Edward Belcher
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Admiral Sir Edward Belcher was a British naval officer, hydrographer, and explorer. Born in Nova Scotia, he was the great-grandson of Jonathan Belcher, who served as a colonial governor of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and New Jersey.
Sir Edward Belcher c. 1859, portrait by Stephen Pearce
HMS North Star destroying Pomare's Pā, 1845. Painting by John Williams.
HMS Resolute and Intrepid winter quarters, Melville Island, 1852–53
HMS Assistance and Pioneer breaking out of winter quarters, 1854
Jonathan Belcher
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Jonathan Belcher was a merchant, politician, and slave trader from colonial Massachusetts who served as both governor of Massachusetts Bay and governor of New Hampshire from 1730 to 1741 and governor of New Jersey from 1747 to 1757.
Belcher's summer home in Milton, Massachusetts, was destroyed by fire in 1776, but portions of it may have survived in its replacement, built by his widow.
Belcher commissioned this engraved portrait when he was appointed governor of the Massachusetts and New Hampshire colonies.
Despite being treated with indifference by Belcher, William Shirley obtained political prominence and power, later maneuvering to obtain Belcher's removal from office in 1741.
Richard Waldron was Belcher's kinsman and right-hand man in the administration of the New Hampshire province.