Chittenden is from Middleton, Middlesex County of Connecticut. He shared a stateroom with another passenger aboard the Croton. Chittenden did not join his roommate and men who went to the mine because he fell ill for 3 weeks after landing in San Francisco. This bout of illness left him feeling unsure about staying in San Francisco because of his health. Before he sent his journal home with an acquaintance, he wrote "if I find my health fails me ... and the climate will not agrea [sic] with me, I shall come home before long." Also, he wrote of the certainty that he would not go to the mines because of what one must undergo: "coarse fare, sleeping on the ground" and "hard labour" "won't do" for him. He would rather pursue a job with his trade knowledge in engineering and have "some of the comforts in life."
The Croton (built 1843; bark) was built in New Brunswick, New Jersey. Piloted by Captain D. Soulliard from New York, New York, to San Francisco, California via the Cape Horn, with stops on St. Catherine's Island and in Valparaiso, the voyage spanned 189 days from January 16 to July 29, 1849. On board were 54 passengers and 14 crew.
From the description of H.W. Chittenden journal, 1849. (San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park Library). WorldCat record id: 700952901
