I had relatively recently read Thomas’s book “The house by the lake”, which tells the story of a summer house by a picturesque lake near Berlin, and the family stories of its various residents during the mostly turbulent time post the Great War. Intertwined with these stories is that of the Thomas’s quest to save the house from demolition, and also to discover more about his own family history. I had found the book thoroughly engrossing read, well researched, and a timely reminder of the need for generous relating between diverse cultures.

In conversing with Thomas I learned that he had finished writing “Legacy: One Family, a Cup of Tea and the Company that Took On the World” and it was in the process of publication. “Legacy” explores Thomas’s maternal line including the history of the J. Lyons & Co. catering empire, and the source of some of the family’s wealth in the tobacco fields of Virginia, and the labour of enslaved people.

Thomas had come across the events of the 1823 rebellion in Demerara (the subject of “Crowns of Glory, Tears of Blood“) and was interested in exploring the account from the perspective of enslaved peoples, particularly focusing on person of Jack Gladstone, and also engaging in the developing conversation around the decolonisation, the impact of enslavement and colonisation on present-day cultures, and the need for apology and reparations. Thomas was keen to understand the attitudes and perspectives of the descendants of slave owners to the actions of their forebears. Thomas interviewed my father, Graham. I was able to contribute to some of the research Thomas needed, and put him in contact with a number of relevant researchers and descendants of slave-owners.

The writing of “White Debt” occurs in the context of “Black Lives Matter” and a re-examination of colonial history. In the introduction Thomas writes “I hope that by the final chapters you will agree that considerable harm has been done, that a debt is indeed owed. The question then becomes, who caused this harm and who should bear the cost of restitution? … it became obvious to  me that I had to give a name to those primarily responsible: White people.”

This book interweaves the story of enslaved people attempting to achieve their emancipation, Thomas’s own process of grappling with his own family’s history, and the story of people living out the impact of colonisation and enslavement on their own personal family history and circumstances.

The celebration of the anti-slavery movement has obscured the silencing of the history of cruelty, exploitation and oppression manifested in the Caribbean. As a descendant of slave owners and colonists I am personally challenged by this story, and what steps I can or should take in the process of acknowledgement, apology, and restitution. It also causes me to reflect on the impact of colonisation of the indigenous people of this country now known as Australia. My father, quoted in Thomas’s book, said “We can’t turn the clock back. It would be almost impossible to remedy the situation lost in history. We should find out the facts of the matter and make sure we learn from our mistakes and create a better world.” I agree.

As a teenager old family letters about the Van Cooten family in Australia triggered my interest in family history. Letters to my great-grandfather John Hughes Van Cooten contained the following tantalising clues:

• The other was that our great grandfather went to the West Indies on a royal Commission. What that Commission was I do not recollect, and that having fulfilled the mission of his government he received a [grant?] of land that as much as he could bring under proper cultivation became his own. This was termed an “Unlimited grant”.
• He married a Madagascan lady said to be of royal blood (very wealthy) and by her he had a numerous family of sons and daughters (22).
  being highly educated & no fortune he went to the West Indies, under the auspices of the Dutch Government & surveyed the colony & sent home so excellent a chart of the same and the river Demerara that the government gave him #1000 and an unlimited grant of land, i.e. so much frontages & back west he could clear & put under cultiture annually.
• The names of the Estates were “Better Hope, Sheet Anchor, Brides Lust “. I don’t know the date of the year in which my mother and father were married but I believe it was in the November of 1835 or 6.
• You ask your Grandfather’s name? Well!! He was “Jan” or John Van, Van Cooten M.D. – formerly of “Brides Lust” , Demerrara – and eldest son of Mr Henrique Van, Van Cooten by his wife Dorothy of the same address.

I doubted that I would ever be able to find out the truth behind these statements. As an adult working in IT at a University, I spent two years working for the library. I took the opportunity to explore. The book that was key to opening a vast area of research was “Crowns of Glory, Tears of Blood.” My ancestor wasn’t listed in the index, but showed up upon a quick flick through the contents! I found it very emotional to discover evidence corroborating the clues in old family letters. The “Notes on Sources” provided invaluable pointers to documentary sources, and has led me to making contact with other researchers in the area. Hendrik had a part to play in the events of 1823. He was an old established plantation owner. The actual name of the plantation was Vryheids Lust. He was a slave owner, but more kindly to his slaves than many other owners. He was sympathetic to the cause of the London Missionary Society. Mentions of Hendrik are here. This is a book where I found that as fascinating as the narrative was, the footnotes and citations were more valuable!

He was able to supply images, and my transcription is now available here. The page image is made available with the permission of the New York Historical Society.

Bram has now published his history – “Borderless Empire : Dutch Guiana in the Atlantic World, 1750-1800”. The description at bookdepository.com reads:

Borderless Empire explores the volatile history of Dutch Guiana, in particular the forgotten colonies of Essequibo and Demerara, to provide new perspectives on European empire building in the Atlantic world. Bram Hoonhout argues that imperial expansion was a process of improvisation at the colonial level rather than a project that was centrally orchestrated from the metropolis. Furthermore, he emphasizes that colonial expansion was far more transnational than the oft-used divisions into “national Atlantics” suggest. In so doing, he transcends the framework of the “Dutch Atlantic” by looking at the connections across cultural and imperial boundaries.

The openness of Essequibo and Demerara affected all levels of the colonial society. Instead of counting on metropolitan soldiers, the colonists relied on Amerindian allies, who captured runaway slaves and put down revolts. Instead of waiting for Dutch slavers, the planters bought enslaved Africans from foreign smugglers. Instead of trying to populate the colonies with Dutchmen, the local authorities welcomed adventurers from many different origins. The result was a borderless world in which slavery was contingent on Amerindian support and colonial trade was rooted in illegality. These transactions created a colonial society that was far more Atlantic than Dutch.

Bram’s book has gone straight to my wishlist!

I’ll work through the information in the Theodore Barrell letters in future posts.