Caesar Shaw: Freeman & Sailor

Posted on by stevemanuel

By: Sam Urban

Caesar Shaw was born a slave in New London on the 10th of February, 1760. He was owned by Nathaniel Shaw Jr, so he likely lived in the third floor servants’ quarters of the Shaw Mansion. At Nathaniel Shaw Jr’s untimely death in 1782 he was freed in the will that Nathaniel dictated on his deathbed. Nathaniel Shaw Jr.’s will also bequeathed him ten pounds in silver coins annually for the rest of his life; as long as he lived in New London. Ten pounds in 1782 was about $2,100 dollars in today’s money when adjusted for inflation.

It is likely that Caesar was sent to sea by his master, like many slaves in New London were at the time. The records from the late 18th century and early 19th century when Caesar was a sailor are often incomplete so we only know of two specific voyages that Caesar participated in. The first voyage was in 1795 to the West Indies on the sloop Betsey. A notarized certificate that says Caesar is a free man and an American citizen protected Caesar from runaway slave catchers and British impressment on his journey. Caesar’s second voyage to the West Indies was on the Brig Cordellia where he was employed as a cook. Caesar’s occupation as a cook tells us that at 44 years old, he was no longer capable of doing the hard work of a sailor. Caesar was on the Brig Cordellia with a crew of ten men, including one other sailor described as having ‘black’ complexion, and one having ‘copper’ complexion. It was common for 30% of the crew of a vessel to be black at this time, as sailing was a common profession for free black men, especially for ships sailing from New London.

Caesar owned two pieces of land, both in New London. One was purchased in 1792 for the price of thirty pounds, the other in 1794 from Thomas Shaw for the price of one hundred pounds. In 1779 Caesar married his first wife, Eader Deshon, whom he had three children with. Caesar outlived his first wife and all of the children from his first marriage. His son, Caesar Shaw Jr., died at the age of 31 in 1819. His wife, Eader, died in 1809. Caesar remarried within a few months to Jane Freeman. With his second wife he had four more children.

Caesar died in 1827 at the age of 68. We have more records on him than we would have on most African-Americans at the time because he was a land owner and owned by a powerful and rich family. Unfortunately we still know very little of his life or the details of his relationships and we can only infer based on what we do have. Regardless of how much information we have, his story and the story of other African-Americans in Connecticut is a part of our cultural history and a story worth telling. His obituary, in the Connecticut Gazette, reads simply, “Ceasar Shaw, a respectable man of colour, aged 68.”

Benedict Arnold’s Privateering Past

Posted on by stevemanuel

By: Steve Manuel

From Benedict Arnold to Nathaniel Shaw Jr. on August 10, 1780.

“Dear Sir,
I have taken the liberty of enclosing sundry letters, bills sale etc.; by which it appears that Capt Joseph Packwood in August 1778 sold to Capt Thomas Truxton one fourth part of the sloop John with her cargo. Amounting to £1070, lawful money, for which amount Capt. Truxton drew on me (then in Philadelphia) which draught I stood ready to honor when presented; it also appears by Capt. Packwood’s letter that he had no doubt of the draughts being honored. It also appears by the papers that the sloop made one voyage and returned safe from the West Indies in March 1779 with a cargo of rum, sugar, & Molasses; — How many voyages she has made since, or what has become of her, I have never heard. Capt. Truxton informs me that Capt. Packwood wrote him some time since, requesting him to draw two thousand pounds lawful money, part of the profits of the Voyage, and at the same time objected to his sharing in full proportion alleging for reasons, that the sloop was not paid for when bought and that the money had greatly depreciated; This is an objection that Capt. Packwood has no right to make as it was his own neglect (not the owners) that he did not present the draught and receive the money, which lay ready for him, and Capt. Packwood has had the neat profits of the voyage in his hands, as well as the vessel seventeen months. It appears to me but just after deducting the prime cost of the vessel and cargo, the balance of the proceeds should be accounted for by Capt. Packwood, and as he has had the vessel and balance in his hands and to his use since her arrival in March of 1779 or since the sales of her cargo, without advising us that we might draw for the same it is but reasonable he should make good the depreciation.

