Enslaved workers

The Pennants used enslaved workers on their estates from the beginning. They continued to do so until the abolition of slavery in British colonies in 1833. The 1833 Act, however, did not provide total freedom. Instead, it stipulated a period of 'indenture', where the newly freed slaves were contracted to work for their former masters for a number of years. This proved unworkable, and, following a number of piecemeal acts, slavery was finally abolished in 1838. 

How many enslaved workers did the Pennants own?

This varied according to the number of plantations the family owned at any time. The Pennants demanded regular accounts of their slaves but, as their archive is not complete, we do not have total numbers of workers over the years. Enough documents exist, however, for us see that the Pennants were major slave-owners, averaging 250 per plantation. The Jamaican average was 150. 

Apart from the Pennants' own documents, there are other sources of information on slave ownership. One is the Jamaica Almanac, an annual publication listing subjects such as phases of the moon, circuit court dates, names of principal officials, and postal services. In addition, the Almanac records each plantation's holding of slaves and livestock (cattle). These figures had been submitted initially to the Jamaican governing council for taxation purposes and were then passed on for publication. The archive of Jamaica Almanacs is incomplete but what remains provides useful information.

The almanac for 1822 notes the following figures for four of the Pennants' plantations:

Another useful source is University College London's Legacies of British Slave-ownership. This site provides information on those who received money for freeing their slaves. Under the Slavery Abolition Act of 1833, the government offered owners compensation for the loss of their chattels.

This website confirms that the Pennants received £14,683 17s 2d (around £1,562,000 today) for the freeing of 764 people.