Thomas Nickerson and Owen Chase were two of the eight surviving crew members of the Ship Essex.
Thomas Philbrick is Professor Emeritus of English at the University of Pittsburg and has edited critical editions of the works of Joshua Slocum and Henry Dana Jr.
Nathaniel Philbrick is the author of 'In the Heart of the Sea' and director of the Egan Institute of Maritime Studies. He is also a research fellow at the Nantucket Historical Association.