Salem to China: Life on Land and Sea  1784 - 1820

Jenny and Pauline’s Third Grade

What kind of animals did they have in Salem?
Text Box: People had dogs,horses,cats,cows,and ducks. In a Salem house you might find dogs and cats. Farmers would have cows to provide milk, butter, and cream. Horses would be used to run errands and take the families to church. Oxen were used for plowing and heavy hauling. By Jack and Liana

On board ships, you might find a few pigs and roosters, sheep and even a monkey.  On one voyage, the captain brought back an elephant!  It was in 1796 and the captain was named Jacob Crowninshield.  He brought it back from India and sold it for $10,000!

Animals were used for medicine too.  They used leeches to bleed a person to make a sick person better.

Photo of colonial animals taken from Plimouth Plantation.

Jacob Crowninshield used advertisements like this to attract crowds, who paid to see the elephant. 

 

Copied from Cobblestone Magazine, Salem and the East Indies Trade, September 1988.