Roselle first appeared in Lloyd's Register (LR) in 1798 with Gourlay, master, Sibbald & Co., owners, and trade Leith–Jamaica.

Not long after, an American privateer of 14 guns captured Roselle, of Leith, Beatson, master at 31°00′N 70°10′W / 31.000°N 70.167°W / 31.000; -70.167.

At the time of her attack on the convoy she was armed with 12 guns and had a crew of 130 men under the command of Captain Wilson Jacobs.

(Two more struck, but then escaped before Kemp could return to them to put a prize crew aboard.

Ten men from Kemp succeeded in boarding Roselle and capturing her, wounding three of her crew members in the process.