Hanging Captain Gordon: The Life and Trial of an American Slave Trader

by Ron Soodalter

On a frosty day in February 1862, hundreds gathered to watch the execution of Nathaniel Gordon. Two years earlier, Gordon had taken Africans in chains from the Congo -- a hanging offense for more than forty years that no one had ever enforced. But with the country embroiled in a civil war and Abraham Lincoln at the helm, a sea change was taking place. Gordon, in the wrong place at the wrong time, got caught up in the wave.

For the first time, Hanging Captain Gordon chronicles the trial and execution of the only man in history to face conviction for slave trading -- exploring the many compelling issues and circumstances that led to one man paying the price for a crime committed by many. Filled with sharply drawn characters, Soodalter's vivid account sheds light on one of the more shameful aspects of our history and provides a link to similar crimes against humanity still practiced today.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Civil War, True Crime, Biography, American History

336 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

Reviews

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 Stars for this enlightening look at a sordid period in American history and one seriously unlucky sea captain that got exactly what he deserved. Unfortunately there were so many others who did not get the same short stretch on a long rope. This is history at its best when it teaches and makes for some uncomfortable truth-telling.

Slave trading by an American ship or by an American serving on a foreign vessel became a capital offense when the Act of 1820 went into effect. The slave trade to the US had been outlawed earlier and had slowed to a small illegal trade. But Cuba and Brazil needed slave labor and over 2 million were transported there in the first 60 years of the century. This was a lucrative trade and New York City was a main hub of financing these slave ships. Empathy for and support of the South was strong in New York City because the financiers were making big money off of the cotton industry and slaves were needed for that. New York City strongly considered secession to support the South (and keep their investments growing).

Slaving was a capital offense but Capt Gordon was the only person to actually suffer the penalty...why? The lawyers and judges are a big reason. Creepily fascinating to read about the lawyers arguing and judges finding ways to not implement the law. For 41 years, it was virtually impossible to successfully prosecute anyone for engaging in slave trading. Even if prosecuted, the convictions were overturned or the penalties were minor.

Capt Gordon was caught on his third voyage. The description of the horrible conditions on the ship was hard to read but showed how cruel these people were. Gordon was caught by the US African Squadron and transported to the US for trial. (The slaves on the ship were taken to Liberia and set free there...33 had died in the short time on board.) Gordon and two other crewmates were arrogant and cocky, sure they would be let go like everyone had before them. "Unlucky to be you" because he was caught and tried just as the Civil War kicks off. Suddenly his New York lawyers are unable to get the sentenced thrown out, reduced, suspended, etc.

We learn that Abe Lincoln was very liberal with presidential pardons but would not issue one here. We also get a good picture of the actual mechanics of setting up the slave ships, how the business actually worked, who participated in the entire process.

Soodalter really gives an unvarnished picture of all sides of the story and the "peculiar institution". Highly recommended.

[Meaghan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was exactly what history should be: engaging, relevant, well-researched and well-written. It discusses the life, trial and death of Nathaniel Gordon, the only person in American history who was ever executed for trafficking in slaves. Soodalter's writing makes the various characters in his account feel alive again, and he was able to provide a decent background on the history of slavery in America. I would recommend this for pleasure reading for history buffs, or as a supplementary text in a Civil War class.

[David Kent · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well-written account of the only slaver ever convicted and executed in U.S. history. Gordon was a repeat offender, caught with nearly 900 enslaved men, women, and children crammed into the tiny space below decks off the coast of the Congo. For the first 40+ years of the law making international slave trading illegal and punishable by death, no man was ever executed...and none would be after Captain Gordon. Author Ron Soodalter gives us a captivating tale of the slave trader deceits, the capture, the trial, and the pressure put on President Lincoln to pardon - or at least commute to life imprisonment - Gordon's sentence. Resolute, Lincoln finds it his duty to allow the conviction to stand, and the sentence to come to fruition. Thanks to Soodalter for his engaging portrait of an important period of American history rarely covered.

[Jeremy Snow · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is easy to see the ACW in terms of good guys (North) and bad guys (South) given the South's obvious support of slavery. However, this book makes clear just how much Northern interests supported slavery when it suited their economic interests. I was surprised to learn just how much the City of New York looked the other way as leading citizens profited from the trafficking of human slaves. Despite having been outlawed for over 40 years, Gordon was the only person that was punished to the full extent of the law under the US's anti slave trafficking laws. Even that would likely not occurred but for the election of Lincoln and the ongoing CW. An interesting light into just how complicit both sides were complicit in and profiting from Southern slavery. Well worth the read.

[Aimee Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting book about the slave trade.

[Tim Phillips · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is an insightful book of American history.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 1/2 stars. This book was well-written and chock full of information about the only time the US hanged someone for the crime of slave trading, despite... well, read the book to know all the "despites" (how long it was illegal, how many ships searched for slavers, how many captures there were, how many trials, how many original convictions, etc.). At times the level of detail got a bit bogged down for me, but in the end it was the thoroughness of the research that conveyed just how unique this one case was.

Randomly, I decided early on without having checked the author's picture inside the back jacket cover that the author MUST be a White man (knew the gender from the name). Though this was a book about the slave trade, Soodalter didn't address the experience of the slaves until page 66, and in a book that packed a NY Times' article's worth of information on every page, that was an eternity. No Black author would have waited that long to talk about the horrors of the experience of those directly affected, even if the book was about Captain Gordon.

Definitely worth reading if you want to delve in, love history, and like detail.

[Casey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love to read about history and this was a great read about the one and only time someone was givent he death penalty due to slavery and the events surrounding the bringing over of the the slaves. It's interesting to me that Captain Gordon was the only one sentenced to death due to his involvment and it's interesting that throughout the many years that slavery took place, that there weren't more cases like Gordon's. Great book, great read about history, great recommendation!

[Fredrick Danysh · Rating 3 out of 5]

When the importation of slaves to America was outlawed prior to the American Civil War, slave running became a capital offense. In 1862 an American ships captain was captured in the act. This is the story of his life, trail, and death in a little known event.

[Jay · Rating 4 out of 5]

"I felt it my duty to refuse." Perhaps the high point of Abraham Lincoln's first year in the White House was the lone execution of an American slave trader under a 40 year old Piracy statute. The description of Nathaniel Gordon's gallows, the "Upright Jerker," was interesting and new to me.

[Christopher Dickey · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent look at the slave traffic under the American flag on the eve of the American Civil War.