Category Archives: Kingston
Simon Taylor to Chaloner Arcedeckne, 19 April 1788
19/04/1788
In common with other planters in Jamaica (and across the West Indies) Taylor was taken aback by the popularity and success of the incipient abolition movement in Britain. He contemplated its effects in Jamaica and strongly asserted that he thought an end to the slave trade would result in the economic ruin of the colonies […]
Also posted in Abolitionism, British Government, Defence of slavery, Slave trade, Slave trade abolition, The Letters, Trade Tagged Chaloner Arcedeckne, Charles Fox, Duke of Chandos, Lord Onslow, Lord Romney, Simon Taylor, William Pitt Comments Off on Simon Taylor to Chaloner Arcedeckne, 19 April 1788
Simon Taylor to Chaloner Arcedeckne, 7 April 1788
07/04/1788
In April 1788 Taylor gave Chaloner Arcedeckne his early reactions to two phenomena that would define the remaining 25 years of his life: the French Revolution and the abolition movement. Political tensions in Paris were apparent throughout the Atlantic world by this time, and Taylor appears simultaneously to have relished the prospect of French weakness […]
Also posted in Abolitionism, Christianity, Defence of slavery, Enslaved people, France, Revolution, Slave trade abolition, St Domingue/Hispaniola, The Letters Tagged Chaloner Arcedeckne, Simon Taylor Comments Off on Simon Taylor to Chaloner Arcedeckne, 7 April 1788
Simon Taylor to Chaloner Arcedeckne, 14 December 1786
14/12/1786
Here Taylor discusses the quality of sugar shipped to England from Chaloner Arcedeckne’s estate, Golden Grove, and discusses the poor health of enslaved people, particularly in western Jamaican parishes, linking this to the unusually bad weather and restrictions on trading with the United States. Taylor provides some detail on his strategies for providing sustenance for […]
Also posted in Disease/health, Drought, Enslaved people, Famine, Food/provisions, Natural disasters, North America/USA, Plantation management, The Letters Comments Off on Simon Taylor to Chaloner Arcedeckne, 14 December 1786
Simon Taylor to Chaloner Arcedeckne, 11 October 1786
11/10/1786
Taylor’s brother died of a fever, although the evidence available in Taylor’s letters does not allow for a more precise diagnosis of his illness. Here, Taylor reflects on the medical treatment that his brother received, on his own health, and on the preponderance of sickliness among whites in Jamaica. He also discusses the debts of […]
Also posted in Disease/health, Family, The Letters Tagged Chaloner Arcedeckne, Charles Price, Simon Taylor, Sir John Taylor Comments Off on Simon Taylor to Chaloner Arcedeckne, 11 October 1786
Simon Taylor to Chaloner Arcedeckne, 1 June 1786
01/06/1786
The 1780s were a transformative decade in Taylor’s life. The American War and its aftermath transformed his political outlook towards a distrust of the British government in London, a perspective that became more entrenched with the advent of the parliamentary campaign against the slave trade in 1788. His sugar estates were adversely affected by the […]
Also posted in Disease/health, Drought, Family, Hurricanes, Natural disasters, Plantation management, The Letters Tagged Chaloner Arcedeckne, Simon Taylor, Sir John Taylor Comments Off on Simon Taylor to Chaloner Arcedeckne, 1 June 1786