THE CAPTAINS IN THE BRITISH SLAVE TRADE FROM 1785 to 1807 1
Stephen D. Behrendt
In 1972 Frank Sanderson commented that 'no full-scale study of Liverpool and the slave trade has yet been published'. 2 This statement is still true because we know little about the people in the slave trade, whether from a statistical or a biographical viewpoint. For example, we do not know how many different captains were in the slave trade for any period from the late seventeenth century up to 1807, the year parliament abolished the trade. Nor do we know how many firms captains worked for, how many different vessels they sailed, or how many captains later owned slave ships. We also do not have enough biographical information on slave traders to draw any firm conclusions about their geographical and occupational backgrounds. Did Liverpool-based captains come from the Lancashire area? Did they come from commercial backgrounds? Did sons follow their fathers as captains in the slave trade? How many captains died on the African coast or at sea? These questions have been difficult to answer because of the logistical task of compiling accurate lists of captains in the slave trade, the limited number of accounts written by or about slave traders, and, most importantly, the problem of using parish church records as a source of biographical information for a large group of individuals. However, the availability of computer databases is removing these diffi culties. I have compiled a database of 2,876 slave voyages from 1785 to 1807 using information from Liverpool and Bristol muster rolls, parliamentary slave-trade lists, Lloyd's 80 .S'. D. Belmndt
Registers of Shipping, and the Naval Office Shipping Lists. In addition, the Mormon International Genealogical Index (I.G.I.) of eighty-eight million British names derived from parish records is now available on CD-ROM disks at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah. This new I.G.I, format enables researchers to access British church records simultaneously, rather than county by county as with the former fiche format, and has opened up an import ant new line of source material for historians. In this article I will present statistical and biographical information on the captains in the British slave trade from 1785 to 1807, the last two decades of the legal trade. I will devote sections to captains' family backgrounds and maritime experience, their years in the slave trade, and their careers after they left the slave trade. First, though, I will explain how I created lists of captains and how I used the new computerized I.G.I. to help find biographical details about these men.
SOURCES AND METHODOLOGY
For any study of a large group of individuals one must begin with an accurate list of names. Fortunately, the late eighteenth-century British slave trade was confined to three ports only Liverpool, Bristol, and London and more documents survive than for any other field of maritime history. 3 During the period of government regulation of the slave trade from 1788 to 1806, parliament ordered Customs House lists of slave trade clearances to be printed. Of these, the most important document is the list of 1,433 Bristol, Liverpool, and London slave clearances from 1 January 1795 to 30 April 1806 that gives the dates the vessels cleared customs, the vessels' names, the names of the captains, and the number of slaves each vessel could legally carry.4 A second printed list of captains' names appears in Gore's Liverpool Directory for 1807. This is a list of 185 Liverpool slave voyages from 1806 to the last legal Liverpool voyage on 16 August 1807. 5 Shipowners' names are also included in the Gore's list, and these names help determine how many captains owned partnership shares and how many captains became permanent owners. Four other slave trade lists also Slare Trade Captains 81 give shipowners' names. Two parliamentary slave trade lists give shipowners' names for voyages from 1789 to 1796,6 and two private Liverpool slave trade lists for 1798 and 1799 give captains' and shipowners' names for 278 Liverpool voyages. 7 A final unpublished list of seventy-two Liverpool slave-ship captains' and owners' names for 1787 is found in the Liverpool Papers held at the British Library Manuscripts Room. 8 Eighteenth-century Bristol and Liverpool 'ship's agreement and crew lists', or muster rolls, survive as well. Captains' names appear on the heading of each muster. Their names are listed first, followed, in order of rank, by those of the crew. Musters were completed and signed after the voyage ended, and deaths and discharges were always noted. Thus, we can determine how many captains died in the slave trade. If the captain survived the voyage and returned to England, he usually signed the muster. From these musters I verified the parliamentary and contem porary lists of slave clearances and filled in the gaps in the historical record from 1785 to 1807. The Society of Mer chant Venturers of Bristol owns the Bristol muster rolls from 1748 to 1795. For this study, I examined the 137 Bristol slave voyages from 1785 to the last surviving Bristol slave-ship muster of 1795 (a 1794 voyage). Liverpool mus ters survive from 1775 and are held at the Public Record Office, Kew. In this group of Liverpool musters, voyage and crew details are given for 1,925 slave voyages that cleared Liverpool between 1785 and 16 August 1807. I calculate that there were 2,227 Liverpool slave clearances during these years. Thus, musters exist for about 86 per cent of all Liverpool slave voyages. The London slave trade is more difficult to piece together, as captains' information is only listed in the series of clearances from 1795 to 30 April 1806. For the years from 1785 to 1794 and May 1806 to 1807, I relied on Lloyd's Registers oj Shipping to find the names of London slave-ship captains. In a few cases, I was able to verify the captains' names by examining the Naval OfBce Shipping Lists for the British West Indies as well as the London ship registers from 1786.'' However, since Bristol and Liverpool musters survive, this article focuses primarily on slave-ship captains based in these two ports. 82 S. D. Behrendt
I then created a database on the British slave trade from 1785 to 1807 to allow analysis of different aspects of the trade. By sorting the slave voyages by captains' names, I found that 946 different captains made 2,876 slave voyages during these years aboard 1,080 different vessels. Almost 80 per cent of these voyages cleared from Liverpool, and 779 captains traded at one time out of Liverpool. 10 Next, I began a search for biographical information about these men. Bristol musters allowed me to do this for captains in the trade from 1789 to 1794, as musters from these dates were printed on a specific slave trade form. Of the seventeen columns, three give specific biographical information: 'where born', 'age', and 'years at sea'. The other columns list voyage details and wage and duty information. The eighth column, 'cause of discharge, death or drowned', is valuable because specific diseases are men tioned." By comparison, Liverpool musters are not printed this way, and no biographical information is given on slave-ship captains from the largest slaving port. In general, contemporary and secondary sources do not give biogra phical details on captains in the slave trade from 1785 to 1807 either. Two exceptions are the Memoirs of Captain Hugh Crow (1830) and Gomer Williams' History of the Liverpool Privateers (1897).' 2 Sometimes this information is of little value, as when Crow mentions that 'Captain Tool' [Francis Toole] 'was a catholic' (and thus perhaps Irish). Other times it is of greater value, as when Williams states that 'Captain William Lace was the son of Mr. Ambrose Lace, merchant and shipowner, of St Paul's Square, and brother of Mr. Joshua Lace, the founder and first president of the Liverpool Law Society'. Williams also shows that Ambrose Lace was a slave-ship captain in 1762 and then a merchant in 1770. u A better way to approach eighteenth-century British genealogy is to study the Inland Revenue (IR) documents held at the Public Record Office at Kew and Chancery Lane. These apprenticeship records exist from 1710 to 1810, and they are indexed from 1710 to 1774. 14 Unfor tunately, however, they give little information on boys apprenticed to ship captains, as this was usually an informal procedure. For example, when I compared my list of Slare Trade Captains 83 captains in Appendixes A and B with the IR indexes, I found only one possible apprenticeship of a future slave- ship captain: in 1756, James Bachope was apprenticed to a Glasgow cordwainer. 1 ' This could be the same man, as Bachope was born in Scotland and would have been about fifteen years old at the time (see Appendix B). Information from British parish records compiled in the computerized Mormon International Genealogical Index (I.G.I.) proved the best source of biographical information about mariners. As this is the first study to use the new I.G.I, format, I will give some description of it. The Family History Library I.G.I, computer programs include parish christening and marriage records from Canada, Europe, Great Britain, and the United States. The database for the British Isles includes predominantly An glican records, and it consists of eighty-eight million names. The data is stored on fourteen CD-ROM disks that are arranged alphabetically."' This is an index to locate names, so information such as age, occupation, or residence which might appear in the original church record is not included, though the source information and citation are given. 17 After identifying a name, I examined a copy of the original church record to see if any additional information was written by the parish clerk or clergyman. Most of the original records are held on microfilm at the Library, though some church records have been transcribed by genealogical societies and are in book form. When one bases results on parish records derived from the I.G.I, computer search, commonality of name presents a major problem. I excluded more than 700 of the 946 captains because I could not sufficiently identify them. Thus I was restricted to studying a sample of 'unique' names. Even with unique names, I found less than one hundred on the database search. I also searched American and Canadian records for these missing uncommon names. One reason many captains' names are not listed in the I.G.I. is that church records exist for only about half the indi viduals living. In the British case, some records were not kept or were lost, and parliamentary Acts that taxed register entries led parents to avoid christening their children. 18 Also, a few captains were probably non-Anglican, and the 84 .$'. D. Behrendt slave-ship captains who were born and married in the West Indies would not appear in British parish records. The questionable accuracy of the parish entries and the minimal amount of occupational information they give are also limitations of eighteenth-century British parish records. Because burial records are not included in the I.G.I., I cannot be certain that the christening dates are correct many infants and young children died, and often parents gave their next born child the same name. For example, parish records list Hugh Crow's christening as 17 May 1761, though Crow gives 1765 in his Memoirs. Further more, children were not always christened within a month of their birth. Isaac Nonmus, a Liverpool slave-ship captain in 1802 and 1806, was born on 24 December 1769, but he was not christened until 8 October 1775."' I identified ninety captains' names in the computer search, and when I examined the original church record I found the father's occupation for only thirty-two individuals. This is because very few eighteenth-century christening records give the father's occupation, and there is inconsistency from parish to parish. Fortunately for maritime historians, occupations are often listed in records from several coastal communities in Lancashire; Whitby and Whitehaven parish records are also quite detailed. Choices among captains sharing common names could be made by looking at marriage and christening records and at fathers' occupations. A comparison of the dates captains were on voyages with the dates they were married or had children eliminated many candidates. 20 When the number of choices could be reduced to two or three possibilities, I used either age or the father's occupation as criteria.
THE FAMILY BACKGROUNDS AND MARITIME EXPERIENCE OF SLAVE-SHIP CAPTAINS
Of all the captains in the slave trade from 1785 to 1807 we have the most biographical information on the Liverpool slave-ship captain Hugh Crow who wrote his memoirs in 1828. Crow was born in 1765 in Ramsey on the Isle of Man. His father was a 'respectable tradesman' who apprenticed Slave Trade (,'tiptains 85 his son for two years to a boat builder and then in 1782 to Joseph Harriman, a Whitehaven merchant.21 Crow served his apprenticeship until 1786 and then worked as a carpen ter and mate on two West India voyages, as a 'mate' on three slave voyages, and as 'chief mate' for three more slave voyages. He finally attained his first command at the age of thirty-three aboard the slave-ship Will (286) in July 1798. 22 In this section I will first show that Crow's family back ground was typical for many future Liverpool captains in the British slave trade from 1785 to 1807. I then look at the geographical backgrounds of captains, their maritime careers before they became captains, and their age at first command. I conclude this section with a discussion on the reasons why mariners decided to enter the slave trade, and analyse factors affecting rates of promotion for officers in the slave trade at the end of the eighteenth century. To assess the family backgrounds of slave-ship captains, I examined the christening records of ninety future captains. Fathers' occupations were given in thirty-two of these parish entries. Results appear in Table A of the appendix, and are summarized in Table D. Like Hugh Crow, most Liverpool captains came from a commercial background, as four out of every five captains had fathers who had some commercial employment. Of the four fathers who were merchants, Edward Forbes, William Greaves, Ambrose Lace, and Gilbert Rigby, Forbes and Lace were in the slave trade. Forbes is listed in a group of Liverpool Africa merchants in 1752, and he was the owner of the slave-ships Bqvne, Dolphin, and Grace in that year.23 Ambrose Lace, a prominent slave-ship captain in the 1750s and 1760s. was probably a slave-ship captain in 1766 when his son William was born, and soon afterwards he became a resident Liverpool merchant. Lace is referred to as both a captain and slave merchant in a 1770 document printed in Wil liams' Liverpool Privateers. 24 Other captains not listed in Table A also might have had fathers who were merchants. John Sparling junior, a Liverpool slave-ship captain from 1790 to 1792 (who died on his last voyage), was presumably the son of John Sparling, a Liverpool shipowner and merchant. Schofield states that of the many vessels Sparling owned, one was the Juba (200), a 86 S. D. Behrendt slave-ship in 1774. 2:> Lloyd's Registers also show that Sparling owned the ship Bolden that sailed for Africa in 1774, the ship Statley that cleared from London for Africa in 1780, the ship Brilliant (450) that made three Africa voyages from 1781 to 1783, and the ship Mermaid (257) that cleared for Africa on six voyages from 1778 to 1785 and then again in 1793. 26 Liverpool muster rolls show that the Mermaid's 1785 and 1793 Africa voyages were indeed slaving voyages. 2 ' Though Schofield mentions only one son of Sparling (William), John was likely his son as well. In the Liverpool musters, John Sparling junior was listed sixth on the Mermaid's slaving voyage in 1785, and then he was second mate on the Mermaid's voyages to Antigua and Virginia in 1787 and 1788. 28 Several other captains in the slave trade from 1785 to 1807 may have had relatives who were slave merchants. Gerrard Backhouse was the son of William Backhouse (see Table B), who was perhaps related to the prominent Liverpool slave merchants Daniel and John Backhouse. Thomas Brade, a captain from 1798 to 1803, could have been the son of Robert Brade, a partner in the Liverpool and Dominica slave firm of Harper & Brade. John Clare, a Liverpool captain from 1786 to 1799, commanded the slave-dogger Molly (92) in 1786 owned by William Clare & Co. George and Thomas Dodson, perhaps brothers, may have been sons of the Lancaster slave merchant Robert Dodson. 