William Compton Bolton (died 22 February 1849), born William Bolton Finch in England,[1] was an officer in the United States Navy during the mid-19th century.

As William Bolton Finch, he was a midshipman from 20 June 1806, lieutenant from 4 January 1813 and captain from 21 Feb 1831.[2] He served with distinction in the War of 1812, serving on the Essex from 1812 to 1814,[2] and in 1829-30 commanded Vincennes in her first around-the-world voyage by a US Navy vessel.[1]

He changed his name to William Compton Bolton on 14 January 1833; his sister Elizabeth changed her surname from Finch to Bolton at the same time.[3]

Bolton commanded the Pensacola Navy Yard from 1836 to 1837.

From 2 August 1839 to 1841 he commanded the Brandywine.[2] In 1848, he was the commander of the Mediterranean Squadron and later the Africa Squadron in the sloop-of-war USS Jamestown in manoeuvres off the Cape Verde islands, Madeira and the Mediterranean.[1]

He died on 22 February 1849 at Genoa.[2][1]

His widow, Mary H. Lynch Bolton, married Charles Wilkes on October 3, 1854. Commodore Bolton had sat on Wilkes' court-martial board in 1842.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Canney, Donald L. (2006). "Ch. 7: Bolton and Cooper and the Nadir of the Squadron, 1847-1849". Africa Squadron: The U.S. Navy and the Slave Trade, 1842-1861. Washington, D.C.: Potomac. ISBN 9781597974646.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Harrison, Simon. "William Bolton Finch (d.1849)". Threedecks - Warships in the Age of Sail. Retrieved 22 May 2018.
  3. ↑ States, United (1833). "Acts and resolution of the United States of America, from the 20th Cong., 2d sess. to the ..., Volume 22, Part 4". Google Books.


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