Voyages: The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database

Abstract

The Voyages website (http://www.slavevoyages.org) provides the most comprehensive source of data currently available on the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Forming its core is the Voyages Database, originally published as the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade: A Database - on CD-ROM by Cambridge University Press (1999). The Voyages Database contains records of nearly 36,000 separate slaving voyages between 1514 and 1866, gleaned from original documents and historical publications located in archives, libraries, and other institutions throughout the world. Data from these historical records were collected over many decades and the database has continued to be updated as new documents are discovered. Each record in the Voyages Database offers information on a single slaving voyage; some of the details include the country of origin, the individual(s) who sponsored it, the voyage itself (its itinerary, dates of travel, and outcome), captains and crew members, slaves transported, and the sources providing this voyage information. As freely available online resources, the Voyages Database and the Voyages website provide professional researchers, K-12 educators and students, and the general public with a single location for understanding and investigating the history of the trans-Atlantic slave trade.