29 John Hurd, a captain who made four Liverpool slave voyages from 1799 to 1804, may have been the son of the slave merchant Thomas 'Hurds'. Robert Jones was captain of the Bristol slave-ship Wasp (141), owned by Thomas Jones. 30 Richard W'ilding, a captain from 1787 to 1790, and again in 1804, was probably the son of Richard Wilding, a slave merchant from 1780 to 1786. Robert Woodward, a captain who died aboard the Christopher (242) in 1804, may have been the son of Richard W^oodward, a Liverpool slave merchant listed in 1799 and 1807. 31 There are certainly more captains who came from merchant families outside Liverpool. However, as Table A indicates, it is fair to say that only a few slave-ship captains came from wealthy merchant families. It is more likelv that men followed their fathers as Slave Trade Captains 87 captains in the slave trade. As Table A shows, nine captains had fathers who were 'mariners' or 'sailors'. From a list of Liverpool guineamen in 1752, we know that two of these men were slave-ship captains: Robert Hewin, the father of John 'Hewan', was captain of the Nancy, and Nehemiah Holland, the father of Francis, commanded the slave-ship Ann Galley?"'1 From the earliest volumes of Lloyd's Registers 1764, 1768, and 1776-83 we also know that fathers Luke Mann and John Kendall were Africa captains. Luke Mann senior commanded the Cudyo that sailed for Africa in 1764, and the Derby that sailed for Africa in 1775. John, the father of John and Richard Kendall, was an Africa captain in 1764, 1768, and 1775. Both the 1752 Liverpool guineamen list and Lloyd's Registers show that several other sons could have followed their fathers as slave-ship captains (Table 1). In the Liverpool musters that I examined from 1785 to 1809, I found only one case in which a future captain served with his father in the slave trade: in 1782-3 William Woodville junior (Table 1, Table E) was listed fourth out of a crew of thirty aboard the Liverpool slave-ship Sam, commanded by his father. 33 As I discuss later, most slave- ship captains made fewer than four voyages as master. Thus, we do not find sons employed on their fathers' vessels, or fathers and sons who commanded slave vessels in the same year. Most of the other captains in Table A had fathers indirectly connected to Liverpool shipping. Four fathers were ropemakers, and the others were a shipwright, mast- man, vintner, ironmonger, blockmaker, turner, brazier, porter, and maltster. These men probably apprenticed their sons to local tradesmen or merchants, as in the case of Hugh Crow, and then, as I mention later, their sons likely found employment on Liverpool West Indiamen. Table D in the appendix shows that Crow was one of twenty-eight Liverpool captains out of a sample of 128 who came from the Isle of Man. Twenty-five captains came from Scotland and, not surprisingly, most in the sample came from Lancashire. Two Liverpool captains were born in Colonial America. Elijah Belcher was born in Braintree, Massachusetts, on 24 February 1762, and he commanded three Liverpool slave voyages from 1801 to 1804 to the TABLK 1 Slave-ship captains with fathers who were also captains
Possible Vessel Name Slave Trade Father* Father Commandedt Voyage Date
Thomas Cubbin 1798-1806 _ Thomas Cubbin Strange Li- Africa 1752 Archibald Forrest 1791-1793 - James Forrest many voyages Li-Africa 1781-1791 or T. Forrest Louisa Li-Africa 1777-1779 John Hewan 1781-1790 Robert Robert Ht'win Nancy Li-Africa 1752 Francis Holland 1775-1788 Nehemiah Nehemiah Evans Ann Galley Li-Africa 1752 to Richard Kendall 1789-1798 John Jn Kenclall Cerebus Li-Afr + BAR 1764 John Kendall 1794-1802 John and Polly Li-Afr+Co 1768, 1775 to William Kewley 1798-1800 - Thomas Kewley Brooke Li-Africa 1752 1 Caesar Lawson 1798-1806 William Wm Lawson Phoebe Li-Africa 1752 3 William Llewelyn 1802 - Llewellin Gascoyne Lo- Africa 1779 g_ Llewelhn Alert Br-Africa 1780 Luke Mann 1794-1802 Luke Luke Mann Cudyo Li-Afr + Co 1764 and Derby Li-Afr + Co 1775 John Parkinson 1788-1799 - Wm Parkinson Prisdlla Li-Africa 1752 Thomas Pratt 1801-1805 - Rd Pratt Ambriss Br-Africa 1777 and Little Polly Lo-Africa 1780 Chambers Reed 1801 Jonathan J Reed Bee Li-Africa 1783 James Rimmer 1803,1804 - J Rimmer Derby Li-Afr+Co 1777 John Roach 1792-1807 - Maurice Roach Greyhound Li Africa 1752 John R. Wade 1787-1791 - Benjamin Wade True Blue Li-Africa 1752 Wm Woodville jr 1790-1793 Wm Woodville sr 4 voyages Li-Africa 1775-1783 Slave Trade Captains 89
Bahamas and Charleston, South Carolina. Samuel Van Ranst was christened at the Reformed Dutch Church in New York City on 30 May 1771. He was an officer on the Liverpool slave-ship John (287) in 1800 and 1801, and was captain of the Thomas (272) in 1804. 34 Surprisingly, only one captain in the Liverpool slave trade came from London. The large majority came from the Isle of Man, the Lancashire coast, and Scotland. On average, Liverpool mariners attained their first command in the slave trade at the age of thirty (Tables A, B, and D). 35 The youngest Liverpool captain was the Scot Thomas Mullion who attained command on 6 June 1797 at the age of twenty on board the ship Amacree (229) owned by William Harper and Robert Brade. His second voyage in command was on board the Kingsmill (510), one of the largest slave ships in the trade, owned by the linen mer chants Hamlet Mullion, William Lenox, and Co. ih Before becoming a merchant, Hamlet Mullion was a slave-ship captain from 1792 to 1797, and he may be the older brother of Thomas. Enoch Allman, at fifty-two, was the oldest captain in my Liverpool sample. Most non-Lancashire captains such as Allman (and Crow) were older. Lancashire mariners on average became captains at just under twenty- nine years of age, which was two and a half years younger than the average for mariners from outside Lancashire. Table E summarizes biographical information listed in the Bristol musters for forty-nine captains in the Bristol slave trade. These men became captains at the average age of thirty-one.37 The youngest captain was Thomas Madge Smerdon, at twenty-one. At fifty-three, John Langley was
TABLE 1 Sources: Williams, Liverpool Privateers, pp. 675-7; Lloyd's Register of Shipping, 1764, 1768, 1776-1808: Liverpool Muster Rolls, 1785-1809: P.R.O., BT 98/45-69; P.P. 1806, XIII (265). Key: * Father's name found in church records (see Tables A and B in the appendix): Li - Liverpool, Br - Bristol; Lo - London; Afr+Co - .Africa; BAR - Barbados; t - Tonnages are not given since they are before the revised tonnage measurement of 1786. TABLE 2 Maritime experience of twenty-Jive Liverpool slave-ship captains
Name Other Trades B\\'I trade Slave Trade (voyages)* Master
James Bailiff 1786-1788 1786-1788 1791-1794 (4) 1795-1799 Thomas Brade 1788-1793 1794-1797 (3)~sc 1798-1803 Patrick Callan 1787, 1789-90 1787-1788 1791-1796 (5) 1797-1806 George Cormack 1787-1790 1791-1797 (6) 1798-1806 Hugh Crow 1786-1789 1790-1797 (6) 1798-1807 William Crow 1787-1792 1792-1797 (5) 1798-1799-dr Gilbert Curry 1783 1786-1790 1791, 1793 1794-1801 Nehemiah Evans 1785-1791 1791-1797 (4) 1798-1799-cl Phillip Henshall 1790-1792 1792-1796 (3) 1796-1802 to Archibald Kennan 1790-1801 1802-1804 (3) 1805-1807 to Hugh Kessick 1786-1792 1793-1796 (3) 1797-1798-dr Philip Kewish 1787-1791 1 785 1792-1796 (3) 1795, 1796-d John Livingston 1790 1785-1790 1791-1795 (3) 179(5-1802 Peter Mawdesley 1785-1791 1792-1794 (3) 1796-1802 Peter McQuie 1786-1790 1790-1791 1792, 1793 1795-1796-k Michael Mills 1786-1792 1793 1794-1806 Murdock Murchy# 1788-1791 178(5-1788 1792-1794 (3), 1797-d 1 795 Thomas Nuttall 1786-1792 1795, 1796 1798-1806 Matthew Sibson 1790 1791-1793 1793-1798 (4) 1 799-d John Tobin 1786 1788-1790 1792, 1793 1793-1802 James Towers 1785-1792 1793-1797 (4) 1798-1801-cl Michael Whaley 1788-1798 1798, 1799 1800-d John Whittle 1786-1788 1791, 1792 1793-1801 Matthew Worthington 1789 1785-1789 1791 (incomplete) 1796 Reuben Wright 1789-1791 1786-1788 1791 1792-1801 Slave Trade Captains 91 the oldest mariner to attain his first command. Other than the captains who were surgeons, such as James Lloyd and Samuel Price, Bristol captains went to sea early in life, at about the age of fourteen or fifteen. Not surprisingly, most came from south-west England. Unlike the Liverpool captains in my sample, few Bristol-based captains came from Scotland, and none of them came from the Isle of Man. Six Bristol captains came from Ireland, and two were born in the West Indies. Samuel Phillips was born in St Kitts, and commanded two voyages in the Bristol slave trade from 1790 to 1793. Elisha Arindell was born in Anguilla, was a mate on three Bristol voyages, and then commanded three slave voyages from 1794 to 1799. 38 Hugh Crow's maritime training in the direct Liverpool trade to the West Indies was typical of future Liverpool captains. Table 2 shows the careers of twenty-five Liverpool captains. These were men with more unusual names who presumably lived in Liverpool, thus enabling me to trace their earlier voyage histories. Twenty-one of these men listed were mates in the West India trade who then entered the slave trade as mates. Two mariners, Archibald Kennan and Michael Whaley, were Liverpool West India captains who entered the slave trade as first mates. Philip Kewish and Patrick Callan entered the slave trade from the Virginia and Philadelphia trade, and the Baltic trade respectively, though these men had earlier Caribbean experience as well. Although Table 2 is restricted to the captains with virtually complete maritime records, Liverpool musters show that many future slave-ship captains from various geographical backgrounds at one time served in the Liverpool West India trade. 39
TABLE 2
Source: Liverpool Muster Rolls 1785-1809: P.R.O., BT 98/45-69. Key. BWI direct trade from Liverpool to the British West Indies; * a few voyages were assumed to fill gaps in the muster roll record; sc - one voyage as supercargo; d - died, dr - drowned, k - killed by slaves; # - Murchy commanded the Abby that sailed under American colours, though owned by John Dawson, a Liverpool merchant. TABLE 3 Voyages of Reuben Wright, captain in the Liverpool slave trade, 1792-1801
Dates Vessel (Ions) Trade Station or Listing/Total Crew
23 Dec. 1 786 - 14 May 1787 Lydia Li-Barbados 6/16 20 May 1787 - 3 Oct. 1 787 Lydia Li Barbados 7/16 26 Nov. 1787 - 14 Aug. 1788 Lydia Li-Barbados 3/16 1 Nov. 1788-26 Sept. 1789 William (235) Li Jamaica 3/19 11 Nov. 1789 - 19 May 1790 William (235) Li-New YorkH- Belfast* 2/17 [Mate] 25 July 1790--23 Dec. 1790 William (235) Li-New York* 2/18 [Mate] 11 Mar. 1791 - 15 Aug. 1791 William (235) Li-New York* 2/17 [Mate] b 8 Sept. 1791 - 16 July 1792 Vulture (360) Li Africa +Jamaica 1st Mate/39 Co 6 Aug. 1792-8 Aug. 1793 Jane (242) Li Africa + Jamaica Master 29 July 1 794 - 16 Sept. 1794 Jane (242) Li Africa Captured by French Master 30 Sept. 1 795 - 6 July 1 796 Ann (223) Li-Africa-)- St Thomas Master 26 Oct. 1796 - 12 Apr. 1797 Eagle (227) Li Africa -t-St Croix+Captured Master 6 Apr. 1799 -24 Jan. 1800 Julia (306) Li- Africa + Martinique Master 24 June 1800 - 18 Apr. 1801 Jack Park (258) Li-Africa + Surinam Master 1 July 1801 - 24 Jan. 1802 Nannv (311) Li African-Jamaica Master (discharged at Jamaica)
Sources: Liverpool Muster Rolls 1787-1802: P.R.O., BT 98/47, Nos. 141 and 366; 98/48, No. 306; 98/49, No. 363; 98/50, No. 160; 98/51, Nos. 56 and 282; 98/52, No. 316; 98/54, No. 171; 98/56, No. 79; 98/56, No. 265; 98/59, No. 292; 98/60, No. 55; 98/61, No. 130; 98/62, No. 215; Lloyd's Register of Shipping, 1789-1803. Key: * Perhaps via Jamaica. Slave Trade Captains 93
To highlight one captain's maritime career, I examine in detail Reuben VVright's fifteen voyages that appear in the Liverpool muster rolls from 1785 to 1809 (Table 3). Wright, the son of Henry Wright, a Whitby boatbuilder (see Appendix A), first sailed on board the Lydia from Liverpool to Barbados on 23 December 1786. Wright would thus have been about twenty-eight years of age. He is listed sixth out of a crew of sixteen (including the captain) and probably would have been a 'seaman' or carpenter. Wright next gained employment on the William (235), owned by the prominent Liverpool West India merchant James Kenyon. Alter four voyages on the William, William Boats & Co. hired Wright as chief mate aboard the slave-ship Vulture (360). The following year, Boats & Co. hired Wright to command their slave-ship Jane (242). +0 In less than six years, then, Wright was able to advance from a position of middle rank aboard a Barbados vessel, to captain of a large Liverpool slave ship. Instead of remaining on the William and perhaps attaining command, Wright decided to enter the slave trade. He did this because of the potential fortune that could be made as a slave-ship captain. These profits were not made from wages slave-ship captains' wages were comparable to other chief officers41 but from 'privilege slaves' and coast commissions.4' Robert Bostock, captain of the Bloom that carried 307 slaves to the Caribbean in 1784. received £224 155. 5?d. for seven privilege slaves, £192 14^. Id. for a 2 per cent commission, and a coast commission of £360 14^. 3d. (£4 per £104 of gross proceeds). Bostock also owned two sixteenth shares of the Bloom, and he later became a merchant.43 Charles Hand cites 'An actual Commission Account rendered by Captain [Thomas] Nuttall to his owners' [1805] that gives similar percentages:44
To my Commission on 280 Negroes per Kitty's Amelia 2nd Voyage, at £50 per head at 2 per cent 280 0 0 Ditto, 4 per cent after deducting 2 per cent 548 16 0
828 16 0 94 S. D. Behrendt
[Then to Captain Charles Christian] Ditto, on 171 Negroes per Prudence, at £50 per head, Commissions at 4 per cent on £8379, after deducting 2 per cent on Master's Commissions 335 3 2 Granting coast commissions was standard policy of slave merchants throughout the eighteenth century. This was described in a letter written in 1805 by the Liverpool firm of John Leigh & Co.: 'the cargo is at all times intrusted unto the Captain's Care to barter for Slaves under instructions for which the Captain's Commissions of 2 P Ct on Purchase and 4 P Ct on Slaves is our intention'. 45 Clearly, such lucrative commissions explain why mariners moved to the slave trade and how many captains acquired the capital to become shipowners, a point I will expand later. After the Dolben Act of 1789, some captains profited even more. The Act granted bounties of £50 to the captain and £25 to the surgeon if slave mortality rates were 3 per cent or lower, and £100 was granted to the captain and £50 to the surgeon for voyages with mortality rates of 2 per cent or lower.4t> In the final half of this section I look at the factors that affected the rate of promotion from mate to captain in the slave trade. The expansion of the Liverpool slave trade after 1789 was the most important factor, so I present the figures for this first. Table 4 shows that this expansion began in 1790. A sharp rise in 1792 after the Haitian revolution drove up produce prices was followed by a sharp contraction with the outbreak of the French War, and then trade expansion resumed after 1797.47 Trade growth, along with a high mortality among captains and mates, ensured that officers could gain positions annually aboard slave vessels. 48 In only a few cases did a slave-ship captain accept the lower position of first mate. Usually, this occurred when captains of small slave vessels accepted positions aboard much larger slave ships. Two other historical developments influenced the social structure of the slave trade at this time: the Dolben Act and the French war. The first was the 'Act to Regulate the Carrying of Slaves' of 1788 (known as the Dolben Act). As Section XI of the Act (28 Geo. Ill c. 54) stated, to command a vessel after 1 August 1788, one had to have been pre viously a master in the slave trade, 'or shall have served as Slave Trade Captains 95
TABLE 4 Expansion of the British slave trade, 1785-1804
Clearances from Year Liverpool* Bristol London Total
1785 73 13 9 95 1786 87 8 11 106 1787 72 18 12 102 1788 71 8 13 92 1789 61 18 15 94 1790 93 25 16 134 1791 97 31 25 153 1792 131 42 22 195 1793 48 12 12 72 1794 110 17 14 141 1795 59 6 14 79 1796 94 1 8 103 1797 90 2 12 104 1798 149 3 8 160 1799 131 5 17 153 1800 120 3 10 133 1801 122 2 23 147 1802 124 3 30 157 1803 83 1 15 99 1804 126 3 18 147
Sources: P.P. 1789, XXIV (631); James Wallace, A General and Descriptive History of Liverpool (Liverpool, 1795), pp. 242-5; Lloyd's Register of Shipping, 1786-90; D. P. Lamb, 'Volume and tonnage of the Liverpool slave trade, 1772-1807,' in Liverpool, the African Slave Trade, and Abolition, ed. Roger Anstey and P. E. H. Hair (Historic Society of Lancashire and Cheshire, 1976), p. 93; P.P. 1806, XIII (265). Key: * - includes the few Lancaster slave clearances.
