Hawkins was a naval officer. He was born in New York in 1802 and served in the US Navy in the 1820s before resigning his commission to serve in the Mexican Navy during Mexico’s efforts to gain independence from Spain. When the war for Texas independence broke out, he secured a commission in the Texas Navy, assuming command of the Schooner-of-war Independence. He rose to the rank of Commodore and commanded the entire Texas Navy, which at the time consisted of his vessel plus the Invincible and Brutus. He took the Independence to New Orleans for repairs and died there in 1837 of smallpox.