Neither Capt. Truxton or myself know if the vessel has been sold or is still running on our account I am requested by him and the other owners to beg the favor of you to inquire into the matter and make a settlement with Capt. Packwood which you think just & reasonable. If you should differ in sentiment with him I beg you will submit the affair to arbitration which I conceive he can have no reasonable objection to.— It is the wish of the owners if the vessel is in being, and not sold, to have their quarter part sold, the account closed and the balance remitted to me at this place by post or any safe private conveyance,
Your compliance will be esteemed a very particular favor done

Dr. Sir
Your most Obedient Humble Servant
B. Arnold”

Benedict Arnold was corresponding with Nathaniel Shaw Jr. in his capacity as the Navy Agent for the Continental Congress and the Colony of Connecticut. The Arnold/Shaw relationship started several months prior when Shaw invited Arnold to purchase a share of the General Putnam, a ship Shaw had built to engage in privateering. While the initial offer was appealing to Arnold, he had to decline because the cost rose to an amount he found unacceptable. In the letter above, we see that Arnold did invest in other types of voyages. Arnold now wrote to Shaw as the Navy Agent for the colony of Connecticut.

The sloop John was engaged in typical maritime trade. However Packwood sailed for Shaw a number of privateering mission, and Packwood may have been privateering after the run to the West Indies. As Arnold noted in his letter, he did not know anything of the ship’s activities after she returned with her cargo. While acting as a privateer any cargo taken by the John was subject to the congressional regulations. Shaw was responsible for ensuring the rules of the Marine Committee were followed concerning any privateer capture. Arnold had a share in the sloop and was due any profits generated by the vessel as long as he was an owner. Arnold, as owner, had a right know the activities of the John, and the right to contest the actions of Packwood in arbitration.

Shaw with his maritime background was familiar with maritime law and interacting with the courts. Prior to the Revolution, such arbitration was the province of Vice Admiralty Court. When the colonies broke away from Britain, Vice Admiralty Court was no longer available for mediating maritime disputes. While the Marine Committee provided the rules for privateering and the method for dividing profit shares among all those involved, they made no provision for the judicial process of declaring a capture legal. When the issue of maritime dispute was taken up by the Congress, it was decided to allow individual colonies to decide. Connecticut was quick to act. Unlike Massachusetts and Rhode Island, the colony did not set up an admiralty court, but appointed three county courts to hear maritime cases. As the Navy Agent Shaw worked with these courts to determine if prizes taken by privateers were legal. It was this court which would arbitrate Arnold’s complaint.

Arnold wrote this letter in August of 1780, and while there is a record of a copy being submitted to George Washington, there is no correspondence from Shaw to Arnold answering his request to send the matter to arbitration. Forty-three days later Major Andre was captured and the the entire situation was made moot.

Joshua Hempstead Diary Update

Posted on by stevemanuel

By: Patricia M. Schaefer

In April of last year I wrote an article for the newsletter about the upcoming new edition of The Diary of Joshua Hempstead 1711-1758. It is still upcoming, but there has been progress. I have finished the proofreading, Dan Connors has formatted the entire diary so that we have page numbers, and I’m mostly finished checking name index errors and additions.

This means there are two major tasks remaining: changing the page numbers in the index to match the page numbers in the new edition; and getting the diary printed. The new edition is seventeen pages longer than the last one, partly because of formatting changes, but mostly because of added content. There were a few entries added that had been suppressed by the Victorian transcribers, but most of the added content is a line here, and another one there. Most of these were simply missed, being at the end of an entry, squeezed between two other lines, or at the bottom of a page. They add up. There are a number of diary entries that make much more sense with the added line. For instance:
Tuesd 15. fair Cloudy. Samll Hide in Town. I was at home & in Town. I pd Ms Pygan 40s on Mr Winthrops accot & I Recd of him 40s 0d to buy Malt & oatmeal. Wee Mowed the orchard & Meadow. finished al in the lot at home.
The words in italics had been omitted in the previous editions.

It is difficult to find someone to do the re-numbering for a couple of reasons. It is not regular indexing work, where the indexer decides what to include and how to categorize subjects. The current index is 68 pages long (two columns), so it will take quite a while to do. And probably most importantly, we have no money to pay this person.

At the moment, the Hempstead diary fund balance is a bit over $2,500. The estimate Dan received from a printer was $4,000 for 200 copies. This is far greater than the printing costs for the 1999 edition—no surprise, given the way everything else has gone up—and grants for publishing have pretty much vanished.

All this is to say we need your help in two ways. One, of course, is financial. A donation (or a second donation) to the Hempstead diary project would be both helpful and greatly appreciated.

The other need is for help with re-numbering the pages of the index entries. The task would be more manageable in smaller chunks, say A-C, D-F, etc. If several people (who are willing to be careful and not too proud to ask for help with questions) each took one section, it might be possible to get the index done in the foreseeable future, before the price of publishing goes up again.
Patricia M. Schaefer