Condition of the Slave-Trade in the United States

The Condition of the Slave-Trade (the Period of the Revolution, from 1774)

In the book “The Suppression of the African Slave Trade to the United States of America 1638-1870” (1), W. E. B. Du Bois explained the following: In 1760 England, the chief slave-trading nation, was sending on an average to Africa 163 ships annually, with a tonnage of 18,000 tons, carrying exports to the value of £163,818. Only about twenty of these ships regularly returned to England. Most of them carried slaves to the West Indies, and returned laden with sugar and other products. Thus may be formed some idea of the size and importance of the slave-trade at that time, although for a complete view we must add to this the trade under the French, Portuguese, Dutch, and Americans. The trade fell off somewhat toward 1770, but was flourishing again when the Revolution brought a sharp and serious check upon it, 47bringing down the number of English slavers, clearing, from 167 in 1774 to 28 in 1779, and the tonnage from 17,218 to 3,475 tons. After the war the trade gradually recovered, and by 1786 had reached nearly its former extent. In 1783 the British West Indies received 16,208 Negroes from Africa, and by 1787 the importation had increased to 21,023. In this latter year it was estimated that the British were taking annually from Africa 38,000 slaves; the French, 20,000; the Portuguese, 10,000; the Dutch and Danes, 6,000; a total of 74,000. Manchester alone sent £180,000 annually in goods to Africa in exchange for Negroes.1

Resources

Notes and References

1. W. E. B. Du Bois, “The Suppression of the African Slave Trade to the United States of America 1638-1870” (1893), Longmans, Green and Co., London, New York, Bombay and Calcuta.

See Also

Further Reading

• Thomas Branagan. Serious Remonstrances, addressed to the Citizens of the Northern States and their Representatives, on the recent Revival of the Slave Trade in this Republic. Philadelphia, 1805.
• William B. Lawrence. Visitation and Search; or, An Historical Sketch of the British Claim to exercise a Maritime Police over the Vessels of all Nations, in Peace as well as in War. Boston, 1858.
• William Chauncey Fowler. Local Law in Massachusetts and Connecticut, Historically considered; and The Historical Status of the Negro, in Connecticut, etc. Albany, 1872, and New Haven, 1875.
• A Short Sketch of the Evidence for the Abolition of the Slave-Trade. Philadelphia, 1792.
• Thomas Cooper. Letters on the Slave Trade. Manchester, Eng., 1787.
• Edward Needles. An Historical Memoir of the Pennsylvania Society, for Promoting the Abolition of Slavery.342 Philadelphia, 1848.
• Great Britain. British and Foreign State Papers.
• Henry Wheaton. Enquiry into the Validity of the British Claim to a Right of Visitation and Search of American Vessels suspected to be engaged in the African Slave-Trade. Philadelphia, 1842.