William Vernon (January 17, 1719 – December 22, 1806), of Newport, Rhode Island, was a merchant in the Atlantic slave trade who played a leading role in the Continental Congress' maritime activities during the American Revolution. In 1774, Vernon was member of the committee of correspondence between Newport and Boston. As president of the Eastern Navy Board during the Revolution, he was responsible for building and outfitting the ships of the Continental Navy. William Vernon was one of the charter members of the Artillery Company of Newport, and is the namesake of the Vernon House.
Family
William Vernon was born in Newport, Rhode Island in 1719 to a local silversmith, Samuel Vernon (December 6, 1683 - December 5, 1737) and his wife Elizabeth Fleet. Vernon's family was directly descended from one of Rhode Island's first pioneers, Anne Hutchinson. William's older brother Thomas became royal postmaster in Newport, a position he held for thirty years. He was also senior warden of Trinity Church, and Secretary of the Redwood Library. A Loyalist, Thomas fled Newport in 1776. Unlike their loyalist brother, who was an Anglican, William and his older brother Samuel (September 6, 1711 - 1792) were both members of Newport's Second Congregational Church, which was pastored by Ezra Stiles. William Vernon married Judith Harwood, who was a direct descendant of Jeremy Clarke and John Cranston. William and Judith had two sons, Samuel and William.left|thumb|Vernon Slave Advertisement, Newport Mercury, Newport, RI, 1763
Smuggler and slave trader
William and his brother Samuel entered into business together, eventually establishing themselves as prominent merchants. Thomas did not enter into trade with his other siblings. William and Samuel, made a name for themselves successfully by first utilizing the bilateral trade between New England and the West Indies. The Vernons traded regularly between Halifax, Boston, Philadelphia and Georgia, supplying rum, molasses, flour and leather.
In 1737, the Vernons expanded to the triangle trade, otherwise known as the Atlantic slave trade, eventually becoming the most prolific slave traders of Newport. In that year they financed their first ship, the Olive Branch, captained by John Godfrey.
In 1776, the Royal Charlotte was seized by the British in Newport harbor, taken to Boston, and confiscated along with its cargo.
Slave voyages of the Vernon family
{| class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"
|+Slave Voyages of the Vernon Family
!Year
!Vessel Registered
!Rig /Vessel Name
!Vessel Owner(s)
!Captain's Name
!Place of Purchase
!Place of Landing
!Estimated<br>Embarked
!Estimated<br>Disembarked
|-
|1737
|Newport
|Olive Branch
|William Vernon,
Samuel Vernon
|John Godfrey
|
|
|149
|126
|-
|1754
|Newport
|Sl. Prince Sherboro
|Jacob Rivera,
William Vernon
|William Brown
|
|Suriname
|83
|69
|-
|1754
|Newport
|Sl. Hare
|Samuel Vernon,
William Vernon
|Caleb Godfrey
|Sierra Leone
|Barbados
|72
|61
|-
|1755
|Newport
|Sl. Hare
|William Vernon,
Samuel Vernon
|Caleb Godfrey
|Sierra Leone
|Charleston
|80
|71
|-
|1756
|Newport
|Sh. Cassada Gardens
|William Vernon,
Jonas Redwood,
William Redwood Jr.
|Thomas T. Taylor
|Anomabu
|French Caribbean
|205
|175
|-
|1756
|Newport
|Snauw Venus
|William Vernon,
Robert Stevens
|William Pinnegar
|Cape Mount
|Kingston
|121
|114
|-
|1756
|Newport
|Sl. Titt Bitt
|William Vernon,
Jonas Redwood,
William Redwood Jr.
