William Whitehead of Antigua

William Whitehead of Antigua was a merchant and agent of the Victualling Board in Antigua who was investigated in the late 1780s by Nelson over allegations of a long-running fraud dating back to the Seven Years War, and who died at Antigua in 1791. Probably but not certainly the same man as the early purchaser of land in Tobago: William Whitehead was the original grantee on 12/05/1766 of Sandy Bay (St Patrick parish) Lots nos. 15 and 16 (96 and 100 acres), which became the Cromstain estate.

1. Will of Jane Whitehead widow of Winchester proved 24/09/1800. In her will among her specific bequests she left £400 to her daughter Ann wife of Captain Akers of Fulford in Yorkshire; £800 to her grand-daughter Jane Jarvis, daughter of Thomas Jarvis of Winchester; 200 guineas to her grandson Thomas Jarvis and 50 guineas each to each of Thomas Jarvis' other five children; 50 guineas each to her grand-daughters Jane Akers and Sophia Akers; 200 guineas to her grand-daughter Isabella Akers; to my daughter Jane Whitehead two ostrich feathers; 200 guineas to her grandson George Whitehead and 50 guineas each to her grand-children William, Robert and Jane Whitehead. (Sources for Thomas Jarvis junior (q.v.) show him marrying Jane Whitehead at Antigua in 1782 and her dying in 1797: this is presumably Jane Whitehead the daughter of William and Jane Whitehead, but the will of Jane Whitehead made and proved in 1800 shows the (dismissive) legacy to her daughter Jane Whitehead as above).

Janet Macdonald, The British Navy's Victualling Board, 1793-1815 p. 165; John Sugden, Nelson, a dream of glory (2012) pp. 352-354; American Vital Records from the Gentleman's Magazine, 1731-1868 p. 298 [which gives the reference 61:1298 and shows his widow dying at Winchester in 1800].

1. PROB 11/1348/42.