1856. In One Volume, Illustrated. George Coggeshall had a long and often adventurous seagoing career, during which he kept detailed journals. Upon his retirement he mined material from his journals and produced several books of seafaring memoirs. Of his writing style it has been said that Coggeshall wrote a clear, terse, seamanly English flavored with a dash of quiet elegance. His strength lies in his details., his best writing, in fact, can stand comparison with the novels of Daniel Defoe. In this volume Coggeshall remembers the ships and commandeers that sailed from our ports during the war.