Overabove Volume 1: Falls River Cove | Page 42

THE WEST INDIES TRADE In 1649, merchants from Wethersfield and Hartford invested in the building of a small vessel, the Tryall, to make a “trial” of trading with the English island of Barbados, which had been settled in 1627. The Tryall sailed out of the Connecticut River loaded with fresh farm produce, lumber, and barrel staves. From this small beginning, a prosperous trade developed between Connecticut and the islands of the West Indies. Customs records indicate that the trade relationships between Colonial Connecticut and the populous English islands of Barbados and St. Kitts were particularly strong. West Indies map, Boston Pubic Library 42