1 | | | The Nellie - A cruising yawl. |
| Director of | Companies | The captain and host of The Nellie. |
| Lawyer | | The best of old fellows. |
| Accountant | | Narrator's acquaintance. |
| Charlie | Marlow | Seaman and wanderer. |
| Fresleven | | Charlie's fellow. A steamer. |
| | | Gran Bassam - A trading place. |
| Pop | | Charlie's grandfather. |
| Swede | | Captain. |
| Chief | Accountant | Charlie's acquaintance. |
| Aunt | | Charlie's aunt. |
| Mr. | Kurtz | First class agent. Chief of the inner station. |
| Jack | | General manager. |
| Boiler | Maker | Narrator's friend. |
2 | Manager | | Captain of Charlie's ship. Manager of the company. |
| Uncle | | Someone Charlie met at his flat. |
| Nephew | | Someone Charlie met at his flat. |
| Fat Man | | Sailor. |
| Towson | | A master in His Majesty's navy. |
| Helmsman | | Charlie's fellow. Deceased. |
| Russian | | Mr. Kurtz's companion. |
| Van | Shuyten | Russian's friend. An old dutchman. |
3 | Brickmaker | | Manager's spy. |
| Pilgrim | | Accompanied Charlie to the Kurtz Station. |
| Fiance | | Mr. Kurtz's fiance. |