chief mate or surgeon during the whole of two voyages, or either as chief or other mate, during three voyages, in purchasing and carrying slaves from the coast of Africa.'49 This clause would ensure that only men experienced in the slave trade would attain command, and parliament believed that this would reduce slave and crew mortality. After August 1788, then, officers needed at least two slave voy ages before they could become masters. This Dolben Act 96 S. D. Behrtndt legislation thus prompts the question whether mariners had ever attained command of slave vessels without serving previously in the slave trade. To examine this question, I looked at the new Liverpool captains in 1786 and 1787 and traced their previous voyage histories through the Liverpool musters. In 1786 there were nineteen new captains in the Liverpool slave trade, seven of whom had not made a previous slave voyage. In 1787 there were twenty-five new Liverpool captains, and nine men were new to the slave trade. Though I have certainly omitted a few voyages because of missing muster roll information, it is clear that some mariners entered the slave trade directly as captain. Interestingly, all these new captains commanded small slave vessels ranging from 19 to 129 tons, and most of these were likely feeder vessels that transhipped slaves along the coast and did not make the Middle Passage. Thus, as we would expect, merchants did not grant command of large slave vessels to mariners who had no previous experi ence in the trade. I also found that from 1783 to 1788 five lieutenants entered the slave trade directly from the Navy.50 On 22 August 1783 John McTaggart of H.M.S. Medway comman ded the slave-ship Africa (240) that sailed from Bristol to Africa and St Vincent. 51 On 21 October 1785 George Garner was granted a twelve-month leave to go to 'Africa and Jamaica in the Merchants Service.' He commanded and owned the slave-sloop Good Intent (75) that cleared from Lancaster to Africa on 24 December 1785. 52 Andrew Mott left the Navy and served as mate on the slave-schooner Assistance (37) in 1786 and then commanded Liverpool slave voyages in 1787, 1788, and 1791. In 1788 Henry Laroche served as an officer aboard the Bristol slave-ship Jupiter (284) and then in 1791 commanded the brig Daniel (126). 53 James Forbes was granted leave on 26 July 1787 to go 'in the Merchants Service as Master of the Betsey bound for the Coast of Guinea, Grenada, then back to Guinea, Jamaica and then home.' As I have not examined musters from the 1770s, I do not know if Lieutenants McTaggart, Garner, or Forbes were employed previously in the slave trade. If they were not, then these officers also directly attained slave-ship command. Therefore, because the Dolben Act stipulated a Slave Trade Captains 97 minimum number of voyages before one could become captain of a guineaman, smaller slave vessels were no longer commanded by inexperienced mariners. The number of naval officers who entered the slave trade also may have been reduced. Thus, a few more positions of command were available for the mates who had been in the trade for several voyages. The outbreak of the French War in 1793 and the ensuing decade of maritime warfare is a second factor that affected the rates of promotion for mariners in the slave trade. The British Navy impressed slave-ship crew and officers (par ticularly in the Caribbean), and most officers who were impressed did not return to the slave trade. From the Liverpool musters I find that from 1793 to the Peace at Amiens in 1802 over 250 officers either entered or were impressed into the Navy. Only six of these men returned to the Liverpool slave trade and became captains. Elijah Belcher, mentioned earlier, entered His Majesty's Service from the slave-ship Ned (209) on 15 April 1795. He next appears in the Liverpool musters as second mate on board the guineaman Elliot (371) in 1798 and then as commander of the slave-ship Forbes (234) in 1799.54 Thomas Bridge entered a man of war on 27 April 1797 and became a slave-ship captain in 1803. Francis Darnoult, second mate on the slave-ship Mary (171), was impressed on 23 Septem ber 1798. He reappears as first mate on board the Lord Nelson in 1800 and then as captain of the Lord Nelson in 1801. n5 John Leathwaite, captain of the Alice (198) in 1801, was impressed from the Sarah (386) on 17 March 1799. 5(> John Maginnis was impressed from the slave-ship Lord Stanley (250) on 26 June 1794 and returned to the Lord Stanley as chief mate in 1796. He was master of the Telegraph (80) "in 1798. 57 Finally, John Singleton was impressed from the Ned (209) in 1794 but returned to the slave trade later that year, and made several more slave voyages before attaining command in 1801. As the British slave trade grew, this loss of slave-ship officers to the navy reduced the pool of potential captains. To fill these officer positions merchants promoted seamen who survived the slave voyage, mariners from other trades (particularly the West India trade, Table 2), surgeons, and 98 S. D. Beh rendt
TABLE 5 Surgeons who became captains in the slave trade, 1785-1807
Name Surgeon (voyages) Captain (voyages)
John Adams ( + Lo) 1791, 1795 1796-1799 (3) David Armstrongt 1787-1795 (5) 1796-d Andrew Arnold (Br+Li) 1792-1797 (3) 1798, 1800-d William M. Baildon 1788-1802 (5)-d 1799* James Blake 1795, 1797 1798-1804 (5) Joseph Braithwaite 1799-1803 (3) 1804-d Robert Blackburn 1799-1803 (4) 1805, 1806-d Patrick Burleigh 1800-1806 (4) 1807 Joseph Carshore 1791-1798 (5) 1798-1802 (4) Edward Crosby 1790-1792 (3) 1800-1806 (4) David Drynan (Br, Lo + Li) 1788-1796 (6) 1799-1802 (3) Adam Elliott 1791-1798 (5) 1800-1806 (5) Alexander Finleyt 1783-1789 (4) 1790-1794 (3)-d John Gardiner 1788-1791 (3) 1792-1800 (4)-d Paul Gaultier 1794 1790 Alexander Hackney 1790-1795 (4) 1796-1807 (7) Robert Hurne 1789-1795 (5) 1798-1807 (6) Andrew Irving 1783-1786 (3) 1790-d Charles King 1785-1799 (9) 1800, 1803 John Little 1792-1796 (4) 1798-1804 (4) James Lloyd (Br) 1791 1792-d James Max 1803 1805, 1806 Nathaniel McGhie ( + Lo) 1788-1798 (3) 1794-1806 (5) Henry William Meech 1792-1796 (4) 1799-d James Micklejohn 1790-1797 (5) 1799-d William Murdock 1790-1796 (6) 1798-1806 (8) William Orr 1791-1804 (5)-d 1801, 1802 Samuel Price (Br) 1791 1792 Clement Henry Priestley 1799-1805 (5) 1806 John Reddie ( + Lo) 1790-1797 (3) 1796-1806 (7) Gilbert Sinclair 1799-1805 (4) 1804 James Swanson 1798-1802 (3) 1803-d# James Taylor 1794 1798-d Archibald Thomson 1785-1791 (4) 1792-1797 (3) Thomas Waugh (Br) 1784-1793 (5) 1788, 1789 Charles Watt 1792-1798 (4) 1799-1805 (6)-d Slave Trade Captains 99 also mariners who were hired to sail prizes from London to Liverpool. On this last note, in 1803 John Leigh & Co. decided to purchase the prize Sir Sidney Smith, docked in the Thames. As John Leigh writes, Captain Ainsworth, who was to command the vessel in the Liverpool slave trade, 'wishes ... to engage the person who took care of her [a Captain Smart] as Mate, and if he conceived himself capable to bring her round he is to do so and get her loaded as soon as possible and send her round and Captain Ainsworth would engage to take him Second Mate to the Coast which is as much as he can do not having been there before'. 38 As prizes comprised 39 per cent of all British slave vessels in 1799 1800, this example of Captain Smart and the Sir Sidney Smith was probably not uncommon. 09 The practice of promoting surgeons to command became more common after 1793, as these men were often the most experienced officers available to merchants.60 Each slave vessel was required by the Dolben Act to have a qualified surgeon, and few surgeons were impressed or entered into the navy as non-medical officers.61 Table 5 lists the sur geons who became captains in the closing years of the British slave trade. As the table shows, most of these surgeons had four to five years of experience in the slave trade before attaining command. Because of this, they were given command of large slave vessels. Larger slave ships had of course more slaves and crew, and thus it was important for the merchant to have two experienced medi-
TABLE 5 Sources: Liverpool Muster Rolls 1785-1809: P.R.O., BT 98/45-69; S.M.V. Bristol Muster Rolls, 1783-95; 'Register of Certificates granted to . . . Surgeons of the African Trade', Liv.R.O., 614 INF 9/1; P.P. 1806, XIII (265); House of Lords Record Office, Surgeons' Logs and Journals, H.L. Main Papers, '1794 undated', '1797 incom plete', and 19 June 1799; Gore's Liverpool Directory (1807), pp. 97-100. Key: All Liverpool-based except when noted; Br Bristol; Li Liverpool; Lo - London; d - died on voyage; t - assumed to be a surgeon before attaining command; * - Note that Baildon, Gaultier, McGhie, Orr, Reddie, Sinclair, and Waugh sailed as surgeons after they had commanded slave voyages; # - Swanson died after returning home (W. N. Kennedy, 'Tom Jenkins', Transactions of the Hawick Archaeological Society (May 1870), p. 53). 100 S. D. Behrendt cal personnel on board the new captain, and then the surgeon.62 Granting surgeons command would also reduce conflicts between the captain and the surgeon that would be detrimental to the care of slaves and thus the profits of the voyage.63 Chamberlain also suggests that the higher education of surgeons and perhaps a greater degree of honesty compared to other officers might help in business dealings on the coast. 64 Finally, by the end of the eighteenth century merchant profitability may have depended on low slave mortality,65 and this may have increased the import ance of having qualified doctors in command of slave vessels. Officers without medical training, then, may have been passed over for promotion by merchants who wanted a surgeon in command. In general, though, the expansion of the slave trade, the Dolben Act, and the French War appear to have increased opportunities for promotion for competent officers in the slave trade. I conclude this section by examining the links between family background and promotion in the slave trade. Earlier I noted that a few sons followed their fathers as captains in the slave trade. This certainly must have helped them gain positions aboard slave vessels. Similarly, having an older brother in the trade helped. Two captains listed as brothers in Table A serve as examples. John Kendall, born in 1768, first appears in the Liverpool slave trade on board the Brothers (100) commanded by his older brother Richard in 1786. He is listed fifth out of a crew of twenty-six. John also appears as mate on board the Margaret (124) commanded by Richard in 1790. 66 Thomas Tobin first entered the slave trade as second mate on board the ship Brothers (266) commanded by his older brother John in 1795.67 Liverpool muster rolls also show that Edward Clark first entered the slave trade on board the Fisher (186) commanded by Joseph Clark in 1787,68 and William Farquhar was an apprentice aboard the Jamaica ship Fortune commanded by George Farquhar in 1785. In 1794, William entered the Liverpool slave trade as first mate on board the slave-ship Lord Stanley (250), also commanded by George;69 and William Maxwell was mate aboard the Ned (209) commanded by George Maxwell in 1792. 70 Tables A and B in the appendix show that Henry and Slni-e Trade Captains 101
Miles Booth, Hugh and William Crow/' John and Robert Pince, and James and Thomas Stowell were brothers who were slave-ship captains. Other possible brothers were: Henry, John, and William Corran. Alexander and William Cowan, George and Thomas Dodson, Patrick and William Kewley, Roger and Thomas Lee, Hamlet and Thomas Mullion. Henry, Robert, and Thomas Tyrer, Daniel and Matthew Vaughan, and Charles and George Walker (all based in Liverpool); and from Bristol: Alexander, Archi bald, and Edward Robe. Though mariners may not have served with their brothers, their family connections pre sumably helped establish them in the trade. Information on fathers' occupations (Table A) allows us to analyse the importance of family background in gaining positions in the slave trade. I have found voyage histories for fifteen future slave-ship captains listed in this table. 72 These men made the following number of slave voyages before attaining command: Theophilous Bent (4), Timothy Boardman (7), Henry Booth (4), Miles Booth (3), Hugh Crow (6), William Crow (4), Gilbert Curry (3), John Kendall (3), William Lace (4), Leigh Lyon (3), Gilbert Rigby (2), Lewis Robinson (5), Thomas Tittle (4), Roger Topping (3) and Reuben Wright (1) ' 3 These results, along with those from Table 2, show that mariners averaged three to four voyages in the trade before being given command.'4 This wide range of maritime experience is explained more by the age-structure of mariners than by their fam ily backgrounds. As I mentioned earlier, on average Lancashire-based captains attained command at twenty- nine, and it was unusual for merchants to grant command of large slave vessels to men under twenty-five years of age. The case of W7illiam Richardson demonstrates that a mariner's age limited the rate of promotion in the slave trade. Richardson, fourth mate on the London slave-ship Spy (334), returned to London in 1791 and applied for the position of second mate aboard the slave-ship Surprise (305). However, as Richardson relates, the ship's owner, Mr Calvert, 'told me I was too young for that situation on board so large a ship.' Richardson was then twenty-three years of age, and he accepted the position of fourth mate/0 We see this age factor again in the cases of William Lace 102 S. D. Behrendt and Gilbert Rigby, both sons of Liverpool merchants, as Lace needed two more voyages as mate to attain command than Rigby. In 1786 both men entered the slave trade as second mates from the Liverpool-Jamaica trade. Lace entered the slave-ship Mary (164) at the age of nineteen, and after four slave voyages from 1786 to 1791 he was given command of the Joshua (125) in July 1792 when he was twenty-five years of age. Rigby entered on board the slave- ship Bud (97) at the age of twenty-three. He then served as first mate on a slave voyage in 1789, and on his next voyage he was promoted to captain of the Margery (168) in January- 1791 when he was twenty-seven years old. Captains from poorer backgrounds do not seem to have had significantly different maritime experiences. Gilbert Curry, the son of a shoemaker, entered aboard the snow John in 1786 at the age of twenty. He sailed as mate during seven voyages to the Windward Islands on this vessel, and then entered the slave trade on board the Fanny (180), owned by the firm Tarleton & Backhouse, as second mate on 8 September 1 790. After returning, Curry served as first mate on two slave voyages aboard the brig Seqflower (87), owned by James Dover. Robert Bent & Co. then gave him command of the ship Little Ben (112) in May 1794 when Curry was twenty-eight years old, and in 1799 Curry commanded the second largest slave vessel in the trade, the Mentor (5\7). Lewis Robinson, the son of a porter, is listed twelfth out of the thirteen crew of the ship John sailing to Jamaica in 1789. Robinson was twelve years old at the time, and he was probably an apprentice. His first slave voyage was in 1798 on board the Hannah (195) when he was twenty-one years of age, and he was listed third out of a crew of thirty. After four more voyages in the slave trade, Robinson attained command in 1804 at the age of twenty-seven. Roger Topping, the son of an attorney, was probably from a more middle-class background. He served his apprentice ship from 1785 to 1790 aboard two Caribbean and Virginia traders owned by John Sparling, the ships Brilliant and Mermaid. He was discharged from the Mermaid on 24 April 1790 at the age of nineteen, and entered the slave trade on 12 June 1790 aboard the Betsey (190) owned by William Slave Trade Captains 103
Boats & Co. On this vessel Topping is listed fourth out of a crew of twenty-six, indicating that he was probably the second or third mate. He attained command of the Good Intent (135) in 1797, at the age of twenty-five, after two voyages as first mate aboard the Dispatch (73) and Aspinall (197). These five men mentioned above all entered the slave trade as officers from the Liverpool-Caribbean trade. They entered the slave trade in their early twenties, and after several voyages they attained command. For each of these men, and for those listed in Table 2, it was important to gain positions in the Liverpool West India trade at a young age, either as apprentices or junior officers. Before entering the West India trade some of these men, such as Hugh Crow, may have been first apprenticed to local merchants in the Irish Sea trade. Family backgrounds helped some men gain positions both in the West India and slave trade. But men from labouring backgrounds, such as Gilbert Curry, also were able to become slave-ship captains of some promin ence. Age was an important factor affecting rates of pro motion, as men who were older when they entered the slave trade, such as Gilbert Rigby and Reuben Wright, usually became captains more quickly than those men who became mates at the age of twenty. Although these factors were important, we should not discount each man's personal skills. More than any other trade, the slave merchants' profits depended on the captain's ability. A slave-ship captain had to have expertise in both African and Carib bean markets, he probably had to have some basic under standing of maritime and tropical diseases and their treatments, and he had to maintain discipline aboard vessels that sometimes had up to seventy crew and five hundred slaves. Without a proven ability to maintain dis cipline, officers and captains might not be promoted. This may explain why Gilbert Rigby remained in the trade only for two voyages. Hugh Crow, who was Rigby's second mate on board the Bell (148) in 1791, said Rigby 'had neither the firmness nor the tact to keep others in subjection' and that the crew 'from [Captain Rigby's] weakness had become insubordinate'. 76 104 S. D. Behrendt
LEADING SLAVE-SHIP CAPTAINS, 1785-1807
In this section I look first at the leading captains in the trade from 1785 to 1807 to determine which firms captains worked for and what size vessels they commanded at various times in their careers. Table 6 lists twenty captains who made nine or more voyages between 1785 and 1807, These leading captains worked for different merchants and often sailed several vessels. Only Thomas Williams of Bristol was employed by one firm John and Alexander Anderson & Co. Williams was captain of four different slave ships: Active (174 tons then 222), 1789-92; African Queen (277), 1794-5; Alert (223), 1796-9; and Swift (380), 1800 and 1804. As Williams became older and gained experience in the trade, he commanded larger ships that carried more slaves, thus increasing his profits. Of the list of twenty captains in Table 6, seven captains sailed increasingly larger vessels during their lifetimes. To give the best example, Thomas Bushell sailed four voyages on the Mary Ann (141) from 1790 to 1794; then he commanded the Three Friends (216) in 1796, the King Pepple (342) in 1797, the Royal Edward (375) in 1799, the Neptune (343) in 1802, and finally the Mary (437) in 1804. 77 This progression from commanding small slave vessels to larger ships is generally true for captains who were in the trade over several years. Sometimes, the additional commis sion did not tempt captains to leave their vessel. In 1801 Crow was asked to give up command of the Will (286) to take charge of the Young William (455), but he said, T was so much attached to my former ship . . . that I declined the offer, though at a sacrifice of some hundred pounds of commis- sions I . 7ft The major slave houses were able to employ the same captains for several voyages, usually because they owned the largest vessels. Thus financial rewards for their captains were the greatest. The Liverpool firm of Peter Baker and John Dawson was the largest firm in the slave trade from 1783 to 1792. They had a contract with the Spanish government to supply slaves to Spanish colonies from 1785 to 1788. When the Spanish market was opened to all merchants in 1788, they remained the leading British slave trader to the Spanish Caribbean. 79 Baker & Dawson used Slave Trade Captains 105
