Question at position 10 A historian researching the trans-Atlantic slave trade in the period 1600—1800 would find which of the following sources most useful for determining patterns in the points of origin, the destinations, and the numbers of slaves involved in the trade? 4WH49Census and tax records of European settlers in the Americaspamphlets published by antislavery societiesRecords of the cargoes of Spanish and British ships in the trans-Atlantic tradeLegal regulations pertaining to enslaved and freed Africans in British colonies

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BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

When evaluating sources for a historian studying the trans-Atlantic slave trade between 1600 and 1800, we need evidence that reveals origins, destinations, and the scale of the trade. Each option offers a different type of historical material with varying usefulness.
Option 1: Census and tax records of European settlers in the Americas. While these records can shed light on population patterns and colonial demographics, they are indirect for tracing the slave trade itself. They often do not enumerate enslaved people comprehensively, and they may undercount or omit enslaved individuals, making it harder to reconstruct exact origins, routes, and numbers of enslaved Africans employed in the trade.
Option 2: Pamphlets published by antislavery societies. These materials are valuable for understanding abolitionist ideas, discourse, and advocacy, and they can illuminate moral, political, and social contexts. However, they are not primary sources that systematically document the patterns of the slave trade, such as cargos, origins, and destinations. Their stance may bias presentation and they typically lack quantitative shipping data.
Option 3: Records of the cargoes of Spanish and British ships in the trans-Atlantic trade. This type of source directly tracks what was transported, including the number of enslaved people, and often lists ports of origin and destination. Such cargo manifests and ship logs provide concrete, quantitative data about the scale, routes, and participants in the trade, making them highly effective for pattern analysis across time and space.
Option 4: Legal regulations pertaining to enslaved and freed Africans in British colonies. Laws reveal constraints, definitions, and administrative frameworks, and can show how the trade was regulated. While these records help understand the legal context and control mechanisms surrounding slavery, they typically do not furnish comprehensive shipment-level data about origins, destinations, and total numbers—so they are less direct for mapping trade patterns.
In sum, each source has its strengths, but for determining empirical patterns of origin points, destinations, and numbers of enslaved people involved, cargo records from trans-Atlantic voyages provide the most direct and systematic data, whereas the other sources offer contextual or legal perspectives that are less suited for compiling transport patterns.

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