1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:03,040 Speaker 1: Hey everyone. Technically you're getting two days in history today 2 00:00:03,120 --> 00:00:05,640 Speaker 1: because we were running two episodes from the History Vault. 3 00:00:05,840 --> 00:00:08,879 Speaker 1: You'll also here to hosts me and Tracy V. Wilson. 4 00:00:09,200 --> 00:00:13,119 Speaker 1: Hope you enjoy. Welcome to this Day in History Class 5 00:00:13,160 --> 00:00:15,560 Speaker 1: from how Stuff Works dot Com and from the desk 6 00:00:15,640 --> 00:00:17,799 Speaker 1: of Stuff you Missed in History Class. It's the show 7 00:00:17,800 --> 00:00:20,120 Speaker 1: where we explore the past one day at a time 8 00:00:20,200 --> 00:00:26,040 Speaker 1: with a quick look at what happened today in history. 9 00:00:26,840 --> 00:00:30,120 Speaker 1: Hello and welcome to the podcast. I'm Tracy V. Wilson, 10 00:00:30,200 --> 00:00:34,239 Speaker 1: and it's November twenty nine. The Zong Massacre began on 11 00:00:34,240 --> 00:00:38,640 Speaker 1: this day. In sight one, the Zong was a slave ship, 12 00:00:39,120 --> 00:00:43,080 Speaker 1: and conditions on slave ships in general were brutal and horrifying, 13 00:00:43,560 --> 00:00:47,520 Speaker 1: but aboard the Zong they became even worse. The Zong 14 00:00:47,720 --> 00:00:51,320 Speaker 1: left the African coast on September sixth of that year. 15 00:00:51,800 --> 00:00:54,880 Speaker 1: It was heavily overloaded with four hundred and forty two 16 00:00:54,960 --> 00:00:58,640 Speaker 1: enslaved Africans, and while crossing the Atlantic, many of these 17 00:00:58,640 --> 00:01:01,960 Speaker 1: people became ill and died because of disease and thirst 18 00:01:02,080 --> 00:01:06,320 Speaker 1: and malnutrition. And again this was common aboard slave ships, 19 00:01:06,319 --> 00:01:08,839 Speaker 1: but it became a lot worse than this case. Because 20 00:01:08,880 --> 00:01:13,600 Speaker 1: the crew accidentally sailed past their destination of Jamaica and 21 00:01:13,600 --> 00:01:16,080 Speaker 1: then on the other side of Jamaica, they were becalmed. 22 00:01:17,000 --> 00:01:19,959 Speaker 1: By the time they became stranded at sea, having lost 23 00:01:20,080 --> 00:01:24,479 Speaker 1: the wind, three hundred and eighty of those original four 24 00:01:24,560 --> 00:01:29,480 Speaker 1: hundred forty two enslaved people were still living. While they 25 00:01:29,520 --> 00:01:32,920 Speaker 1: were stuck there, conditions got worse, and the crew made 26 00:01:32,959 --> 00:01:37,120 Speaker 1: a decision. They threw some of the enslaved people aboard 27 00:01:37,560 --> 00:01:40,680 Speaker 1: off the ship to try to conserve resources. They focused 28 00:01:40,720 --> 00:01:44,040 Speaker 1: on the ones who were sick or dying. Over the 29 00:01:44,080 --> 00:01:46,240 Speaker 1: span of just a few days, the crew threw a 30 00:01:46,400 --> 00:01:50,480 Speaker 1: hundred and thirty two people overboard, and about ten people 31 00:01:50,560 --> 00:01:55,920 Speaker 1: also jumped overboard to avoid this fate. Luke Collingwood was 32 00:01:55,960 --> 00:01:58,800 Speaker 1: the captain of the ship, but he wasn't the ship's owner. 33 00:01:59,320 --> 00:02:01,920 Speaker 1: The owner was a in named James Gregson, and once 34 00:02:01,960 --> 00:02:05,320 Speaker 1: the Zong finally did get out of this situation and 35 00:02:05,400 --> 00:02:09,480 Speaker 1: arrived in Jamaica, Gregson filed an insurance claim for his 36 00:02:09,639 --> 00:02:14,799 Speaker 1: lost property, that property being the enslaved people who had 37 00:02:14,800 --> 00:02:18,880 Speaker 1: been jettisoned from the ship. Collingwood also died not long 38 00:02:18,919 --> 00:02:22,200 Speaker 1: after arriving, and the manifest of exactly who and what 