Townsend family

Charles Hervey Townsend was born in New Haven, Connecticut, in November 1833, the son of William Kneeland Townsend (1796-1849) and Eliza Ann Mulford (1798-1881). He had eight siblings: William Isaac (b. 1822), James Mulford (1825-1901), George Henry (b. 1826), Frederick Atwater (b. 1829), Robert Raikes (1831-1857), Timothy Beers (b. 1835), Edward Howard (b. 1840), and Eliza Mulford (b. 1842). After first going to sea around age 15, Charles Townsend served as an officer on merchant ships throughout the 1850s. He traveled around the United States as well as to Europe and the Caribbean. Townsend became a captain around 1856 and commanded the Bavaria and Germania . On April 26, 1871, he married Mary Ann Hotchkiss (b. 1839), and they had two children: Henry Hotchkiss (b. 1874) and Raynham (b. 1878). Charles Hervey Townsend died in 1904.

Charles H. Townsend's name is spelled "Townshend" in various publications, though Charles himself wrote and signed with his family name, "Townsend."

From the guide to the Charles H. Townsend papers, Townsend, Charles H. papers, 1849-1870, (William L. Clements Library, University of Michigan)