The proprietor saw that his customers were as thirsty for information to fuel their bets and gossip as they were for coffee, and so he began to assemble a network of informants and a newsletter full of information about foreign ports, tides, and the comings and goings of ships. His name was Edward Lloyd. His newsletter became known as Lloyd’s List. Lloyd’s coffeehouse hosted ship auctions, and gatherings of sea captains who would share stories. And if someone wished to insure a ship, that could be done, too: a contract would be drawn up, and the insurer would sign his name underneath—hence the
...more
