Mayhew Folger

Mayhew Folger (March 9, 1774 – September 1, 1828) was an American whaler who captained the sealing ship Topaz that rediscovered the Pitcairn Islands in 1808, whilst one of 's mutineers was still living. Early life and family Mayhew was born on March 12, 1774, in Nantucket, Massachusetts, the second child of William Folger and Ruth Coffin. Mayhew was a member of the Folger whaling family of Nantucket, who were prominent Quakers. He was the great-great-great grandson of Peter Foulger and Mary Morrill Foulger and, through them, is the first cousin, three times removed, of Benjamin Franklin. He married his second cousin, Mary Joy, on March 7, 1798, on Nantucket. Mayhew was the uncle of Lucretia Coffin Mott, daughter of his sister, Anna Folger, and Thomas Coffin. Folgers grandson, William Mayhew Folger (1844-1928), became a United States Navy rear admiral. Rediscovery of the Pitcairn Islands Mayhew Folger captained the ship Topaz that left Boston on April 5, 1807, hunting for seals. They rediscovered the Pitcairn Islands on February 6, 1808. At that time, only one of the original mutineers, Alexander Smith, whose real name was John Adams, was still alive. Topaz remained at the island for only ten hours.