39 00:02:22,360 --> 00:02:26,440 Speaker 1: had been on board disappeared. So it wasn't at all 40 00:02:26,520 --> 00:02:29,919 Speaker 1: uncommon for the owner of a slave ship to ensure 41 00:02:30,280 --> 00:02:33,680 Speaker 1: the enslaved people aboard, and it also wasn't all that 42 00:02:33,760 --> 00:02:38,040 Speaker 1: uncommon for the insurer to pay claims on so called 43 00:02:38,080 --> 00:02:41,280 Speaker 1: cargo that was lost during the trip, but in this 44 00:02:41,360 --> 00:02:45,120 Speaker 1: case the insurance company refused to pay. The insurance inspector 45 00:02:45,160 --> 00:02:47,600 Speaker 1: said that there was more than four hundred gallons of 46 00:02:47,600 --> 00:02:50,160 Speaker 1: water aboard the Zong when it got to Jamaica, so 47 00:02:50,240 --> 00:02:53,600 Speaker 1: it shouldn't have been necessary to reduce the numbers aboard 48 00:02:53,680 --> 00:02:56,760 Speaker 1: the ship. There was also evidence that the crew had 49 00:02:56,800 --> 00:03:00,280 Speaker 1: passed up the opportunity to replenish the stores of her 50 00:03:00,320 --> 00:03:03,280 Speaker 1: on the ship, and that the killings had continued after 51 00:03:03,480 --> 00:03:07,359 Speaker 1: rains replenished the water supply that was there this matter 52 00:03:07,400 --> 00:03:09,880 Speaker 1: whence the court, and the court found in favor of 53 00:03:09,960 --> 00:03:14,400 Speaker 1: James Gregson, but the insurance company appealed the decision. This 54 00:03:14,639 --> 00:03:18,680 Speaker 1: appeal became a matter of national attention in Britain as 55 00:03:18,720 --> 00:03:22,799 Speaker 1: abolitionists use it as an example of the horrors of slavery. 56 00:03:23,440 --> 00:03:26,800 Speaker 1: William Murray, the Earl of Mansfield, and the Lord Chiefs 57 00:03:26,800 --> 00:03:29,280 Speaker 1: Justice of the King's bench was the one who heard 58 00:03:29,280 --> 00:03:32,959 Speaker 1: this appeal and ordered a new trial. It was during 59 00:03:33,000 --> 00:03:35,760 Speaker 1: all of this at the word massacre was first used 60 00:03:35,800 --> 00:03:39,400 Speaker 1: to describe what had happened. And living in the home 61 00:03:39,640 --> 00:03:42,200 Speaker 1: of William Murray, the Earl of Mansfield, was a woman 62 00:03:42,360 --> 00:03:46,320 Speaker 1: named Dido Elizabeth Bell. She was the Earl's grand niece. 63 00:03:47,080 --> 00:03:50,720 Speaker 1: Dido's father was a British Navy officer, Sir John Lindsay, 64 00:03:50,760 --> 00:03:54,000 Speaker 1: and her mother was an enslaved woman named Maria, who 65 00:03:54,080 --> 00:03:57,680 Speaker 1: Lindsay either stole or rescued from a Spanish vessel in 66 00:03:57,720 --> 00:04:01,200 Speaker 1: the Caribbean. There's been a lot of speculation about whether 67 00:04:01,320 --> 00:04:05,160 Speaker 1: Dido's presence in the Earl's life influenced his decision in 68 00:04:05,320 --> 00:04:08,720 Speaker 1: ordering this new trial, and while it may have played 69 00:04:08,800 --> 00:04:12,120 Speaker 1: a part, he really focused his ruling on the question 70 00:04:12,160 --> 00:04:14,160 Speaker 1: of how much water was on the ship and whether 71 00:04:14,360 --> 00:04:18,320 Speaker 1: the right actions had been taken regarding what was considered 72 00:04:18,440 --> 00:04:22,039 Speaker 1: to be cargo. He didn't really look at the question 73 00:04:22,120 --> 00:04:25,640 Speaker 1: of whether the enslaved Africans aboard the ship were considered 74 00:04:25,720 --> 00:04:29,680 Speaker 1: people with rights who were the victims of murder rather 75 00:04:29,760 --> 00:04:33,599 Speaker 1: than cargo. Even though he found in favor of the 76 00:04:33,640 --> 00:04:36,640 Speaker 1: insurance company and that a new trial was ordered. That 77 00:04:36,680 --> 00:04:39,920 Speaker 1: