Content warning: this article discusses the Transatlantic Slave Trade. Updated on 13 October 2023  |
| Mibiri Creek, Demerara River. Mr Edmonstone's Wood Cutting Establishment By Thomas Staunton St. Clair, A Residence in the West Indies and America (London, 1834), Vol. 2. 87 enslaved people were registered to Charles Edmonstone in Demerara in 1826. Waterton married Edmonstone's daughter, Anne, in 1829. |
Charles Waterton and his family were involved in slavery in the late 1700s and early 1800s.
Waterton’s father and uncle owned sugar and coffee plantations in British Guiana, South America. Plantation owners exploited enslaved people to maximise their profits. Over 400 enslaved African men, women and children were forced to work on the Waterton family’s plantations.
Between 1804 and 1812, Waterton managed his family’s plantations. He probably received a salary for this work. Waterton’s brothers inherited the plantations following the death of their father and uncle and Waterton continued to manage them until 1812, when he left to explore South America.
In his travel book ‘Wanderings in South America’ (1824), Waterton spoke out against slavery, saying that it was an ‘evil’ practice that ‘can never be defended’. However, there is no evidence that he actively campaigned for the abolition of slavery.
When Britain abolished slavery in 1833, the government paid compensation to those who owned enslaved people. As Waterton himself had not owned a plantation or any enslaved people, he did not receive compensation, but some of his family members did.
With thanks to Wakefield Council's Global Majority Race Equality Network and the Black Family Forum for their input into this information.
Wakefield Museums & Castles is committed to researching, representing and interpreting the connections between the Wakefield district and slavery. We have begun a long-term project to share these stories in our galleries, exhibitions and resources.
You can read some of the research we have done so far in these posts:
Eliza, Ann and Helen Edmonstone
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