James Riley (October 27, 1777 – March 13, 1840) was the captain of the United States merchant ship Commerce.

The book, published in 1817 and originally titled Authentic Narrative of the Loss of the American Brig 'Commerce' by the 'Late Master and Supercargo' James Riley, is modernly republished as Sufferings in Africa.

Once back on American shores, Riley devoted himself to anti-slavery work but eventually returned to a life at sea.

He died March 13, 1840, on his vessel the Brig William Tell which he was sailing from New York to "St. Thomas in the Caribbean"[a][5] "of disease caused by unparalleled suffering more than twenty years previous during his shipwreck and captivity on the desert of Sahara".

[8] Abraham Lincoln, who later became president of the United States, listed Sufferings in Africa as one of the three most influential works that shaped his political ideology, particularly his views on slavery.