Henry C. Barrows was born in New York in 1844. He served in the United States Revenue Cutter Service in the 1890s as a First Assistant Engineer (1898). Barrows was an engineer aboard the Revenue Cutter Grant which sailed with the Bering Sea Fleet in the Aleutians and the Pribilofs. The photographs are from his travels to coastal communities in Alaska. Mr. Barrows passed away in Mattapoisett, Massachusetts, December 25, 1910.

Historical Note on the Steamer, Grant The [U.S. Revenue Cutter] Grant, a rare three-masted cutter built by Pusey and Jones Corporation of Wilmington, DE, was a barque-rigged, iron-hulled, 163-foot steamer that displaced 350 tons. She entered service in 1871 and served on both coasts during her career, including sailing with the Bering Sea Fleet. She assisted vessels in distress, protected the seal rookeries, patrolled during the salmon fishing season, transported dignitaries, was ordered to search for the British man-of-war HMS Condor in 1902, participated in regional celebrations, and recovered bodies after the sinking of the Valencia near Cape Beale in 1906. It was sold in 1906. [From the U.S. Coast Guard’s web site, accessed 2005 Feb 24, www.uscg.mil ]