Antigua, Slavery, and Emancipation in the Records of a Sugar Plantation, 1689–1907

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Antigua, Slavery, and Emancipation in the Records of a Sugar Plantation, 1689–1907

Life for enslaved Africans in the Caribbean included curing tobacco, making rope (on right), and preparing cassava or manioc roots (left and center). 1667 engraving by Sebastien Le Clerc.

Tudway of Wells Antiguan Estate papers, 1689–1907

The Tudway Papers are the most complete surviving records pertaining to an Antiguan sugar plantation. Both in their chronological coverage and subject matter they provide invaluable historical data

Kenneth Morgan, Brunel University

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Explore the workings of an Antiguan sugar plantation

Shipping Sugar in Antigua. Men can be seen rolling barrels towards the shore where a boat awaits.

This collection contains records pertaining to the Tudway family’s ownership of an Antiguan sugar plantation during the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. The papers cover the development of transatlantic slave trade to the period following the curtailment of plantation slavery througout the early to mid-1800s. The combination of statistical ledgers and personal correspondence provides key insights into the operation and eventual abolition of the slave trade throughot the West Indies.

Note: This collection is accompanied by an online guide written by Professor Kenneth Morgan (Brunel University).

Content Warning: This collection contains racist or offensive terms. Owing to their historical importance, the sources are in their original state. Please read our Sensitivity Statement for more information.

Volumes

Licensed to access Estate Accounts

The accounts from Tudway of Wells' Antiguan estate covering the period from 1689 until 1874.

Licensed to access Accounts and Pay Lists for the Old Works, New Works and Parham Lodge.

Annual Plantation Accounts, Cash Accounts and Pay Lists for the Old Works, New Works and Parham Lodge. These records are...

Licensed to access Annual Plantation and Estate Accounts

These accounts cover the income and expenditure of the estate from 1849 until 1920. Some years' records are missing but...

Licensed to access Letterbooks and Correspondence from England and Antigua

These letterbooks, covering correspondence between the estate's owners in England and their estate managers in Antigua, span the period from...

Licensed to access Monthly Journals and Returns of Old Works, New Works, and Parham Lodge.

These monthly journals, dating from 1823 to 1877, contain some narrative accounts alongside a large volume of fiscal returns.

Licensed to access Miscellaneous including slave lists

This assortment of items includes a List of Parham's registered slaves from 1817, a list of the estate's slave acquisitions...

Insights

The 'Annual Pay Lists' include names, jobs, days worked and pay. 'Monthly Journals of Works Returns' do include letters from the plantation, though the handwriting is challenging to read.
These papers include descriptive records of how the plantation worked. Lists of slaves at Parham Lodge are joined by letters from the estate managers to the owner and financial returns.
Miscellaneous [items] including slave lists' holds registers of slaves' births and deaths from 1817 to 1826. The 'list of slave acquisitions' covers 1748-1767, and the receipts reveal who was buying goods from this estate.
Letterbooks and correspondence from England and Antigua' describe events affecting the estate. The 9th image in the correspondence from 1834 mentions concerns about slaves being freed.

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