Enterprize (1790 ship)
Enterprize was launched in 1790 at Liverpool as a slave ship. Between 1791 and 1802 she made eight complete voyages as a Liverpool-based slave ship. She was wrecked in 1803 while returning to Liverpool from her ninth slave trading voyages. Career. Thomas Leyland was a Liverpool shipowner and businessman who owned several vessels that engaged in the slave trade. One of these vessels, named , had wrecked in 1787. Leyland joined with another investor and together they commissioned a new slave ship that they also named "Enterprize", which was completed in 1790, and is the subject of  this article. "Enterprize" first appeared in "Lloyd's Register" ("LR") in 1791. 1st slave voyage (1791–1792): Roger Leathom sailed from Liverpool on 7 May 1791. "Enterprize" acquired slaves at Bonny, New Calabar, and Calabar. She arrived at Grenada on 27 January 1792 with 319 slaves. She sailed for Liverpool on 15 February and arrived there on 19 March. She had left Liverpool with 24 crew members and three died on the voyage. 2nd slave voyage (1792–1793): Captain Leathom sailed from Liverpool on 28 May 1792. "Enterprize" started acquiring slaves on 14 July, first at New Calabar and then at Calabar . She sailed from Africa on 30 October and arrived first at St Vincent and then at Grenada on 9 December. She left Grenada on 3 January 1793 and arrived back at Liverpool on 1 February. She had left Liverpool with 30 crew members and she suffered five crew deaths on the voyage. 3rd slave voyage (1794–1795): War with France had broken out by the time "Enterprize" left on her next slave trading voyage. Captain William Young acquired a letter of marque on 10 March 1794. "Enterprize" sailed from Liverpool on 5 May and began acquiring slaves in Africa on 10  August, at the Congo River. She left Africa on 18 October and arrived at Kingston, Jamaica on 25 November with 360 slaves. She landed 356. She sailed from Kingston on 5 February 1795 and arrived back at Liverpool on 29 March. She had left Liverpool with 33 crew members and she suffered seven crew deaths on the voyage. 4th slave voyage (1795–1796): Captain John Heron acquired a letter of marque on 10 August 1795. "Enterprize" sailed from Liverpool on 4 September 1795 and commenced acquiring slaves at the Congo River on 14 December. She sailed from Africa on 21 February  1796 and arrived at Kingston on 9 April with 356 slaves. he arrived back at Liverpool on 6 September. She had left Liverpool with 35 crew members and she suffered nine crew deaths on her voyage. 5th slave voyage (1796–1797): Captain Heron sailed from Liverpool on 9 November 1796, bound for West Africa, and started acquiring slaves on 14 March 1797. She embarked 363 slaves and sailed from Africa on 13 May. She stopped at Barbados and arrived at Kingston on 1 July with 362 slaves. She sailed from Kingston on 20 October and arrived back at Liverpool on 12  December. She had sailed from Liverpool with 40 crew members and had suffered no crew deaths on her voyage. 6th slave voyage (1798–1799): Captain Heron sailed from Liverpool on 10 April 1798, bound for West Africa. "Enterprize" stopped at Barbados and arrived at St Croix on 10 December with 347 slaves. She arrived back at Liverpool on 26 February 1799. She had left Liverpool with 43 crew members and had suffered four crew deaths on her voyage. 7th slave voyage (1799–1800): Captain Heron sailed from Liverpool on 13 May 1799. "Enterprize" acquired her slaves and arrived at Kingston on 28  January 1800 with 304 slaves. she sailed from Kingston on 28 March and arrived back at Liverpool on 7 June. She had left Liverpool with 42 crew members and she suffered six crew deaths on her voyage. 8th slave voyage (1801–1802): Captain Caesar Lawson acquired a letter of marque on 28 May 1801. He sailed from Liverpool on 21 June. "Enterprize" arrived at Kingston on 3 December. She sailed from Kingston 2 February 1802, and arrived back at Liverpool on 16 March. She had left Liverpool with 38 crew members and she suffered nine crew deaths on her voyage. She  returned to Liverpool with a cargo of cotton coffee, sugar, and some wine. 9th slave voyage (1802): Captain Thomas W. Egerton sailed from Liverpool on 21 May 1802. She arrived at Havana on 28 November 1811 with 225 slaves. She sailed from Havana on 21 December 1802. Loss. "Lloyd's List" reported in February 1803 that "Enterprize", Egerton, master, sailing from Havana to Liverpool, had been lost at Donaghadee. Egerton and 10 men had been lost. In her voyage, "Enterprize" sailed from Liverpool on 21 May, 1802, with 28 crew members and she suffered 13 crew deaths on her voyage . Salvage efforts. Soon after "Enterprize" was shipwrecked, salvage operations began and tongs were constructed to pluck foreign currency, including dollars, out of the wreck from above the water. A second salvage operation was launched in 1829, on this occasion diving bells were used and purportedly raised $50,000. The next attempt at salvage took place in 1833 and 1834 by two people known as the Deane brothers. The Deanes were successful in raising items off the seabed; they made themselves wealthy and kept records of what they salvaged. They found, amongst other items, a silver watch, two silver dollars, coins , and copper bars. "Enterprize" was then forgotten and was not re-discovered until the late 1990s, when two recreational divers came across the wreck. "Enterprize" is one of a small number of located slave shipwrecks. Notes and citations. Notes Citations