Richard
Henry Dana was the author of
Two Years Before the Mast
(1841), one of America's most famous
accounts of life at sea. Based on his
personal diary, the book describes the
lives of sailors in the ports, and a
detailed account of life on the
California coast a decade before the Gold
Rush. He also wrote a handbook that
included a section of maritime law, and a
book about a trip he took to Cuba.