Efforts are underway for a meeting between both descendants of the survivors and the wealthy financier of the last known transatlantic slave voyage into the U.S.

Representatives with the Clotilda Descendants Association confirmed with AL.com on Wednesday that they received an email on Tuesday from Helen and Meg Meaher – two descendants of Timothy Meaher, the steamship owner who orchestrated the illegal slave trade that brought 110 Africans from Benin to Mobile following a harrowing journey aboard the Clotilda more than 110 years ago.

“We received an email (Tuesday) from the Meaher family stating that they were welcoming the opportunity to meet with us,” said Jeremy Ellis, president of the Clotilda Descendants Association who is a sixth-generation descendant of Pollee and Rose Allen, both who were enslaved and on board the ship that arrived to Mobile in 1860.

“We have responded and are trying to coordinate a date and time to meet with members of the Meaher family,” Ellis said. “We’ll see if the meeting happens.”

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He said he was “cautiously optimistic” for the long-awaited meeting between descendants of those connected to the slave ship, which was found in the murky waters of the Mobile River in 2019.

“We have provided dates for which we are available to meet in person,” said Ellis, declining to say how soon such a meeting could happen. He also said he was uncertain that such a reunion would be filmed or documented by a national news outlet.

A previous reunion involving the Clotilda survivor descendants and a Montana resident Mike Foster, a descendant of the ship’s captain, William Foster, was filmed by a CBS “60 Minutes” crew as part of a broadcast in 2021.

The national media continues to be the go-to preference for communication for both sides.

The Meaher family, through NBC News and as part of a segment that aired on an episode of “Sunday Today,” released a statement that called the actions of Timothy Meaher “evil and unforgivable” that “had consequences that have impacted generations of people.”

Meg Meaher wrote the statement, according to NBC News. Ellis said the email sent to the Clotilda descendants was from Meg and Helen Meaher, daughters of the late Mary Lou Meaher, who died on October 2, at the age of 73. Mary Lou Meaher’s husband, Augustine Meaher III, is the great-grandson of Timothy Meaher.

The NBC statement says the family has been “silent for too long on this matter” and that the “current generation of the Meaher family” can “start a new chapter.”

“Our goal is to listen and learn, and our hope is that these conversations can help guide the actions our family takes as we work to be better partners in the community,” the statement to NBC News reads. “We believe that the story of Africatown is an important part of history that needs to be told. While we are currently grieving the unexpected loss of our mom, we are still committed to listening, learning, and acting in partnership with the community.”

The statement was released to NBC News on October 15 and drew a response from the Clotilda Descendants on Monday that included a condolence to the Meaher family for the loss of Mary Lou Meaher. The statement also includes hope that the Meaher family might have “historical documents, artifacts, or oral history that could bring clarity” to the Clotilda descendants.

“Descendants have been waiting for answers from the Meaher family for more than 160 years,” the statement from the Clotilda Descendants reads. “Not only did the 110 enslaved Africans aboard the Clotilda suffer immeasurably during their lifetime at the hands of Timothy Meaher, his brothers and co-conspirators – but their descendants.”

The statement then links generations of Meaher family business holdings that resulted in the development of heavy industry within the Africatown community along the Mobile River. Africatown residents and community activists have long linked the proliferation of that industry to chronic health problems suffered for years by residents.

The heavy industry has also stirred discussions about environmental injustices that continue today as efforts are underway to repurpose the Africatown community as a tourist attraction following the slave ship’s discovery.

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“The business decisions of the Meaher family to lease their land to companies such as International Paper and Scott Paper have created lasting health issues for Africatown descendants and residents,” the Clotilda Descendants statement reads. “The suffering of those aboard the Clotilda has extended beyond generations.”

The slave ship’s story, and the struggles within Africatown, were highlighted as part of a newly released Netflix documentary, “Descendant,” directed by Mobile native Margaret Brown and backed by a production company owned by former President Barack and First Lady Michelle Obama.

The Meaher family did not participate in the film nor did anyone with the family provide a statement to Brown.

Ellis said he was “surprised” the family released its statement to NBC News, but believes the family was not responding to the documentary.

“It is my understanding that NBC News reached out to the Meaher family for a comment specifically on the segment they did on Sunday,” Ellis said, noting that the date on the statement was October 15, before the documentary was released for widespread viewing to Netflix on October 21.

“I don’t believe their response was directly correlated to the film ‘Descendant,” said Ellis.

AL.com could not reach a member of the Meaher family for comment.