1767–1778, Extensive Samuel White Correspondence Collection, Barbados, Falmouth, Salem and Atlantic Trade Network Stampless Folded Letters

An impressive group of merchant correspondence addressed to Samuel White, Merchant, of Marblehead, spanning 1767 through 1778 and documenting New England participation in the Atlantic fish and West Indies trade.
The earliest letter, dated April 23, 1767 from Barbados, documents White’s involvement in the West Indies trade. The June 10, 1770 letter from Bilboa, Spain, references fish sales and cargo activity in the Iberian market, reflecting Marblehead’s role in the southern European cod trade. The archive also includes multiple letters written by Jeremiah Pote of Falmouth, dated 1769, 1770, 1771, 1772, and 1778, referencing:
- Fish purchased for freight to Caribbean destinations, including St. Eustatius
- Brig Hero voyages
- Bills of lading and marine insurance
- Settlement of accounts in pounds, shillings, and old tenor currency
- Drafts drawn on White and third-party payment instructions
- Return cargo including handkerchiefs and assorted goods
- Wartime-era provisioning requests in 1778
Samuel White was a Marblehead merchant active during the late colonial period. Marblehead’s economy was centered on dried cod exports to the Caribbean and southern Europe, with return cargoes of sugar, molasses, rum, and manufactured goods. The correspondence reflects White’s role in freight investment, delegated sales authority, insurance placement, and account settlement across regional and trans-Atlantic networks.
Jeremiah Pote, writing from Falmouth, appears as a recurring correspondent engaged in coastal and West Indies commerce. His letters document freight financing arrangements, cargo preparation by the quintal, vessel movements, and credit transactions within the Massachusetts maritime community.