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William

A sloop of about twelve tons, four great guns and swivels, stolen from John Ham at Nassau in August 1720, sailed by John Rackham's company on a two-month cruise, and taken by Jonathan Barnet near Negril Point that October.

Launched22 August 1720, NassauTolate October 1720, Negril PointAlso writtenthe William (Woodes Rogers' proclamation, Boston Gazette, 10-17 October 1720)

The court that hanged her company never learned her name. The 1721 printed Tryals indict John Rackham as late master or commander of "a certain Pirate Sloop, of an unknown Name", and the phrase repeats through the articles. She is the William because Woodes Rogers called her so, in a proclamation reprinted in the Boston Gazette in the issue of 10 to 17 October 1720, advertising a certain sloop called the William.1,2

The proclamation

Rogers proclaimed at Nassau on 5 September 1720, as governor of New Providence. The description of the sloop is his, and not, as it is sometimes given, the work of Sir Nicholas Lawes, who enters later and in another capacity, on the bench at St Jago de la Vega. He set down a small boat's inventory: burthen about twelve tons, four great guns and swivels, with ammunition, sails, rigging, anchor, cables and a canoe. The transcriptions disagree over whether she carried one swivel gun or two, and some later accounts, adding the carriage guns to the swivels, make six guns of her. Twelve tons is the figure everything else has to fit.3,4,5

Stolen out of Nassau

She belonged to Captain John Ham. On 22 August 1720 Rackham took her out of the harbour at Nassau with five other men, Anne Bonny and Mary Read. The robbing started at once: James Gohier, off the south side of New Providence, and then a sloop at the Berry Islands bound in from South Carolina.6,7

The company did not hold. Rogers' proclamation names Featherston, John Davis, Andrew Gibson, Howell and Noah Patrick alongside Rackham; the November indictment names Fetherston, Corner, Davies, Howell, Carty, Earl, Harwood and Dobbin. Some of that may be a clerk's ear, since Noah Patrick reads like the trial's Noah Harwood and Patrick Carty run together, but Andrew Gibson has no counterpart at the bar. The six who took her in August were not the eight who hanged for her in November.8

The cruise

Her cruise ran from New Providence through the Caribbee Islands, off Hispaniola, then along the north and west coasts of Jamaica, and she took nothing large. Four articles charge four takings: seven fishing boats about two leagues from Harbour Island in early September; two merchant sloops about three leagues off Hispaniola on 1 October, laid with their apparel and tackle at a thousand pounds Jamaica money; Thomas Spenlow's schooner off Porto Maria Bay on 19 October, at twenty pounds; and on 20 October, about a league from Dry Harbour Bay, Thomas Dillon's sloop the Mary, at three hundred. She was still in Rackham's custody when Barnet came up and was retaken with the William, which is why some retellings run the two sloops together.9,10,11

Off Negril Point

Barnet was not sent. James Spatchears of Port Royal swore that Captain Jonathan Barnet and Captain Bonnevie were sailing in company towards Negril Point, at the west end of Jamaica, bound on a trading voyage to the south keys of Cuba, when Barnet gave chase. Later accounts give him the heavily armed Tyger, manned from the Royal Navy and put into his hands by Lawes, or a government sloop fitted out to hunt Rackham; he had neither.12

He came up with her about ten at night and hailed her. Somebody aboard fired a swivel gun. Barnet's men answered with a broadside and a volley of small shot which, in Spatchears' words, "carried away the Enemy's Sloops Boom, and then they called to Barnet for Quarter, which he gave them". The prisoners were put ashore at Davis's Cove and handed to Major Richard James of the militia. The cruise had worked the north coast, Porto Maria and Dry Harbour, and accounts that put the capture there have it at the wrong end of the island.13,14

The last act charged against Rackham's company is 20 October, at Dry Harbour Bay, and the court sat on 16 November. The 22 October so often printed as the date of the capture appears to belong to a different article, against nine men who went over to Rackham from a pettiauger about a league from Negril Point that day. Governor Lawes wrote to the Council of Trade and Plantations on 13 November that Barnet had met a pirate vessel at the leeward part of the island, commanded by one Rackum, with eighteen more pirates aboard whom he took and who were then in gaol.15,16

