What is The Rum Story Re-Imagined Project?
The ‘Rum Story Re-Imagined’ project will set out to tell the history of the Jefferson family, who were from Whitehaven and made their wealth by making and selling rum. Currently much of the visitor attraction tells us about the rum in a way that tends to romanticise it, and doesn’t give us all the details.
Imagine if we told the history of the Rum in a way that showed its impact in shaping Whitehaven, the UK and even the globe?
But that history is not ours to tell. It’s Whitehaven’s.
Over the next 12 months, we will be working with local communities and inviting them to engage, or re-engage, with their heritage, and to help better connect Whitehaven to national and international histories.
Through this work we will be looking at ways we can better tell the history of the Jeffersons legacy, and of Whitehaven.
Our aim is to bring local communities together and to put Whitehaven more firmly on the heritage map, alongside other leading attractions and museums across the UK. We want this project to play a part in giving Whitehaven the status and influence it deserves.
What will you be changing?
We won’t know all the changes until we start talking to you and hearing from you!
But, we do know some things like language needs to be updated. You may already be noticing some language changes in our writing here.
Sometimes the way we use language can maintain stereotypes or excuse harmful actions. By choosing words with a more specific meaning, it can encourage us to think in a different way. This is a powerful way to start unravelling our misconceptions.
We also know some of the artefacts are out of date and need to be updated.
Who were the Jeffersons?
The first Jefferson to live in Whitehaven was Robert Jefferson in the 1700’s, and he was captain of a ship involved in the trading of enslaved African people.
The rest of the Jefferson family went on to build their wealth and status: one of Robert’s sons, Henry, was captain of The Gale, a ship which was built in Whitehaven (an area with a rich history of shipbuilding). This ship was involved in the trading and trafficking of enslaved African people.
In 1780, Henry married Ann Tweedie, the daughter of Robert Tweedie who enslaved people on his plantation estate in Antigua. Henry and Ann Jefferson then went on to become enslavers themselves and bought their own plantation estate in Antigua in 1832.
This enabled the Jeffersons to become famous for ‘Jefferson’s Rum’. The sugar and molasses needed for the rum were provided by the labour of enslaved African people.
What is the history of Whitehaven?
In 1630 The Lowther Family purchased the Barony of Copeland, which included Whitehaven. After acquiring wealth through coal mining, the Lowthers invested in the docks. The development of the dock area allowed some people in Whitehaven to generate wealth through the Transatlantic trade in enslaved African people.
Bristol and Liverpool are more well-known for shipping and their role in the Trade of enslaved African people, but Whitehaven was a significant port. In fact between 1750 – 1772 it was the busiest harbour in England after London, with 200 ships sailing in and out of the port each week.
It didn’t continue to expand in the way Liverpool and Bristol did partially due to geography. It is surrounded by fells and was not close enough to growing mill towns in places like Lancashire, who were able to use canal networks.
Why do we want to reveal this history?
History often reflects who had power, and who didn’t. By re-engaging over time, we can make sure that narratives which have been erased in the past are heard. This is really important when we tell the history of the Transatlantic trade of enslaved African people and Britain’s role in it. This can be a challenging and triggering history to confront. Sometimes this has led to people avoiding accepting how Britain benefited from enslaving African people, and how much Britain was involved.
Here are 3 great reasons why we’re excited about this project:
- The Rum Story already has an important place in the heritage scene for Whitehaven and Cumbria. Generations of local school children have come to The Rum Story to learn about how Whitehaven is connected to the wider world. We want to ensure they continue to come, have a great experience, and that the history that they are told is accurate.
- We want to make sure The Rum Story remains an important part of Whitehaven. We also want it to compete with other leading attractions and museums across the UK!
- We believe this project can bring communities in Whitehaven together as we re-engage with an honest account of their heritage.
Who is funding this project?
This project is funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund who ‘believe in the power of heritage to ignite the imagination, offer joy and inspiration, and to build connection to the past’.
Through funding heritage their vision is ‘for heritage to be valued, cared for and sustained for everyone, now and in the future’.
How can I get involved?
One of our first actions is to recruit a project manager. Their job will be to reach out to Whitehaven Communities and identify a variety of ways for you to get involved. This will take place throughout the year, in 2025.
How long will it take and will you be closing?
The Rum Story Re-Imagined is planned in stages. We expect this first stage to take around a year after a new project manager starts in the role. We do not expect to have to close during this period.
Our first step is to talk with local communities and wider stakeholders. This will then inform our next steps. It’s a ‘re-imagining’ so that could be anything from changing some artefacts to becoming an official museum. The main thing is to tell an authentic story our community can be proud of.
