ABSTRACT
Large quantities of imported cloth were offloaded from ships near Saint Louis, Senegal and ferried ashore in canoes. This chapter argues that the importation of a wide diversity of textiles, apparel and accessories was shaped substantially by local consumer tastes and contingencies, departing from the tendency to emphasize the impact of external forces. A key commodity imported into Saint Louis and traded along the river were indigo-dyed cotton cloths imported from India known as guinees. The habitant commercial houses of Saint Louis worked for the French factory, but they also traded on their own account and allowed some of their skilled dependents to do the same, especially sailors known by the Wolof-language term laptots. The mobility of African laptots was not limited to western Africa itself. The chapter explores consumption and dress within the broader context of Senegambia.
