Matthew Garrison (slave trader)

Matthew Garrison was an 18th-century American merchant and slave trader based in Rhode Island. He was involved in the transatlantic slave trade, profiting from the forced transportation and sale of enslaved Africans. Records indicate that Garrison owned or captained several ships involved in the trade, carrying enslaved people from the West African coast to various destinations in the Americas, including the Caribbean and the Southern colonies of North America. He was part of a network of New England merchants who actively participated in and benefited from the institution of slavery. His activities contributed to the immense suffering and exploitation of enslaved Africans and the perpetuation of racial inequality. Like many involved in the trade at the time, he appears to have been a prominent member of his community, although specific biographical details beyond his involvement in slave trading are limited in readily available sources. His activities are a stark reminder of the complicity of New England in the institution of slavery, even though slavery was less prevalent there compared to the Southern colonies.