Two of the people taken out of her were women. Thomas Spenlow deposed that "the two Women, Prisoners at the Bar, were then on Board Rackam's Sloop"; both were later convicted, and both then informed the court that they were "quick with Child", and execution was stayed. Rackham and eight of his men were condemned at St Jago de la Vega on 16 and 17 November 1720, the women separately on the 28th. The trials have their own record here.17,18

What became of her

After the fight she goes quiet. A small pirate prize would ordinarily be libelled, condemned and sold in the vice-admiralty court, and whether the William was, no surviving paper says. There is no wreck, no hull, no gun, no object attributed to her.19,20

Johnson's General History of 1724 tells a different story of how the company came by a vessel: a small English sloop taken off a Spanish guardacosta, and not Ham's boat lifted out of Nassau harbour. It follows the cruise and the capture without naming the sloop, and shrinks the fight off Negril Point to a very small dispute.21,22

What is missing here is most of a ship. No builder, no year, no place of building, no survey and no entry in any list of shipping has been found for her, so nothing can be said of how she was framed or rigged, beyond a burthen and a gun count written down by a governor advertising a theft. The naming document itself has been read at second hand: the Boston Gazette issue that carried Rogers' proclamation has not been examined for this record, and its wording comes through later transcriptions. A vessel of twelve tons is exactly the sort that leaves no paper.23,24

What the evidence does not settle

Armament

  • Another transcription says she carried two swivel gunsVery likely

Tonnage

  • Her tonnage of about twelve tons comes from one documentVery likely

Date of capture

  • The exact day Barnet captured her is not recordedConfirmed

Each line is one question with its own grade, taken from the register where a claim carries it. Nothing here is graded as a whole.

Sources for this record

Every statement above that rests on a checked claim carries a small number; the numbers lead here. Each entry gives what is claimed, how far the record supports it, and where it comes from.

