Amistad comes to Kingston
Original slave ship was involved in historic 1839 uprising
DailyFreeman.com | July 30, 2024

By Brian Hubert
bhubert@freemanonline.com

KINGSTON, N.Y. >> A reproduction of the slave ship Amistad, known for the 1839 uprising of enslaved African captives from Sierra Leone who overthrew the crew and ultimately brought the ship into Long Island Sound, will dock at the Hudson River Maritime Museum on the Rondout Waterfront for deck tours and other special events from Aug. 3-7.

Chris Menapace, education director, of the New Haven, Connecticut-based Discover Amistad, said the 129-foot schooner is scheduled to sail into Kingston from a prior stop at Yonkers on Friday and will open for both guided and self-led deck tours on Saturday.

Menapace said the Amistad story begins in the West African nation of Sierra Leone in 1839. While international treaties made the international slave trade illegal by around 1810, it continued, particularly in Spanish and Portuguese colonies where enforcement was very lax, he added. “Thousands of Africans were still being kidnapped after the slave trade was made illegal,” he said.

It was in this context that 500 kidnapped Africans were put on another ship named the Tecora and brought to Havana, Cuba.

Once in Havana, 53 of the 500 African captives were “purchased” to be enslaved by Jose Ruiz and Montez at their sugar plantations in Eastern Cuba, he said. The 49 adults, three girls and one boy were put aboard the Amistad, a ship hired by Ruiz and Montez bound for these plantations.

But one of the captives aboard the ship, Sengbe Paieh, had other plans. Paieh found a loose nail and picked the lock on his shackles, Menapace said. “The Africans freed themselves and armed themselves with sugar knives to take over the ship.”

Menapace said once they took control of the ship, they attempted to sail back to Sierra Leone, but through the deception of Ruiz and Montez they sailed a zig-zag course before they ended up in Long Island Sound. Amistad was then captured by the U.S.S. Washington, an armed ship in New York waters playing a role much like the modern U.S. Coast Guard, but was then brought ashore in Connecticut, he added.

Menapace said this was because slavery was still allowed in Connecticut but was outlawed in New York. The Washington’s captain wanted the salvage rights to the ship. “In Connecticut, the cargo includes the African people aboard but not in New York,” he said.

Hudson River Maritime Museum Executive Director Lisa Cline said the case determining what would happen to the African people aboard the ship proceeded through the courts to the U.S. Supreme Court with them ultimately winning the right to return to Sierra Leone.

“These trials played an important role in the way abolitionists were able to win trials in Connecticut and in Washington, D.C. she said. “It established that the abolitionists were there to stay.”

But going home was no easy process, as they had no money to return to Sierra Leon. Menapace said. This left them dependent on Christian abolitionist groups who only offered help with strings attached, he added.

“The abolitionist groups weren’t there only to save them from slavery but also for Christianizing them,” he said. “They had to convert and go back with Christian missionaries.”

Just 35 of the captured African people would return to Sierra Leon in 1842, Menapace said. “Some died in jail, some died on the ship and others died during the rebellion.”

The survivors include the four children, Menpace said. He noted they are one of the few people there are records of as they stayed at a Christian mission in Freetown, Sierra Leone, as they had been separated from their families. Most of those who returned did not stay with the Christian missionaries, he added.

As for Paieh, he is remembered in Sierra Leone, appearing on the nation’s 5,000 Leone bill, Menapace said.

Menapace said the reconstruction of Amistad was finished in 2000 at Mystic Seaport in Connecticut to serve as a floating classroom. The modern ship’s crew ranges from eight to 14 depending on where it is sailing, he said.

“The story of the Amistad rebellion is not only an important part of U.S. history, it is an important part of New York and Connecticut history,” he said. “We want to make connections between racism and slavery in the 1800s and issues in the U.S. today.”

Menapace said the Amistad curriculum is specifically designed to focus on the stories of the captured African people, not the ship itself. “We are a story with a ship, not a ship with a story,” he asserted.

Guided tours of the Amistad are available from Saturday-Tuesday at 10 and 11 a.m., 12, 1 and 5:30 p.m. Tickets are $15 for adults and $5 for children under 12.

Self-guided tours will also be available Saturday-Tuesday at every half hour from 2 to 5 p.m. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children 12 and under.

The museum will host a special community open day on Wednesday, Aug. 7, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. featuring pay-what-you-can tours of the ship. Reservations are still required for each visitor. A number of free performances, ranging from poetry to music will be held on shore that day.

The Maritime Museum’s Homeport Barn will host other activities during the Amistad’s stay in Kingston. A screening of the 1997 Steven Spielberg film “Amistad” is scheduled for Sunday, Aug. 4, at 6:30 p.m. The 155-minute drama is rated R. Tickets are $10. Menapace will host a lecture about the Amistad Rebellion on Tuesday, Aug. 6, at 7 p.m. Admission is $10.