Thomas Corker
Encyclopedia
Thomas Corker was a prominent English agent for the Royal African Company
and worked in the Sherbro
, Sierra Leone
.
His descendants are still living in that area and are the Bonthe
and Shenge Caulkers. Corker was originally from Dublin, Ireland; he was descended from the Dublin/Cornwall Corker family.
and went to Africa
in 1684 in the Royal African company's service and worked on the rivers before becoming a chief agent on the Sherbo Island of York. It is while working in the Sherbro region that he married an African princess of the house of Ya Kumba who ruled on the shore of the Yawry Bay (according to Bulom oral tradition). The woman was known to the English as 'Seniora Doll
' or 'Senora Doll' and together they had two sons Robin and Stephen. Thomas Corker soon after was transferred by the Royal African Company to Gambia in April 1699 and later on he returned to England and died in 1700. His sons, Robin and Stephen inherited their mother's kingdom and utilised their European heritage to increase their influence in the region. The Corkers (later on changed to Caulkers) became a powerful chiefdom in Sierra Leone and were one of the most notorious slave trading Afro-European
clans in West Africa
.
and the name is now spelled as Caulker. The clan still maintains its oral and written testimony about its English ancestor, Thomas Corker and a number of Caulker chiefs were named after him, such as Thomas Caulker
.
Royal African Company
The Royal African Company was a slaving company set up by the Stuart family and London merchants once the former retook the English throne in the English Restoration of 1660...
and worked in the Sherbro
Sherbro
Sherbro can refer to:* The Sherbro people in Sierra Leone* Sherbro Island, off the coast of Sierra Leone* Sherbro River in Sierra Leone* Short for Sherbrooke...
, Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
.
His descendants are still living in that area and are the Bonthe
Bonthe
Bonthe is a town located on Sherbro Island in Bonthe District of the southern Province of Sierra Leone. The town had a population of 9,535 in the 2004 census, with a current estimate of 10,206. In colonial times it used to be a major trading centre for piassava and other agricultural products...
and Shenge Caulkers. Corker was originally from Dublin, Ireland; he was descended from the Dublin/Cornwall Corker family.
Departure for Sierra Leone
Thomas Corker left LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and went to Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
in 1684 in the Royal African company's service and worked on the rivers before becoming a chief agent on the Sherbo Island of York. It is while working in the Sherbro region that he married an African princess of the house of Ya Kumba who ruled on the shore of the Yawry Bay (according to Bulom oral tradition). The woman was known to the English as 'Seniora Doll
Seniora Doll
Seniora Doll or Senora Doll was a Sherbro princess or 'Duchess' of the Ya Kumba ruling house of the Yawry Bay Area between the Sierra Leone peninsula and the Sherbro estuary. In the late 17th century she married an English trader and Royal African Company agent, Thomas Corker, and their two sons...
' or 'Senora Doll' and together they had two sons Robin and Stephen. Thomas Corker soon after was transferred by the Royal African Company to Gambia in April 1699 and later on he returned to England and died in 1700. His sons, Robin and Stephen inherited their mother's kingdom and utilised their European heritage to increase their influence in the region. The Corkers (later on changed to Caulkers) became a powerful chiefdom in Sierra Leone and were one of the most notorious slave trading Afro-European
Afro-European
Black people in Europe are black people who are residents or citizens of European countries...
clans in West Africa
West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. Geopolitically, the UN definition of Western Africa includes the following 16 countries and an area of approximately 5 million square km:-Flags of West Africa:...
.
Descendants
Today most of Thomas Corker's descendants can be found living in Sierra Leone's southern region, SherbroSherbro
Sherbro can refer to:* The Sherbro people in Sierra Leone* Sherbro Island, off the coast of Sierra Leone* Sherbro River in Sierra Leone* Short for Sherbrooke...
and the name is now spelled as Caulker. The clan still maintains its oral and written testimony about its English ancestor, Thomas Corker and a number of Caulker chiefs were named after him, such as Thomas Caulker
Thomas Caulker
Thomas Canry Caulker was the Sherbro-born son of the King of Bompey...
.
Resources
- Adam Jones, History in Africa, Vol. 10, 1983 (1983), pp. 151-162.
- http://books.google.com/books?id=fwA0bZAVuEIC&pg=PA168&lpg=PA168&dq=thomas+corker+sierra+leone+sherbro&source=web&ots=V5MSKNyJFK&sig=B21kpTWW7xerlCnP9OT1jwT5x_U
- http://books.google.com/books?id=ymkdf-PIYGoC&pg=PA198&lpg=PA198&dq=thomas+corker+sierra+leone&source=web&ots=Y3rW9_grPg&sig=F13LIWAJHS_xmyAbma-46Bbe5zA
- http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/read/CountyCork/2004-08/1093552507
- http://manovision.com/ISSUES/ISSUE29/page26_28.pdf
- http://books.google.com/books?id=5t5ERBlosqUC&pg=PA168&dq=mulatto+freetown+sierra+leone&sig=hN5Ez_iYSpADG6QciP4teCCkeNM
- http://books.google.com/books?id=zmgYSuOAkS8C&pg=PA57&lpg=PA57&dq=sherbro+caulkers&source=web&ots=GZBht_Ev8Y&sig=jrOlgtRVvS8nSk_DqQU8c7MynI8
- http://books.google.com/books?id=fwA0bZAVuEIC&pg=PA121&ots=V4UQNMsBLM&dq=sherbro+thomas+corker&sig=2-r6GJhFKF-OYxrUqqmTedkJxRc
- http://www.worldstatesmen.org/Gambia.html
- http://www.discoveringbristol.org.uk/to_showNarrative.php?narId=108&nacId=112