John Mickle Whitall (November 4, 1800 – June 6, 1877) was a prominent U.S. sea captain, businessman and philanthropist in New Jersey and Pennsylvania involved in the spice and silk trade, glass-making, and missionary work.
Whitall was born in Woodbury, New Jersey, in 1800 into a Quaker family and was obliged to drop schooling at the age of 15, when due to a business loss the family was forced to sell their home and move to a farm outside of Woodb...
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John Mickle Whitall (November 4, 1800 – June 6, 1877) was a prominent U.S. sea captain, businessman and philanthropist in New Jersey and Pennsylvania involved in the spice and silk trade, glass-making, and missionary work.
Whitall was born in Woodbury, New Jersey, in 1800 into a Quaker family and was obliged to drop schooling at the age of 15, when due to a business loss the family was forced to sell their home and move to a farm outside of Woodbury. Whitall worked as a farmhand for a year but found the life hard and uninspiring. At the age of 16, he apprenticed as a ship hand on the "William Savery", for a 1-year voyage to Calcutta, India, and in 1818, for another voyage on the same ship carrying cotton from Charleston, South Carolina, to Liverpool, England. On board the ship, Whitall wore plain Quaker dress, avoided the common use of profane language, and was an outspoken advocate of honesty and respectful dealing with everyone on board. On his third voyage, in 1819, from Liverpool...
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