I represent James Kirkland. I was a lieutenant in command of HMS Florida, a surveying schooner. My Florida replaced the old, condemned surveying schooner Florida that was used by George Gauld on surveying missions. In May 1778, we arrived in Pensacola Bay with a complement of 30 crew and escorting troops to reinforce the garrison – and with a vessel in tow we had taken as a prize just outside the harbor. The Florida’s mission took it out of service for George Gauld until Sept 11, 1778, when it sank off of Deer Point. I had returned to Jamaica by December.
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