Slaver Ships.

The are a lot family researchers out there that had ancestors that owned a ship or was in command of a ship that deal in the slave trade but never know it. You may have known this but never know the name of the ship. Then there are those that my have known the name of the ship but never know what it was used for, well this page may be a help to you. I will list the names of Slaver Ships and as many owners and captains as I can.
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The slave trade was big business for a lot of foreign nations and There seem to be no way of stopping it. Although there were treaty’s among the nations that prevented the trading of slaves there were those who would find lop holes in the laws and us it against them. One of the bigger nations to deal in the slave trade was Cuba. It had a law where slave could be brought in as long as they were apprentices. Now Cuba had some what of a blind eye to the slaves, when they were brought into port under ( apprentices ) the captain would have to pay a duty on the cargo. After the cargo ( Slaves ) were sold to the Town and those in cities and the Plantations the owners would have too have them registered by law with tickets or certificates, the cost for these tickets and certificates was twelve and a half cents to one dollar each. There were some captains that were unwilling to pay the duty’s and would try to smuggle them in.

The United States was the biggest suppliers of slave ship the companies of these ships may or may not have known what their ships were being used for, for once the ship was sold many could care less what the ship was used for, building and selling ships was big business. There were always schemes to get these ships, for if the port authorities found they were to be used in the slave trade they wouldn’t let the ship leave port. The way the schemed worked was a agent would come to a port like New York or Boston. There the agents would make a deal with the owner. The owner would take on a legal cargo get clearance and would sail under the flag of the United States. When in the open sea the ships title would be transferred to the new owner.

When they got to their port the cargo would be unloaded and the pass owner would get off and head back too home port. The captain may or may not know what was going on. They would take on passengers and maybe some new crew men then leave port. Once in open sea the captain would be ordered to head for the African coat, now if the captain was in on it there was no problem. But when a captain won’t go along, one of the new crewmen or one of the passengers taken on board at the last port would take over, as they were all in the scheme, the captain would be either put in irons or killed. If he was lucky he and what part of the crew didn’t do along would be put over board and sent adrift.

Because a lot of the slaver ships sailed under the United States flag, this would cause trouble for the merchant ships, although many of these ships caused their own problems themselves. The British ships were always on the look out for slavers, and if they came upon a ship that they thought was suspicious they would tell them to lean-to and be boarded. But many would run. There were many reasons why they would run they may be outfitted for slave trade or they maybe sailing under a unregistered flag, Many of the captains were owners of the ship they sailed, and although he may not have done anything wrong he would take a chance and run. The captain know that if a British patrol or any other patrol stopped him and even thro everything was in order the patrol could take his ship as a prize, and by the time it was all settled in the courts many months would have passed and he would be in financial ruin, so he would run but in most cases to no avail.
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Slaver Ships.

1. Constitution.
2. Louisa.
3. Marino.
4. French slave ship La Pensee.
5. Spanish slaver, Fenix.
6. Horatio.
7. Mary Reed, changed to Esperauza.
8. Mary Jane Peck.
9. Mary E. Smith.
10. St. Louis.
11. Spanish ship, Emigrante, Slaves, Chinese.
12. Locomotora.
13. N. Hand.
14. William D. Miller.
15. Paez.
16. Minnetonka.
17. Abbott Devereux.
18. Clara B. Williams.
19. Alecto.
20. Lidia Gibbs.
21. Cortez.
22. Mary Elizabeth.
23. Venus.
24. St. Andrew.
25. ketch Brothers.
26. Lyra.

Suspected slave ship.

1. Spirit of 1776.
2. Globe.
3. Reindeer.
4. Clarendon.
5. Water Witch.

Slaver Ships Owners.

1. Horatio, own by Rudolph E. Lasala
2. Horatio, own by Estevan Valequez or Vasquez.
3. Mary E. Smith own by Vincent P. Cranotick.
4.Locomotora own by Antonio Roiz Vieira.
5. N. Hand own by George W. Rosevelt,
6. Abbott Devereux own by Thomas H. Myers.

Ship Masters.

1. Kempten master, of the Horatio.
2. William F. Martin, was also master of the Horatio.
3. Joad da Cunha Ferreira of the Locomotora.
4. James Gage of the ketch Brothers.
5. William C. Dickey, of the Lyra.

Ships Captains.

1. James McGuire, Horatio.
2. Vincent P. Cranotick, Mary E. Smith.
3. Spanish, Manuel Abarroa, William D. Miller.
4. George W. Palmer, Paez.
5. Thomas H. Myers, Abbott Devereux.

