Author Archives: Admms
Simon Taylor to Chaloner Arcedeckne, 6 December 1787
06/12/1787
At the end of 1787, Taylor commented on proposals by Matthew Boulton, the British entrepreneur and manufacture of steam engines, to adapt steam power to sugar mills in Jamaica. He was not fully convinced by them. […] Respecting Mr Bolton, untill he sends out modell, & letts people know the premium he expects for his […]
Posted in Sugar, Technological innovation, The Letters Tagged Chaloner Arcedeckne, Matthew Boulton, Simon Taylor Comments Off on Simon Taylor to Chaloner Arcedeckne, 6 December 1787
Simon Taylor to Chaloner Arcedeckne, 1 May 1787
01/05/1787
Taylor’s discussion of breadfruit relates to the infamous 1787 expedition of the HMS Bounty, commanded by Captain William Bligh, to collect plants in Tahiti and introduce them to the West Indies, where it was anticipated that they would help provided food for the enslaved people on sugar estates and other properties. Taylor’s discussion on this […]
Posted in British Government, Disease/health, Enslaved people, Food/provisions, Hurricanes, Navy, Sugar, Taxes/duties, The Letters, Trade Tagged Chaloner Arcedeckne, Simon Taylor, William Bligh, William Pitt Comments Off on Simon Taylor to Chaloner Arcedeckne, 1 May 1787
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 […]
Posted in Disease/health, Drought, Enslaved people, Famine, Food/provisions, Kingston, 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 […]
Posted in Disease/health, Family, Kingston, 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 […]
Posted in Disease/health, Drought, Family, Hurricanes, Kingston, 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