If chainalysis protocols—typically used to track cryptocurrency transactions through a blockchain—were metaphorically applied to trace the fortunes made from slave labor and slave dealing in North America, they would reveal where that wealth resides today. While historical wealth lacks the transparent ledger of a blockchain, we can conceptually follow its flow through inheritance, investments, and institutional growth. The fortunes from slavery, which underpinned much of North America’s early economy, have been transformed and dispersed over centuries, yet they remain embedded in specific entities and the broader economic system.
Direct Inheritance by Families
One clear path for this wealth is **intergenerational inheritance**. Families that profited from slavery often preserved and expanded their fortunes through land, investments, and business ventures. For example:
- The **DeWolf family** of Rhode Island, among the largest slave-trading dynasties in U.S. history, amassed significant wealth through the slave trade. They reinvested their profits into industries like banking and insurance, and some descendants remain influential today. Their fortune, originally derived from slave dealing, persists in family trusts, real estate, and other assets.
- The **Brown family**, whose slave-trade profits helped establish Brown University, passed down wealth that contributed to the university’s endowment and other ventures.
These cases illustrate how money from slavery has stayed within certain family lineages, compounding over generations into modern-day fortunes.
Institutional Endowments
The wealth also flowed into **institutions**, particularly universities and other enduring organizations, that were founded or sustained by slavery-derived funds. Notable examples include:
- **Georgetown University**, which in 1838 sold 272 enslaved people for $115,000 (equivalent to millions today) to settle debts. This transaction ensured the university’s survival, and its current endowment exceeds $1.5 billion, a portion of which traces back to that sale.
- **Brown University**, named after the Brown family, owes part of its historical funding to slave-trade profits. Its endowment today reflects the long-term growth of that initial wealth.
These institutions have transformed slavery’s profits into educational and financial capital, which continues to generate returns.
Corporate Assets
Corporations with historical ties to slavery represent another repository of this wealth. The profits from slave labor and dealing were invested in businesses that have evolved into modern entities. For instance:
- **JPMorgan Chase** has acknowledged that two of its predecessor banks accepted enslaved people as collateral for loans in the antebellum South. This practice tied the banks’ early capital to slavery, contributing to their growth into a major financial institution today.
- **Lehman Brothers**, founded by brothers involved in the cotton trade—a slave-labor-driven industry—built its initial wealth on this foundation before becoming a prominent investment firm (until its 2008 collapse).
In these companies, the money from slavery has been reinvested and multiplied, forming part of their assets and market value.
Diffusion into the Broader Economy
Beyond specific families and institutions, the wealth from slavery is woven into the **U.S. economy** as a whole. Slave labor produced commodities like cotton, tobacco, and sugar, which fueled economic growth in the South, industrialized the North, and enriched Europe. This wealth was reinvested in:
- **Infrastructure**: Profits funded railroads, factories, and ports, which generated further wealth. For example, the cotton industry, built on slave labor, was a cornerstone of 19th-century economic expansion, with its proceeds flowing into broader development.
- **Public Assets**: The U.S. government collected taxes and tariffs on slave-produced goods, using these funds to build roads, schools, and other public infrastructure. Thus, some of the money is embedded in the nation’s physical and economic framework.
This diffusion makes the wealth harder to pinpoint but underscores its role in elevating the United States to a global economic power.
### Economic Disparities as a Legacy
The legacy of slavery also appears in **persistent economic disparities**. The wealth gap between white and Black families in the U.S.—where the top 1% of households hold about 40% of the nation’s wealth—partly reflects the head start slavery provided to certain groups. While not a direct location of the money, this disparity shows how the economic advantages from slavery have concentrated wealth in communities that benefited from it, while excluding others.
Conclusion
If chainalysis protocols were applied to track the fortunes made from slave labor and slave dealing in North America, they would reveal a complex web of wealth that has been inherited, invested, and institutionalized over time. Today, that money resides in:
- The hands of **descendants of slave owners and traders**, such as the DeWolf and Brown families, through intergenerational wealth.
- The **endowments of institutions** like Georgetown and Brown Universities, which were partly funded by slavery.
- The **assets of corporations** like JPMorgan Chase and historically Lehman Brothers, which trace their origins to slavery-related profits.