  1. The 1721 printed Tryals never name Rackham's sloop; the indictments call her "a certain Pirate Sloop, of an unknown Name" and "a certain Sloop of an unknown Name". Confirmed Directly supported by the record. Trial pamphlet: The Tryals of Captain John Rackam and Other Pirates (St. Jago de la Vega, Jamaica, 1720/1721)
  2. The name William for Rackham's sloop rests on a single document, Woodes Rogers' proclamation as reprinted in the Boston Gazette in the issue of 10 to 17 October 1720, which names a certain sloop called the William. Very likely Strong evidence, short of proof. Proclamation (via later transcription): By his Excellency Woodes Rogers, Esq; Governour of New Providence, &c. A Proclamation, Boston Gazette, 10-17 October 1720; Proclamation by Woodes Rogers against Rackham and his company, printed in the Boston Gazette (exact issue reference not established)
  3. The proclamation that describes the sloop was issued by Woodes Rogers, governor of New Providence, at Nassau on 5 September 1720, and not by Sir Nicholas Lawes of Jamaica, who presided over the court that tried her company. Confirmed Directly supported by the record. Proclamation (via later transcription): By his Excellency Woodes Rogers, Esq; Governour of New Providence, &c. A Proclamation, Boston Gazette, 10-17 October 1720
  4. The proclamation gives the William as a sloop of about twelve tons burthen, with ammunition, sails, rigging, anchor, cables and a canoe. Very likely Strong evidence, short of proof. Proclamation (via later transcription): By his Excellency Woodes Rogers, Esq; Governour of New Providence, &c. A Proclamation, Boston Gazette, 10-17 October 1720; Proclamation by Woodes Rogers against Rackham and his company, printed in the Boston Gazette (exact issue reference not established)
  5. The transcription of the proclamation read for this record arms the William with four great guns and one swivel gun, while other carriers of the same proclamation give two swivel guns and some later accounts, adding the carriage guns to the swivels, give six guns. Very likely Strong evidence, short of proof. Proclamation (via later transcription): By his Excellency Woodes Rogers, Esq; Governour of New Providence, &c. A Proclamation, Boston Gazette, 10-17 October 1720; Proclamation by Woodes Rogers against Rackham and his company, printed in the Boston Gazette (exact issue reference not established)
  6. The sloop belonged to Captain John Ham and was taken out of the harbour at New Providence (Nassau) on 22 August 1720 by Rackham with five other men, Anne Bonny and Mary Read. Very likely Strong evidence, short of proof. Proclamation (via later transcription): By his Excellency Woodes Rogers, Esq; Governour of New Providence, &c. A Proclamation, Boston Gazette, 10-17 October 1720; Proclamation by Woodes Rogers against Rackham and his company, printed in the Boston Gazette (exact issue reference not established)
  7. Immediately after the theft the company robbed James Gohier off the south side of New Providence and then took a sloop at the Berry Islands bound from South Carolina. Very likely Strong evidence, short of proof. Proclamation (via later transcription): By his Excellency Woodes Rogers, Esq; Governour of New Providence, &c. A Proclamation, Boston Gazette, 10-17 October 1720
  8. The company named in the proclamation as taking the William in August 1720 is not the company indicted in November: the proclamation names Featherston, John Davis, Andrew Gibson, Howell and Noah Patrick, and the indictment names Fetherston, Corner, Davies, Howell, Carty, Earl, Harwood and Dobbin. Very likely Strong evidence, short of proof. Proclamation and trial pamphlet: By his Excellency Woodes Rogers, Esq; Governour of New Providence, &c. A Proclamation, Boston Gazette, 10-17 October 1720; The Tryals of Captain John Rackam, and other Pirates (St. Jago de la Vega, Jamaica)
  9. Under Rackham the sloop cruised from New Providence through the Caribbee Islands, off Hispaniola, and along the north and west coasts of Jamaica, taking small craft. Very likely Strong evidence, short of proof. Trial pamphlet and period narrative: The Tryals of Captain John Rackam and Other Pirates (St. Jago de la Vega, Jamaica, 1720/1721); A General History of the Pyrates
  10. The four articles charge four takings by the sloop: seven fishing boats about two leagues from Harbour Island in early September 1720; two merchant sloops about three leagues off Hispaniola on 1 October, stolen and carried away with their apparel and tackle at the value of one thousand pounds current money of Jamaica; Thomas Spenlow's schooner off Porto Maria Bay on 19 October, at twenty pounds; and Thomas Dillon's sloop the Mary about one league from Dry Harbour Bay on 20 October, at three hundred pounds. Confirmed Directly supported by the record. Trial pamphlet: The Tryals of Captain John Rackam and Other Pirates (St. Jago de la Vega, Jamaica, 1720/1721)
  11. Dillon's captured sloop the Mary was a prize in Rackham's custody, distinct from the William, and was retaken by Barnet alongside her. Confirmed Directly supported by the record. Trial pamphlet: The Tryals of Captain John Rackam, and other Pirates (St. Jago de la Vega, Jamaica)
