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Monthly Archives: December 2008

The Business of Convict Transportation: The Sale of Convicts in America

Note: This post is part of a series on Convict Transportation to the American colonies. Convict transportation was modeled after the indentured servant trade. Many of the merchants who traded in indentured servants also took up the convict trade, and convicts were often transported alongside indentured servants. Both kinds of servants were generally sold at […]

The Business of Convict Transportation: Jonathan Forward’s Successors

Note: This post is part of a series on Convict Transportation to the American colonies. Jonathan Forward served as the first Contractor for Transports to the Government from 1718 to 1739. He was succeeded by a tight network of convict transporters who dominated the industry up until the practice of shipping convicts to America ended. […]

The Business of Convict Transportation: The First Contractor for Transports to the Government

Note: This post is part of a series on Convict Transportation to the American colonies. Jonathan Forward, after being appointed “Contractor for Transports to the Government,” ran his new business out of his house on Fenchurch Street in Cheapside. He now deployed his fleet of slave and merchant ships–many of which he named after himself–to […]