Isabella and Brig Consort logbooks

The Isabella was a merchant ship captained by Master Leeds and owned by Brown Brothers and Company. The ship frequently sailed between Canton, China (now known as Guangzhou) and Philadelphia, Pa to trade for the banking and investment firm, which was founded in 1818 by John A. Brown, the brother of the prominent Baltimore lawyer, Alexander Brown. Traders would often sell ginseng harvested in America for a large sum, and purchase Chinese goods, such as tea and silk, to sell at home. The port of Philadelphia brought in exports from all over the world, including India and Cuba.

The brig Consort was built at the Boston Navy Yard in 1836 for the Wilkes Expedition, in which the United States Navy surveyed the Pacific coast from 1838-1842. The exploring expedition initially operated under Commodore Thomas ap Catesby Jones, but he resigned before the mission began, and Lieutenant Charles Wilkes took his place. The ship was designed by Samuel Humphreys to be rigged as both a bark and a brig, and served in various positions for the Navy, first as a government packet travelling between New York and Vera Cruz, Mexico and then as a surveying vessel off the southern U.S. coast. The Consort was eventually sold in Philadelphia in 1844, where it continued to make journeys to the Pacific.