What do you think?


Journal of an African Cruiser, 1853: Comprising Sketches of the Canaries, the Cape De Verds, Liberia, Madeira, Sierra Leone, and Other Places of Interest on the West Coast of Africa
Explore a vivid 19th‑century voyage along the West Coast of Africa and beyond.
This nonfiction travelogue gathers desultory, observation‑driven sketches of ships, ports, peoples, and landscapes from Madeira to the Cape Verde islands and Liberia. Rich with period detail, it blends maritime life, cultural notes, and practical glimpses of distant worlds from the vantage of a U.S. Navy cruiser.
Drawn from the author’s firsthand sailing narrative, the book offers candid reflections on colonial life, trade, and the various societies encountered along the Atlantic seaboard. It presents a collector’s view of places, events, and everyday moments that shaped West Africa’s coastal world in the mid‑1800s, without prescribing or solving every mystery it encounters.
Vivid scenes from sea travel, island life, and port towns that illuminate 19th‑century exploration. Observations on local customs, commerce, religion, and the social dynamics of coastal communities. Portraits of notable places like Madeira, the Canary Islands, and Sierra Leone as seen by sailors and missionaries. Context for the era’s attitudes toward exploration, empire, and the slave trade, grounded in travel narrative and reportage. Ideal for readers of maritime travel, 19th‑century exploration, and historical journals of Africa’s Atlantic littoral.
This nonfiction travelogue gathers desultory, observation‑driven sketches of ships, ports, peoples, and landscapes from Madeira to the Cape Verde islands and Liberia. Rich with period detail, it blends maritime life, cultural notes, and practical glimpses of distant worlds from the vantage of a U.S. Navy cruiser.
Drawn from the author’s firsthand sailing narrative, the book offers candid reflections on colonial life, trade, and the various societies encountered along the Atlantic seaboard. It presents a collector’s view of places, events, and everyday moments that shaped West Africa’s coastal world in the mid‑1800s, without prescribing or solving every mystery it encounters.
Vivid scenes from sea travel, island life, and port towns that illuminate 19th‑century exploration. Observations on local customs, commerce, religion, and the social dynamics of coastal communities. Portraits of notable places like Madeira, the Canary Islands, and Sierra Leone as seen by sailors and missionaries. Context for the era’s attitudes toward exploration, empire, and the slave trade, grounded in travel narrative and reportage. Ideal for readers of maritime travel, 19th‑century exploration, and historical journals of Africa’s Atlantic littoral.
- GenresClassics
193 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1845
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review
January 23, 2023
She Opening
As a Liberian American, the accounts inscribed in this journal confirms oral stories handed down and at times fills the gaps. I urge all to read this officer's first hand objective and, subjective accounts of the impact of slavery. Most importantly, his thoughts on how We will fair on the abolitionists' experiment of an independent Black nation.
As a Liberian American, the accounts inscribed in this journal confirms oral stories handed down and at times fills the gaps. I urge all to read this officer's first hand objective and, subjective accounts of the impact of slavery. Most importantly, his thoughts on how We will fair on the abolitionists' experiment of an independent Black nation.
Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review

