Dodshon Foster (1 September 1730 - 2 January 1793) was a merchant who profited from the

slave trade Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

. He was involved in the shipping of over 700 slaves during his career.White, p.63 His commercial success was assisted by his connection through marriage to the Birket family of merchants; he married Elizabeth, the daughter of Myles Birket.White, p.63. Foster was the son of a Quaker merchant from

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham *County Durham, an English county * Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States *Durham, North Carolina, a city in N ...

. Foster moved to Lancaster and entered into the slave trade in 1752 at the age of 21. His ship was named the ''Barlborough'', and it made several slaving voyages between 1752 and 1758. He served as one of the Lancaster Port Commissioners between 1755 and 1758.

Legacy

Foster had a house and warehouse on St George's Quay next to Lancaster Custom House. In 2005 an anti-slavery memorial commissioned by Lancaster's Slave Trade Art Memorial Project (STAMP) and designed by Kevin Dalton-Johnson was placed on the quayside. The Custom House is now a museum and has a portrait of Foster.

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* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Foster, Dodshon 1730 births 1793 deaths English slave traders