When Gadhafi Speaks In Green Square, I Think Of My Ancestors.

With Libya so much in the news, and Gadhafi making his speeches from Tripoli's Green Square, I am reminded of Dr. Jonathan Cowdery and the Heroes Of Tripoli.

Dr. Cowdery's father and my great-great-great-great-great grandfather were brothers. Dr. Cowdery was ship’s surgeon on the U.S.S. Philadelphia, which ran aground while fighting pirates in the Mediterranean Sea. Thirteen officers and sailors were killed, 300 were captured and imprisoned in Tripoli.

It was 1804.

As ship's surgeon, Dr. Cowdery had to identify the remains. He also recorded in his journal the exact location of their burial in Green Square. He and the other American prisoners were freed by the treaty that ended the First Barbary War in 1805.

The 13 who died are still there. The rest of that story is here.