William Whaley (died circa 1765) was an English slave trader. [1] He was involved in at least 22 slave voyages from the Port of Liverpool, and was one of the biggest slave traders in British America. He employed two of the biggest slave traders, William Davenport and William Earle, before they became slave traders.
Whaley was involved in at least 22 slave voyages in the years between 1750 and 1759 from the Port of Liverpool. [1]
Whaley sold luxury goods to, and maintained a connection with John Ward the owner of Capesthorne Hall. In 1741, John Ward sent his grandson William Davenport to Liverpool to work as an apprentice for Whaley. Davenport worked for Whaley as a grocer and in the African trades for 7 years. Whaley was paid £120 to take Davenport as his apprentice, with an additional annual fee of £25. For the period, the fees paid would be very large, which indicates that Whaley's firm offered a substantial education. [2] Upon completion of the apprenticeship Whaley and Davenport became partners in slave voyages, between 1748 and 1753 they were involved in eight slave voyages. [2] Whaley and Davenport pioneered the creation of Old Calabar as a slaving station. [3] Davenport subsequently became, by the number of slave voyages completed, Britain's biggest slave trader. [2]
Whaley employed William Earle as a slave ship captain. Earle subsequently went on to become one of the biggest slave traders from the Port of Liverpool. [3] In March 1750, Earle captained a ship called the Chesterfield owned by a Whaley, Davenport and a number of others. [3] A letter detailing the instructions given by Whaley, Davenport et al. to Earle on Chesterfield has been preserved. The letter is dated 22 May 1751 and instructs Earle to leave Liverpool and proceed to Douglas on the Isle of Mann to purchase goods to be traded for African people and elephant teeth. From there he was to sail Old Calabar and buy 350 people. The letter gives Earle 5 prestige, by this it was meant in addition to his wages Earle could choose 5 people who when sold would benefit him alone. He was then instructed to sail to the Caribbean where the slaves were to be sold. Thereafter he was told to buy goods for the return trip, with those goods to be sold in Bristol or London. [4] An addendum to the letter signed by Whaley instructs Earle to buy as many elephant teeth as he can, even if that meant he did not buy the full complement of 350 slaves. [4]
Whaley participated in the Chesapeake slave trade, transporting Africans to Chesapeake Bay, in what would become the United States of America. Whaley transported 866 people with 5 slave voyages, this made him the 7th biggest importer of enslaved people in the first half of the 18th century. [5] After 1750 the British slave trade became more focussed on the West Indies and South Carolina. [6] Whaley regularly sold people to Henry Laurens in South Carolina. Laurens was an American Revolutionary War politician and also one of the biggest slave traders and slave owners in British America. [7]
Whaley owned and invested in a number of slave ships. They included Chesterfield , Ann Gally and St. George . [8]
Whaley lived at Upholland and also Eccleston, both in Lancashire. [9] He died circa 1765. [1]
Bristol, a port city in south-west England, was involved in the transatlantic slave trade. Bristol's part in the trade was prominent in the 17th and 18th centuries as the city's merchants used their position to gain involvement. It is estimated that over 500,000 enslaved African people were traded by Bristol merchants.
Othello was launched in 1786 at Liverpool for the African slave trade. She made some five voyages before she burnt off the coast of Africa in 1796. During her first voyage her master fired on another British slave ship, which gave rise to an interesting court case. As a letter of marque she recaptured a British ship in 1794.
Little Ephraim Robin John and Ancona Robin Robin John were two 18th century African slave traders, later slaves, and finally free men who were members of the ruling family of Old Town, Calabur, Nigeria. Ancona was either a son or nephew of Little Ephraim.
Prince was launched at Bristol in 1785 as Alexander and then made two complete voyages as a slave ship in the triangular trade in enslaved people. Her owners changed her name to Prince in 1787. As Prince, she made six more complete voyages as an enslaving ship. She sailed on enslaving voyages for owners in Bristol, Liverpool, and London. She foundered in 1800 as she was returning to England from her ninth, having delivered captives to Jamaica.
