Commodore William J. McCluney was a United States Navy officer whose service included the War of 1812, the Mexican-American War, and the Battle of Ty-ho Bay, China. McCluney commanded two of the flagships—the USS Mississippi and the USS Powhatan—in support of the Perry Expedition to Japan in 1853-1854. As a flag officer, McCluney transported the first Japanese Embassy to the United States aboard his flagship, the USS Roanoke, in 1860 on the last leg of their journey.
Miniature of Commander William J. McCluney, gift to Elizabeth Wharton, about the time of their marriage, 1841.
Elizabeth Shoemaker Wharton married Commander William J. McCluney November 8, 1841. Portrait by Thomas Sully.
Drawn by an officer of the Powhatan 11 July 1853, this illustration of the "Sulton's Palace" Bruni, Borneo was published in Boston in 1855. Capt. McCluney and a delegation rowed 30 miles upstream to the ratification ceremony between the United States and the Sultan.
Dinner and "minstrel" entertainment on deck of the USS Powhatan arranged by Capt. Wm. McCluney for the Japanese delegation. The Japanese Commissioners dined below deck with Commodore Perry and the captains of the US expeditionary fleet.
The Battle of Ty-ho Bay was a significant naval engagement in 1855 involving the United Kingdom and United States against Chinese pirates. The action off Tai O, Hong Kong was to rescue captured merchant vessels, held by a fleet of armed war-junks. British and American forces defeated the pirates in one of the last major battles between Chinese pirate fleets and western navies. It was also one of the first joint operations undertaken by British and American forces.
A model of an eight gun pirate junk.
Kuhlan Monument (centre) in Hong Kong Cemetery, commemorating the battle. The obelisk on the left is the Fronde Memorial. The one on the right is the HMS Vestal Memorial, commemorating officers and crew of HMS Vestal who died between 1844 and 1847.
