William R. Rodman (1786-1855) of New Bedford, Massachusetts, was a merchant whose family was associated with the establishment of the whaling industry there. Jacob Barker (1779-1871) of Nantucket made his fortune in New York City as a shipping...
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William R. Rodman (1786-1855) of New Bedford, Massachusetts, was a merchant whose family was associated with the establishment of the whaling industry there. Jacob Barker (1779-1871) of Nantucket made his fortune in New York City as a shipping merchant and banker. A prominent member of the Tammany Society, he helped finance the U.S. government during the War of 1812, and served briefly in the New York State Senate. Business and legal troubles led to Barker's move to New Orleans in 1834, where he became a practicing lawyer and continued various business pursuits. He died in Philadelphia in 1871. The collection comprises letters written by William R. Rodman at New Bedford, 1835 August 31-October 9, to Jacob Barker in New York and New Orleans, Louisiana regarding oil and candle transactions and their business arrangements for the whaling ship Mobile. Also included is copied correspondence, dated 1838-1839, regarding a dispute over the Mobile. The Mobile left New Bedford for the Pacific Ocean in August 1836, returning there in September 1839. The ship had completed an earlier voyage to the Pacific with its landing at New York in early March 1836. The collection also contains a copy of an undated agreement between Rodman and Barker regarding the Mobile, and a shipping invoice for oil consigned to Baker, signed by William R. Rodman, 1835.
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