Molly (1778 ship)
Molly was launched at Liverpool in 1778 as a slave ship. Between 1778 and 1807 she made 18 complete voyages in the triangular trade in enslaved persons. During this period she also suffered one major maritime incident and captured two ships. After the end of Britain's involvement in the trans-Atlantic slave trade, "Molly" became a merchantman trading with the West Indies, Africa, Brazil, Nova Scotia, and Africa again. She was last listed in 1832, giving her a 54-year career. Career. "Molly" first appeared in "Lloyd's Register" ("LR") in 1778. The British Admiralty had  given notice in April 1777, that they were ready to issue letters of marque for privateers against the Americans. In March 1778, Great Britain broke off relations with France. Captain John Kendall acquired a letter of marque on 27 June 1778. He then sailed to Africa. 1st slave trading voyage (1778–1779): "Molly"s first slave trading voyage does not appear it the database of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. On his way to Africa, in August 1778, Captain Kendall captured "Venturane", which was on her way from Port-au-Prince to Le Havre with a valuable cargo of sugar, coffee, cotton , indigo, etc. Kendall then turned around, intending to escort "Venturane" to Liverpool. On the way, between Holyhead and the Tuskar Rock, Ireland, they encountered . "Stag" took over "Venturane", which arrived at Liverpool on 17 December. "Lloyd's List" reported in August 1779 that "Molly", Kendall, master, had arrived at Jamaica from Africa with 412 slaves. She had also captured a vessel on her way that had sold in Jamaica for £12,000. "Molly", Kendall, master, arrived back at in September. 2nd slave trading voyage (1780–1781): Captain John Kendall sailed from Liverpool on 24 March 1780. "Moly" began acquiring slaves at  Cape Coast Castle on 9 June. She acquired more slaves at Anomabu, and then sailed from Africa on 3 November. She arrived at Kingston, Jamaica on 24 December with 514 slaves. She had buried 106 slaves at sea on the Middle Passage, for a mortality rate of 17%. "Molly" arrived back at Liverpool on 15 June 1781. She had left Liverpool with 67 crew members and had suffered 13 crew deaths on her voyage. 3rd slave trading voyage (1781–1783): Captain Kendall sailed from Liverpool on 9 November 1781. "Molly" started acquiring slaves at Anomabu on 6 February 1782. She sailed  from Africa on 24 August, and arrived at Kingston on 23 October. She had embarked 670 slaves, arrived with 629, and landed 611, for a 9% mortality rate. "Molly" sailed from Kingston on 2 February 1783 and arrived back at Liverpool on 7 March. She had left Liverpool with 70 crew members and had suffered four crew deaths on the voyage. 4th slave voyage (1783–1784): Captain James Aspinall sailed from Liverpool on 2 June 1783. "Molly" left the Gold Coast on 17 April 1784 and arrived Kingston on 29 May, having come via Barbados. She had embarked 550 slaves and  she arrived with 522, for a 5% mortality rate. "Molly" left Jamaica on 5 July and arrived back at Liverpool on 17 August. She had left Liverpool with 52 crew members and had suffered three crew deaths on her voyage. 5th slave voyage (1784–1786): Captain Aspinall sailed from Liverpool on 18 November 1784. "Molly" started acquiring slaves at Anomabu on 18 January 1785. She then gathered more slaves at Cape Coast Castle, before leaving Africa on 28 June. She passed Barbados with 560 slaves and arrived at Kingston on 22 August. She had embarked 570 slaves and she arrived with  540, for a mortality rate of 5%. The Guineaman "Molly", Aspinall, master, was driven ashore on 28 August at Jamaica in a hurricane. She was gotten off. She sailed from Kingston on 4 November and arrived back at Liverpool on 11 January 1786. She had left Liverpool with 50 crew members and she had suffered 14 crew deaths on her voyage. 6th slave voyage (1786–1788): Captain Robert Bibby sailed from Liverpool on 20 September 1786. "Molly" acquired her slaves at the Cameroons and arrived at Dominica on 2 May 1788 with 320 slaves. She sailed from Dominica on 30 May  and arrived back at Liverpool on 4 July. She had left Liverpool with 45 crew members and had suffered 12 crew deaths on her voyage. 7th slave voyage (1789–1790): Captain Robert Bibby sailed from Liverpool on 3 January 1789. "Molly" started acquiring her slaves at Cape Coast Castle on 23 March and sailed from Africa on 30 August. She arrived at Kingston on 31 October. She had embarked 410 slaves and she arrived with 410, but landed 404, for a 2% mortality rate. She sailed from Kingston on 24 November and arrived back at Liverpool on 10 January 1790. She  had left Liverpool with 42 crew members and had suffered no crew deaths on her voyage. 8th slave voyage (1790–1791): Captain Bibby sailed from Liverpool on 6 May 1790. "Molly" started acquiring her slaves at Cape Coast Castle on 27 August and sailed from Africa on 8 June 1791. She arrived at Kingston in July with 320 slaves. She sailed from Kingston on 16 August and arrived back at Liverpool on 8 October. She had left Liverpool with 35 crew members and had suffered two crew deaths on her voyage. 