He joined the merchant marine at the age of twelve, first as a cabin boy on a ship bound for China.
[2] Elijah Austin was a ship owner, a captain, and a shop keeper.
[3] After the family learned that the estate was insolvent, Henry, at the age of fourteen, joined the crew of Captain Daniel Greene and embarked on a round-the-world tour on board the Neptune.
[4] Austin was a merchant in New Haven and New York City between 1805 and 1825, but by his own omission, some of those early business ventures were failures.
While not immediately taking up the offer, Henry did sail to other parts of Mexico in 1825, where he attempted various businesses.