Rulers · fl. 1821–1825
King Jimmy
Dei chief of the St Paul River and a signatory of the Ducor Contract.
Biography
King Jimmy was one of the six kings who set their marks to the cession of 15 December 1821 drawn up aboard the U.S. schooner Alligator.
In May 1825, at Gourah on Bushrod Island, he was among five kings who insisted that further land between the St Paul's and Montserrado rivers could be taken only after a conference of the kings and an equitable settlement — a direct statement of the indigenous understanding of the 1821 bargain as shared use, not alienation.
Historical significance
His 1825 intervention is the clearest surviving evidence of what the signatories thought they had agreed to in 1821.
Timeline
- 15 Dec 1821Signs the Ducor Contract
- May 1825Gourah conference: demands consultation and equitable price
On the map
Associated with St Paul River. Open the historical atlas.
Related entries
References
- Ducor Contract, 15 December 1821. Indiana University Liberian Collections.
- American Colonization Society, 11th Annual Report (1828), pp. 63–64.
Suggested reading
- Burrowes (2023). A History of Liberia in 100 Documents. Smithsonian.