WILKES, CHARLES (1798-1877), American naval officer and explorer, born in New York city April 3, 1798. He entered the U.S. Navy as a midshipman in 1818 and became a lieutenant in 1826. In 183o he was placed in charge of the division of in struments and charts, and in 1838 was appointed to command an exploring and surveying expedition to the South Seas, authorized as the first of its kind by Congress in 1836. The expedition, in cluding naturalists, botanists, mineralogists, taxidermists, a philolo gist, etc., left Hampton Roads Aug. 1838, stopped at various ports in South America and visited the Paumotu group of the Low Archipelago, the Samoan islands, and New South Wales. From Sydney, Wilkes sailed into the Antarctic ocean and along the Antarctic barrier from I so° to 97° E., reporting land at a number of points in the region which has subsequently been known as Wilkes Land. He visited the Fiji group and the Hawaiian islands in 1840, and in 1841 explored the west coast of the United States. The findings were timely in view of the dispute with Great Britain over the Oregon territory. He visited San Francisco bay, and the Sacramento river, and crossing the Pacific he called at the Philippine islands, Sulu archipelago, Borneo, Singapore, Poly nesia and the Cape of Good Hope, reaching New York in June 1842, having sailed around the world. He served on the Coast Survey 1842-43 and in the latter year was advanced to the rank of commander. In 1844-61 he was chiefly engaged in preparing
the report of the expedition. Twenty-eight volumes were planned but only 19 were published. Of these Wilkes wrote the Narrative (6 vols., 1844) ; and the volumes Hydrography (1851) and Mete orology (1851). At the outbreak of the Civil War Wilkes was assigned to the command of the "San Jacinto" to search for the Confederate commerce destroyer "Sumter." On Nov. 8, 1861, he stopped the British mail packet "Trent," and took off the Con federate commissioners to Europe, James M. Mason and John Slidell. Though he was officially thanked by Congress, his action was later disavowed by President Lincoln. Wilkes was commis sioned commodore in 1862, and placed in command of a squadron sent to the West Indies to protect the U.S. commerce in that region. On July 25, 1866, he was promoted to the rank of rear admiral on the retired list. He died at Washington Feb. 8, 1877.
In addition to many shorter articles, reports, etc., he published West ern America, including California and Oregon (1849) ; Voyage Around the World (1849) ; and Theory of the Winds (i856). "The Diary of Wilkes in the Northwest" (E. S. Meany, ed.) appeared in the Wash ington Historical Quarterly, vol. 16-17 (1925-26).