- Written by
- Taileur, John, British
- Date
- 1814-1815
- Medium
- cloth and ink on wove paper
- Dimensions
- H x W x D (book): 12 3/16 × 7 7/8 × 2 3/4 in. (31 × 20 × 7 cm)
- H x W x D (case): 13 1/4 × 7 7/8 × 2 3/4 in. (33.6 × 20 × 7 cm)
- Caption
- The 95-page book includes standard ship’s log information (giving locations, weather, etc.) together with some narrative accounts. Under “Remarks & Occurrences” are reports of the actions taken by the ship, including accounts of encounters and armed conflicts with pirate slavers as part of a six month assignment with the West African Squadron. The mission of the ship under John Taileur was to suppress piracy and disrupt the illegal West African slave trade; they captured 10 ships and freed close to 10,000 enslaved.
- Description
- A folio-sized single-signature logbook (a) and case (b) interdicting the proceedings of the H.M.S. Comus. Constructed of rag paper, stitch-bound – pamphlet style, with a marbled blue laminated rag paper cover, the 95-page book details standard ship information and anecdotal accounts of the illegal slave trade along the West African coast. Written by Captain John Taileur between 2 October 1814 and 8 June 1815, the logbook offers first person evidence of the H.M.S. Comus’s disruption of the illegal West African slave trade and suppression of piracy. Each page is ruled and neatly written on. A bright square paper with “No. 3” written in the middle, is adhered in the laminated front of the book and there are no markings on the reverse of the log book. The book is housed in a brown fabric covered hard case (b), and the spine has a red and gold label which reads: [LOG / OF THE / H. M / SHIP COMUS / 1814 - / 1815].
- Transcription Center Status
- Transcription Available
- Place depicted
- West Africa, Africa
- Classification
- Slavery and Freedom Objects
- Documents and Manuscripts
- Type
- records
- manuscripts
- Credit Line
- Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
- Object number
- 2018.46.11ab
- Restrictions & Rights
- No Known Copyright Restrictions
- Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.