TABLE 6 Leading slave-ship captains, 1785-1807
\arne Port otages Years I'essels Owners
1 Thomas Cannell Li 14 1787-1807 8 7 2 William Brown Li 13 1792-1807 9 4 3 Thomas Phillips Br>Li 13 1785-1804-d 8 7 4 James Irwin Li 12 1789-1804 5 3 5 William Sherwood Li 12 1785-1806 6 4 6 Joseph Threlfall Li 1 1 1786-1799 8 4 7 Joseph Williams Br>Li 11 1785-1806 6 4 8 Matthew Morlev Br>Lo 10 1785-1803 6 4 9 Thomas Williams Br 10 1789-1804 4 1 10 John Brine Li 9 1786-1806 7 4 11 Thomas Bushell Li 9 1790-1804 6 4 12 Robert Catterall Li 9 1785-1800 9 6 13 James Clark(e) Lo>Li 9 1791-1806 5 6 14 Samuel Clough Li 9 1787-1796 4 2 15 James Hird Li 9 1785-1799 6 6 16 Thomas Johnston Li 9 1786-1797-d 5 3 17 Edward Mentor Br>Li 9 1789-1800-d 7 5 18 Alexander Nicholson Li 9 1786-1805-d 7 5 19 Thomas Payne Li 9 1792-1804 5 3 20 James Seddon Li 9 1796-1806-d 6 2
Sources: Liverpool Muster Rolls, 1785-1809: P.R.O., BT 98/45-69; S.M.V. Bristol Muster Rolls, 1783-1795; Lloyd's Register of Shipping, 1786- 1809: P.P. 1806, XIII (265). Key: Br - Bristol; Li - Liverpool; Lo - London; d - died on voyage. large slave ships to supply the Spanish colonial market and employed the same captains for this trade. William Sher wood was given command of Baker & Dawson's Princess Royal (596) from 1786 to 1788, Brothers (325) in 1789, Garland (525) in 1790 and 1791, and Elliot (271) in 1792. Between 1785 and 1795 Joseph Fayrer sailed four voyages for Baker & Dawson, William Forbes and Joseph Withers each sailed five, and Thomas Molyneux commanded six. The second largest Liverpool firm from 1783 to 1792, William Boats & Co., was also able to employ the same captains over several years. During these years Samuel Clough made seven voyages for Boats & Co., William Corran made six, James Bachope and 106 S. D. Behrendt
James Brown made five, and John Corran and William Harding made four. 80 When a merchant hired a captain, age and experience were definite considerations, but it is important to examine these factors in the context of the firm's commercial ties to the African coast and West Indies. For example, captains who transported pre-purchased slaves from slave factories and feeder vessels would not have needed extensive experi ence trading with African merchants. On a similar note, there is evidence that merchants with several slave vessels sent the most experienced captain to the coast first, either to initiate trade negotiations with African merchants or to purchase slaves for the firms' other slave vessels. William Butterworth, who served aboard the Liverpool slave-ship Hudibras in 1786, complained that they were delayed on the African coast for six months, 'as our quantum of slaves [was not] ready for us, though Captain Brighouse, of the Preston, who had the purchasing of all the slaves we received, had been there some time before our arrival'. Thomas and William Earle & Co. owned both the Hudibras and the Preston, and Captain Brighouse had made five previous voyages as master. Jenkin Evans, captain of the Hudibras, was making his first voyage as commander.81 The condition of a vessel was another criterion merchants used in their choice of captain. Firms that purchased new slave ships hired experienced captains to avoid potentially large losses on their initial investment. The Bermuda Gazette described the cedar-built Nancy (341), built by Nathaniel Tynes in Bermuda in 1791, as 'as fine and well-built a ship of between three and four hundred tons, as perhaps ever floated on the ocean'.82 The Liverpool firm of Neilson & Heathcote hired William Harding to command the Nancy in October 1792. Harding previously commanded six slave voyages from 1785 to 1791. Also of interest are the captains who were hired to make the last legal slave voyages in 1807. The Slave Trade Abolition Act of 1807 prohibited slave vessels from clearing for Africa after 1 May 1807, unless they were fitting out for the slave trade before that date. Owners tried to hire experienced captains to make this last legal voyage for slaves whenever possible. The Kitty's Amelia (272), owned by Slave Trade Captains 107
Henry Clarke, made the second-to-last British slave voyage, sailing from Liverpool on 27 July 1807 after being delayed several months for repairs. Thomas Forrest was hired by Clarke to command the vessel, and this was to be Forrest's first voyage as slave-ship captain. However, Hugh Crow returned from Jamaica on the Alary (450) on 2 May and was solicited by Clarke to take command of the Kitty's Amelia, with Forrest being demoted to chief mate.83 Captains also re-entered the trade to make a final slave voyage. William Stringer commanded the Alary (437) in 1807, his first slave-ship command since 1801, and John Kendall commanded a vessel for the first time since 1802. As a sidelight to Crow and the Kitty's Amelia, contem porary evidence suggests that this ship did not make the last Liverpool slave voyage, as is commonly believed. 84 Crow's Memoirs provide the only source that states that the Kitty's Amelia was the last slave vessel: 'it had been reported to the chiefs and the natives, by the captains who preceded me, that I commanded the last ship that would sail to Bonny for negroes'. 8 ' Liverpool muster rolls show that Crow and his crew entered pay on 25 July, two days before sailing. However, muster rolls also show the crew of the snow Eliza (153), commanded by Samuel Hensley, entered pay three weeks later on 16 August 1807. 86 Gore's Liverpool Directory for 1807 verifies these dates and also shows that the Eliza was to trade at Old Calabar. 87 Crow says that the Kitty's Amelia took 'about seven weeks' to reach Bonny, so it would have arrived about mid-September. Perhaps the Eliza reached the Calabar coast in less than a month, which would thus prove that the Kitty's Amelia was the last British vessel to trade for slaves. So, with certainty we know that the Eliza was the last slave vessel to sail from Liverpool, though it may have arrived on the coast a few days earlier than the Kitty's Amelia. Captains often acquired great wealth in the slave trade. As previously mentioned, merchants paid captains wages and coastal commissions and also granted them several privilege slaves. Experienced captains were also sometimes part-owners of the slave vessel they commanded. A list of 423 Liverpool, London, and Bristol slave voyages from 5 January 1789 to 4 May 1792 shows that forty-two captains had partnership shares in the voyage.88 In this list eight TABLE 7 Wealth of thirty-three captains who died in the Liverpool slave trade
Name Years (voyages as captain) Will information*
David Armstrong 1796 Amount: £900; Effects < £600 Thomas Ashburner 1790-1792 (3) Effects: £800 Miles Booth 1798 Amount: £1000 William Boys 1789-1796 (6) Effects: < £1000 Thomas Brown-k 1786-1791 (5) Amount: £400 William Carroll 1792 Effects: £500 < £600 David Christian-d 1791-1798 (5) Bequeaths: £2500 James Corbett 1785-1791 (4) Effects: £1000 < £2000 Robert Dowie 1798, 1799 Effects: £300 < £600 I Edward Duncan 1798 Amount: £1800; Effects < £1000 Jenkin Evans 1786-1798 (8) Amount: £1000; Effects £300 < £600 Nehemiah Evans 1798 Amount: £100 Alexander Finley s 1790-1794 (3) Amount: £3500; Effects £1500 < £2000 George Forshaw 1792 Amount: £500; Effects < £300 Richard Gawn# 1796 Amount: £400; Effects < £300 Charles Gilliland 1797 Amount: £500; Effects £300 < £600 Thomas Givin 1791-1797 (4) Bequeaths: £2000 James Harrocks 1792 Effects: £300 < £600 Thomas Heart 1781-1794 (9) Effects: £600 < £1000 Daniel B. Hey ward 1792-1799 (6) Effects: £300 < £600 James Hodgson 1792 Amount: £1 100; Effects £300 < £600 Joseph Hodgson 1791-1794 (4) Amount: £200; Effects £300 < £600 David Hogg 1797 Amount: £1000; Effects < £600 Joseph James 1793 Ellects £600 < £1000 Thomas Johnson 1786-1797 (9) Effects < £600 Richard Jones 1786-1799 (6) Effects < £2000 Robert Jones 1792-1797 (6) Effects < £2000 Younger Kelsick 1795-1797 (3) Amount: £2000; Effects < £ 1 000 William Kerr 1789-1791 (3) Amount: £500 Hugh Kessick 1797, 1798 Amount: £3000; Effects < £2000 Philip Kewish 1795, 1796 Effects: < £1000 William Kneal 1798 Amount: £1 RIO; Ellects < £1000 Roger Lee 1789-1794 (6) Amount: £680; Effects < £300
Sources: Wills Proved at the Prerogative Court at Chester, 1790-1800, Family History Library, Reels 88881-88926; An Index to 2 the Wills and Inventories now preserved in The Probate Registry, at Chester, from A.D. 1791 to 1800, ed. William Fergusson Irvine, ^ XLV (Lancashire and Cheshire Record Society, 1902); Behrendt database. 3 Key. * ~ the 'amount' is the sum that was bound to the executor of the will, and 'effects' the sum listed by the Court clerk "* when the will was proved. These sums differ because assets may have been overstated in the original will, or ^' understated when the will was proved to reduce court costs; k - killed by slaves; d - died when vessel blew up; s - 5 formerly a surgeon; # - died as first mate in 1798, captain in 1796 2 110 S. D. Behrendt other captains had shares of slave vessels they did not command. Specific information on the wealth of slave-ship captains comes from wills proved at the Prerogative Court of Chester. Table 7 summarizes the information in thirty- three captains' wills. Profits made by captains were far greater than those of any other slave trade mariner. The position of surgeon was the second most profitable on a slave vessel, but these men only left sums between £100 and £500. 89 Captains' profits were comparable to those of small slave merchants. How ever, these sums were far less than those leading merchants acquired. William Boats, the second leading Liverpool slave merchant from 1783 to 1792, left an estate of over £23,000 when he died in 1794.90 David Christian left some of the most extensive holdings of those Liverpool captains listed in Table 7. He divided his 'Real Estate consisting of Houses, Gardens and Lands in and near Ramsey in the Isle of Man' among his relatives, and specifically bequeathed his assets as follows.
Father David Christian all Cloaks and Wearing Apparel. To Aunt Judith now the wife of John Christian of Ramsay in the Isle of Man Farmer the several pecuniary legacies, the sum of 100 pounds unto Jane Dorothy Otty and Catherine, the four Daughters of said Aunt the sum of 100 pounds each, unto John Christian and Robert Johnson of Liverpool Merchants the sum of Two thousand pounds . . . 9I Christian acquired this wealth after commanding five slave vessels from 1791 to 1798. He first appears in Liverpool musters as chief mate on board the ship Fisher (186) that sailed on 25 May 1788.92 In 1789 he was first mate and part-owner of the sloop Endeavour (73) that entered St Vincent in 1790 with 81 slaves. 93 He then commanded the Louisa (144) for two voyages in 1791 and 1792, the Othello (208) in 1794, and the Elliot (371) in 1796. He died as captain when the slave-ship Parr (566) caught on fire and blew up at Bonny in 1798. Included in Christian's profits from these seven voyages was a £100 bounty for low slave mortality for his voyage on the Elliot.9* Slave Trade Captains 111
CAPTAINS WHO LEFT THE SLAVE TRADE
By accumulating such profits in perhaps only three or four slave voyages, captains could leave the trade and become merchants. However, of the captains I was able to trace, many did not survive three or four voyages. In my examina tion of 1,925 Liverpool and 137 Bristol muster rolls from 1785 to 1807, I found that 213 Liverpool and eleven Bristol captains died (see Table F). 95 Twenty-seven captains drowned,96 five were killed by the French, three were killed during slave uprisings, and three died when the vessel caught fire and blew up. From these results 27 per cent of the captains in the Bristol and Liverpool slave trade from 1785 to 1807 died on slave voyages. 97 Table F also shows that seventy-eight captains died on their first slaving voyage, and 156 men died on either their first, second, or third voyage. The position of command required more on-shore contact with African merchants in the trade for provisions and slaves. When I estimated the time on the coast to be between six weeks and six months after the vessel sailed, I found that 60 per cent of the captains listed in Table F died on the African coast. This 27 per cent mortality rate for captains is an under estimation. Other captains died either in the Caribbean or in England after being discharged. For example, one captain (and former surgeon), James Swanson, died shortly after completing a slave voyage as captain of the brig Prudence (123). Returning to his home town of Hawick, Scotland, in 1803, Swanson, at the age of twenty-three, 'took ill and died, either from a previously contracted virulent fever, or from delerium tremens'. 98 Either his fever or his alcoholism could have been contracted while in the slave trade. Unfortunately, patient lists do not survive for eighteenth-century Caribbean hospitals or for Bristol or Liverpool hospitals, and the Mormon index does not include burials. There are too many variables to allow one to state firmly why some captains and officers died early in their careers while others, such as Hugh Crow, survived in the slave trade for over fifteen years. Some captains traded directly for provisions and slaves, sailing down the coast and up rivers; 112 ,S'. D. Bfhrendt
other captains purchased slaves quickly through off-shore factories. Captain Robert Hume, a former surgeon, stated that during his last slave voyages in the 1790s he employed sixty to eighty African sailors to trade for provisions along the Windward Coast, something that Hume deemed neces sary to avoid 'burying a great Number of White Men'.99 Other captains might not have been able to employ 'African sailors'. Hume also stated that the Windward Coast slave trade was healthier for both slaves and crew because of the shorter cargo-loading time and the shorter Middle Passage voyage. Slave voyages to the Gulf of Guinea and further south took much longer and were more deadly. 100 The time taken to complete cargoes, the access to factories to supply slaves, the availability of local African merchants to handle the provisions trade, the quality of the provisions, the region, the season, and the length of the Middle Passage (which depended on the size and speed of the vessel) were all factors affecting mortality. Thus, as Klein has stated, in determining reasons for deaths in the slave trade, 'a great deal of random influence seems to have been present at all times'. 101 Large fortunes could be made by those men who survived, and many captains became permanent merchants. In my sample of captains from 1785 to 1807 at least forty-five Liverpool slave-ship captains became Liverpool merchants. In testimony before parliament Peter Whitfield Branker stated that he was a captain from 1772 to 1788 and then became a Liverpool merchant until the end of the trade. 102 James Rigby first entered the slave trade for four voyages as surgeon, then commanded seven voyages from 1788 to 1797. Rigby then 'quit the service', though he remained a part owner of five slave vessels and owner of the Merlin (352), which made one slave voyage in 1799. 103 When I compared lists of Liverpool captains and owners in my database I also found that Ralph Abram, Robert Bibby, John Carson, John Clare, Samuel Clough, William Cockerill, John Copeland, William Corran, William Forbes, Alexander Grierson, Wil liam Harding, George Hauit, James Hird, Francis Holland, William Horsley, John Howard, Robert Hume, Thomas Huson, William Jackson, Richard Kendall, John Livingston, John Mill, Thomas Molyneux, Hamlet Mullion, Gerrard Slave Trade Captains 113
Preston, Thomas Rigmaidcn, William Sherwood, James Seddon, John Smale, Bryan Smith, John Smith, James Soutar, William Stringer, John Tobin, Joseph Ward, Patrick Welsh (or Welch), and Charles Wilson became slave mer chants. I verified this result by looking at the occupations of these men in Gore's Liverpool Directories for 1800 and 1814. 104 James McGauley and Joseph Withers were also listed as merchants in the 1800 Directory, though they were not principal slave merchants. McGauley and \Vithers were slave-ship captains in the 1780s and 1790s. In the 1814 Directory John Brine was listed as a merchant; Thomas Dodson, a captain from 1784 to 1793, was listed as a 'gentleman', and his son Thomas Dodson junior as a merchant. William Brighouse, mentioned earlier as master of the slave-brig Preston, is listed as a merchant in a 1791 will. 105 William Gibson, a slave-ship captain from 1786 to 1797, died as a merchant according to his will which was proved in 1799. 106 Other captains may have worked in commercial or financial sectors in Great Britain, Africa, or the West Indies. For example, Peter Comberbach, a slave- ship captain in 1788, is listed in the 1800 Liverpool Directory as a 'riding surveyor in the customs'. Hugh Crow mentions that, at the time his younger brother William died, he had 'procured [him] a good situation in Jamaica, in which, had he lived, he might soon have realized an independence'. 107 In the years before abolition, slave-ship captains did not move to a different overseas trade. In fact, I found only two cases in which a captain left the trade between slave voyages. Archibald Galbraith, a Liverpool slave-ship captain from 1794 to 1804, commanded the Bess (128) to Africa and Demerara in 1800 and then took the Bess from Cowes to Demerara in August 1801. Alexander Nicholson, who made nine slave voyages from 1786 to 1805, command ed the ship Woolton (370) from Liverpool to Demerara between March and September 1804. 108 After the abolition of the trade in 1807, most former slave-ship captains commanded West Indiamen, while a few men commanded Africa produce vessels, privateers, and ships to the new South American markets. 109 A few slave-ship captains left the trade prior to abolition to enter the British Navy during the French Wars (1793- 114 S. D. Belmndt
1807). Six of the seven lieutenants who commanded slave vessels during the inter-war years (1783-92) left the slave trade when war resumed in 1793. Four other slave-ship captains' names appear later as navy lieutenants. Samuel Roscow, who commanded the Bristol slave-ship Prince (273) on a voyage from 1791 to 1792,"° received his naval commission on 25 January 1796. The London slave-ship captains Benjamin Leigh and Robert Riddle were commis sioned in 1795 and 1805, and William Willoughby, a London and Liverpool captain, became a lieutenant on 13 November 1810 after the slave trade was abolished."' To sum up, during the later years of the British slave trade, at least one-quarter of the slave-ship captains died in the trade. Only a few men left the trade for the Navy, and perhaps a few became West India captains. At least forty- five captains were able to survive enough voyages to acquire the capital to leave the trade and become resident Liverpool merchants. My results show that five captains died in the trade for every one who attained the status of merchant.
