Quaker Nantucket: The Religious Community Behind the Whaling Empire (review)

Book Reviews59 as pacificistic will gain general use. Because of this book's length and cost, itwill be read largelyby professionalhistorians. This is unfortunatebecause Caedel has thought long about the constraints and possibilities for influence by pacifists, and modern Quakers could profit from his wisdom derived from a careful study of the past. J. William FrostFriends Historical Library, Swarthmore College Quaker Nantucket: The Religious Community Behind the Whaling Empire. By Robert J. Leach and Peter Gow. Nantucket: Mill Hill Press, 1997. xvi + 224 pp. Illustrations, notes, bibliography, and index. This briefbook occupies a useful niche in the history ofNantucket. It will be a valuable addition to the libraries of visitors to the island who purchase it, providing light and instructive reading on the island's Quaker past. It reads well, and it contains more than a few yarns that will tempt readers to dig further. The product of many years devoted research by Robert Leach, it is a labor of love for the community with which he has long been associated. For all its many strengths, however, academics and their students will need to tread warily and check both primary and secondary sources before accepting many of the assertions in this work. Leach and Gow begin with a brief overview of the settlement of Nantucket by New England English and follow that with a vivid account of the conversion of most of the island's residents to Quakerism early in the eighteenth century. The arrival of Quakerism roughly paralleled the beginnings of whaling as a commercial enterprise, and the two grew together before Independence. The wars and the greater complexities of trade that affected Nantucket in general were accompanied by reform that affected Quakers in the second half of the eighteenth century. Other problems also afflicted the island and theFriends on it: theharborwas inadequate forlarger ships; the island could notsupply sufficient materials forthe inhabitants and their whaling industry, forcing them to import many basic supplies; Nantucket was especially vulnerable to wartime assaults and blockades; and the island's population outgrew its resources. The upshot was that many leading merchants and Friends moved off island to Dartmouth, Massachusetts , and others found new homes in North Carolina, the Hudson River Valley, and Nova Scotia. At the same time Friends on the island disowned many members, and the consequent decline in their numbers came just as other denominations made an appearance. By the end of the nineteenth century the once considerable Quaker presence on the island was no more. Several sections of the book stand out. Particularly entertaining is the 60Quaker History account of the quarrel over rights to the Commons that turned itself into a mid-eighteenth century imbroglio eventually involving Quaker bodies including the London Meeting for Sufferings and the several layers of New England meetings for business. Also good are the discussions of dealings with Friends accused of misconduct. As useful as much of this book is, there are parts that could have been improved had the authors been able to consult several relevant works. John M. Bullard's and Joseph L. McDevott's studies ofthe Rotch family and their mercantile efforts would have helped avoid confusion on the origins of Joseph Rotch, the Falkland Island whaling venture during the War for Independence and William Rotch's part in it, and other aspects of that family's activities. Daniel Vickers's studies of seamen would have been cleared up the degree of islanders' participation in whaling beyond the activities of the mercantile elite. Several primary sources on and off Nantucket might have helped with the problems ofNantucket Amerindians, especially the drastic decline in their numbers and the land settlement with the English. Still,QuakerNantucketprovides. auseful introduction that may tempt readers to explore other aspects of the island's history. Arthur J. WorrallColorado State University Modern African Spirituality: The Independent Holy Spirit Churches in EastAfrica, 1902-1976. By Ane Marie BakRasmussen. London and New York: British Academic Press, 1996. Illustrations, notes, bibliography, and index. This is the second part of a longer study, the first part of which was published in 1 995 asA History ofthe QuakerMovement in Africa. Here, the author tells the story of a group of Africans, the...