In the late 18th century, a small number of sailing vessels crisscrossed the upper Great Lakes. During the American Revolution, these ships linked the Straits of Mackinac with Detroit and eastern settlements. They carried passengers, military supplies, and news of a growing global conflict. Each vessel was relatively small and required only a few sailors to operate. These crews were diverse and included sailors from Europe and the American colonies. A few sailors, including Jupiter and Pomp, were enslaved.
Jupiter and Pomp belonged to a small but significant group of Black people enslaved by merchant John Askin. Askin held extensive business interests at Michilimackinac and across the Great Lakes. He supplied government contracts and participated heavily in the fur trade. He also owned a small fleet of merchant vessels. These ships connected Michilimackinac with Detroit and Sault Ste. Marie. The larger vessels, Welcome and Archange, regularly sailed Lakes Michigan and Huron. Smaller craft, including DePeyster and Mackinac, occasionally ventured to western Lake Superior. Like free sailors, Jupiter and Pomp moved between vessels as seasonal needs changed.
Despite frequent mentions in Askin’s letters and diary, little is known about either man. In July 1775, Askin fully purchased Jupiter and Pomp from Albany merchant Abraham Douw for £135. Before that purchase, Askin and Douw jointly enslaved the men through a business partnership. Askin likely brought them to Michilimackinac in the early 1770s. In 1778, Jupiter traveled to Sault Ste. Marie, where Askin’s brother-in-law Jean Baptiste Barthe operated a trading post. There, Jupiter may have worked aboard Mackinac or DePeyster, or labored as a cooper. As early as 1772, Jupiter earned £9 for three months’ work as a cooper and laborer in the Commissary Department.
Pomp spent much of his time working as a sailor. In May 1775, he joined the crew of Askin’s sloop Archange. He likely worked at Sault Ste. Marie in 1777. By 1778, he sailed aboard DePeyster, a small schooner built at Michilimackinac in 1775. Askin deeply felt Pomp’s absence while he served aboard that vessel. He urged Barthe to send Pomp back as soon as possible, writing, “I cannot do without him.” Although Pomp worked alongside free sailors and moved with relative independence, Askin still treated him as property. In 1778, Askin ordered daily rum rations for his sailors. He specified that Pomp was to receive only half the amount.
Although Askin’s records mention only Jupiter and Pomp, other Black sailors likely worked on the Great Lakes. In late 1779, Askin’s son-in-law Samuel Robertson sailed the sloop Felicity on Lake Michigan. Near the mouth of the Muskegon River, he learned that Black sailors “with the little vessel” had sailed north. They carried a load of corn bound for Michilimackinac. These sailors may have included Jupiter and Pomp, possibly aboard Archange.
Whoever they were, these men played a vital role in Great Lakes commerce. Like Jupiter and Pomp, they helped sustain the maritime network that powered the regional economy during the American Revolution.
Additional reading about Colonial Michilimackinac: Colonial Cousins
