Description:

Ships’ muster rolls from 1785 – 1786; Society of Merchant Venturers’ archive.
Muster roll no: 178.

Muster roll for the ship, the Tryall , 1784.
The Tryall sailed for Cape Coast in West Africa. It was reported as carrying 350 or perhaps 364 slaves. The ship went onto Jamaica, and sold 303 slaves there. According to the owners, the voyage did not make them any profit, rather a very heavy loss .

The muster roll is a list of all crew signed on for all or part of a voyage, which was used to calculate the money each man should pay to the Sailors’ Hospital Fund (insurance).

The Society of Merchant Venturers is a Bristol-based organisation, which was formed in 1552 as an elite body of merchants involved in overseas trade. The Society still exists today.

Date: 1784

Copyright: Copyright The Society of Merchant Venturers