Both vessels were American flagged sloops
---- Eaglecentral is right. The vessel I was looking for was the Fair American. The other possible answer was the Lady Washington.
Each sloop started its journey from, literally, opposite ends of the earth.
----The Fair American was purchased in China by Simon Metcalfe as a consort to his ship Eleanore. His son Thomas was given command of the sloop and they departed from China for the Northwest coast of America. The two vessels were sperated in a storm and they both made for the Northwest Coast and a rendevous at Nootka Sound.
----The Lady Washington was commanded by Robert Gray and departed for the Northwest Coast from Boston. Lady Washington was the consort to John Kendrick's Columbia. These two vessels were also seperated in a storm, off Cape Horn. Incidently, this was the same storm that defeated William Bligh in HMS Bounty, a few hundered miles behind Columbia. The two vessels also made for Nootka Sound.
Both vessels were associated with the unification of the Hawaiian Islands and the establishment of the monarchy (famous!, both are the subjects of books, paintings articles)
---- Arriving at Nootka Sound, the Fair American was seized by the Spanish, having no papers and contraband sea otter pelts aboard. The Spanish also attempted to seize Eleanore when she showed up, but Eleanore was faster. Fair American was taken to San Blas Mexico, then released. Thomas Metcalfe sailed to Hawaii and attempted to trade with the natives, while looking for his father's ship. Unfortunately the elder Metcalfe had preceded him, and committed the slaughter mentioned by eaglecentral. Simon Metcalfe also had struck a chief in front of his subjects, a humiliation demanding redress. It was the agreived chief that seized the Fair American and killed all but one of its crew. The vessel was then appropriated by King Kamehameha and used against his enemies.
---- John Kendrick had traded commands with Robert Gray, Kendrick remaining in the Pacific with Lady Washington, while Gray circumnavigated the world (the first American to do so) and returned to Boston. After several years of trading, including showing the American Flag in Japan for the first time, the Lady Washington ended up in Hawaii at the grand finale of Kamehameha's campaigns.
Both vessels were involved in the sea otter trade
Both vessels were the targets of native surprise attacks, one successfull, one repelled
----As mentioned above, Thomas Metcalfe's Fair American was seized by a Hawaiian chief while pretending to trade.
----Off of the Northwest Coast of America, Kendrick in the Lady Washington had caused a chief to loose face. The natives engaged in friendly trade as a ruse, then suddenly attempted to seize the sloop. Kendrick managed to get below to the arms chest and then the yankees cleared the decks and proceeded to slaughter the retreating natives in the water with musketry and swivel gun fire.
Both vessels were commanded by members from two father/son "teams" (obscure fact)
---- The Metcalfe father/son commands were described above.
---- Kendrick brought two of his sons on the Columbia, one acting as fifth officer, John Kendrick Jr. Upon reaching the Northwest Coast, John Jr. converted to Catholicism and joined the Spanish Navy as a second pilot (master's mate). Over the next six years (1788 to 1794), Kendrick Jr. rose in responsibility to command several Spanish vessels, including the frigate Aranzazu.
One vessel was commanded at different times by the son from each family (really obscure fact)
----The two families crossed paths when Fair American was seized by the Spanish and sent to San Blas for disposition. Command of the sloop and prize crew was entrusted to Juan Kendrick, as John Kendrick Jr. was known in Spanish service. On the way to San Blas, the Fair American was damaged in a storm and had to put into Monterey for repairs: the first time an American vessel commanded by an American entered a port in what was to become the west coast of the United States.
One captain from each family was killed in Hawaii, each aboard his own vessel, during the unification wars.
---- As eaglecentral mentioned, Thomas Metcalfe was killed during the seizure of the Fair American.
---- John Kendrick was present at the final battle, where Kamehameha finally established supremacy... with the use of the Fair American and the British vessels Jackal and Prince LeBoo. The role of the Lady Washington in the battle is uncertain, but during the celebratory salutes after the victory one of the guns on the British vessels was still loaded with shot. The discharge tore through Lady Washington's stern and killed Kendrick.
One of the captains has something in common with Mickey Mouse!
---- John Kendrick Sr. has two monuments to him, the modern replica sailing vessel Lady Washington, which currently operates on the west coast and the static replica of Columbia... at Disneyland.