Newport, Rhode Island, December 29, 1766 Manuscript account on laid paper, recording the sale of sixteen boxes of spermaceti candles. This attractive and historically significant commercial manuscript documents a transaction between two of colonial Newport’s most prominent mercantile families: Aaron Lopez, the foremost Jewish merchant in eighteenth-century America, and the powerful trading house of Samuel and William Vernon. Dated 29 December 1766, the account records the purchase of sixteen boxes of spermaceti candles, carefully listing the weight and tare of each box and calculating a total net weight of approximately 490¼ pounds of candles. The document exemplifies the sophisticated commercial bookkeeping that characterized Newport’s bustling Atlantic economy during the years immediately preceding the American Revolution. The account is headed: “Bought of Aaron Lopez” Newport Dec. 29, 1766 and identifies the purchasers as: “Messrs. Samuel & Wm. Vernon” The detailed tabulation reflects the standardized methods used in the whale-oil and candle trades. Each box was weighed individually, with deductions made for packing materials (“tare”), allowing merchants to determine the precise net weight upon which pricing was based. Such calculations were essential in the wholesale candle trade, where transactions often involved hundreds of pounds of refined product. The commodity involved—spermaceti candles—was among the most desirable manufactured goods produced in colonial New England. Derived from waxy oil obtained from sperm whales, spermaceti candles burned brighter, cleaner, and longer than ordinary tallow candles. They produced little smoke or odor and commanded premium prices throughout the British Atlantic world. By the 1760s Newport had become one of the leading centers of spermaceti refining and candle production, and Aaron Lopez stood at the center of that industry. This manuscript survives as tangible evidence of the commercial networks that linked Jewish, Anglican, and Quaker merchants in colonial Rhode Island and illustrates Newport’s remarkable prosperity during the decade before imperial tensions culminated in revolution. By the mid-eighteenth century Newport rivaled Boston, New York, and Philadelphia as one of British North America’s most active ports. Its economy rested upon maritime commerce, privateering, the West India trade, and especially the whaling industry. Spermaceti candles represented one of New England’s most valuable export manufactures, shipped throughout the colonies, the Caribbean, and Great Britain. The Vernon family ranked among Newport’s wealthiest merchants and shipowners. Their extensive trading operations required large quantities of refined products both for domestic use and for export. Transactions such as this one reveal the close commercial relationships that existed among Newport’s merchant elite despite differences in religion and ethnic background. The document also demonstrates the importance of recordkeeping in eighteenth-century commerce. Every pound of merchandise had financial significance, and invoices such as this formed the basis for accounting, settlement of debts, insurance claims, and transatlantic correspondence. Aaron Lopez was one of the most remarkable businessmen in colonial America and the most successful Jewish merchant of the eighteenth-century British colonies. Born Duarte Lopes in Lisbon, Portugal, in 1731, he came from a family of Portuguese Conversos—Jews whose ancestors had been compelled to convert to Christianity during the Inquisition. After emigrating to Newport in the early 1750s, he openly returned to Judaism, adopting the name Aaron Lopez and becoming a leading member of Newport’s Sephardic Jewish community centered around what is today the historic Touro Synagogue. Lopez rapidly built a vast commercial empire. He invested in: Whaling ventures Spermaceti candle manufacturing Shipping and maritime trade Caribbean commerce Insurance and finance Real estate and industrial enterprises By the 1770s he owned or held interests in dozens of vessels and was among the wealthiest merchants in North America. His candle works became one of the largest producers of spermaceti candles in the colonies, helping establish Newport as a major center of that industry. Lopez is also remembered for his efforts to secure civil rights for Jews in colonial America. In 1762 he sought naturalization in Rhode Island, leading to a celebrated legal dispute that highlighted the uncertain status of religious minorities under colonial law. Although initially denied citizenship, he eventually became a naturalized British subject through Massachusetts legislation. The outbreak of the American Revolution disrupted Newport commerce and forced Lopez to relocate to Leicester, Massachusetts. He died tragically in 1782 after drowning when his carriage overturned while crossing Scott Pond. Today Aaron Lopez is regarded as one of the most important Jewish figures in early American history and among the leading merchant entrepreneurs of the colonial period ______________________________________________________________________________________________
Saml. & Wm Vernon Bill Candles Aaron Lopez Bill Candles Brig. ? Cuero Messrs. Saml. & Wm. Vernon Bought of Aaron Lopez Newport Dec. 29th 1766 Sixteen Boxes Spermaceti Candles Wt. No. Wt. Tare 1 40 10 2 41½ 11 3 41½ 11½ 4 40½ 10½ 5 39½ 9½ 6 41 10¾ 7 41¾ 11¼ 8 41½ 11 9 41 10 10 41 10¼ 11 39½ 9½ 12 42½ 11½ 13 41¾ 10½ 14 42¼ 10 15 41½ 10 16 41 10¼ Subtotal (Nos. 1–8) ........ 327¾ Tare ................................ 85¼ Subtotal (Nos. 9–16) ...... 329½ Tare ................................ 80¾ Gross Weight ................. 657¼ Less Tare ....................... 166 Net .................................... 491¼ neat Boxes & Paper .......... @
