURE, with 10 from FLYING FISH to guard the boats, and crossed some two miles of marshy ground to storm a fort at Batabano.
They broke through an ambush of enemy soldiers and militia to capture six 18pdr long guns which were spiked and then proceeded to take possession of the vessels in the bay.
These included a felucca, pierced for 14 guns and mounting one 18-pounder, a schooner pierced for 12 guns and a French 4-gun privateer.
Six smaller vessels were burnt after their cargoes were removed.
STORK later took part in the blockade of Martinique and the destruction of CYGNE (see AMARANTHE). - 1811 George LE GEYT, Cork.
LE GEYT was promoted on 12 August 1812 and he left STORK the following month. - 1812 1814-15
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