trial doesn't appear to have ever happened, and this might 78 00:04:39,960 --> 00:04:42,360 Speaker 1: have been due to fears that because of the progress 79 00:04:42,440 --> 00:04:45,480 Speaker 1: of the movement for abolition and all the discussion about 80 00:04:45,520 --> 00:04:48,480 Speaker 1: the people aboard this ship that had happened during this hearing, 81 00:04:49,160 --> 00:04:53,239 Speaker 1: there were concerns that that might actually lead to murder 82 00:04:53,240 --> 00:04:58,000 Speaker 1: convictions for the crew. Thanks to Christopher Osciotis for his 83 00:04:58,080 --> 00:05:01,400 Speaker 1: research work on today's podcast. Thanks to Casey Pigraham and 84 00:05:01,480 --> 00:05:04,479 Speaker 1: Chandler Mains for their audio work on this show. You 85 00:05:04,480 --> 00:05:07,400 Speaker 1: can subscribe to the Stay in History Class on Apple Podcasts, 86 00:05:07,440 --> 00:05:10,080 Speaker 1: Google Podcasts, and wherever else you get your podcasts, and 87 00:05:10,080 --> 00:05:21,440 Speaker 1: you can tune in tomorrow for a final speech. Welcome 88 00:05:21,440 --> 00:05:24,920 Speaker 1: back everyone, I'm Eves and you're listening to This Day 89 00:05:24,920 --> 00:05:27,640 Speaker 1: in History Class, a show where we peel back a 90 00:05:27,680 --> 00:05:38,080 Speaker 1: new layer of history every day. The day was November. 91 00:05:41,040 --> 00:05:45,080 Speaker 1: Members of the Kayus Native American tribe murdered missionaries Marcus 92 00:05:45,080 --> 00:05:49,839 Speaker 1: Whitman and Narcissa Whitman, along with eleven other people. The 93 00:05:49,839 --> 00:05:53,000 Speaker 1: Whitman Massacre, as it became known, marked the beginning of 94 00:05:53,000 --> 00:05:56,159 Speaker 1: the Kays War, a conflict between the Kayus people and 95 00:05:56,200 --> 00:06:00,920 Speaker 1: the US government and American frontiers People. In eighteen thirty six, 96 00:06:01,040 --> 00:06:04,320 Speaker 1: Marcus and Narcissa Whopman founded the Woodman Mission among the 97 00:06:04,360 --> 00:06:08,479 Speaker 1: Cayus near present day Walla Walla, Washington. It was the 98 00:06:08,520 --> 00:06:12,000 Speaker 1: second Protestant mission in the Oregon Country, a region between 99 00:06:12,000 --> 00:06:15,400 Speaker 1: the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains in the Pacific Northwest. 100 00:06:16,480 --> 00:06:19,320 Speaker 1: The Woodman's built up the mission over the years, but 101 00:06:19,640 --> 00:06:24,320 Speaker 1: tensions escalated between the missionaries and the Cayus. The Cayus 102 00:06:24,440 --> 00:06:27,960 Speaker 1: refused to ben to Marcus's will and become full time farmers, 103 00:06:28,320 --> 00:06:31,520 Speaker 1: weren't interested in learning from the Woodman's and did not 104 00:06:31,640 --> 00:06:36,120 Speaker 1: care about Christianity. The Caius also maintained that since the 105 00:06:36,120 --> 00:06:39,400 Speaker 1: Woodman's built the mission on their land, they were obligated 106 00:06:39,440 --> 00:06:42,599 Speaker 1: to give them goods, but in the tribe members eyes, 107 00:06:42,960 --> 00:06:47,760 Speaker 1: Marcus wasn't fulfilling his obligations. Aware of the Woodman missions 108 00:06:47,839 --> 00:06:51,279 Speaker 1: struggles with the Caius and with money, the American Board 109 00:06:51,320 --> 00:06:54,640 Speaker 1: of Commissioners for Foreign Missions even ordered the mission to 110 00:06:54,720 --> 00:06:58,360 Speaker 1: close in eighteen forty two, though the board later rescinded 111 00:06:58,440 --> 00:07:02,200 Speaker 1: its order. The mission soon became a place where immigrants 112 00:07:02,240 --> 00:07:05,440 Speaker 1: on the Oregon Trail stopped to rest gather supplies and 113 00:07:05,480 --> 00:07:09,680 Speaker 1: receive care and treatment. As more people moved west, there 114 00:07:09,720 --> 00:07:13,000 Speaker 1: was an influx of white immigrants in the area. The 115 00:07:13,080 --> 00:07:15,960 Speaker 1: Kayus were aware of the harmful effect the arrival of 116 00:07:15,960 --> 00:07:20,120 Speaker 1: white populations was having on Native American tribes in other places. 