The Blue Coat School accounts book is open at a page showing annual subscriptions in 1717, many of them from Liverpool merchants who were, or would be, involved in the slave trade, such as Thomas Johnson, Richard Geldart (Gildart), Richard Norris and John Earle. Madam Clayton was the widow of tobacco and sugar merchant, William Clayton. For more information, see Dr Sophie H. Jones' research, Subscriptions, Schooling, Slavery: Bluecoat's Early Years. The original ledger is at Liverpool Record Office. Courtesy of The Liverpool Blue Coat School and Liverpool Record Office, Liverpool Libraries, reference: 377 BLU/5.