  12. James Spatchears deposed that Jonathan Barnet was sailing in his own sloop on a private trading voyage to the south keys of Cuba, in company with Captain Bonnevie, when he gave chase; the trial does not support the account that Governor Lawes gave him a heavily armed Tyger with Royal Navy sailors. Very likely Strong evidence, short of proof. Trial pamphlet: The Tryals of Captain John Rackam, and other Pirates (St. Jago de la Vega, Jamaica)
  13. The sloop was taken near Negril Point at the west end of Jamaica, after a hail about ten at night to which someone aboard answered by firing a swivel gun; the preceding cruise had ranged the north coast, and accounts placing the capture there confuse the cruise with the taking. Very likely Strong evidence, short of proof. Trial pamphlet: The Tryals of Captain John Rackam, and other Pirates (St. Jago de la Vega, Jamaica)
  14. Barnet's broadside and volley of small shot "carried away the Enemy's Sloops Boom, and then they called to Barnet for Quarter, which he gave them"; the men were put ashore at Davis's Cove and delivered to Major Richard James. Confirmed Directly supported by the record. Trial pamphlet: The Tryals of Captain John Rackam and Other Pirates (St. Jago de la Vega, Jamaica, 1720/1721), deposition of James Spatchears
  15. The trial print does not date the capture: the last act charged against Rackham's company is 20 October 1720 at Dry Harbour Bay and the court sat on 16 November, while the 22 October commonly given for the capture is the date of a separate article against nine men who went over to Rackham from a pettiauger about a league from Negril Point. Likely More likely than not on the evidence we have. Trial pamphlet: The Tryals of Captain John Rackam, and other Pirates (St. Jago de la Vega, Jamaica)
  16. Governor Sir Nicholas Lawes reported the capture to the Council of Trade and Plantations on 13 November 1720, writing that Barnet was met by a pirate vessel at the leeward part of the island commanded by one Rackum, in which were eighteen pirates more whom he took and who were then in gaol; the letter does not name the sloop. Very likely Strong evidence, short of proof. Calendared state papers: Governor Sir Nicholas Lawes to the Council of Trade and Plantations, 13 November 1720 (CSP Colonial item 288); CSP Col. AWI vol. 32, no. 288 (from TNA CO 137 originals)
  17. Anne Bonny and Mary Read were aboard the sloop when she was taken, Thomas Spenlow deposing that "the two Women, Prisoners at the Bar, were then on Board Rackam's Sloop"; after conviction both informed the court that they were "quick with Child" and execution was stayed. Confirmed Directly supported by the record. Trial pamphlet: The Tryals of Captain John Rackam and Other Pirates (St. Jago de la Vega, Jamaica, 1720/1721), deposition of Thomas Spenlow at the trial of Mary Read and Anne Bonny, 28 November 1720
  18. Rackham and eight of his men were found guilty and condemned at a Court of Admiralty at St. Jago de la Vega on 16 and 17 November 1720, and Mary Read and Anne Bonny were tried separately on 28 November 1720. Confirmed Directly supported by the record. Trial pamphlet: The Tryals of Captain John Rackam and Other Pirates (St. Jago de la Vega, Jamaica, 1720/1721)
  19. No condemnation, sale or further use of the hull after her capture is recorded in the sources read; that Barnet brought her into Port Royal is possible and unattested. Possible Consistent with the evidence, not established. Trial pamphlet and period narrative: The Tryals of Captain John Rackam, and other Pirates (St. Jago de la Vega, Jamaica); A General History of the Pyrates
  20. No wreck, hull remains, gun or other material object has been identified as belonging to the sloop. Confirmed Directly supported by the record. Documented absence: The Tryals of Captain John Rackam, and other Pirates (St. Jago de la Vega, Jamaica); no archaeological record of the vessel was located
  21. Charles Johnson's General History of 1724 narrates the cruise and the capture, never names the sloop, and reduces the fight to a very small dispute. Confirmed Directly supported by the record. Period narrative: A General History of the Pyrates
  22. Johnson gives a different account of how the company came by a vessel, describing a small English sloop taken from a Spanish guardacosta rather than a sloop stolen at New Providence, and no name or identity statement on this record rests on him. Possible Consistent with the evidence, not established. Period narrative: A General History of the Pyrates
  23. No builder, place of building, year of building, survey or contemporary register entry for the sloop has been located. Confirmed Directly supported by the record. Documented absence: The Tryals of Captain John Rackam and Other Pirates (St. Jago de la Vega, Jamaica, 1720/1721); Proclamation by Woodes Rogers against Rackham and his company, printed in the Boston Gazette
  24. The Boston Gazette issue carrying Rogers' proclamation has not been examined directly; its wording, and with it the name of the sloop, is known through later transcriptions. Very likely Strong evidence, short of proof. Proclamation (via later transcription): Boston Gazette issue of October 1720, exact issue reference not established; By his Excellency Woodes Rogers, Esq; Governour of New Providence, &c. A Proclamation, Boston Gazette, 10-17 October 1720