Identifier

NJS-SRC-00619

Source Type

Article

Headline

KIDNAPPING.

Publication

Trenton Federalist

Place of Publication

Trenton

Date of Issue

August 3, 1818

Page

2

Description

Letter reprinted from the New-Orleans Gazette regarding the illegal slave traffic from New Jersey to Louisiana. The letter, signed by "Penn." reports that captain William Lee sailed the brig Mary Ann from New York City to New Orleans, departing the port of New York on March 6, 1818. About 4 days later, he dropped anchor between Sandy Hook and Perth Amboy to secretly receive and stow away a group of Black captives. A packet sloop carrying 38 captives sailed from Amboy in the middle of the night to meet with Mary Ann off the shore of New Jersey. Captain Lee was indicted upon his arrival in New Orleans because the customs officials there became suspicious that the ship's manifest was forged and fraudulent. He stood trial, but was ultimately acquitted by the jury in New Orleans. The article also implicates Judge Jacob Van Wickle and Charles Morgan in the slave trading operation.

At the end of the letter, the writer notes: "It may be proper to add, that the negroes in question have not passed into the hands of the persons who claim a property in them; they are still in custody of the law."

Language

English

Mentions

William Lee

Jacob Van Wickle (1770-1854)

Charles Morgan (1775-1848)

Keywords

kidnapping

Van Wickle slave trading ring

slave trade

Record Contributor

Jesse Bayker