F.W.J. Hurst

Who was F.W.J. Hurst?

Francis William Jones Hurst, a native of the British West Indies, was a major figure in the cross-Atlantic shipping business in the 19th century. During the American Civil War, he captained ships that ran the Union blockade of Confederate ports. From the War’s end to his death, he was the New York-based manager for the National Steam-Ship Company. The National Line brought goods and thousands of emigrants from ports in the British Isles to New York.

He was born in St. John’s, Antigua on February 13, 1840. After completing his education in Bermuda, he relocated to London, where in 1856 he began his mercantile career. Three years later, he joined Guion & Co. of Liverpool, and also became a member of the Fifth Lancashire Rifle Volunteers.

The American Civil War began in 1861, soon after states in the southern United States created the Confederate States of America. The War immediately threatened the thriving trade between cotton plantations in those states and markets in Europe, especially after the Union Navy established a blockade of Confederate ports. That year Hurst returned to Bermuda and became managing clerk and agent for Edward Lawrence & Co., where his work included captaining ships seeking to “run” the Union naval blockade, carrying in guns, ammunition and medicine and carrying out cotton. One such ship, the “Banshee,” was the first steel-built vessel to cross the Atlantic. The Banshee made eight successful runs between the Bahamas and Wilmington, North Carolina, before being captured on its ninth voyage in November 1863. Throughout this time, Hurst remained a member of the Lancashire Rifle Volunteers, becoming a lieutenant in 1864.