Newton Henderson

John N Mix had joined the Navy as a 3rd Class Boy.  Records show he was absent 10 days without leave from the USS Saratoga in NY on 28 Dec 1880.   He was brought back to Baltimore 27 Jan 1881 to rejoin his ship.   He went AWOL again 26 April 1881.   It seems he changed his name to Henderson after this (his mother's maiden name).

Oddly, John Newton Henderson had gone AWOL after he first joined the Navy and then enlisted again.   I don't know if he really liked the Navy, felt an obligation to fullfill his original contract, or if the Navy finally found him and forced him back.   Regardless, he joined as a Coal Heaver.   The next place he shows up is as a stowaway on the SS Ludgate Hill, from London to NYC.   He's listed as John Mix, brickmaker (which was his occupation in Philadelphia from city directories).  Also on the list of stowaways is Henry W Lauer who also enlisted in the US Navy 17 Jan 1887 in Philadelphia.   John Newton Henderson and Henry W Lauer apparently left the Navy as stowaways.

After John Newton Henderson returned to Philadelphia, he never used the name John N Mix again.   The signatures of his enlistment and birth day match the same information as his marriage record to Susan McDevitt in Philadelphia 15 May 1893.