Description:

Colonial America - Letter to Newport slave trader Stephen Ayrault from his cousin in New Jersey informing him "of the fleet of ten Sail of Line of Batle Ships and tis Said forty od transports Said to be at Sea for the west indies" which would, of course, disrupt the triangular slave trade, and the illness of Col. Alexander Spotswood in Annapolis who, unbeknownst to him, was there to raise troops and consult with colonial governors in preparation for an attack by the British on the Spanish in Cartagena, Colombia.


Autograph Letter Signed "Robt King," two pages, 6.25" x 8" opposite conjoined sheets, addressed on verso to "Mr Stephen Ayrault / Mercht at Newport." [Perth Amboy, New Jersey], May 9, 1740. On laid paper. Uniformly soiled, creased, mouse eaten on the first page with about ten words affected by holes at edges and folds. Good condition.

Robert King lived in Perth Amboy, New Jersey. He and Stephen Ayrault were cousins. In part, "We have no news but what is in the print only yt they mention Coll Spotswood being taken sick at N: Castle which proves to be at Annopaless in Maryland yet Gent is now in the 67th year of his age if if anything now happens with you pray mention it and and particularly of the fleet of ten Sail of Line of Batle Ships and tis Said forty od transports Said to be at Sea for the west indies. I shall be particular if any thing worth mentioning comes first this way tis but beginning what we may Expect on the French declareing which nothing but the Dutch keeps them from doeing for Same time past thanks to the Almighty we are all well which wth due respect to all the family am ye affect Kinsman & most Humble Servt Robt King.

Ayrault was involved in the Newport, Rhode Island, slave trade. The Newport Historical Society has in its collection documents related to Stephen Ayrault (1709-1794) and his brother, Daniel Ayrault. The documents indicate that Ayrault traded in a variety of products including hardware items, pewter, copper, household furnishings, wine, sugar, and clothing. Regarding the slave trade, there is a 1736 letter from John Cahoone in Anomabu, Africa, to Daniel Ayrault, reporting that he had purchased 27 slaves but that slaves were in low supply due to the high amount of ships passing through. An August 1755 letter from Daniel Ayrault and Philip Wilkinson instructs David Lindsay, captain of the schooner "Sierra Leone," to exchange his cargo in Africa for gold and slaves and then to proceed to the Caribbean to sell the slaves. Medical and financial records of Dr. William Hunter include the treatment of African American patients. A January 1762 letter mentions that many merchants had made large sums of money in the slave trade.

King writes of news that Colonel "Spotswood being taken sick at N: Castle which proves to be at Annopaless [Annapolis] in Maryland yet Gent is now in 67th year of his age..." Commissioned Lieutenant Colonel in 1703, Alexander Spotswood (c. 1676-1740) was Lieutenant Governor of Virginia from 1710-1722. In 1730, he was appointed Deputy Postmaster General of North America for a ten-year term. During his tenure, Spotswood extended postal service south to Williamsburg and appointed Benjamin Franklin Postmaster of Philadelphia. In 1739, the British decided to use colonial troops in their military campaign against Spanish provinces in the Americas. Spotswood was appointed Brigadier General and Quartermaster General of troops in America. On June 7, 1740, a month after King wrote this letter, on a trip to Annapolis, Maryland, to raise troops and consult with colonial governors in preparation for an attack on the Spanish in Cartagena, Colombia, Spotswood died after a brief illness The battleships and transports "Said to be at Sea for the west indies" were most probably headed for Cartagena, Colombia. Col. Spotswood's grandson and namesake married a daughter of Augustine Washington, Jr., half-brother of George Washington. A granddaughter of Col. Spotswood married Patrick Henry.

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