CONCLUSIONS
In this paper I have presented statistical and biographical information on captains in the British slave trade from 1785 to 1807. I focused on the Liverpool slave trade, as more than 80 per cent of all British slave vessels sailed from Liverpool by the end of the eighteenth century. Liverpool muster rolls allow us to trace accurately the careers of men in the slave trade. As 1,925 slave-ship musters survive for voyages from 1785 to 1807, they form a significant source. The computerized Mormon International Genealogical Index is of value to both slave trade and maritime historians, because now we can access British parish records simul taneously. By using this database, I was able to find specific biographical information for ninety captains. Though few parish records give fathers' occupations, we saw that most Liverpool captains were sons of small tradesmen, some followed their fathers as captains in the slave trade, and a few were sons of merchants. Most of these men thus improved their social standing by entering the slave trade :)"1'S'H'.L >>->-m
SOI.I.OX
.Ti \]|l'n),> St!.\\ oUIA|) Jll >)SI.I .U,ll|l i1 'pinuuuio.i p.iun'ilt' \->i|i |i ,> .oUIA\OU>| JpU.ll JA1![S 01(1 |X).I,i]UO S.IJUI.UUU ,H[ ] 'JIMMI ,)Aiqs ,n[i in s.u>.>iyo jo l) ,).I,)A\ n,Min'i()U( is<> \\ no s. s(|u.i .Disiuii ,ii|i uio.ij .)jii,)[)L\,) mjl Jn?iu qunoj .10 p.in(l sn [[.ins suoinsocl ,i,Kiq|n jonnifoi s.i.njio.iq .i.).nuiu)A pm: spuji.ij p,)|IIinckll' .ipl'.ll ,)A1?|S ,»(]] III KLMHKi^J 'AIUpn-1.);) '.)plMl ,)A1?|S .up iii suoiiounud p.n:A\oi vpi[iKuS>j,)i!(| .\[uin:| |o .uinn.iodiui .up puiMs.i.ipun 01 p,)p,},)H si q.i.n;,is.).i J.IOJY 'JJSSJA JAiq 1- r pui'inuiDj o] |),)ii.ni|j.i ,>pi:.n ,)Ai:[s .up ILMUJ AAt?^ .)ip 01 1II.)\\ Ol|.\\ 11,1(11 A\,l[ V. \|IIO ST 'S^'111'.o SS,).I(1 ,}[)1?A>) 01 ^.UUI.IKIU ]o Mj|up; ,iiji no p.ipu.idjp o^[i' s,)ii;.i uoiioiiiojd ^.ITA\ [(.HI.).] .( ,>l|l nIlUIl(J MplMl iripll [ 1S\> \\ ,)(j] StT [(JUS -SJplMl .i.Hpn uio. i) ^.i.un.n'ui .loj siioiii^od dn [uu.ido pin1 p,i. \IA.IH'- 0[)A\ ^.l.KjLLI.HLI A\,).I.) ,)SOI(1 |(J HI.HUJ.Hir Apl' ,)l[l ]J->.!-H[l.ni| -KHU ,)())'. I1-,)A1'|^ '(^!H 'S.).oi:\OA JO S,)LIJM I? p,IA|A .i, ii|i ]i \[>pinb (JinuuLUo,-) ini'iit' p|no.i uoijo SIKU.O.IIIS ^.)]t!UI MIMA 1|.>1'.) OjJLMJ Jlj] III nUI \p SUITJldT.) .)![! p.) unn It' ujiu A in- in 's.iSnAOA .ut'|^ .inoj .10 ,),).np p.iro(j no iKU.ci.ins .10 jjuni sr JiiiiA.us -i.M|\" 's,)iHi..vn]-pini -ij.)i(i in A[p'n<-.n '^.niuu ^r .ipiui ,).\t?[s ,>ip |),).i,)in,) luij) pnr ,)pi:.n ^.' -H] ni J.HDi.iodxo jimijs [i,.)io n.iui ,)s,)i ii^i
JOISLIJI .10 (ood.i.tArj oqi .KHJJIJ [ii snnndiu uio.ij A|p,'jon,>.o ?i B\ Art of Parliament in I /9 ( ). the sla\e trade uas confined to these three ports, from 178:") to I 79 ( L a few slavers cleared from Lan caster I'M. M. Scholield. 'The Sla\e Trade iron) Lancashire and Cheshire Ports Outside Liverpool ,. I7.")0-c. 1790'. T.//..V./,.(/.. CXXVI M97!i:. pp. j7-60j. 1 'Accounts. Picsenled to [lie I louse oj Commons, Relating to the African Slave Trade'. ParhamenUrx Papers [henceforth P.P. , 1801), XIII i2b;>!. f> 'A I.isl nf Vessels thai ha\e cleared out at the Port of Liverpool, lor the Coast of Africa, from the 1st ofjannar\ !806, (with the time of their Sailing), (o the 1st of May, 1807. ai \\hich time the Trade for Slaves was totallv abolished b\ Act of Parliament', (inrr'-i Lirftjioo! Directory (Live: pool. 1807!. pp. 97-100. (j P.P. 1792. XXXV i7l>8j; 'An Account of all Vessels uhii.h have ilciirccl mil . . . fni Africa since the \ear I78H': P.R.O.. T 01 28ti. 7 These mo private lists are reproduced in Gomer Williams, Hhton- of (he LlretpMil Priiateei\ and Letter1! of Mim/ite, h-it/i an Account oj She Liretf/ool Siare Trade t'Nexv \ ork. 1966), pp. 581 1; A (jeimine 'l)iek\ Sam', Lirer/iuo! and Sldierv: An ffntnrical Account o/ the f.ii'eipool-AJrican Sltii'e 1'iadc i.\e\\ca.stle upon T\-ne. 19(>9j. pp. 12(1 9. H Hntisli I.ibraiN. Additiuiiiil MS. j8-ll(>. if. 1-2. 9 The P.R.O. holds (he Xaval Ofhce Shippii^ 1,'dtjrrs :Colonial Ofliee series!, and the London ship rej_nsir\ from 17fi(i: BT 107.'1. 10 This database Mas first used foi m\ Master's Phesis. 'A ('ommer- eial His(or\ of the British Sla\e Trade. 1785 to IfiOfi: A Preliininary Study' (unpiib. M.A. thesis, I mversitx ol \\isconsm-Madison. 1988). Tables on annual clearances from 1 7fij to 1 B0(i ar<- s^iven on paye 32. and list 2,1)28 British slave voyages, with 2.073 (79%) clearing from Liverpool. Additional research has added lo these totals. II I'he.se specific slave trade musteis have the (olKming heading: 'Articles of Agreement between the Master. Oflicers. Mariners, Seamen, and Sealanng Men, of die Ship bound from the Port of upon an intended Vo\ at;c to ihc Coast of.l/r;c«; for
Xarratite oj /u.\ Life (London, lf)70). Crow. Memoir':, p. L>L \\illiams, l.iierfxtol Priraleen, pp. 186, ")-12 ;iO, 613. B\ Act oi Parliament in 1710 [9 Anne c. 2 I ) a small ta\ uas paid on appreiiticcslnj) indentures. 'I lie Index of Apprentices' Names in ihe Apprenticeship Books of the Inland Revenue Department (1R 1). for 1710-62 (IR 17/8-10) and 176:3-71 (IR 17/11-7), is held in tin- Reference Room at the P.R.O.. Keu. P.R.O., IR 17/9, p. 181. Burial records are not included because the\ do not give sufficient information to identiK an individual. Non-Anglican records are continually added to the I.G.I, for [lie British Isles (information from Mr Alan Mann of the Lamih History Library, Salt Luke City), Slave Trade Captains 117
17 The I.G.I, is available on CD-ROM disks for United States, Canadian, British, and European records, at the Family History Library [henceforth F.H.L.]. Branch libraries should have access by June 1991 depending on funds and distribution time. IB Information from Mr Alan Mann of the Family History Library; David E. Gardner and Frank Smith, Genealogical Research in England and Wales. I (Salt Lake City, Utah, 1956), pp. 156-62: John Shaw, 'Some Problems of Scottish Family History Relating to Old Parish Registers'. Genealogists' Magazine. XXII, No. 10 (June 1988), pp. 360-1. 19 Bristol Tabernacle Register of Baptisms, p. 7: F.H.L., Film 825381. 20 Several captains and seamen married and made wills before they sailed, probably because they knew of the high mortality rates in the slave trade. 21 Daniel P. Mannix and Malcolm Cowley, Black Cargoes: A Histon oj the Atlantic Slave Trade. 1518-1865 (New York, 1962), pp. 137-40; Roland VVatkin, 'Captain Hugh Crow: A Liverpool Guineaman'. Mariner's Minor, LXIII, No. 2 (May 1977), p. 178: Williams, Liverpool Privateers, p. 626. 22 Crow, Memoirs, pp. 1-66. Crow also mentions several other slave- ship captains, including his brother William, captain of the Charlotte in 1798 (p. 68), his 'good friend Luke Mann' (pp. 127 and 132), and Captain Latham [Leathom] of the Lottery (p. 69). See Tables A and B in the Appendix. Unfortunately, Crow does not give any bio graphical information on these three men. When known, tonnages are given in brackets next to the vessels' names. 23 Williams, Liverpool Privateers, pp. 67-1 7. 24 Ibid. pp. 550 and 615. 25 M. M. Schofield, 'The Virginia Trade of the Firm of Sparling and Bolden, of Liverpool, 1788-99', T.H.S.L.C., CXVI (1964)', pp. 117-65. 26 Lloyd's Register of Shipping, 1776-94. 27 Liverpool Muster Rolls'1786: P.R.O., BT 98/46, No. 99; and 1794: BT 98/54, No. 236, show that the Mermaid sailed to Africa and the West Indies; P.P. 1795-6, XLII (849) lists 410 slaves arriving in Jamaica on the Mermaid in 1 794. 28 Liverpool Muster Rolls 1787: P.R.O., BT 98/47, No. 244, and 1788: BT 98/48, No. 67. This discrepancy could be explained by the fact that John Sparling senior married twice, and since Captain Sparling died in 1793, he would not be mentioned in the will of John Sparling senior in 1800. 29 Schofield, T.H.S.L.C., CXXVI, p. 55. Schofield also mentions a 1756 Lancaster slave-ship captain named 'Dodson' (p. 47) who could be the same man. 30 Society of Merchant Venturers [henceforth S.M.V.], Bristol Muster Rolls, 29 Sept. 1792 to 29 Sept. 1793, No. 173. 31 The merchants Thomas Hurds and Richard Woodward are listed in 'Dicky Sam', Liverpool and Slavery, pp. 119, 123, and 129. 32 Williams, Liverpool Privateers, pp. 675 and 677. 118 S. D. Behrendt
33 Liverpool Muster Roll 1785: P.R.O., BT 98/45, No. 2. 34 F.H.L., I.G.I, computer search, United States; Behrendt database. 35 For the age calculations, I omitted those names I was most unsure about (marked with an asterisk), and also captains who could have been in the trade before 1775. Since definite birth or christening dates were not given for Roger Lee (the records stated 'born about'), I did not use him either. 36 Behrendt database; Gore's Liverpool Directory (1800), pp. 87 and 103. 37 I omitted Bristol Captains Fraser, Langdon, and Wright from the age analysis, as they could have made voyages as captain before 1775, the first year of my database. 38 S.M.V. Bristol Muster Rolls, 29 Sept. 1793 to 29 Sept. 1794, Nos. 48 and 63: Behrendt database. 39 Several future captains might also have served in the inter-island Caribbean trade when younger. In a brief look at Naval Office Shipping Lists for Antigua, I found that Thomas Cannell, George Haliburton, and Edward Lovelace sailed small vessels between the Dutch and British Leeward Islands during the 1780s, usually with cargoes of timber and supplies, and were later captains in the Liverpool slave trade (P.R.O., CO 10/2, pp. 54-63 and 79-93). 40 Interestingly, by hiring Wright as captain, William Boats & Co. violated the stipulations set out in the Dolben Act, as Wright had made only one voyage as chief mate aboard a slave vessel. 41 Based on Bristol Musters from 1789 to 1794, slave-ship captains' wages were £5 per month, the highest of any crew member, though unlike the other officers and the rest of the crew, captains usually did not receive any advance pay. A Liverpool pay list from 1806, during the Napoleonic Wars, shows that the captain was paid £6 6.v per month, with an advance of £18 \8s. But in this case Captain Thomas Nuttall's wages were less than the 3rd mate's, boatswain's, carpenter's, cooper's, and gunner's (Charles R. Hand, 'The Kitty's Amelia, the Last Liverpool Slaver', T.H.S.L.C., LXXXII (1930),"p. 75). 42 I am grateful to David Richardson of the University of Hull for mentioning coast commissions to me. 43 Williams, Liverpool Privateers, pp. 605-6. 44 Hand, T.H.S.L.C., LXXXII, p. 72. The Kitty's Amelia and Prudence were owned by Henry Clarke, Robert Tod, & Co. and sailed from Liverpool on 3 December 1804. Captain Christian is listed in the Prudence's muster (Liverpool Muster Roll 1806: P.R.O., BT 98/66, No. 303). 45 Letter to Sayers, Gordon, & Co. (Dublin), dated Liverpool 2 October 1805', Letter Book of John Leigh & Co., 29 April 1805 to 5 July 1806: P.R.O., C 108/212, IT. 183-4. I am indebted to David Richardson for the reference to the Leigh Papers. A 1764 account shows that Captain Thomas Trader of the Liverpool ship African was paid a coastal commission of £4 per £104 (3.85%) on gross sales (Williams, Liverpool Privateers, p. 530). David Richardson has additional evidence that this ratio of £4 per £104 paid to captains Slave Trade Captains 119
was a consistent practice throughout the eighteenth century (per sonal communication with David Richardson). 46 28 Geo. Ill c. 54, section XIV. in Documents Illustrative of the History of the Slai'e Trade to America, ed. Elizabeth Donnan (4 vols. Washington. 1931), II, p. 587. 47 The British slave trade grew as the Caribbean slave frontier expanded from 1788 to 1803. As a result of the Haitian revolution, British planters, particularly in Jamaica, extended production. The creation of free ports in the Caribbean, the opening of Spanish colonial markets, the acquisition of French Caribbean colonies, and the development of Guiana contributed to this frontier growth as well. See Seymour Drescher, Econocide: British Slavery in the Era of Abolition (Pittsburgh, 1977). The number of slave clearances in Table 4 is partly skewed because parliament lowered the number of slaves each vessel could carry per ton, and in response merchants used not only larger ships, but they also acquired more vessels to meet the West Indian demand for slaves. Table 4 also shows the decline of the Bristol slave trade after 1792. Because of this, many Bristol captains relocated in Liverpool (see Table E). This was a factor partially restricting the creation of new officer positions aboard Liverpool slavers. 48 This expansion, and the high mortality in the slave trade, shows that the Dolben Act of 1788 did not leave twenty-two Liverpool slave-ship captains and forty-seven mates unemployed, as a Liverpool merchant claimed it would (Eric Williams, Capitalism and Slavery (London, 1964), p. 59). Captains' mortality figures are discussed later and presented in Table F of the Appendix. 49 Donnan, Documents Illustrative of the History of the Slave Trade, II, p. 586. 50 The dates when these lieutenants were granted leave to enter the merchant service are found in 'A List of Officers who have had leave to go Abroad pursuant to His Majesty's Order in Council of the 30th of April 1751': P.R.O., ADM 6/207, pp. 11-61. Two other lieutenants entered the slave trade after the Dolben Act, and thus these men presumably had served previously in the slave trade. They are: John Carteret Lewis, captain of the London slave-ship Mercury (236) in 1790, and Alexander Gordon, captain on a London slave voyage in 1791 and then in 1794 aboard the Mary (316). One final lieutenant, E. S. Dickson, took leave for the 'Coast of Africa and Jamaica in the Merchant Service' and was employed as first mate aboard the Bristol slave-ship Levant (221) in 1792 (S.M.V. Bristol Muster Rolls, 29 Sept. 1793 to 29 Sept. 1794, No. 203). 51 S.M.V. Bristol Muster Rolls, 29 Sept. 1784 to 29 Sept. 1785, No. 45. 52 P.P. 1789, XXIV (631), p. 2; Lloyd's Register of Shipping, 1786; Schofield, T.H.S.L.C., CXXVI, p. 58. 53 Laroche is listed third on the Jupiter (S.M.V. Bristol Muster Rolls, 29 Sept. 1789 to 29 Sept. 1790, No. 217), and as master of the Daniel (29 Sept. 1793 to 29 Sept. 1794, No. 176). 54 Liverpool Muster Rolls 1795: P.R.O.. BT 98/55, No. 273; 1799: BT 98/59, No. 120; and 1800: BT 98/60, No. 432. 120 S. D. Behrendt
55 Liverpool Muster Rolls 1799: P.R.O., BT 98/59, No. 32; 1801: BT 98/61, No. 140; and 1802: BT 98/62, No. 161. 56 Liverpool Muster Rolls 1799: P.R.O., BT 98/59, No. 273; 1802: BT 98/62. No. 269. 57 Liverpool Muster Rolls 1794: P.R.O.. BT 98/54, No. 265; 1797: BT 98/57, No. 191; and 1799: BT 98/59, No. 208. 58 Letter to Mr John Rimmer (London), dated Liverpool 27 Dec. 1803, Letter Book of John Leigh & Co., 4 Oct. 1803 to 29 Apr. 1805: P.R.O., C 108/212, f. 29. 59 Behrendt, thesis, App. F, p. 118. 60 For the later years of the slave trade (1789-1807), we are fortunate to have a list of 592 surgeons who were certified by the Liverpool Medical Board (Liv.R.O., 614 INF 9/1). In the years up to 1789, we have to rely on individual accounts of men who stated that they were surgeons and captains. Three such men were John Anderson, John Knox, and James Rigby. For Anderson: Report of The Lords of the Committee of Council appointed for the Consideration of all Matters relating to Trade and Foreign Plantations (London, 1789), Part I; (or Knox: 'Evidence of Captain John Knox, given on 9 June 1789', Minutes of the Evidence . . . taken before a Committee of the House of Commons (London, 1789), p. 73; for Rigby: P.P. 1799,'XLVIII (966), p. 2 and House of Lords Sessional Papers, ed. F. William Torrington, III (1798-9), p. 86. 61 This was due to two reasons. First, surgeons were required by the Dolben Act to be on board slave vessels and to keep a mortality log up to the selling of slaves in the Caribbean. Secondly, most slave-ship surgeons did not have the proper London medical qualification to serve aboard naval vessels. Indeed, the surgeons who did leave the slave trade for the Navy were employed as surgeon's mates or as acting assistant surgeons, and were pre sumably impressed to fill a short-term medical need. For example, James Farrell, surgeon of the slave-ship Backhouse (258), was impressed aboard H.M.S. Arethusa and became 'Acting Assistant Surgeon' (Liverpool Muster Roll 1807: P.R.O., BT 98/67, No. 145; P.R.O., ADM 37/281). 62 Some large slave ships had surgeon's mates as well. 63 Boog Watson says that male slaves were examined by the captain and his officers and female slaves by the surgeon and his mate (W. N. Boog Watson, 'The Guinea Trade and some of its surgeons', Journal of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, XIV, No. 4 (July 1969), p. 206). On the conflicts between captains and surgeons over the management of slaves, see Richard B. Sheridan, Doctors and Slaves: A Medical and Demographic History of Slavery in the British West Indi.es, 1680-1834 (Cambridge, 1985), p." 113. 64 E. N. Chamberlain, "The influence of the slave trade on Liverpool Medicine', Fourteenth International Congress of the History of Medicine, II (Rome and Salerno, 1954), p. 769. 65 Regarding the issue of slave mortality rates and the profitability in the British slave trade, see David Richardson, 'The Costs of Slave Trade Captains 121
