Friday Talk: The Voyages of Molly

London, Liverpool and Bristol are well known for their involvement in the trading of enslaved people, but many smaller British ports were also engaged in this trade. Some of Dorset’s ports saw slaving voyages, with one such voyage taking place in 1758 by a ship called Molly sailing from Poole. This voyage lasted for more than half a year, delivering a number of slaves to a port in America, and then returning to Britain with a cargo of valuable commodities. Molly made several voyages over the decade of the 1750s and using Lloyd’s Lists for the period it is possible to piece together some of Molly’s journeys. But Molly was just one ship making a handful of voyages out of a total of more than 12,000 voyages by British flagged ships. What was Molly’s fate, how was it procured and how did Molly’s voyages fit into the wider “triangular trade?”

The talk will be given by Steve Richardson, who has taught Geography in Skipton, Vancouver, Lyme Regis, Bristol and Blandford, and more recently has been researching Dorset’s maritime heritage. His previous talk: “A Ship, a Gate, and a Country Estate” opened a window into some of Dorset’s imperial connections.

Tea and coffee will be available from 7 pm, the talk will start at 7.30 pm and finish at around 9 pm.

Admission £8 (£5 for Museum members, free to Friends and Patrons)

We have a variety of talks about our history and heritage from a range of expert speakers lined up for Spring and Autumn 2026. These will take place on Fridays (usually, but not always, the last Friday of the month) at the Parish Centre in Blandford. Please visit our Calendar for information about future talks.