Bringing Richard Somers Home

Calling All Pointers And Citizens Of New Jersey
Read And Sign The Petition To Bring Richard Somers Home

The physical remains of Richard Somers lie in a grave near Tripoli harbor in Libya where he was buried during our war against the Barbary pirates two hundred years ago. Now the residents of New Jersey’s Somers Point, local officials, veterans groups, and Somers’ descendants are calling for the return of their native son and his crew.

Interested community members have formed the Return Richard Somers Committee. The Press of Atlantic City has editorially endorsed the idea, and a member of the Somers family has agreed to donate DNA samples to identify his remains. Congressman Frank LoBiondo (N.J.) has asked the State Department to look into the matter. If you, too, wish to assist the residents in this quest you may join in signing their petition.

Though the United States has no official diplomatic relations with Libya, the situation has changed dramatically over the past few years. A recent thaw in the previously cold relations could lead to the return of Somers and his crew as early as September, 2004, two hundred years after they died during the battle of Tripoli in 1804.

The United States won its first war through the efforts of Somers and Steven Decatur, along with Commodore Edward Preble, Diplomat-warrior William Eaton and Sgt. Presley O’Bannon, USMC. A major motion picture, ”Tripoli,” is now being made of their legendary story of fighting pirates. Unlike its swashbuckling predecessor starring Tyrone Power and Maureen O’Hara, the new movie is said to be a cross between “A Man for All Seasons” and “Lawrence of Arabia.” Russell Crowe stars as William Eaton, the American diplomat who took to the sword and dagger to convince the pirates to capitulate.

After the United States won its independence from England the new Stars and Stripes flying from American merchant ships did not carry the same recognition and weight as the British Union Jack. Even so, the British chose to pay “tribute” to the Barbary pirates to protect their ships. The reluctance of U.S. President Thomas Jefferson to pay such tributes led to the capture of many American ships and the enslavement of their crews.

“Millions for defense, not one cent for tribute!” became the battle cry of the nation that was unprepared for war and had yet to build an adequate navy.

Appalled at the news of the enslaved sailors, the city of Philadelphia built the battleship “Philadelphia,” which was immediately dispatched to confront the pirates and blockade Tripoli harbor. Preble, the newly appointed commander of the fleet, sent Lts. Somers and Decatur in fast schooners. Before they arrived, the USS Philadelphia ran aground on an uncharted reef while chasing a pirate corsair into Tripoli harbor. Captain Bainbridge and his 300-man crew were captured, placing in the hands of the enemy a ship as big and powerful as any in the American fleet.

When Somers and Decatur arrived, they captured a pirate ship where they found the sword of an officer from the Philadelphia. Christened the USS Intrepid, the prize would become one of the most famous ships in the U.S. navy.

After decisively defeating the enemy in a number of skirmishes, Decatur sailed the Intripid into the harbor disguised as an Arab trader. He recaptured and sank the Philadelphia without firing a shot and without any casualties. Then Somers, with a dozen volunteers, reentered the harbor, having filled the Intripid with combustibles. Unfortunately, during the daring nighttime raid the Intrepid prematurely exploded in the harbor. The bodies of Somers and his crew washed ashore the following day and were buried in a nearby cemetery by prisoners from the Philadelphia. An unkempt memorial marks their graves.

The actions of Somers and Decatur helped inspire the line in the Marine Corps anthem “From the Halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli.”

Preble and Decatur proceeded to defeat the pirates at sea, while Eaton and O’Bannon, together with eight marines, 200 Greek mercenaries, and an army of Arab Bedouins, marched across the desert and forced the pirates to surrender. The United States won the war, the prisoners from the USS Philadelphia were release, and no tributes were paid, but the remains of Somers and his crew were left behind.

The Return Richard Somers Committee and the people of Somers Point hope the movie will arouse public interest in the return of Somers and his men, left in Tripoli after the war was won. “The Marines have a tradition of not leaving our dead or wounded behind,” says Nace Benner, former marine and Somers Point native. “We left Somers behind and should bring him home.”

The task is complicated by recent politics. Libya is led by Mohammar Quaddafi, who took power in a military coup in 1969. Quaddafi has actively supported terrorism against the United States. Libyans were implicated in the bombing of the Pan Am flight over Lockerbie, Scotland, as well as in the bombing of a German nightclub that killed U.S. servicemen and civilians. President Reagan retaliated by bombing Quaddafi’s home, killing one of his daughters. An American Navy pilot was shot down in that attack. Like Somers and his crew, his body washed ashore near Tripoli, but his remains were repatriated by Libya.

After espousing terrorism for decades, Quaddafi has made a turnaround. He turned over the two main suspects in the Pan Am bombing, one of whom was convicted and is in prison. The Libyans have also offered millions of dollars in reparations to the families of the Lockerbie victims, on condition that the United States and UN end their economic sanctions against Libya. This suggests that Libyan leaders want to renounce terrorism and rejoin the global community of trading nations. As the Libyan ambassador for the UN has been appointed head of the UN Human Rights Commission, the time for the repatriation of Somers and his crew would seem appropriate.

Former Congressman and U.S. Ambassador to Panama William Hughes, who over twenty years ago sponsored the Congressional resolution to being Richard Somers home, recently said, “The situation has certainly changed, and there is now a window of opportunity that we should take advantage of.”

Preble is now honored by naming the latest ship in the navy the USS Preble. Eaton and Presley will become famous heroes when the movie “Tripoli” is released next summer. Richard Somers and his crew should be honored by bringing them home before the 200^th anniversary of their heroic deaths.

by William Kelly

[Bill Kelly is author of 300 Years at the Point - A History of Somers Point, N.J.]

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