Survival: The Transport of Slaves in the Middle Passage and the Profitability of the 18th-Century British Slave Trade', Explorations in Economic History, XXIV (1987), pp. 178-96. 66 Liverpool Muster Rolls 1788: P.R.O., BT 98/48, No. 128; and 1791: BT 98/51. No. 164. 67 Liverpool Muster Roll 1797: P.R.O., BT 98/57, No. 70. 68 Liverpool Muster Roll 1788: P.R.O., BT 98/48, No. 129. 69 Liverpool Muster Rolls 1785: P.R.O., BT 98/45. No. 244; and 1796: BT 98/56, No. 124. 70 Liverpool Muster Roll 1793: P.R.O., BT 98/53, No. 85. 71 Hugh Grow mentions his brother in his Memoirs, p. 68. 72 The information for this section is from my database on Liverpool slave-ship captains. 73 One of Hugh Crow's slave voyages was aboard the Prince (56), a feeder vessel trading slaves on the African coast that did not make the Middle Passage (Crow, Memoirs, pp. 32-4). 74 This varied from a few mariners who attained command after only one previous slave voyage, such as Reuben Wright, to Thomas Moffitt, a slave-ship captain in 1802 who had previously made eleven voyages in the slave trade, with three as first mate. Most captains needed either two or three voyages as first mate before they were promoted. Exceptions were Moses Joynson, William Hymers, and Cunliffe Poole Rain, who each made six voyages as chief mate before attaining command. 75 A Mariner of England: An Account of the Career of William Richardson from Cabin Boy in the Merchant Service to Warrant Office in the Royal Navy [1780 to 1819] as Told by Himself, ed. Colonel Spencer Childers (London, 1908), pp. 1-42 and 72-3. 76 Crow, Memoirs, pp. 38-9. 77 Though eighteenth-century tonnage measurements are usually misleading, the Registration Act of 1786 required a new standard system of measurement which greatly increased the accuracy of tonnage and enable historians to use tonnage as a basis of study with more confidence. 78 Crow, Memoirs, p. 77. 79 Behrendt, thesis, p. 35; James A. Rawley, The Transatlantic Slave Trade: A History (New York, 1981). pp. 216-18: Report of the Lords, 1789, Part VI." 80 Behrendt database. 81 William Butterworth, Three Years Adventures, of a Minor, in England, Africa, the West Indies, South-Carolina and Georgia (Leeds, 1822), p. 40; Behrendt database. 82 Bermuda Gazette and Weekly Advertiser, 12 Feb. 1791, p. 4. 83 Crow, Memoirs, p. 133'and Lloyd's Register (Underwriters') 1808. Crow relates that Forrest was not pleased with being replaced as captain, and on the voyage to Bonny 'took every opportunity of making me and all on board as unhappy as he could, and at one time, he had instigated the crew to an almost open state of mutiny, by constantly plying them with spirits.' Forrest was then removed 122 S. D. Behrendt
from his position as chief mate (Memoirs, p. 148) and he later died on the coast of Africa (Liverpool Muster Roll 1808: P.R.O., BT 98/68, No. 251). 84 Numerous works mention Crow and the Kitty's Amelia as sailing the last slave voyage. Among them are: Williams, Liverpool Privateers, pp. 626 and 650; Hand, T.H.S.L.C., LXXXII; and Watkin, Mariner's Mirror, LXIII, p. 185. 85 Crow, Memoirs, pp. 136-7. 86 Compare Liverpool Muster Rolls 1808: P.R.O., BT 98/68, No. 251, and 1809: BT 98/69, No. 234. 87 Gore's Liverpool Directory, pp. 97-100. 88 P.P. 1792, XXXV (768). 89 Based on an examination of eighty-six mariners' and nine surgeons wills proved at the Prerogative Court of Chester, 1790^-1800: F.H.L., Reels 88881-88926. 90 Will of William Boats, merchant, proved 4 July 1795, Prerogative Court of Canterbury: P.R.O., PROB 11/1263, No. 431. 91 Will of David Christian, master and mariner, proved 23 October 1798, Prerogative Court of Chester: F.H.L., Reel 88892. 92 Liverpool Muster Roll 1789: P.R.O.. BT 98/49, No. 79. 93 Liverpool Muster Roll 1791: P.R.O., BT 98/51, No. 128; P.P. 1792, XXXV (766), p. 4. 94 Behrendt database; Crow, Memoirs, pp. 59 and 66. 95 The abolitionist Thomas Clarkson was the first to study Liverpool musters during the initial parliamentary investigations into the slave trade in the late 1780s. Clarkson examined muster rolls from eighty-eight Liverpool slave vessels in the trade from 1786 to 1787 and found that crew deaths were often greater than slave deaths, and that the slave trade was by far the most deadly of all British trades. Clarkson, though, grouped all crew deaths together in one column, and thus did not show that many captains died in the slave trade. Clarkson's data can be found in the Report of the Lords (1789), Part II. 96 I include those captains 'lost at sea' and 'lost at Africa' who do not appear in later slave trade lists. 97 Postma's research on the Dutch slave trade from 1675 to 1803 shows that most Dutch captains made only one slave voyage, and that 11 per cent of the captains died in the trade. He suggests that this figure should be doubled, which would then bring it more in line with my figure (Johannes Postma, The Dutch in the Atlantic Slave Trade, 160(^1815 (New York, 1990), pp. 156-7, Appendices 13 and 14). 98 W. N. Kennedy, 'Tom Jenkins', Transactions of the Hawick Archaeolo gical Society (May 1870), p. 53. I am indebted to Mr Mark Duffill of Edinburgh for this reference. Delirium tremens is a condition caused by withdrawal from alcohol. Among other symptoms, the patient sweats and appears delirious. A continual shaking of the hand is a later sign of the disease (The Merck Manual oj Diagnosis and Therapy, ed. Robert Berkow (Rahway, New Jersey, 1982), pp. Stare Trade Captains 123
1416-17). Swanson could have become addicted to rum while in the slave trade. 99 Evidence of Robert Hume, 28 May 1799, in Torrington, Lords Sessional Papers, III, p. 102. Similarly, allowing crew members to go ashore in the Caribbean islands to buy provisions and water was thought to be unwise, and writers suggested employing 'negroes' in these tasks to reduce crew mortality. See John Hunter, Observations on the Diseases of the Army in Jamaica: and on the Best Means of Preserving the Health of Europeans, in that Climate (London, 1788), p. 138. 100 Evidence of Hume, 28 May 1799, in Torrington, Lords Sessional Papers, III, p. 105. Steckel and Jenson, however, suggest that the 'chances of crew deaths from fevers were systematically highest on the Windward Coast' (Richard H. Steckel and Richard A. Jenson, 'New Evidence on the Causes of Slave and Crew Mortality in the Atlantic Slave Trade', Journal of Economic History, XLVI, No. 1 (March 1986), p. 66). 101 Herbert S. Klein, The Middle Passage: Comparative Studies in the Atlantic Slave Trade (Princeton, 1978), p. 235. 102 Torrington, Lords Sessional Papers, III, p. 102. 103 Evidence of James Rigby, 6 June 1799, in Torrington, Lords Sessional Papers, III, p. 30; Behrendt database. 104 Gore's Liverpool Directory, or. Alphabetical List, of the Merchants. Tradesmen, and Principal Inhabitants, of the Town of Liverpool (Liverpool, 1800); Gore's Directory, for Liverpool and its Environs (Liverpool, 1814). 105 Brighouse was an executor of the estate of Captain Thomas Jolly, master and mariner, will signed 23 Sept. 1791, proved 4 May 1798, Prerogative Court of Chester: F.H.L., Reel 88908. 106 Will of William Gibson, merchant, proved 7 Sept. 1799, Prerogative Court of Chester: F.H.L., Reel 88915. 107 Crow, Memoirs, p. 81. 108 For the Bess, Liverpool Muster Roll 1801: P.R.O., BT 98/61, No. 321 and Lloyd's Register of Shipping (Underwriters', 1802); for the Woolton, Liverpool Muster Roll 1804: P.R.O., BT 98/64, No. 352. Some captains also commanded privateers between slave voyages. 109 Liverpool Muster Rolls 1807-10: P.R.O., BT 98/67-70. Similarly, upon abolition most slave vessels were redeployed to the direct Caribbean trade (David Williams, 'Abolition and Re-deployment of the Slave Fleet, 1807-1811', The journal of Transport History, II (Sept. 1973), pp. 103-15. 110 S.M.V. Bristol Muster Rolls. 29 Sept. 1792 to 29 Sept. 1793, No. 86. 111 The Commissioned Sea Officers of the Royal Navy, 1660-1815 (London: National Maritime Museum, 1954). APPENDIX
TABLE A Slave-Ship Captains and Genealogies: Fathers' Occupations Given
Father 's Agt at Captain 's Name Years (Voyages) Christening Parish leather/Mother Occupation I'ifil Command
Theophilous Bent 1794-1800(4)-d 11 Aug. 1769 Wa Cheney/Nancy Vintner 24 Thomas Bleakley 1791, 1792 6 Nov. 1766 LSN Thomas Turner 24 Timothy Boardman 1792-1806(8) 9 Dec. 1 764 LSN Peter Mastman 27 Henry Booth 1794-1802(5) 6 Apr. 1773(B) LSP William Roper 21 Miles Booth 1798-d 30 June 1775(B) LSP William Ropemaker 23 Hugh Bowland 1799-1804(3) 23 Dec. 1764 LSN Nicholas Ironmonger 34 Peter Whitfield Brancker 1772-1788(11) 3 Sept. 1750 LSN Thomas Apothecary- 21 Co John Brine* 1786-1806(9) 26 Mar. 1749 LSP John Bricklayer 37 John Bunnell* 1792, 1793 27 Oct. 1764 LSN James Butcher 27 John Carson 1793-1796(3) 21 Dec. 1766 LSP William Sailor 26 John Cotter* 1783-1 787 (4)-d 7 Aug. 1750 LSN Thomas Shipwright 33 Hugh Crow 1798-1807(7) 1765 IOM Hugh/Catherine Tradesman 33 William Crow 1798, 1799-d unknown IOM Hugh/Catherine Tradesman ? Gilbert Curry- 1794-1801(6) 9 Mar. 1 766 LSN Thomas Labourer, Shoemaker 28 Richard Everitt 1802-1806(5) 6 Feb. 1 763 LSP William Shoemaker 38 William Forbes 1786-1791(6) 13 Feb. 1753(B) LSGCS Edward Merchant 32 George Greaves 1786-1797(6) 1 Nov. 1758(B) LSGCS William Merchant 27 John Heblethwaite* 1777-1792(11) 17 Oct. 1756 LSP Christopher Roper 21 John Hewan 1781-1790(6) 15 Sept. 1749(B) BGL Robert Mariner 31 Francis Holland* 1775-1788(4) 27 Aug. 1745 LSGCS Nehemiah Mariner ? Charles Hornby* 1788-1792(4) 4 Sept. 1763 LSN Elnathan Roper 25 Thomas Johnson 1786-l797(ll)-d 5 June 1754 LSGCS Thomas Mariner 32 Richard Kelsall* 1792-1800(5) 2 Dec. 1752 Wy Jonathan Maltster to John Kendall 1792-1802(7) 30 Oct. 1768 West John Mariner! 23 Richard Kendall 1783-1798(6) 7 May 1761 West John Mariner! 22 James Kidd 1785, 1792 13 July 1762 LSGCS James Brazier 23 William Lace 1792-1806(7) 26 Feb. 1767 LSN Ambrose Merchant +Shipowncrtt 25 Roger Lcathom 1777-1799(9) 11 July 1744 U Thomas Sailor 33 Leigh Lyon 1804-1807(3) I5jan. 1781 LSN Thomas Scrjeant at Mace 23 Luke Mann* 1794-1802(6) 17 Apr. 1761 WSN Luke/Ann Sailor 33 John Nunns* 1804-1807(3) 9 July 1765 LaSM John Manner 39 Gilbert Fry Rigby 1791 1 Mar. 1763 BGL Gilbert Merchant 27 Lewis Robinson 1804 9 Feb. 1777(B) BGL John/Mary Porter 27 s= James Seddon 1796-1806(9) 10 Oct. 1755 LSP James Koper H < Thomas Tittle 1806 26 July 1780(B) LSN Thomas Blockmaker 25 ^ Roger Topping 1796-d 1 Dec. 1770 LSN Roger Attorney 25 S- Reuben W right 1792-1801(7) 17 Sept. 1758 Wh Henry Buatbuilder 33 ^n'r^
B .\Vi»r/Y(T 1 i\rrrww»l \tn«: rrr Rnlk 1 785-1 HOQ- PRO RT 98/45-69: P.P 1 806 XIII (265) K H I. 1 (* 1 rnmnntrr srarrl1 0*r Hr:imaiu'krrLi'r, , ^ S't» voyages: Torrington, Lords Sessional Papers, III, p. 102; for the Crow brothers: Memoirs of Hugh Crow, pp. 1, 68. Key: All captains sailed from Liverpool; col. 1: * - I have selected the most probable christening record from the (wo or three possible lor each of these names; col. 2: d captain died on voyage: col. 3: (B) - date "I birth: col. 4: BGL Benns Garden, Liverpool; LaSM - Lancaster St Mary; LSGCS - Liverpool St George, Castle Street; LSN - Liverpool St Nicholas; LSP - Liverpool St Peter; U - Ulverston; Wa - Warrington; West - Westmorland; Wh - Whitby. Yorks.; WSN - Whitehaven St Nicholas; Wy - Wybunbury, Cheshire; col. 6: f John Kendall senior's occupation is from Lloyd's Register lor 1775, which lists him as master of the snow Polly for Africa; ff - Ambrose Lace is given as a mariner at the christening of his son, but by 1770 he was a merchant and later a 'merchant and shipowner' (Williams, Liverpool Privateers, pp. 550 and 615). TABLE B Slave-Ship Captains and Genealogies: Fathers' Occupations Not Given
Age at Ntinif Years (Voyages) Christening Parish Parents hirst Command i
Enoch Allman 1805 8 July 1753 Saxilby, Lincolnshire Enoch/Abigail 52 James Bachope 1789-1798(7) 23 Sept. 1741 Airth, Stirling, Scotland John/Agnes Malcom 47 Gerrard Backhouse 1775-1789(8) 13 Dec. 1749 St Mary, Lancaster William 25 James Bailiff 1795-1799(3) 16 Sept. 1756 St Mary, Lancaster George 39 Elijah Belcher 1799-1804(4) 24 Feb. 1763(B) Braintree, Massachusetts unknown 36 William Blackie* (Lo) 1802 7 Jan. 1767 Monlrose, Angus, Scotland James/Elspet Glen 35 Andrew Chester (Lo) 1792-1806(8) 21 June 1758 Woolsthorpe, Lincolnshire Andrew/Dorothy 34 Walter Clements 1801 9 Oct. 1774 St Kew, Cornwall unknown 26 Tobias Collins (Li + La), 1791, 1792 30 July 1766 Si James, Whitehaven Michael 25 Co Hugh Cowell 1790-1799(3) 6 Nov. 1766 Wigan, Lancashire William/Alice 24 to Giles Creed (Lo) 1793-1799(3) 30 Nov. 1752 Newland, Gloucestershire Giles/Margaret 40 to Samuel Darner (Br) 1795 13 July 1766 St Saviour, Southwark Samuel 29 3- ^ Laurence Dillon 1801, 1804-d 22 Jan. 1764 Holborn, London Francis/Mary 37 a Charles Dobell 1791 12 Aug. 1759 Davenham, Cheshire Benjamin/Elizabeth 32 ^ Henry Duckett (Br) 1793 23 Dec. 1750 Mcyscyhampton, Gloucestershire Richard/Mary 42 Quayle Fargher 1784-1787(3) 13 July 1755 Malew, IOM Thomas/Eliz. Quayle 29 Richard Gawn 1796 22 Feb. 1765 St Michael, Douglas, IOM Richard 31 Alexander Grierson 1787-1798(7) 21 June 1762 Balquhidder, Perth, Scotland Duncan/Chris. Stewart 25 Henry Hatchell 1804 13 Jan. 1763 Plymtrec, Devon Henry /Thomzin 41 Philip Henshall 1796-1802(6) 28 Nov. 1 764 Leigh, Lancashire Jeremy (of Bedford) 32 Archibald Holmes 1802, 1804 18 Oct. 1761 Lanark, Scotland Alex/Ann McKim 40 Younger Kelsick 1796, 1797-d 20 July 1765 St Bees, Cumberland Isaac 31 John Kimber (Br, Lo, Li) 1791-1799(5) 15 Sept. 1751 Bideford, Devon George/Elisabeth 39 John Kitts 1800, 1801-d 30 Jan. 1763 Cheshunt, Hertfordshire Benjamin/Elizabeth 37 Hugh Lancelot! 1 788-1 794(3)-d 6 Oct. 1758 Leek, Staffordshire Edward/Sarah 30 Caesar Lawson 1798-1806(9) 8 May 1775 St Michael, Douglas, IOM William/Jane Christian 23 Roger Lee 1789-1792(4)-d about 1759 unknown unknown 30 William Llewelyn 1802 18 Dec. 1774 Monmouthshire William/Ann 28 Vincent May 1802-1806(4) 14 Feb. 1766 St Marys-Rom. Cath., Liverpool Matthew/Martha 36 James Milbank 1787-1788(3) 5 May 1 745 Aythorpe Roding, Essex John/Sarah 41 Thomas Mollatt 1801 29 May 1 768 Burslem, Staffordshire Richard/ Hannah 33 Andrew Molt 1787-1791(3) 24 Nov. 1 752 St John, Westminster Samuel/Margaret 34 Robert Moultun (Lo) 1790-1792(3) 15 Aug. 1742 St Augustine, Norwich William/Elizabeth 48 Thomas Mullinn 1797-1805(7)-d 27 Apr. 1777 Inchture, Perth, Scotland William/Jean Coke 20 Isaac Nonmus 1802-1806(3) 24 Dec. 1769 (B) Bristol Jacob/Hannah 32 Joseph Peers* 1786-1799(4) 21 Apr. 1754 Newchurch Kenyon, Lancashire Thomas 31 John Pince 1797-1800(3) 27 Dec. 1764 Mylor, Cornwall Benjamin/Elizabeth 32 Robert Pince 1797-1806(8) 9 June 1772 Mylor, Cornwall Benjamin/Elizabeth 25 Joseph Porteus* 1804-1807(3) 19 Apr. 1779 Whitehaven, Cumberland Joseph/Sally 25 Gerrard Preston 1787-1793(7) 29 Apr. 1 754 St Mary, Lancaster William 33 William Quarrier 1786-1798(4) 17 Aug. 1764 (B) Markinch, Fife, Scotland unknown Co 22 cT Chambers Reed 1801 16 Nov. 1764 Holme Cultram, Cumberland Jonathan 36 S Eglitoun Richardson 1798-1 802 (4)-d 15 Feb. 1764 Irvine, Ayr, Scotland Arthur/Marion Mair 34 3 Alexander Robe (Br) 1776-1789(9) 7 June 1756 Keith, BanlT, Scotland James/Jean Wilson 20 1CX) Radcliffe Sliimmins 1790-1799(8) 13 Feb. 1762 Rarnsey, IOM John/Jane RadclifTe 28 n Charles Slopcr (Br) 1787-1792(3) 12 Aug. 1764 Cirencester, Gloucestershire Charles 23 iB" Thomas Smcrdon (Br+Li) 1790-1798(6) 23 Jan. 1769 Ashburton, Devon John/Elizabeth 21 Francis Stowell 1800, 1801 19 June 1768 St Michael, Douglas, IOM George/Sussanah Robson 32 e James Stowell 1806 22 Nov. 1770 St Michael, Douglas, IOM Thomas/Ann Brown 35 Thomas Stowell 1792-d 28 Nov. 1764 St Michael, Douglas, IOM Thomas/Ann Brown 27 Joseph Thrcllfall 1786-1799(11) 15 July 1759 Chorley, Lancashire Joseph 27 John Tobin 1793-1802(6) 30 Oct. 1763 St Michael, Douglas, IOM Patrick/Elinor Breakhill 29 Thomas Tobin* 1796-1806(8) 18 Sept. 1775 St Michael, Douglas, IOM Patrick/Elinor Breakhill 21 Samuel Van Ranst 1804 30 May 1773 Reformed Dutch Church, N.Y. unknown 30 Mungo Wright (Br) 1775-1790(6) about 1742 St George, Middlesex unknown ?
