A Ship of Horrors

The slave ship Antelope

Savannah has a grand maritime history. In this history are also some dark areas. One of those dark stories is a slave ship which had 275 captives called the Antelope. Forty one percent of the captives were between the ages of five and ten. The Antelope, after sailing to Surinam and St. Bartholomew trying to sell the captives unsuccessfully, loitered off the coast of St. Augustine flying an American flag. This drew unwanted attention so that when it entered Georgia waters around St. Marys it was stopped by the Revenue cutter Dallas. It was June 29, 1825.
​
Savannahian and Georgia attorney general Richard W. Habersham took interest in the slave ship Antelope. John Smith, captain of the Antelope, filed a claim for the return of the ship and her cargo. Claims for ownership of the Africans were filed on behalf of the Kings of Portugal and Spain. Habersham filed a claim on behalf of the United States to place the Africans as free persons under laws prohibiting slave trade under the provisions of the 1819 Act in Addition. This more than likely ruffled a few feathers in the slave city of Savannah. The 1819 Act in Addition gave the President authority to use the U.S. Navy and other armed ships to capture slave ships and to assist any slaves found onboard to their freedom. But it is unlikely the expected a southerner such as Habersham to make the effort to enforce the Act.

The Africans were placed in the custody of the United States Marshall for the District of Georgia. They were housed in an open area at the Savannah race course, which became known as the "African encampment." The Antelope’s case eventually reached the United States Supreme Court in 1825. Francis Scott Key, writer of our National Anthem, represented the United States Government. Savannah’s own John Berrien represented the slave owner’s side. Berrien's father, John Berrien Sr., had served in the Revolutionary War (1775-83) under Lachlan McIntosh of Georgia. After the surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown, Berrien's father moved his family to Savannah.

After Berrien Jr. finished law school at Princeton, he would become a judge in 1810. During the War of 1812 (1812-15), he was a captain in the Chatham Light Dragoons and later a colonel in the First Georgia Calvary. In 1822 and 1823 Berrien represented Chatham County in the Georgia senate. In 1825 the Georgia legislature elected him to the U.S. Senate. He became a prominent Senator with legendary oratorical powers that earned him the title "American Cicero."

Two of America’s great wordsmiths, Key and Berrien, would duel in the case of the Antelope. In the end the case was settled in favor of the owner of the slave ship. It was stated slavery was against the law of nature but property rights outweighed moral turpitude.  The Supreme Court found ownership could only be established for 93 of the captives. The other 120 captives were to be returned to Africa. The returned Africans were sent to Liberia in July 1827, where they founded the colony of New Georgia. This case would foreshadow the Dred Scott Decision which would help lead us into the Civil War.

As for Berrien he returned to the U.S. Senate in 1841 and served in that body until he was defeated by Robert Toombs in 1852. After the loss, he returned to Savannah and resumed his law practice. He would serve the University of Georgia for thirty years as a trustee. Berrien was one of the Georgia Historical Society's founders in 1839 and its first president. He served as president of the Georgia branch of the Society of the Cincinnati. He was on the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution and even was president of the American Bible Society.

Richard Habersham was appointed United States Attorney and served until his resignation in 1825. He was elected as a representative of Georgia in the United States House of Representatives from 1839 to 1842 and died in office. These two Savannah lawyers were on opposite sides in the Antelope case and yet they served Savannah and their nation with great distinction.

---

John Berrien Jr.

Richard W. Habersham with family. This painting hangs in the Owens-Thomas House in Savannah