117 00:07:20,520 --> 00:07:23,800 Speaker 1: They brought with them disease, and in eighteen forty seven, 118 00:07:23,840 --> 00:07:28,000 Speaker 1: an epidemic of measles killed half the Cayu's people. The 119 00:07:28,080 --> 00:07:32,000 Speaker 1: Cayus were hungry, sick, and unhappy with how stingy Marcus 120 00:07:32,120 --> 00:07:34,920 Speaker 1: was in his trading, and Marcus was unable to keep 121 00:07:34,920 --> 00:07:38,120 Speaker 1: the epidemic under control for the Cayus, even though he 122 00:07:38,200 --> 00:07:41,280 Speaker 1: had been caring for white and Native American people who 123 00:07:41,280 --> 00:07:45,240 Speaker 1: had been affected. They believed that Marcus, as a doctor 124 00:07:45,280 --> 00:07:48,880 Speaker 1: and religious leader, was essentially killing their families to make 125 00:07:48,960 --> 00:07:52,920 Speaker 1: room for more white immigrants. This was not unprecedented, as 126 00:07:53,040 --> 00:07:57,000 Speaker 1: Native Americans in the Northwest had been threatened with German warfare, 127 00:07:57,400 --> 00:08:00,600 Speaker 1: and their beliefs about the power white people had medicine 128 00:08:00,720 --> 00:08:06,320 Speaker 1: was exploited. On November eighty seven, a group of Cayus 129 00:08:06,360 --> 00:08:10,640 Speaker 1: tribesmen attacked the Woodmen Mission, which was sheltering dozens of people, 130 00:08:10,880 --> 00:08:16,240 Speaker 1: mostly immigrants. They killed thirteen people including Narcissa and Marcus. 131 00:08:17,360 --> 00:08:20,080 Speaker 1: They destroyed most of the buildings at the mission and 132 00:08:20,200 --> 00:08:24,520 Speaker 1: held around fifty women and children captive for weeks. Two 133 00:08:24,600 --> 00:08:29,720 Speaker 1: children died and the other captives were ransomed. Historians agreed 134 00:08:29,760 --> 00:08:32,600 Speaker 1: that the Cayus were defending their tribe, since the Cayus 135 00:08:32,640 --> 00:08:36,560 Speaker 1: believed that Marcus was allowing measles to spread among them. 136 00:08:36,760 --> 00:08:39,680 Speaker 1: News of the massacre reached Washington, d c. In eighteen 137 00:08:39,760 --> 00:08:43,880 Speaker 1: forty eight, and Congress responded by establishing the Oregon Territory. 138 00:08:43,960 --> 00:08:49,040 Speaker 1: That August, the Provisional Legislature of Oregon and Governor George 139 00:08:49,040 --> 00:08:53,920 Speaker 1: Abernathy authorized volunteers to go to war against the Cayus, 140 00:08:53,960 --> 00:08:56,959 Speaker 1: and a unit of volunteers was dispatched to the Dows. 141 00:08:58,080 --> 00:09:00,800 Speaker 1: Fighting soon broke out, and the kai Use War continued 142 00:09:00,840 --> 00:09:04,640 Speaker 1: sporadically for several years. The war did not turn out 143 00:09:04,679 --> 00:09:08,800 Speaker 1: well for the Caius. I'm Eve Steffcote and hopefully you 144 00:09:08,840 --> 00:09:12,120 Speaker 1: know a little more about history today than you did yesterday. 145 00:09:13,120 --> 00:09:16,480 Speaker 1: Feel free to share your thoughts or your innermost feelings 146 00:09:16,520 --> 00:09:20,360 Speaker 1: with us and with other listeners on social media at 147 00:09:20,640 --> 00:09:25,480 Speaker 1: T D I h C Podcast, and you can email 148 00:09:25,559 --> 00:09:30,160 Speaker 1: us at this Day at I Heart media dot com 149 00:09:30,200 --> 00:09:33,440 Speaker 1: thanks for listening to today's episode. We'll see you again tomorrow.