Source: Liverpool Muster Rolls 1785-1809: P.R.O., BT 98/45-69; S.M.V. Bristol Muster Rolls, 1783-95; P.P. 1806, XIII (265); Lloyd's Register of Shipping, 1785-1809; F.H.L., I.G.I, computer search. 'S Key: All captains cleared from Liverpool, unless noted by (La) - Lancaster, (Br) - Bristol, or (Lo) - London; (B) - Date of birth; * - Two or three possibilities were given, and the most probable choice was selected; d - captain died on voyage. TABLE C Liverpool Slave-Ship Captains and Genealogies: Christenings Not Given
Xame Place oj Birth Same Place of Birth
Lutwidge Affleck Kirk German, Isle of Man Archibald Curry Scotland John Bean Isle of Man Andrew Erskine Scotland Thomas Bedson Stafford Patrick Fairweather Angus, Scotland James Blake Scotland George Forshaw Lancashire Richard Bonsall Derby James Good Scotland Christopher Brew Isle of Man Alexander Hackney Angus, Scotland William Brinton Worcester William Hymers Northumberland Patrick Callan Ireland Hugh Kessick Isle of Man George Cannon Isle of Man Philip Kewish Isle of Man Moses Carson Scotland William Kewley Isle of Man to William Cartmell Lancashire James Mackie Scotland Joseph Cash Lancashire James Max Ireland to Robert Catterall Lancashire Peter Mawdesley Lancashire David Christian Isle of Man John McLauren Perth, Scotland David Christie Scotland James Micklejohn Scotland Edward Clark Isle of Man John Muir Scotland William Cockerill Yorkshire Hamlet Mullion Scotland Thomas Connell Isle of Man Henry Nimmo Scotland Andrew Cormack Scotland John Reddie Fife, Scotland John Corran Isle of Man Matthew Sibson Isle of Man William Corran Isle of Man Alexander Steel Scotland James Cosnahan Isle of Man Graham Steel Scotland Alexander Cowan Scotland Henry Tyrer Lancashire Thomas Cubbin Isle of Man Daniel Vaughan Isle of Man
Sources: Family History Library, I.G.I, computer search; Liverpool Muster Rolls, 1785-1809: P.R.O., BT 98/45-69. TABLE D Analysis of Results for Liverpool Slave-Ship Captains, 1785-1807
Average age of Liverpool captains on first slave voyage (Tables A-B): 30.2 years; youngest 20, oldest 52 Sample: 79 captains
Geographical Distribution for Liverpool Father's Occupational Distribution (from Table A) Captains (128 names, from Tables A-C) Shipping-related (28) 1 Lancashire (42) 33% Manner 5 Vintner 1 2 Isle of Man (28) 22% Merchant 4 Tradesman 1 3 Scotland (25) 20% Roper, Ropcmaker 4 Ironmonger 1 4 Coastal England (21) 16% Sailor 3 Blockmaker 1 5 Agricultural England (6) 5% Boatbuilder 1 Turner 1 6 Colonial America (2) Shipwright 1 Brazier 1 7 Ireland (2) Apothecary 1 Porter 1 8 London (1) Mastman 1 Maltster 1 9 Bristol (1) Other (6) Coastal England includes C umberland (6), Cheshire (3), Shoemaker 2 Bricklayer 1 Cornwall (3), Westmorland (2), Yorkshire (2), Devon, Serjeant at Mace 1 Butcher 1 Essex, Lincoln, Northumberland, and Wales (1 each); Attorney 1 Agricultural England includes Stafford (3), Derby, Here ford, and Worcester (1 each). TABLE E Biographies of 49 Bristol Slave-Ship Captains, 1785-1794
First Years g Name Birthplace Slave Trade (voyages) Command at Sea
Elisha Arrindell Anguilla, West Indies 1794-1799 (5) 28 ? William Blake Combe in Teignhead, Devon 1792 31 15 Michael Crangle Belfast 1791, 1792-d 26 13 Thomas Crooker (>Li) Bristol 1792, 1798 28 11 Thomas Distin Paignton, Devon 1794-d 28-e 14 William Engledue (>Li) Bristol 1786, 1790-1802 (7) 40 26 John Fitzhenry Ireland 1791-1793 (3) 35 21 James Fraser Scotland 1775-1797 (13) 35-e 10 Thomas Gilchrist Carron, Scotland 1792 34 18 Thomas Givin (Li>Br>Li) Chester 1791-1797 (4)-d 31-e 17 John Goodrich Virginia, U.S.A. 1789-1792 (3) 34 18 James Gordon (>Lo) Teignmouth, Devon 1792; [1801-1805 (4)] 28 15 Thomas Grimes Bristol 1789 35 21 Michael Hainsley Dublin 1790 37 14 Benjamin Howard Somerset 1789-1791 (3) 32-e 24 John Hudson Durham 1794 30 16 William Hutcheson Dublin 1789-1792 (3)-d 24-e 12 William Jenkins (>Li) Watchett, Somerset 1788-1799 (3)-d 45-e 31 Robert Jones (>Li) Bristol 1792-1797 (5)-d 22 9 John Kennedy Bristol 1787-1792 (3); [1800] 35-e 18 John Kimber (>Lo, >Li) Bideford, Devon 1791-1799 (5) 39 24 John Langdon Torrington, Devon 1774-1791 (8) 30-e 13 John Langley Wiltshire 1791, 1792-d 52-e 33 James Lloyd (former surgeon) Wales 1 792-d 39 15 Richard Martin (>Li) Ireland 1788, 1790; [1799] 25-e 10 Robert Martin (>Lo+Li) Hull 1792; [1798-1805 (4)] 28 14 Edward Mentor (>Li) Ipswich 1789-1800 (9)-d 26-e 10 Matthew Morlev (>Lo) Milford 1784-1803 (10) 31-e 12 William Peall Carlisle 1 790-d 31 20 Samuel Phillips St Kitts, West Indies 1792 28 16 Thomas Phillips Bideford, Devon 1784-1804 (12)-d 27-e 20 Samuel Price (former surgeon) London 1792 26 3 William Roper (>Li) Newcastle upon Tyne 1789-1794 (4) 26 17 Samuel Roscow Kent 1791 31 21 John Scasbrick (? Scarisbrick) Liverpool 1790 37 23 Thomas Madge Smerdon (>Li) Ashburton, Devon 1790-1798 (7) 21* 8 John Smith Ilfracombe, Devon 1792 32 16 John Smith Bristol . . 1787-1791 (3) 48-e 31 James Soutar (>Li) Scotland 1791-1803 (7) 27-e 13 John Spencer (>Li) Liverpool 1787-1798 (7)-d 30-e 13 Cobb Taylor (>Li) Somerset 1783-1802 (6) 27-e 20 y John Robinson Wade (
Sources: S.M.V. Bristol Muster Rolls, 1783-95, Merchants' Hall, Bristol; Liverpool Muster Rolls, 1785-1809: P.R.O., BT 98/45-69; P.P. 1806, XIII (265); Lloyd's Registers, 1776-1809; Surgeon's Log No. 37, H.L.R.O, Main Papers, H.L. 19 June 1799 (for Distin's death). Key. col. 1: > moved to; < moved from; Br Bristol; Li Liverpool; Lo London; col. 3: d died on voyage; square brackets enclose voyages which may be incorrectly assigned to these men because of common names; cols. 4 5: e age and years at sea estimated, since figures are given only in the musters of 1789-94; * - Smerdon's age calculated from christening date 23 Jan. 1769 (see Table B), whereas muster gives 22. TABLE F Captains' Mortality in Bristol Slave Trade 1785-94 and Liverpool Slave Trade 1785-1807
- UiJ Voyage Time at sea Captain's name as capt. Vessel(tons) Date sailed Cause of death Dale of death (months, days)
Henry Moore 3rd Gregson(258) 13 Feb. 1785 died 20 May 1 785 (3, 7) James Potter 3rd Mary (1 37) 11 June 1785 died 11 Apr. 1786 (10,0) Michael Loughman 1st Asia(80) 26 June 1785 died 23 Sept. 1785 (2, 27) Joshua Pugmor 1st Brothers(lOO) 29 June 1785 died 1 Oct. 1785 (3, 2) James Gibbons 4th Garland(525) 26 July 1785 died 4 Jan. 1786 (5,9) William Stevenson 7th John(\W) 19 Aug. 1785 died 3 Sept. 1785 (0, 15) Thomas Willacy 2nd Mary(TO) 21 Aug. 1785 died 19 Dec. 1785 (3, 28) Robert Thornborrow 3rd Oronoko(\20) 11 Dec. 1785 died 11 Apr. 1786 (4, 0) £ Thomas Sutton 5th Eliza(nQ) 31 Dec. 1785 died 8 May 1 786 (4, 8) != Richard Hale 1st James(\09) 15 Feb. 1786 died 24 May 1 786 (3, 9) '(367) 9 July 1788 died 21 Dec. 1788 (5, 12) Diederick Wise 5th tf
David Robinson 1st Nancy(\\S) 13 Oct. 1791 died 2 Mar. 1792 (4, 17) Thomas Stowell 1st Colonel( 1 30) 10 Jan. 1792 died in Africa 1 May 1793 (15,21) James Lloyd (Br) 1st African Queen(277) 16 Jan. 1792 died at sea of fever 1 Dec. 1792 (10, 15) Samuel Williams 2nd Nancy(\98) 18 Jan. 1792 died 22 May 1 792 (4,4) William Carrol 1st Orange Grove(\40) 23 Feb. 1792 died 5 Aug. 1792 (5, 11) William Martin 1st Yount Hen(80) 22 Mar. 1792 died 2 Sept. 1792 (5, 12) Thomas Ashburner 3rd Helen(\97) 29 Apr. 1792 died 3 Nov. 1793 (18,5) Henry Moore 2nd Minerva( 153) 6 Mav 1792 died 30 Oct. 1792 (5, 24) Wm Hutcheson (Br) 4th Friendship^ 146) 8 July 1792 died in Africa of 18 Dec. 1792 (5, 10) fever James Hodgson 1st Madam Pookata(\\$) 15 Aug. 1792 supposed drowned 1 Mar. 1793 (6, 16) John Langley (Br) 2nd Roman Emperor(2QQ) 15 Aug. 1792 died 21 July 1793 (11,6) William Doyle 4th Betsey(\90) 18 Aug. 1792 died 30 Jan. 1793 (5, 12) George Forshaw 1st fif//(148) 28 Aug. 1792 died 12 Jan. 1793 (4, 15) to Daniel Collins (see 1st Apollo (1 7 \) 30 Aug. 1 792 died of weakness 15 Dec. 1792 (3, 16) notes) John Coulthard 1st Molh(Wl) 28 Sept. 1792 died 27 Feb. 1793 (5,0) William Platt 2nd Venus(\59) 28 Sept. 1792 died 11 Oct. 1792 (0, 13) Richard Withering 3rd Commerce( 125) 6 Oct. 1792 lost in hurricane 20 Oct. 1793 (12, 14) Michael Crangle (Br) 2nd Favourite( 161) 11 Oct. 1792 died in Africa of 26 Jan. 1793 (3, 15) fever James McEwan (see 1st Catharine(98) 27 Oct. 1792 died of fever 1 7 Apr. 1 793 (5,21) notes) James Harrocks 1st Backhouse( 1 74) 27 Oct. 1792 died 19July 1793 (8, 16) Thomas Tyrer 1st T/wmas(228) 30 Oct. 1792 died 24 Mar. 1793 (4, 24) John Sparling 3rd Joseph(\62) 23 Nov. 1792 died 16 July 1793 (7, 23) Charles Spencer 1st Susannah(6&) 24 Nov. 1792 drowned 26 Dec. 1 792 (1,2) Richard Finder 6th Lord Charlemont(l55) 10 Jan. 1793 drowned 6 Feb. 1794 (12,27) Joseph James 1st Britannia(205) 17 Jan. 1793 died 7 Nov. 1793 (9,21) Archibald Forrest 3rd Robust(3\5) 24 Mar. 1793 died 21 July 1793 (3, 27) John Davis 3rd Blaj>ds(306) 10 Dec. 1793 supposed lost no date given John Mount 7th Kitty (333) 8 Mar. 1794 died 5 Aug. 1794 (4, 28) Thomas Distin(Br) (see 1st May(4\) 9 Apr. 1794 died of fever no date given notes) Alexander Finley# 3rd Rose(l64-) June 1794 [died] no date given Joseph Hodgson# 4th Union(\'M) June 1794 [died] no date given James Mills 2nd Gipsey( 1 74) 25 June 1794 lost in Africa 25 Aug. 1 794 (2,0) Hugh Lancelot! 3rd Mary(1TK) 12 July 1794 died 8 Aug. 1 794 (0, 27) John Brown 4th JennyCl'bK) 5 Nov. 1 794 lost at sea, perished 5 Jan. 1795 (2,0) Thomas Heart 9th Rodney'(110) 14 Nov. 1794 died 26 July 1795 (3, 12) Richard Wilkerson 1st Marv(lM) 17 Nov. 1794 died 19 May 1795 (6,2) Roger Lee 6th Botton(298) 5 Dec. 1794 died 23 Mar. 1795 (3, 18) Robert Wilson* 1st Ranger(llO) 1 Jan. 1795 captd by French, no date given died William Young 6th Spitfire (288) 16 June 1795 vessel lost 13 Mar. 1796 (7, 20) William Boys# 6th May (17 \) Dec. 1795 [died] no date given David Armstrong 1st Betsey(\90) 6 Jan. 1796 died 11 May 1796 (4,5) Roger Topping 1st Good Intent(\35) 26 June 1796 died 22 Apr. 1797 (9, 27) Edward Hollywood 3rd Lord Stanle)>(2'39) 1 1 Aug. 1 796 died 25 Apr. 1797 (8, 14) John Bunnell 3rd Achilles(\92) 14 Aug. 1796 supposed lost 17 Apr. 1797 (8,3) Owen Jones 3rd Young Ralph(l50) 10 Sept. 1796 died 14 Apr. 1797 (7,4) Philip Kewish# 2nd Liver(l32) Oct. 1796 [died] no date given Peter McQuea* 1st Thomas(222) 13 Dec. 1796 killed by slaves 8 Sept. 1797 (8, 26) Francis Smith 1st In/ant ,4«n(103) 14 Dec. 1796 died 14 Apr. 1797 (4,0) William Curry 1st Sarah(302) 26 Jan. 1797 killed [by French] 17 Feb. 1797 (0, 22) Thomas Given 4th Hannah(389) 15 June 1797 died 23 Nov. 1797 (5,8) James Bird 6th Eliza(23\) 19 July 1797 vessel blown up 19 Dec. 1797 (5,0) David Hogg# 1st Good Intent(\35) 19 July 1797 captured [and died] no date given Younger Kelsick# 3rd Gov. n'illiamson(23Q) 19 July 1797 lost in Africa [and no date given died] Voyage Time at sea Captain's name as capt. Vessel (tons) Date sailed Cause oj death Date »/ death (months, days)
