Whaling Women’s History: Whaling Wives and Money

By Casey Nyvall
PR & Collections Intern

A letter dated June 12, 1848 to John H. Jones from Martha Winters requesting an advance on her husband's salary, because her sister was ill.

If you stop by the museum, you can see our exhibit on whaling wives—with details about how they survived the long months, and sometimes years, aboard whalers. On whalers, being a man was the norm. Husbands were busy on the hunt. Still, not all whaling wives actually went to sea.

Today, I would like to spotlight one whaling wife in particular, and connect her story to others of whaling wives on land: Martha Winters. Martha is only featured in the museum collections once. She was the wife of Philander Winters, captain of the Cold Spring fleet ship the Richmond (which was featured in our previous post!). Yet while he traveled, Martha lived in Sag Harbor.

Martha’s item in the collections is a letter she penned imploring one of the Cold Spring Whaling Company’s founders, John H. Jones, to provide an advance on her husband’s salary. Her sister had taken ill, and with the advance she could use the funds to house her sister. Her marriage to Captain Winters gave her access to money that legally belonged to her husband. Martha used the advance to pay for board—fees to rent a room in someone else’s home. 

Laws prevented women from being financially independent. This would begin to change gradually as reformers took up the cause of women's rights in the later 19th century. At the time, a woman’s property and possessions legally belonged to her husband or closest male relative. This was a legal doctrine called coverture. As a result, Martha had to rely on her husband for money because she was not considered a legal individual apart from her husband.

As exciting as whaling was, it was not the most stable of vocations. Whalers were not paid until the voyage was over, the cargo sold, and outstanding debts settled. This forced Martha to manage in Sag Harbor without a steady income or a means to make her own. The letter illuminates financial hardships whaling wives could face if they remained on land, namely concerning dependency and caregiving. On a broader scale, her story informs us of the specific ways women were subjugated in America, not only socially, but legally.

Still, not every woman suffered with financial uncertainty like Martha. Some invested in whaling voyages, so that if the voyage was indeed successful. These women would reap the rewards along with the other investors in the Cold Spring Whaling Company. Women who made these investments were typically single or widowed, which allowed them to earn the money for themselves. We know of four women in the Cold Spring Harbor area who took their agency in this way: Mary and Martha Hewlett, Rebecca Rogers, and Nancy Gracie. Combined, they made two-hundred twenty-seven dollars—that translates to almost ten thousand dollars today! ​

A $126 receipt for Rebecca Rogers, from the Cold Spring Whaling Company.

$26.96 receipt for Nancy Gracey, from the Cold Spring Whaling Company.

Throughout history, women have struggled under the weight of oppression, but in certain instances managed to persevere. For more stories celebrating the women of the whaling world, search our whaling wives category.