Elias Derby is
one of the richest merchants in the post-revolution Massachusetts. He owned the
Grand Turk, the vessel from New
England that made the first direct trade with China.
Being the son of
a sea captain, Derby was exposed to sea trade at an early age. Before the
Revolution, the Derbys owned a fleet of thirteen vessels. Like many locals in Salem,
the Derbys profited from the ongoing Revolution.
Derby was in
charge of equipping privateers
during the Revolution. The Grand Turk,
the privateer which the Derbys owned, became the largest and the most
successful of its kind. It was the recipient of seventeen prizes from 1781 to
1782.
After the death
of his father in 1783, Derby took over the family’s sea trading business. When the
Revolution was over, Derby was the second wealthiest man in New England. Derby
explored new markets like Russia, Europe, the Baltic region and the East Indies
in 1784.
From being a
privateer, the Grand Turk was converted
into a cargo ship. Using its capacity of 300 tons, Derby sailed to Canton to
trade with Chinese businessmen. The ship arrived in Salem harbor from its
maiden trip to Canton on May 22, 1787, making Grand Turk one of the first five American vessels to reach the port
of Canton, and the first from New England.
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