This Sunday, July 17, 2022 at 4 p.m. at Amistad Pier in New London, Ct., a ceremony will be held to unveil a plaque marking the 1761 arrival of the ship Speedwell carrying Blacks kidnapped in Africa and brought to New London as slaves. The ship arrived with 74 slaves onboard. Another 21 slaves are believed to have perished during the voyage. While this was the only known shipment of slaves from Africa to New London, other slaves were brought to the area through coastal trading.
Connecticut did not end the importation of slaves until 1774 and did not begin “gradual emancipation” until 1784. In the 1790 Census, approximately 1% of Connecticut’s population was enslaved. The percentage declined in subsequent censuses, but at least a small number of slaves remained in the state in the 19th Century. Connecticut ships also played a role in the slave trade.
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