INTRODUCTION:

C. Coding Key


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Ship Manifest Coding Key

Be sure to read the background information as well as the information on the indexes. To save time, the standard information found in each manifest was coded as in ³P² is port of departure, ³O² is for owner and so on.

Same Entry = Same as information contained in previous manifest. That is, the same vessel, captain, port of departure, and slave owner when indicated. Note that the first few examples are given in their entirety. Thereafter, the codes below are used.

Port = Port of departure and when ship's registry is different from port of departure, it is indicated by "registered in......"

Type of Vessel or Ship

Brig = Brigatine
Sch = Schooner
Ship = ship
Slp = Sloop
Steamship = steamship

M = Name of Master of ship

S = Name of shipper and residence, if given. Shipper does not necessarily indicate ownership. The shipper, if he wa °s a slave trader, would have remained at the port of departure. (See Background information for further interpretations.)

O = Name of owner and residence if indicated. Owners occasionally were on board. (See Background information for further interpretations.)

C = Consignee or person to whom shipped and their residence if indicated. The consignee was often on board or he may have served as a person who picks up slaves at the Port of New Orleans. (See Background information for further interpretations.)

A = Agent or person acting in another's behalf (owner, consignee, slave trading house, shipper) either at the port of departure or the port of arrival (New Orleans). Agents could have been slave trading houses or individuals who expedited the transfer of slaves. (See Background information for further interpretations.)

?O,S = If status of individual on manifest column is missing or not made clear, a question ma Ðrk is placed in front indicating that individual is probably a shipper or owner. (See Background information for further interpretations.)

D = Date manifest signed. A rough indicator of date when vessel departed port. No dates of arrival were transcribed unless it was felt that the date explained events that may have occurred while the ship was enroute to the Port of New Orleans. See introduction for information on estimated travel times between ports.

Slaves = name, age, sex, height rounded to whole numbers and color. Any blank spaces in any of the descriptive columns indicates information was not given for the individual or that they were all listed as one color in which case, this notation will be indicated before the list of slaves.

? = Possible error in transcribing information due to handwriting, rubbings on paper, aging of paper, or tears in paper. Note the rules about spelling variations in names and search under as many variations as you can think of.


RETURN TO SLAVE DATA COLLECTION
Created: 6 March 1999
Updated: 25 April 1999
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