CONSULATE OF THE UNITED STATES,
Havana, June 26, 1856.

Slaves for whom tickets or certificates were issued; and as a law requires that all slaves shall be registered and certificates obtained for them.

Cities and towns.

First class at $1 each, 52,435 slaves…. $52,435 00.
Second class at 12 and a half cents each, 18,256 slaves $28,200.

Plantations.

First class only 12 and a half cents each, 304,115 slaves…. $38,014.37 and a half.
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Manuel Bazilio da Gunha Reis, a partner of Figaniere, Reis & Co., of New York, which disclosed the fact of his one-third ownership of the slave ship “Mary E. Smith.”
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List of American vessels not transferred, reported to have gone to Africa
after slaves.

Schooner James Buchanan, of Bristol, Pennsylvania, 142ths tons; owned by Albert De Groot and others. De Groot was the master, who had a power from the other owners to sell her ; he left a power of attorney to Francis D. Newcomb, of Havana, to sell her, but the consulate has no knowledge of her having been sold. Captain De Groot went home to Bristol, Pennsylvania; the vessel cleared with rum and stores for Boston on the 23d of June, under command of her former mate, John Duncan.

Bark Clara B. Williams, of New Orleans, 331tons ; Seth Briggs master, and 9 men; cleared 3d of June for Callao, with rum, sugar, cigars, tobacco scraps, hogshead shooks, &c.

Brig Windward, of New Orleans, 177 tons, Charles Rauch, master, arrived here 3d of July with an assorted cargo from New Orleans; cleared 13th of July with same cargo for St. Paul.
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List of vessels suspected of being engaged in the slave trade.

Brigantine Maria Tubon, of Bucksport; American; red streak, green house on deck abaft; fitting at Rio Sagua.

Brigantine Mary Elizabeth ; American; has sailed; black, with red streak; brown house abaft; deep; captain American; has four Spanish passengers; papers forged in the same handwriting.

Bark Venus; American; painted ports; captain a Dutchman; has a sealed letter with name of vessel, and directed to Annabona; has about 30 persons, four of them Spanish passengers with passports; sealed letter and custom-house clearance, also charter-party in same handwriting forged; crew ought to be mustered. Captain has been in California chain gang.

Schooner Baltimore; fore-and-aft rig, with a house abaft; American; black; with a red streak; captain a tall American.

Brigantine St. Andrew ; American; expected in about two months.
Bark with skysail yards, black and rakish.

Schooner Blooming Youth; fore-and-aft rig; American; black, with yellow streak.

Brigantine William Montague; American; 167 tons.

Topsail schooner Brownsville; American; trunk house abaft; very rakish.

Polacca brig; black mastheads, red streak, probably Spanish colors.
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CONSULATE GENERAL OF THE UNITED STATES.
Havana, July 9, 1858.

A register was issued by the custom-house of New York to the brig C. Perkins, of that port, on the 28th day of September, 1857 ; George Brown, of the city of New York, appearing as sole owner and as master. No certificate appears indorsed or attached to her register showing any change of commander. Her description is as follows : Built at Canwaboro’, South Carolina, in 1854; length, 99 feet; breadth, 24 feet 8 inches; depth, 8 feet 1 inch ; tonnage, l76-tons; square stern ; no galleries, and a billet-head. I understand, however, that she has a figure-head—the figure of a man with a black coat. The register now in my possession bears all the evidence of being a genuine document.

She sailed from this port on or about the 26th of November, 1857; cleared ostensibly for St. Thomas, laden with rum, and it appears, from the evidence I have obtained, that she proceeded to Africa and engaged in the slave trade. As to the shipping articles and crew list of the vessel, the following are the names appearing thereupon:

George Brown, master.
J. S. Downing, mate, of New York.
Gabriel Domingoes, cook and steward, New Orleans.
G. W. Gordon, 2d mate, New York.
Charles McKenney, seaman, Massachusetts.
John Wilson, seaman, New York.
Charles W. Paul, seaman, New Jersey.
Charles Coffin, seaman, Maine.
William Jones, seaman, New Orleans.
Thomas Brown, seaman, New York.
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Note. These information comes from the 36th, Congress.

House Executive Document No. 7
Titled African Slave Trade.

This report is 648, pages, I only covered 128, pages, as you can tell there is a lot more information to be had.