|Thomas Rogers
|Gold Coast
|
|83
|69
|-
|1757
|Newport
|Sh. Othello
|Jonas Redwood,
William Redwood Jr.,
William Vernon
|Francis Malbone
|Gold Coast
|Barbados
|286
|244
|-
|1758
|Newport
|Snauw Venus
|Jonas Redwood,
William Redwood Jr.,
William Vernon
|Samuel Johnson
|Windward, Ivory, Gold, & Benin
|Martinique
|150
|150
|-
|1759
|Newport
|Br. Marygold
|Samuel Vernon,
William Vernon,
Thomas Taylor
|Thomas T. Taylor
|Anomabu
|St. Croix
|135
|112
|-
|1760
|
|Sh. Cassada Gardens
|William Vernon
|Thomas T. Taylor
|
|
|4
|3
|-
|1762
|Newport
|Sch. Little Sally
|Samuel Vernon,
William Vernon,
Thomas Taylor
|William Taylor
|Anomabu
|Rhode Island
|67
|62
|-
|1762
|Newport
|Br. Royal Charlotte
|Samuel Vernon,
William Vernon,
Thomas T. Taylor
|William Taylor
|Anomabu
|Rhode Island
|70
|61
|-
|1762
|Newport
|Br. Reynard
|Samuel Vernon,
William Vernon
|Peter Dordin
|Anomabu
|Barbados
|182
|177
|-
|1763
|Newport
|Sl. Whydah
|William Vernon
|Thomas
Rogers
|Cape Coast Castle
|Barbados
|60
|31
|-
|1764
|Newport
|Br. Othello
|Samuel Vernon,
William Vernon
|Thomas Rogers
|Iles de Los
|Antigua
|66
|42
|-
|1766
|Newport
|Br. Othello
|Samuel Vernon,
William Vernon
|John Duncan
|
|Virginia
|97
|87
|-
|1767
|Newport
|Br. Royal Charlotte
|William Vernon,
Samuel Vernon,
Thomas Taylor
|William Taylor,
William Pinnegar
|Anomabu
|St. Croix
|105
|95
|-
|1768
|Newport
|Br. Othello
|William Vernon,
Samuel Vernon
|John Duncan,
Goodman Halvorson
|Anomabu
|James River
|85
|79
|-
|1770
|Newport
|Br. Othello
|Samuel Vernon,
William Vernon
|John Duncan,
John Stanton
|Anomabu
|Rappahannock
|90
|87
|-
|1771
|Newport
|Sch. Active
|Samuel Vernon,
William Vernon,
Benjamin Mason
|Robert Elliot
|Gambia
|Barbados
|105
|82
|-
|1772
|Newport
|Br. Othello
|Samuel Vernon,
William Vernon
|John Duncan
|
|
|118
|103
|-
|1772
|Newport
|Br. Othello
|Samuel Vernon,
William Vernon
|John Duncan
|Anomabu
|Rappahannock
|83
|63
|-
|1774
|Newport
|Br. Othello
|Samuel Vernon,
William Vernon
|George Dunbar Sweet
|Gambia
|Montego Bay
|80
|75
|-
|1784
|Newport
|Br. Don Galvez
|Samuel Brown,
William Vernon
|Gardner
|Anomabu
|Charleston
|133
|127
|-
|1785
|Newport
|Br. Peggy
|William Vernon
|John Duncan
|
|Trinidad
|130
|106
|-
|1786
|Newport and Salem
|Br. Don Galvez
|Samuel Brown,
William Vernon
|Grey
|
|Martinique
|136
|136
|-
|1788
|Newport
|Br. Washington
|Constant Tabor,
Samuel Vernon,
Christopher Ellery
|William Gardner
|Gold Coast
|Martinique
|202
|165
|-
|1788
|Newport and Salem
|Sh. Pacific
|Daniel Gardner,
Constant Tabor,
William Vernon,
Samuel Brown
|Daniel Gardner
|
|St. Eustatius
|157
|140
|-
|1791
|Newport and Salem
|Br. Don Galvez
|James Brown,
William Vernon
|Daniel Gray
|Anomabu
|
|120
|89
|-
|1791
|Newport and Salem
|Sch. Ascension
|Caleb
Gardner
William Vernon,
Peleg Clarke,
Samuel Brown
|John Stanton
|Mozambique
|Havana
|276
|214
|-
|1792
|Newport and Salem
|Br. Don Galvez
|James Brown,
William Vernon
|Grey
|Mozambique
|St. Estatius
|271
|251
|-
|1793
|Newport and Salem
|Sh. Ascension
|William Vernon,
Caleb
Gardner,
Peleg Clarke,
Samuel Brown
|Samuel Chace
|Mozambique
|Havanna
|221
|197
|-
|1795
|Newport and Salem
|Sh. Ascension
|Caleb
Gardner,
William Vernon,
Peleg Clarke,
Sam Brown
|Samuel Chace
|Mozambique
|Montevideo
|283
|250
|-
|1799
|Boston
|Sch. Charlotte
|Samuel Brown,
William Vernon
|William Langston
|
|South Carolina
|94
|77
|-
| colspan="9" |
|}
Contributions to the American Revolution
William's success in Newport meant he was well known to the British. Samuel and William were both early supporters of the revolution; Samuel was even one of the ringleaders responsible for the Stamp Act Riots of 1765. Their other sibling, Thomas was a Loyalist or Tory sent into a brief exile in Glocester, Rhode Island, but Thomas remained friendly with the brothers throughout the war. As a result of his well-known political beliefs, William was forced to flee Newport prior to the British occupation of Newport in 1776. Vernon fled to Rehoboth, Massachusetts, hoping to protect his family. His nephew remained at the Vernon House to protect it during this time.
Cato Vernon
On March 17, 1778, one of the African men William Vernon had enslaved, known as Cato Vernon, enlisted in the Rhode Island First Regiment.
Post-Revolution
Following the Revolution, William Vernon continued to expand his activities and influence within the Newport community. He was a president of the Redwood Library, founding member of the Newport Artillery Company in 1741 and a key figure in establishing the Newport Bank in 1803. William Vernon was an early benefactor of the College of New Jersey (now known as Princeton University).
- At one time during the French Revolution, Vernon was recognized as a courtier by the mob, dragged to a lamp-post, and was only rescued from being hanged by a Frenchman who knew him and assured the mob that he was an American citizen.