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VI had highest rate of runaway slaves in British Caribbean – Dr Angel Smith

Dr Angel Smith disclosed that the VI had the highest number of runaways in the British Caribbean during the period of slavery. Photo: VINO
A presentation slide showing sugar production figures for the years surrounding emancipation. Photo: VINO
A presentation slide showing sugar production figures for the years surrounding emancipation. Photo: VINO
A section of the audience at the lecture. Photo: VINO
A section of the audience at the lecture. Photo: VINO
PARAQUITA BAY, Tortola, VI – The Virgin Islands (VI) possessed the highest rate of runaways in the entire British Caribbean during slavery, according to Dr Angel Smith.

This revelation was made by Dr Smith, during a lecture held in the Eileen L. Parsons auditorium of the H. Lavity Stoutt Community College (HLSCC) last evening, May 23, 2013 that highlighted the transition of the VI people from slavery to freedom.

“If slaves in the Virgin Islands felt that they wanted to go somewhere, they just up and left,” Dr Smith said.

He related an account of a former slave owner writing several times to a slave that escaped to St Thomas, asking that she return. The slave eventually replied after several mails to say that she would only return under the condition that she was allowed to buy her freedom.

In his lecture, Dr Smith explained that a law was implemented during the initial apprenticeship period following slavery that made it impossible for slaves to buy their own freedom if they had run away within the two years prior to the abolition of slavery in 1834.

This resulted in a recorded eleven (11) manumissions (former slaves able to purchase their freedom) for the year 1835. Former slaves paid between £20–£80 in order to secure their freedom during this period.

According to Dr Smith, slaves often escaped to the coal mines of the Danish Islands and acquired work, often earning enough money during the process to purchase their freedom.

“I think that is the sort of the independent spirit of the Virgin Islander that we see even from then, the same thing that we experience today,” said Dr Smith.

Bumper harvest

Dr Smith also related that in the year preceding emancipation, slaves were forced to work doubly hard and this resulted in a greatly increased crop production level that was never before seen in the Virgin Islands.

“In 1834, the amount of sugar was 50 per cent more than that which was produced in 1833,” Dr Smith disclosed, “when the slave masters recognised that emancipation was coming, they weren’t sure if the slaves were going to respond riotously, they weren’t sure if they were going to come back and work afterwards [so] they came up with a plan.”

Slaves, he said, were worked day and night to produce more sugar and were forced to cut every cane in the country to ensure that one big harvest was realised.

Dr Smith said the slave masters reasoned that if the entire system had fallen apart after emancipation, they would have already made their money with this plan.

Women as backbone of slavery

According to Dr Smith, women outnumbered men as field workers during slavery, both in the VI and the rest of the British Caribbean and were basically the backbone of slavery at the time.

Plantation owners removed special privileges such as that of 'child minders' and field cooks during the apprenticeship period. These were usually women who had six or more children.

Dr Smith revealed a number of other repressive measures implemented to discourage slaves from earning their freedom that was described as inhumane treatment by Missionaries at the time.

The Historian said women were more ‘confrontational and upfront’ in their resistance and misconduct. They were often punished with confinement and hard labour by the former slave owners in an effort to curb this resistance. The whipping of women was outlawed for some time prior to this period.

Dr Smith also made a number of other revealing disclosures during his lecture, including the fact that his great-grandfather, Jacob W. Smith, had once been paid £250 for 6 slaves as part of a compensation programme by Britain.

He found this particularly funny after ‘stomping up’ about slave masters being compensated for the freedom of their slaves during the apprenticeship period. The British paid Caribbean slave owners £20M pounds as compensation for slaves that were freed and £204,290 of this amount was paid to 267 slave owners in the Virgin Islands.

Dr. Smith is a Virgin Islander and the Director of Virgin Islands Studies at HLSCC and a graduate of Hull University, where he completed a Doctoral thesis entitled ‘An Anatomy of a Slave Society in Transition: The Virgin Islands 1807-1864’. His research was funded entirely by the Government of the Virgin Islands.

The lecture was held in commemoration of 175 years of full freedom from slavery in the British Caribbean and Dr. Smith will also present the same lecture on the sister islands of Virgin Gorda on May 29, Anegada June 6 and Jost Van Dyke on June 9, 2013.

