Trade in Strangers

Sailing Souls: Colonial Philadelphia's German Merchants and the Development of the Transatlantic Passenger Trade

“…Philadelphia merchants oversaw the debarkation, the collection of passengers' outstanding debts, and the preparation of the vessel for its next destination. 8 The industry grew quickly in the 1730s when more and more would-be emigrants began to take the opportunity of passage on credit. In this system, the migrant became indebted to the merchant to a sum equal to the travel cost, plus 20 percent, and had the debt 'redeemed' by friends, family.…”

“…Over time, they started to finance these voyages independently, and to send out their own ships. 35 Keppele started out by securing a consignment of 386 German immigrants in 1752 from Captain George Parish of the ship Queen of Denmark. Over the next three years, he took six more consignments of German immigrants totaling almost 2,000 people, including almost nine percent of all adult male immigrants who arrived during the surge in German migration between 1751 and 1756.…”