9th slave voyage (1792–1793): Captain Bibbi sailed from Liverpool on  2 March 1792. "Molly" started acquiring slaves on 23 May, first at Fort Apollonia, then Cape Coast Castle, and Anomabu. She left Africa on 1 January 1793 and arrived at St Vincent on 18 February 1793. She had embarked 390 slaves and she arrived with 387, for a mortality rate of less than 1%. She arrived back at Liverpool on 19 April. Between her arrival at St Vincent and her return to Liverpool her master may have changed to John Bellis. "Molly" had left Liverpool with 34 crew members and she had suffered five crew deaths on her voyage. War  with France had broken out shortly before "Molly" returned from her previous voyage. Her next captain, William Grice, acquired a letter of marque on 4 November 1793. 10th slave voyage (1793–1794): Captain William Grice sailed from Liverpool on 22 December 1793, bound for West Africa. "Molly" started gathering slaves on 18 February 1794, sailed from Africa on 16 April. She arrived at Kingston on 5 June. She had embarked 426 slaves and she arrived with 418, for a 2% mortality rate. She arrived back at Liverpool on 12 October. She had left Liverpool with 34 crew members and she had  suffered five crew deaths on her voyage. It is not clear what "Molly" did during 1795 and that part of 1796 before she underwent a rebuild. On 3 October 1796 Captain John Tobin acquired a letter of marque. 11th slave voyage (1796–1797): Captain John Tobin sailed from Liverpool on 16 October 1796, bound for West Africa. On his way to Africa Tobin captured a Spanish ship of 300 tons that had been on her way from Cadiz to the River Plate. "Molly" arrived at Kingston on 10 July 1797 with 420 slaves. She sailed for Liverpool on 1 September and  arrived there on 3 November. She had left Liverpool with 53 crew members and had suffered three crew deaths on her voyage. 12th slave voyage (1798–1799): Captain John Tobin sailed from Liverpool on 27 May 1798. "Molly" acquired slaves at Anomabu and arrived at Demerara on 18 December with 432 slaves. (She may have embarked 436 slaves.) She arrived back at Liverpool on 18 March 1799, She had left Liverpool with 43 crew members and had suffered one crew death on her voyage. Captain Thomas Tobin, John Tobin's younger brother, acquired a letter of marque on 18 May 1799 . 13th slave voyage (1799–1800): Captain Thomas Tobin sailed from Liverpool on 2 June 1799. "Molly" acquired slaves at Bonny, and arrived at Kingston on 4 January 1800 with 430 slaves. She sailed for Liverpool on 23 February and arrived there on 29 April. She had left Liverpool with 49 crew members and had suffered four crew deaths on her voyage. 14th slave voyage (1800–1801): Captain Thomas Tobin sailed from Liverpool on 14 July 1800. "Molly" acquired slaves at Bonny and arrived at St Vincent on 10 January 1801 with 280 slaves. She sailed for Liverpool on 1 March and arrived  there on 9 April. She had left Liverpool with 47 crew members and had no crew deaths on her voyage. 15th slave voyage (1801–1802): Captain Thomas Tobin sailed from Liverpool on 2 July 1801. She acquired slaves at Bonny and arrived at Kingston 10 January 1802 with 279. (On the way she stopped at Demerara and possibly St Vincent.) She sailed from Kingston on 10 February and arrived back at Liverpool on 6 April. She had left Liverpool with 43 crew members and had suffered four crew deaths on her voyage. (Although the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade database shows Captain  Thomas Livesley as having replaced Captain Thomas Tobin at some point, "Lloyd's List"s ship arrival and departure data shows Captain Tobin throughout the voyage.) On 24 March 1804 Captain John Bean acquired a letter of marque. 16th slave voyage (1804–1805): Captain Bean sailed from Liverpool on 3 May 1804. "Molly" acquired slaves at Calabar and arrived at Suriname on 22 November with 279 slaves. She sailed from Suriname on 24 January 1805, and arrived back at Liverpool on 28 March. She had sailed from Liverpool with 48 crew members, and she had suffered 18 crew deaths on her voyage . 17th slave voyage (1805–1806): Captain Bean sailed from Liverpool on 28 June 1805. "Molly" arrived at Zion Hill, Tobago on 14 January 1806. She had been at St Kitts. She sailed for Liverpool on 10 February, and arrived there on 11 April from Tobago. She had left Liverpool with 55 crew members and had suffered five crew deaths on her voyage. "Molly" arrived at Liverpool with 120 casks of palm oil, 20 tons of barwood, one ton of ivory, 80 hogsheads and 13 barrels of sugar, 12 puncheons of rum, 3 puncheons of lime juice, one puncheon of shrub, and  five bales of cotton. 18th slave voyage (1806–1807): Captain Bean sailed from Liverpool on 17 April 1806. "Molly" acquired slaves at Calabar. She arrived at Trinidad on 3 March 1807 with 377 slaves. She sailed from Trinidad on 14 April and arrived back at Liverpool on 2 June. "Molly" had arrived back after 1 May 1807, the day the Slave Trade Act 1807 took effect, which ended British involvement in the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Her next voyage was as a West Indiaman, sailing to Trinidad. Captain William Richards acquired a letter of marque on 4 March 1808. In December  1812, "Lloyd's List" reported that "Molly", of Liverpool, Jackson, master, had on 25 November run into a large ship. "Molly" had sustained so much damage that she had had to put back to repair. In 1826 "Molly" brought back to Liverpool 783 casks of palm oil, 524 elephant teeth (ivory tusks), and 15 tons of dunnage wood. Fate. "Molly" was last listed in 1832. Citations and references. Citations References