22 Responses to “VI had highest rate of runaway slaves in British Caribbean – Dr Angel Smith”

  • mhm (24/05/2013, 08:20) Like (15) Dislike (1) Reply
    See when it’s something educational its empty but if it was a queen show it would have been filled...you people boss have your priorities all mixed up!!
    • links (24/05/2013, 11:13) Like (2) Dislike (1) Reply
      No money or favors involved so they are not interested.
    • Bvi man (24/05/2013, 11:29) Like (5) Dislike (1) Reply
      the public missed and wasted a good opportunity not hearing this!
    • Rex (24/05/2013, 14:50) Like (2) Dislike (1) Reply
      They would bring their mother, sister, neice an all female members to the side show. Something of this nature is not their interest. Sad.
  • pat (24/05/2013, 09:32) Like (3) Dislike (2) Reply
    So I tke it that he is no longer occupying the post of Chief Education Officer
  • Naviola (24/05/2013, 10:32) Like (5) Dislike (0) Reply
    This should be a History subject taught in every elementary school in the British Virgin Islands chain.
  • wow (24/05/2013, 10:44) Like (2) Dislike (0) Reply
    I would like to have seen more students and young adults there! It would be very beneficial to them if they get to know their true cultural historic background!!
    • Educator (24/05/2013, 21:28) Like (1) Dislike (0) Reply
      I agree, this should have been a field trip for students. The place should have been crowded with students with standing room for adults.
  • support (24/05/2013, 11:17) Like (1) Dislike (0) Reply
    This was very informative, concise and very timely as we begin our preparation to celebrate our Freedom. If you missed it, I suggest you catch the other scheduled ones. I am planning to attend them all. Good job Cuz!!!
  • Informative (24/05/2013, 12:49) Like (3) Dislike (0) Reply
    Very informative and every Virgin Islander and decendants of slaves should hear and know where we came from and the built-in resillience we inherited. Great job Doctor Smith.
  • educate (24/05/2013, 17:34) Like (0) Dislike (0) Reply
    This was really a great presentation. Dr. Smith really gave a great look back into the past. So many of the things we learned to be true about the time of slavery in the Virgin Islands are now up for question. Wow! So what is the significance of the Sunday Morning Well? I look forward to the other lectures in this series. Nice!
  • mAN uP (24/05/2013, 19:34) Like (1) Dislike (1) Reply
    Congratulations Angel Whoooooohooooooooo.!!.
  • all (24/05/2013, 23:46) Like (2) Dislike (0) Reply
    so what ever happen to the fighting sprint of Virgin Islanders??? seems like every body these days is just walking all over them
  • cuba (25/05/2013, 14:19) Like (1) Dislike (1) Reply
    what happen to the fighting spirit of British Virgin Islanders? all they do is fight against their own instead of coming together and work for the betterment of their children. All they do is complain on not stand up on make a different.But they blame all other countries for sticking together and building up they country. It so ashame of how their not involue in nothing good to bring them forward, stop sitting and take a stand its your country u have to fight for it not outsiders and if they do you curse them for standing up for you, everything is a problem.
    • . (26/05/2013, 08:56) Like (1) Dislike (5) Reply
      You need to go back to Philippines or whichever third world country you came here from. Seriously. Try to go to the States or somewhere, see if they will have you. Try go there and criticize them in their own country, see if you don't end up arrested and sitting in Guantanamo Bay. We are done taking your $hi+. A new day is coming and we are about to take a stand...against unwanted foreigners like you!
  • ReX FeRal (25/05/2013, 14:35) Like (0) Dislike (0) Reply
    To All: That spirit is still there, be careful Virginislanders change their minds. Good look Skoolmate Smith.
  • Yet (26/05/2013, 03:05) Like (4) Dislike (0) Reply
    I missed the lecture but what kind of figures did he came up with to justify this thesis? is there a time period under consideration? Isn't this headline in direct contradiction to what Pickering and others wrote about where it was cited that due to the unavailability of protective heavens and only very few slaves had the means to make it to St Thomas the runaway rate was very low in the BVI. How do these numbers compare with slaves in Haiti, Dominica and Jamaica where there were self sufficient established villages of runaway slaves living in the mountains.
  • runaway (03/06/2013, 23:24) Like (2) Dislike (0) Reply
    So why do you think so many so called Island people coming to the BVI? They are children of some of these runaway slave coming home
  • bviabe (14/08/2015, 10:00) Like (0) Dislike (0) Reply
    "slaves often escaped to the coal mines of the Danish Islands" Dr Smith must have said "coal pits" (or similar), surely?
  • .... (14/08/2015, 12:05) Like (0) Dislike (1) Reply
    OOOHHH, so it's from long we don't like to work.. I see...


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