The sun shone for Year 6 today as they walked down to the Maritime Museum to take part in the slave trade trail developed by “Facing The Past” and some local teachers - including our very own Mrs Walsh.

Once we arrived at the Maritime Museum, we met our guide, Eleanor, who lead us round some of the key places linked to the port of Lancaster and its involvement with the transatlantic slave trade in the 1700s. We learnt about some of the ship owners, including the Hinde family and the Rawlinsons. We were surprised to find out how many ships were built in Lancaster which travelled to the west coast of Africa with cotton fabric and furniture made in Lancaster before sailing on to North America with hundreds of enslaved Africans. These enslaved Africans were the forced to work on sugar and tobacco plantations. The produce from these plantations would then be carried back to Lancaster on the ships, completing the trade triangle.

We thought about the injustice of this slave trade and the impact on the individual enslaved people. We also considered injustices which are still happening now and how we could make a difference to some of these situations.