John Richards 2nd Brooks(3\9) 24 Aug. 1797 died 16 June 1798 (9, 23) Charles Gilliland 1st Gudgeon(2W) 8 Sept. 1797 died 13 Mar. 1798 (6, 5) Thomas Johnston 9th EHZabeth(\92) 22 Oct. 1797 died 13 July 1798 (8,21) Robert Jones# 6th Saint Anne(l8Q) 26 Oct. 1797 lost at sea [died] 26 June 1798 (8, 0) William Rogers* 1st habella(m) 14 Nov. 1797 killed by French 23 Nov. 1797 David Christian 5th Parr(566) 27 Jan. 1798 vessel blown up no date given John Miller 1st James(203) 2 Feb. 1798 killed [bv French] 20 Feb. 1 798 (0, 18) John Corran 6th Yritoi(314) 18 Feb. 1798 died 24 July 1798 (5,6) Edward Duncan 1st Amelia & 18 Feb. 1798 died 16 May 1798 (2, '28) Eleanor(294) James Taylor 1st Lune(200) 14 Mar. 1798 died 23 Jan. 1799 (10, 4) Richard Gawn (1st 2nd Diana(252) 6 June 1798 died 3 Dec. 1798 (5, 27) mate, former captain) John Spencer 7th Iris (285) 7 June 1798 died 20 Aug. 1798 (2, 23) Miles Booth 1st Friendship(n 8) 5 July 1798 died 17 Jan. 1799 (6, 12) Matthew Vaughan 1st Bess(99) 5 July 1798 lost at sea, perished 5 Sept. 1798 William Quarrier 4th Lightnin%(254-) 24 July 1798 ship lost no date given William Kneale 1st Dart(234) 8 Sept. 1798 died 1 July 1799 (9, 23) Jenkin Evans 8th Gascoyne(3lO) 29 Oct. 1798 died 19 May 1799 (6, 20) James Lake 2nd Trelawney(376) 29 Oct. 1798 died 31 May 1800 (19, 2) Nehemiah Evans 1st Favourite(\6\) 13 Dec. 1798 died 30 May 1 799 (5, 17) John Hodgson 1st Lord Duncan(?) 15 Dec. 1798 died 11 Dec. 1799 (11,26) Hugh Kessick 2nd Penny (226) 15 Dec. 1798 drowned 5 Sept. 1799 (8, 23) James Micklejohn 1st King George(226) 5 Jan. 1799 lost at sea 16 Jan. 1799 (0, 11) John Murdock 2nd Expedition(2\3) 12 Jan. 1799 died 22 Apr. 1799 (3, 10) George Dodson 2nd Eliza('lQO) 1 Feb. 1799 died 29 July 1799 (5, 28) Richard Rogers 2nd Kitty (H2) 5 Feb. 1799 lost at sea, drowned 8 Feb.' 1 799 (0,3) Hugh Stevens 1st Lord Nelson(250) 7 Mar. 1799 died 10 July 1799 (4,3) John Green 1st Friendly Cedar(l47) 29 Mar. 1 799 supposed lost no date given Richard Jones 7th Lmicorn(\63) 4 Apr. 1 799 died 18 Dec. 'l799 (8, 14) Robert Dowie 2nd Rodney (1 44) 2 June 1799 died 2 Feb. 1800 (8,0) Edward Lovelace 3rd Dictator(275) 9 June 1799 drowned 5 Jan. 1801 (17,9) William Jenkins 3rd Bess(\28) 17 July 1799 died 21 Oct. 1799 (3, 4) Matthew Sibson 1st Annan(\96) 21 July 1799 died 29 Jan. 1800 (6,8) Edward Mosson 2nd Anne(\8\) 25 July 1799 vessel lost Africa no date given Daniel Hayward 6th Active(3QQ) 26 Aug. 1 799 died 6 Mar. J800 (6, 8) Henry W. Meech 1st Minerva(255) 26 Aug. 1 799 died 16 Sept. 1800 (12,21) Robert Barrett 1st Hamilton(m) 4 Sept. 1 799 died IJan. 1800 (3, 28) William Crow* 2nd Charlotte(2\0) 5 Sept. 1799 died | drowned] 3 Feb. 1800 (4, 29) John Ford 3rd Bacchus(3ll) 7 Sept. 1799 died 19 Nov. 1799 (2, 12) Thomas Harold 7th Sally & Rebeaa(226) 15 Jan. 1800 died 1 May 1800 (3, 16) James Robertson 4th Betsey & Susan(}78) 20 Apr. 1800 died 26 Aug. 1800 (4,8) John Jones 4th Lord Thurlow(222) 6 May 1800 died 5 Jan. 1801 (8,0) Edward Mentor 9th John(268) 22 May 1800 died 29 Sept. 1800 (4, 7) Theophilous Bent 4th Hector(456) 31 May 1800 died 31 July 1800 (2, 0) William Corran 8th Nanny (3 \ I) 14July 1800 died at sea 9 Dec. 1800 (4, 25) John Morrison 2nd Catharine (1 66) 23 July 1800 vessel blown up Owen Pritchard 4th Famc(396) 8 Aug. 1800 died 14 Feb. 1801 (6, 6) Andrew Arnold 2nd Hannah(389) 1 Sept. 1800 died 27 Dec. 1800 (3, 26) John Williams 1st Nanny (?) 5 Sept. 1800 died 5 May 1801 (8,0) Joseph Fayrer ? Annabella(2l2) 6 Oct. 1800 died 11 Jan. 1801 (3,5) Thomas Smith 8th Trelawney(333) 6 Oct. 1800 died 19 June 1801 (8, 13) Thomas Whitehead 1st George(\64?) 6 Oct. 1800 died 9 Jan. 1801 (3, 3) Thomas Knowles 2nd Elizabeth(\92) 18 Nov. 1800 died 10 Mar. 1801 (3, 20) James Love 1st Bess(\28) 18 Nov. 1800 drowned 20 Nov. 1800 (0,2) Michael Whaley 1st Trident(231) 18 Nov. 1800 died 23 Feb. 1801 (3, 5) Richard Kelsall 6th Gov. Dowdeswell(306) 6 Dec. 1800 died in Africa 23 June 1801 (6, 17) John Gardiner 5th Huntinglon(203) 24 Dec. 1800 lost 4 Jan. 1801 John Olderman 3rd Lucy (206) 26 Apr. 1801 killed by slaves 24 June 1801 (1,29) James Towers 2nd Blanche(\38) SJuly 1801 died 20 Mar. 1802 (8, 15) Robert Bale 1st Mary(l56) 23 Aug. 1801 died 20 Nov. 1801 (2, 28) [ 'ovage Time at sea Captain's name as capt. Vessel (tons) Date sailed Cause <>/ death Date of death (months, days)
oo Robert McAdam 1st Lady Frances (228) 21 Sept. 1801 died 20 Jan. 1802 (4, 0) co John Kitts 2nd Agnes (189) 2 Oct. 1801 died 29 Mar. 1802 (5, 27) Thomas Cubbon 1st Tyrone(80) 20 Nov. 1801 died 10 Apr. 1802 (4,21) James Blair 1st Heclor(\96) 9 Dec. 1801 died 11 May 1802 (5,2) John Bonsai 3rd Mersey (21 2) 7 May 1802 died 9 July 1802 (2, 2) Thomas W. Egerton 2nd Enterprize(?) 21 May 1802 drowned 25 Jan. 1803 (8, 4) John Pince (supercargo, 4th Vanguard(353) 15 Oct. 1802 died 30 Nov. 1803 (13, 15) former captain) George Martin 2nd Bvam(\66) 16 Oct. 1802 died 8 Oct. 1803 (11, 22) Alexander McLeod 2nd Dick(98) 22 Nov. 1802 died 28 May 1803 (6, 6) William Llewellin 1st Prudence(\23) 14 Dec. 1802 died 14 Mar. 1803 (3,0) James Frodsham 4th Arm(226) 23 Dec. 1802 died 4 Jan. 1804 (12, 12) Richard Hart 5th Otter(283) 25 Jan. 1803 died Congo River 19 May 1803 (3, 24) Eglinton Richardson 5th Ann(22\) 26 Jan. 1803 died 14 May 1803 (3, 18) Charles Gilling 1st A%rus( 134) 7 Mar. 1803 drowned 24 Aug. 1803 (5, 17) John Leathwaite (1st 2nd Alice(30Q) 24 July 1803 died 31 Aug. 1803 (1, 17) mate, former captain) William Wallace 3rd Thomas(307) 6 Oct. 1803 died 27 Jan. 1804 (3,21) Alexander Laing 7th Dick(98) 26 Jan. 1804 died in Africa 3 July 1804 (5, 7) Thomas Phillips 13th Laurel(\80) 13 Feb. 1804 died 30 Nov. 1804 (9, 7) John Hurd 4th Prince William(39\) 16 Mar. 1804 died 15 Aug. 1804 (5,0) Robert Woodward 1st Chris topher(U-2) 16 Mar. 1804 died 3 Aug. 1804 (4, 18) Robert Warbrick 2nd Minema(79) 6 Apr. 1804 died 24 June 1804 (2, 18) Lawrence Dillon 2nd Hope(ll7) 7 Apr. 1804 died in Africa 20 July 1804 (3, 13) William Cowen 3rd Elizabeth(23l) 11 Apr. 1804 died in Africa 21 Sept. 1804 (5, 10) James Good 6th Perseverance(392) 21 June 1804 died 26 Oct. 1804 (4,5) John Lawson 5th Horatio(280) 17 July 1804 died 19 Dec. 1804 (5, 2) John Brown V Plover(305) 27 July 1804 died 4 Dec. 1804 (4, 7) Joseph Braithwaite 1st Bess(28\) 29 July 1804 died 18 Dec. 1804 (4, 19) Thomas Omen 1st Lord Nelson(2W) 15 Aug. 1804 died 6 Apr. 1805 (7, 22) George Cornell 3rd Narcissus(\24) 13 Sept. 1804 died 1 1 Dec. 1804 (2, 28) Thomas Chamley 2nd Aurora('29\) 1 Nov. 1804 died 20 July 1805 (8, 19) Edward Williams 3rd Alexander Lindo(308) 13 Jan. 1805 died in Africa 7 Apr.' 1805 (2, 25) John Sinclair 5th Sally(\30) 16 Feb. 1805 died 10 Feb. 1806 (11,25) Charles Watt 6th Fortune (50 1) 25 Apr. 1805 died 14 Dec. 1805 (7, 19) James Wilkie 1st Goodricti(9l) 22 July 1805 supposed drowned 10 May 1806 (9, 17) John Fotheringham 4th Horatio(280) 23 July 1805 died 5 Nov.' 1805 (3, 13) William Howie 1st Gov. Wentworth(\80) 23 July 1805 died 24 Nov. 1805 (4, 1) Thomas Mullion 6th Robert(252) 1 Aug. 1805 died 1 July 1806 (10, 29) Isaac Westron 2nd William & Mary(65) 19 Sept. 1805 died 2\ Dec. 1805 (3, 2) Thomas Jump 3rd Royal Edward(357) 27 Sept. 1805 died 9 Jan. 1806 (3, 13) Alexander Nicholson 9th Bacchus (31 \) 27 Sept. 1805 died 2 May 1806 (7,5) Daniel Robinson 5th Ceres(33\) 9 Oct. 1805 died 8 Feb. 1806 (4,0) Richard Hughes 3rd Duddon(\50) 26 Oct. 1805 died 3 Jan. 1806 (2,8) John Woolrich 3rd Harriot(205) 20 Feb. 1806 died 21 June 1806 (4, 1) John Simpson 3rd Admiral AW.son(234) 7 Mar. 1806 died 6 July 1806 (3, 29) Thomas 'Fittle 1st Constance(\68) 17 Mar. 1806 died 18 July 1806 (4, 1) William McKey 1st Be.ss(28\) 23 Mar. 1806 died 5 July' 1806 (3, 12) Thomas Roberts 1st Backhouse('258) 26 Apr. 1806 died 2 Oct. 1806 (5,6) James Seddon 9th Trafalgar(267) 8 May 1806 died 8 Oct. 1806 (5,0) Isaac Nonmus 2nd John & Henry(268) 17 May 1806 lost on coast 11 June 1806 (0, 25) John Williams 1st Ceres(\28) 2 June 1806 lost; drowned no date given John Blowlield 2nd Mary (132) 3 July 1806 died 14 Feb. '1807 (7, 11) John Colley 1st Dick(98) 9 Aug. 1806 died in Demerara 26 Feb. 1807 (6, 17) Robert Blackburn 2nd Rachael(224) 24 Sept. 1806 died at sea 11 Feb. 1807 (4, 18) Thomas Harney 4th Lottery(32ta) 26 Sept. 1806 died 6 Feb. 1807 (4, 11) John Preston 5th Triton(340) 28 Sept. 1806 died 25 Mar. 1807 (4, 27) John Haycs 5th Susan(97) 23 Jan. 1807 died 25 Apr. 1807 (3, 2) Ainsley(l53) died Henry Corren 1st 14 Mar. 1807 5 May [no year] oa James Scarisbrick 1st Minen>a(l85) 3 May 1807 died 10 Oct. 1807 (5,7) 10 Sample: 1,925 slave voyages from Liverpool, 13 Jan. 1785 to 16 Aug. 1807; 137 slave voyages from Bristol, 22 July 1785 to 14 Apr. 1794. Sources: Liverpool Muster Rolls, 1785-1809: P.R.O., BT 98/45-69; S.M.V. Bristol Muster Rolls, 1785-94; Lloyd's Register of Shipping for tonnages. Key: (Br) - sailed from Bristol; * - information on Robert Wilson, Peter McQuea, and William Rogers from Williams, Liverpool Privateers, pp. 338-9, 697, and 360-1; on William Crow, his brother Hugh wrote that he 'drowned by the upsetting of a boat, while on a party of pleasure near Kingston' (Memoirs, pp. 81-2); # - information on captain's death from wills proved at Chester 1790-1800: Family History Library, Reels 88893-88908. Notes: Thomas Distin's death was recorded in the surgeon's log: House of Lords Record Office, Main Papers, H.L., 19 June 1799, log no. 37. ' James McEwan was recorded as captain in William Bather's log as surgeon (H.L.R.O., Main Papers, H.L., log no. 100, 1794 undated), but the Muster Roll gives William Makee as Master and McEwan as second in command (P.R.O., BT 98/54, no. 161). Daniel Collins' death was recorded in Robert Scott's log as surgeon (H.L.R.O., Main Papers, H.L., log no. 83, 1794 undated), but not in the muster (P.R.O., BT 98/53, no. 397)'.