Modern Ocean Grey Hound, from the Types of Vessels series (N139) issued by Duke Sons & Co. to promote Honest Long Cut Tobacco 1889

"Modern Ocean Grey Hound" was made around the turn of the century by W. Duke, Sons & Co. as a promotional card for Honest Long Cut Tobacco. These cards were a sensation, capitalizing on a Victorian fascination with maritime travel. Yet, the romance of these vessels obscures the realities of turn-of-the-century oceanic voyages. For many, ships like the "Grey Hound" were vessels of forced migration and displacement. The legacy of the slave trade meant ships were also sites of cultural exchange, both voluntary and involuntary, for marginalized people. Meanwhile, class divisions were sharply defined; luxury for some, cramped quarters for others, on the same ship. This card reminds us that depictions of progress are never neutral. They carry complex histories of power, and the human stories, both grand and tragic, that propelled these vessels across the sea.