Pelts and palisades: The story of fur and the rivalry for pelts in early AmericaHale, Nathaniel C. (Nathaniel Claiborne)
History
Pelts and palisades: The story of fur and the rivalry for pelts in early America
Hale, Nathaniel C. (Nathaniel Claiborne)
Fur trade -- Canada; Fur trade -- United States; United States -- History -- Colonial period, ca. 1600-1775
The next day Taylor was in the Potomac River for a try at recapturing
the _Long Tayle_. He carried what might be described as a letter of
marque and reprisal given him by William Claiborne. The Marylanders,
however, turned the tables on him. They captured Taylor along with his
pinnace.
But in the meantime Governor Harvey had been placed under arrest by the
Virginia Council and put on a ship for England. When Claiborne arrived
from Kent Island late in May of 1635 with news of the bloody encounters
on the bay, the acting governor, John West, at once sent a mission to
St. Mary’s to apprize Calvert of Harvey’s arrest and to demand that the
Marylanders “desist their violent proceedings.”
Leonard Calvert took pause at this unexpected development. His younger
brother, George, as well as his councillor, Jerome Hawley, had been
contending all along that Claiborne had some right on his side.
Violence was certainly not accomplishing anything. Maybe, Calvert may
have conjectured, his brother in England could do better through the
courts.
So it came about that the mission was successful in imposing a truce
on Maryland that lasted for two years. Prisoners and confiscated boats
were exchanged. Claiborne, now married and settled with his family, was
left unmolested in the possession of his island home and undisturbed in
his trading activities. Another windmill was built, and another church,
better to serve the two growing communities on Kent Island. Besides an
enormous number of pelts traded locally for private accounts and for
the maintenance of the plantation, furs to the value of 4,000 pounds
sterling were shipped to England for the company partners there.
But then, Captain Claiborne found it necessary to go to England, for
Lord Baltimore had powerful friends. It looked as if he might get a
legal decision against the Virginians through the Lords Commissioners
of Plantations. Claiborne turned over all his operations to a partner
who had recently arrived from England representing the joint-stock
company, and went to London to fight for his rights. No sooner had he
left however than this partner, one George Evelin, managed to betray
Kent Island into the hands of his enemies.
Although the main fort was traitorously delivered up, the island was
not yielded quietly or easily. Repeated military expeditions to subdue
the inhabitants were made by Leonard Calvert before Captain Thomas
Smith and others were finally captured in 1638 and hanged as pirates
and rebels. Claiborne himself, _in absentia_, was attainted by the
Maryland Assembly of the “grievous crimes of pyracie and murther,” and
“all his lands and tenements, goods and chattels” were forfeited to
the Lord Proprietary. Evelin took his share of the loot, even digging
up some of Claiborne’s fruit trees and transplanting them to the manor
that Lord Baltimore granted him near St. Mary’s in payment for his
services.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account