- The **broader U.S. economy**, including infrastructure and public assets, built on the economic foundation slavery provided.
While precise dollar-for-dollar tracing is impossible due to centuries of transformation, the wealth from slavery remains a foundational element of America’s economic landscape, concentrated in specific entities and diffused across society.
Direct Inheritance by Families
One clear path for this wealth is **intergenerational inheritance**. Families that profited from slavery often preserved and expanded their fortunes through land, investments, and business ventures. For example:
- The **DeWolf family** of Rhode Island, among the largest slave-trading dynasties in U.S. history, amassed significant wealth through the slave trade. They reinvested their profits into industries like banking and insurance, and some descendants remain influential today. Their fortune, originally derived from slave dealing, persists in family trusts, real estate, and other assets.
- The **Brown family**, whose slave-trade profits helped establish Brown University, passed down wealth that contributed to the university’s endowment and other ventures.
These cases illustrate how money from slavery has stayed within certain family lineages, compounding over generations into modern-day fortunes.
Institutional Endowments
The wealth also flowed into **institutions**, particularly universities and other enduring organizations, that were founded or sustained by slavery-derived funds. Notable examples include:
- **Georgetown University**, which in 1838 sold 272 enslaved people for $115,000 (equivalent to millions today) to settle debts. This transaction ensured the university’s survival, and its current endowment exceeds $1.5 billion, a portion of which traces back to that sale.
- **Brown University**, named after the Brown family, owes part of its historical funding to slave-trade profits. Its endowment today reflects the long-term growth of that initial wealth.
These institutions have transformed slavery’s profits into educational and financial capital, which continues to generate returns.
Corporate Assets
Corporations with historical ties to slavery represent another repository of this wealth. The profits from slave labor and dealing were invested in businesses that have evolved into modern entities. For instance:
- **JPMorgan Chase** has acknowledged that two of its predecessor banks accepted enslaved people as collateral for loans in the antebellum South. This practice tied the banks’ early capital to slavery, contributing to their growth into a major financial institution today.
- **Lehman Brothers**, founded by brothers involved in the cotton trade—a slave-labor-driven industry—built its initial wealth on this foundation before becoming a prominent investment firm (until its 2008 collapse).
In these companies, the money from slavery has been reinvested and multiplied, forming part of their assets and market value.
Diffusion into the Broader Economy
Beyond specific families and institutions, the wealth from slavery is woven into the **U.S. economy** as a whole. Slave labor produced commodities like cotton, tobacco, and sugar, which fueled economic growth in the South, industrialized the North, and enriched Europe. This wealth was reinvested in:
- **Infrastructure**: Profits funded railroads, factories, and ports, which generated further wealth. For example, the cotton industry, built on slave labor, was a cornerstone of 19th-century economic expansion, with its proceeds flowing into broader development.
- **Public Assets**: The U.S. government collected taxes and tariffs on slave-produced goods, using these funds to build roads, schools, and other public infrastructure. Thus, some of the money is embedded in the nation’s physical and economic framework.
This diffusion makes the wealth harder to pinpoint but underscores its role in elevating the United States to a global economic power.
### Economic Disparities as a Legacy
The legacy of slavery also appears in **persistent economic disparities**. The wealth gap between white and Black families in the U.S.—where the top 1% of households hold about 40% of the nation’s wealth—partly reflects the head start slavery provided to certain groups. While not a direct location of the money, this disparity shows how the economic advantages from slavery have concentrated wealth in communities that benefited from it, while excluding others.
Conclusion
If chainalysis protocols were applied to track the fortunes made from slave labor and slave dealing in North America, they would reveal a complex web of wealth that has been inherited, invested, and institutionalized over time. Today, that money resides in:
- The hands of **descendants of slave owners and traders**, such as the DeWolf and Brown families, through intergenerational wealth.
- The **endowments of institutions** like Georgetown and Brown Universities, which were partly funded by slavery.
- The **assets of corporations** like JPMorgan Chase and historically Lehman Brothers, which trace their origins to slavery-related profits.
- The **broader U.S. economy**, including infrastructure and public assets, built on the economic foundation slavery provided.
While precise dollar-for-dollar tracing is impossible due to centuries of transformation, the wealth from slavery remains a foundational element of America’s economic landscape, concentrated in specific entities and diffused across society.