George Case (1747–1836) was a British slave trader who was responsible for at least 109 slave voyages. Case was the co-owner of the slave ship Zong, whose crew perpetrated the Zong massacre. After the massacre, the ship owners went to court in an attempt to secure an insurance payout of £30 for each enslaved person murdered. A public outcry ensued and strengthened the abolition movement in the United Kingdom. In 1781, he became Mayor of Liverpool. After he died, the wealth generated by his slavery was bequeathed to the Case Fund by his grandson.
William Davenport was a British slave trader who was, by the number of ships disembarked, the single most prolific slave trader from the Port of Liverpool. He took part in 163 slaving voyages and his slave ships carried almost 40,000 enslaved Africans.
Amacree or Amachree, was launched in 1788 in Liverpool. She made ten voyages as a slave ship in the triangular trade, carrying enslaved people from West Africa and primarily to Dominica. On her fourth such voyage, she and five other slave ships bombarded Calabar for more than three hours to force the local native traders to lower the prices they were charging for slaves. The last press mention of Amacree occurred in 1801.
William Gregson was a British slave trader. He was responsible for at least 152 slave voyages, and his slave ships are recorded as having carried 58,201 Africans, of whom 9,148 died. Gregson was the co-owner of a ship called the Zong, whose crew perpetrated the Zong massacre.
Thomas Leyland (1752–1827) was an English slave trader. In 1776, he won a lottery and with his share of the winnings, he set himself up in the slave trade. Leyland bought at least 22,365 enslaved Africans and took them on his slave ships to the Americas.
Ralph Fisher (1746–1803) was an English slave trader based in Liverpool who was responsible for over 100 slave voyages. He is said to have been the seventh-biggest slave trader in Liverpool.
Francis Ingram (1739–1815) was an English slave trader and privateer.
William Earle (1721–1788) was an English slave trader. In a career lasting 40 years he was responsible for at least 117 slave voyages and by the number of slave voyages he was the sixth most active slave trader in the period 1740–1790 from the Port of Liverpool.
Liverpool, a port city in north-west England, was involved in the transatlantic slave trade. The trade developed in the eighteenth century, as Liverpool slave traders were able to supply fabric from Manchester to the Caribbean islands at very competitive prices.
Thomas Earle (1754–1822) was an English slave trader. He was responsible for at least 73 slave voyages and alongside his brother he transported over 19,000 enslaved people. Of these 3,000 died on board his ships. One of his ships, Annabella, was seized by the British Crown for slave trading with the enemy. He was Mayor of Liverpool in 1787.
John Knight (1708–1774) was an English slave trader. He was responsible for at least 114 slave voyages in the period 1750–1775 and he transported over 26,000 Africans to the Americas. Knight traded enslaved Africans with the American politician and slave owner Henry Laurens.
Samuel Shaw (1718–1781) was an English slave trader. He was responsible for at least 119 slave voyages between 1750 and 1778.
Felix Doran (1708–1776) was an Irish slave trader. He was responsible for at least 69 slave voyages. Doran moved to Liverpool in the 1740s and operated out of the Port of Liverpool. His first slave-ship was called Lively and his final one was called Essex.
Thomas Foxcroft (1733–1809) was an English slave trader. He was responsible for at least 91 slave voyages in the years between 1759 and 1792. A contemporary set of financial accounts for one slave voyage by his slave-ship Bloom has been preserved. Captain Robert Bostock, Bloom's master, bought 349 enslaved people in Africa; 42 captives died and 307 captives were sold in the West Indies for £9858. The net profit on the voyage to the owners amounted to £8,123 7s 2d, or £26 9s 2d per captive sold.
Edward Parr was an English slave trader and merchant. He was involved in 51 slave voyages, operating out of the Port of Liverpool between 1750 and 1768. Parr owned a slave ship called Briton, whose captain employed an African pirate called Captain Lemma Lemma to capture and enslave people with his war canoes. Parr was a member of the African Company of Merchants.
Liverpool Hero was built in France in 1777, probably as Jeune Emilia. She was taken in prize in 1780. In 1781 she entered into the triangular trade in enslaved people. From 1781 she made six complete voyages from Liverpool as a slave ship. On her fourth enslaving voyage she suffered an exceptionally high mortality rate among the captives she had embarked. Her third voyage had been marred by high mortality, but on the fourth 330 captives, 59% of the number she had embarked, died. She was lost in 1794 off the coast of Africa on her seventh voyage, probably with her crew and captives.