William Bernard
Encyclopedia
William Bernard was a 19th-century sailor
, miner
and resident of San Francisco, better known as the notorious "Barnacle Bill" of American
yore whose fictional exploits are chronicled in the ribald drinking song
"Barnacle Bill the Sailor
" — itself adapted from "Bollocky Bill the Sailor", a traditional folk song originally titled "Abraham Brown". (Neither MGM
comedy
titled Barnacle Bill has anything to do with Bernard.)
Bernard first sailed into the San Francisco Bay
aboard the ship Edward Everett on July 6, 1849, just as the California Gold Rush
was heating up. Intent on striking it rich, he set out the next morning across the bay, accompanied by a shipmate named Mr. Phelps. They stopped first at present-day Yerba Buena Island
, where the treasure of a lost Spanish galleon was rumored by local sailors and dockworkers to be buried, but they found it deserted except for a small colony of domestic goats. They did, however, discover the ruins of a large Tuchayune
fishing village
on the island's eastern shore, and reported seeing cremation
pits strewn with human bones where the villagers ritually burned their dead. After camping for a few days on the small island, the two men moved on, exploring what is now Oakland
before heading to the gold mines to seek their fortunes.
Little is known about Bernard's fate. He returned to Yerba Buena Island at a later date, if only to dry out, and lived there for a time before moving on again in search of fortune and fame.
Sailor
A sailor, mariner, or seaman is a person who navigates water-borne vessels or assists in their operation, maintenance, or service. The term can apply to professional mariners, military personnel, and recreational sailors as well as a plethora of other uses...
, miner
Miner
A miner is a person whose work or business is to extract ore or minerals from the earth. Mining is one of the most dangerous trades in the world. In some countries miners lack social guarantees and in case of injury may be left to cope without assistance....
and resident of San Francisco, better known as the notorious "Barnacle Bill" of American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
yore whose fictional exploits are chronicled in the ribald drinking song
Drinking song
A drinking song is a song sung while drinking alcohol. Most drinking songs are folk songs, and may be varied from person to person and region to region, in both the lyrics and in the music...
"Barnacle Bill the Sailor
Barnacle Bill (song)
"Barnacle Bill the Sailor" is an American drinking song adapted from "Bollocky Bill the Sailor", a traditional folk song originally titled "Abraham Brown"....
" — itself adapted from "Bollocky Bill the Sailor", a traditional folk song originally titled "Abraham Brown". (Neither MGM
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of films and television programs. MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation and Louis B. Mayer...
comedy
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
titled Barnacle Bill has anything to do with Bernard.)
Bernard first sailed into the San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay is a shallow, productive estuary through which water draining from approximately forty percent of California, flowing in the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers from the Sierra Nevada mountains, enters the Pacific Ocean...
aboard the ship Edward Everett on July 6, 1849, just as the California Gold Rush
California Gold Rush
The California Gold Rush began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The first to hear confirmed information of the gold rush were the people in Oregon, the Sandwich Islands , and Latin America, who were the first to start flocking to...
was heating up. Intent on striking it rich, he set out the next morning across the bay, accompanied by a shipmate named Mr. Phelps. They stopped first at present-day Yerba Buena Island
Yerba Buena Island
Yerba Buena Island sits in the San Francisco Bay between San Francisco and Oakland, California. The Yerba Buena Tunnel runs through its center and connects the western and eastern spans of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. It has had several other names over the decades: Sea Bird Island, Wood...
, where the treasure of a lost Spanish galleon was rumored by local sailors and dockworkers to be buried, but they found it deserted except for a small colony of domestic goats. They did, however, discover the ruins of a large Tuchayune
Ohlone
The Ohlone people, also known as the Costanoan, are a Native American people of the central California coast. When Spanish explorers and missionaries arrived in the late 18th century, the Ohlone inhabited the area along the coast from San Francisco Bay through Monterey Bay to the lower Salinas Valley...
fishing village
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
on the island's eastern shore, and reported seeing cremation
Cremation
Cremation is the process of reducing bodies to basic chemical compounds such as gasses and bone fragments. This is accomplished through high-temperature burning, vaporization and oxidation....
pits strewn with human bones where the villagers ritually burned their dead. After camping for a few days on the small island, the two men moved on, exploring what is now Oakland
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
before heading to the gold mines to seek their fortunes.
Little is known about Bernard's fate. He returned to Yerba Buena Island at a later date, if only to dry out, and lived there for a time before moving on again in search of fortune and fame.