The American Dreams of John B. Prentis, Slave Trader

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THE AMERICAN DREAMS OF JOHN B. PRENTIS, SLAVE TRADER race in the atlantic world, 1700–1900 series editors Richard S. Newman, Rochester Institute of Technology Patrick Rael, Bowdoin College Manisha Sinha, University of Massachusetts, Amherst advisory board Edward Baptist, Cornell University Christopher Brown, Columbia University Vincent Carretta, University of Maryland Laurent Dubois, Duke University Douglas Egerton, LeMoyne College Leslie Harris, Emory University Joanne Pope Melish, University of Kentucky Sue Peabody, Washington State University, Vancouver Erik Seeman, State University of New York, Buffalo John Stauffer, Harvard University THE AMERICAN DREAMS OF JOHN B. PRENTIS, SLAVE TRADER kari j. winter the university of georgia press athens and london © 2011 by the University of Georgia Press Athens, Georgia 30602 www.ugapress.org All rights reserved Set in New Caledonia by Bookcomp, Inc. Printed digitally in the United States of America Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Winter, Kari J. The American dreams of John B. Prentis, slave trader / Kari J. Winter. p. cm. — (Race in the Atlantic world, 1700–1900) Includes bibliographical references and index. isbn-13: 978-0-8203-3838-5 (hardcover : alk. paper) isbn-10: 0-8203-3838-9 (hardcover : alk. paper) isbn-13: 978-0-8203-3837-8 (pbk. : alk. paper) isbn-10: 0-8203-3837-0 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Prentis, John B. (John Brooke), 1788–1848. 2. Prentis, John B. (John Brooke), 1788–1848—Family. 3. Prentis, John B. (John Brooke), 1788–1848—Political and social views. 4. Slaveholders—Virginia—Biography. 5. Slave traders—Virginia—Biography. 6. Slavery—Social aspects—Virginia—History. 7. Virginia—Race relations. 8. Virginia—Social conditions. 9. Williamsburg (Va.)— Biography. 10. Richmond (Va.)—Biography. I. Title. f230.p8w46 2011 975.5'03—dc22 2010047425 British Library Cataloging-in-Publication Data available For Zane This page intentionally left blank The past is infinite . . . —toni morrison And I asked myself about the present: how wide it was, how deep it was, how much was mine to keep. —kurt vonnegut, Slaughterhouse Five This page intentionally left blank ...