“Sacrifice of Life”

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From the collections of PVMA • Digital image © Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Assoc. • Image use information


About this item

The United States outlawed the African slave trade in 1808, one year behind Great Britain. The illegal trade in human beings continued, however, as greedy investors continued to finance voyages to smuggle enslaved Africans into the southern United States up until the Civil War (1861-1865). The Greenfield Gazette and Courier reported on a chase by a British steamer of an American slave ship in April of 1860. Readers learned that when capture seemed inevitable, the captain of the slave ship deliberately drove his vessel onto the rocks. Hundreds of enslaved people trapped on the ship drowned while, according to a witness, “The monsters who manned the vessel [were] supposed to have already escaped” in a lifeboat.  

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Details

Item typeArticle
PublisherGreenfield Gazette and Courier
Date1860-04-27
TopicSlavery, Indenture
EraNational Expansion and Reform, 1816–1860
MaterialPaper
Process/FormatPrinting
Dimension detailsProcess Material: printed paper, ink Height: 6.00 in Width: 2.50 in
Catalog #L02.111
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Greenfield Gazette and Courier. “Sacrifice of Life.” April 27, 1860. Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association, American Centuries. https://americancenturies.org/collection/l02-111/. Accessed on October 11, 2024.

Please note: Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.