Wills, Inventories of Estates of Deceased Persons 1744-1760

Introduction: This is the second volume in the series of St Helena Register of Wills and summarises the value of estates by individual item and value.

Source: Images of the original records can be viewed on the British Library’s website: https://eap.bl.uk/archive-file/EAP1364-1-11-1.

Text Transcription: This transcription was produced by AI from handwritten document images held on the British Library's website, at about thirty pages per hour. Given the limitations described below, the text should be regarded as unreliable and used only as a search-and-find shortcut: once a relevant section has been located, it must always be checked against the source image via the hyperlinked Film Numbers listed in the main transcription table below.

Three specific problems affected the work. First, AI tends to prioritise meaning and readability at the expense of fidelity to the original, with a strong disposition to normalise spellings, expand abbreviations, and adjust grammar. It is particularly weak with unfamiliar surnames, and scrawled signatures often resist accurate transcription entirely. Transcriptions by eye of documents spanning four centuries have also shown that a single surname could be written in a wide variety of ways: the Crowie family name appears under six different spellings, and the Isaacs family name under sixteen. Searches for surnames are therefore hindered both by genuine variations in the originals and by mistranscriptions introduced by AI, and for this reason are best run phonetically. Second, the AI struggled with the late secretary hand, the script commonly used from the sixteenth to the eighteenth centuries, in which the letter S appears in a form closely resembling a trailing L. Third, occasional passages in these volumes are written in a hand so obscure or poorly formed as to be difficult to read even by eye, sometimes compounded by heavy ink bleed-through from the reverse side or by the loss of sections of pages.

To mitigate these difficulties, a strict protocol was applied to each image, requiring the AI to rely solely on clearly visible ink strokes and to flag any uncertain reading, thereby reducing the risk of inferred or invented text. Two conventions are used. [...] marks text that could not be read with confidence; this may represent a single unreadable word, a full sentence, or occasionally an entire paragraph. Square brackets around letters or words indicate a conjectural reading supplied by the transcriber: brackets around a whole word, for example [Bazett], mean the entire word was unclear and a probable reading has been supplied, while brackets around individual letters within an otherwise readable word, for example B[a]z[e]tt, mean only those specific letters were unclear in the source and the unbracketed letters were legibly present.

Referencing Text Locations: A dual numbering system has been adopted, combining the British Library film number with the manuscript’s original page number. These are presented in the format: British Library Film No. / Document Page No.

Pagination:

Page numbers appear at the top corners of each page. Page 1 appears on Film No. 9, and the page numbering continues sequentially without a break through to the end of the volume. Separately, pages are numbered more clearly and sequentially on the bottom left corner; however, because none of the right-hand pages are numbered, this second sequence has been ignored.

Dates: Britain and its colonies officially moved from the Julian calendar year, which began on 25 March (Lady Day), to the modern Gregorian calendar year on 1 January 1752.

Over the period 1744-1760, St Helena was administered by George Gabriel Powell (1742-1744), David Dunbar (1744-1747) and Charles Hutchinson (1747-1764).

AI Generated Summary

Introduction

This account draws together a run of probate inventories and sale records made on St Helena between 1744 and 1760, when the island was held by the English East India Company as a fortified provisioning station on the sea road between Europe and Asia. Every entry values the goods, land, stock, slaves and debts of a settler who had recently died, priced item by item by neighbours appointed as appraisers. Because the appraisers moved through every house recording its contents to the last frying pan, these lists open an unusually intimate window onto island life. The wealth of a planter and the few worn coats of a soldier were counted in the same disciplined columns. [Film No. 9-58]

The evidence carries real limitations across the whole period. An inventory records what a household owned at one moment, not how it was used or how its people lived, and it existed to fix a divisible sum for heirs and creditors. It favoured movable goods, land, stock and slaves over anything that produced no cash, so the reader learns to a halfpenny what a dead planter owned yet learns nothing directly of his opinions or private life. The people priced alongside cattle appear only as assets, their own voices entirely absent. These sources must be read as much for what they obscure as for what they record. [Film No. 59-108]

The island sat far out in the South Atlantic, a solitary volcanic possession of the Company on the sea road to the East Indies. Its temperate climate and its place in the southern hemisphere shaped a farming year unlike that of England, so yams were grown by continuous planting throughout the year rather than by a single harvest. The whole economy turned on the ships that called for water and provisions. What follows arranges the scattered evidence into themes, reading the valuations across 16 years not merely as lists of property but as traces of how a remote colonial society lived, governed itself and understood the value of things. [Film No. 9-177]

Governance, Administration and the Law

The East India Company administered St Helena directly, and its presence runs quietly through every estate across the whole period. The Company appears as a debtor and a creditor in household after household, holding running accounts with planters and soldiers alike. Jonathan Doveton’s estate was owed for yams supplied to the garrison over the quarter ending in March 1747, which fixed the reckoning of his affairs to a date some three years after the appraisal began. Even the modest Norris household stood as a creditor of the Honourable Company. The Company’s officers were themselves woven into private dealings, for Robert Wright the secretary appears as a creditor of the small Penelope Peach estate. [Film No. 17, 24, 32]

The Company’s authority appears most plainly in the ownership of land, for private persons could not hold the soil outright. The inventories consistently distinguish freehold from leasehold held on the Company’s terms. When the appraisers of Francis Sunge’s estate valued six and a half acres of leased land at £75, they priced an interest in the ground rather than the ground itself. This single fact of tenure sat beneath the whole property system the record describes, and it marked the island as a governed possession rather than a free landholding society. The condition of the larger landholders was therefore one of dependence, however substantial their holdings appeared. [Film No. 88]

Administration reached into the winding-up of even the smallest estates. Appraisals were made by named islanders under a settled procedure, their valuations signed and their totals carried forward toward a final reckoning, and the probate court oversaw the property of dependants. Sergeant Leighton’s estate was reduced to a formal debtor and creditor account whose balance was delivered to Lieutenant Kirkpatrick, most probably the officer charged with the affairs of his men. Ebenezer Gurling’s chief debt of £8 13s 2d was owed to Robert Gurling, an orphan whose portion the deceased had held in trust, a charge answerable to the court that supervised fatherless children. [Film No. 61, 65, 98]

The authority of the island’s court reached into the property of the dead and of the fatherless throughout the 1750s. Several estates carried debts owed to orphans, the Swaite estate owing £160 to the orphans of Griffith and the Worrall estate smaller amounts to the orphans of Whaley and Fountain. The same principle worked forward in the Burnham estate of 1756, the goats at Stone Top set aside until Thomas Burnham should reach 16 years of age. Public business was made known by the beat of a drum, and when Isaac Leech’s goods were sold in 1757 the estate paid the drummer to beat at the sale and the marshal for his attendance, while the parish drew head money through the churchwardens. [Film No. 131, 134, 139, 141]

The appraisers were candid when they could not reduce an estate to a clear figure. The valuers of Joseph Disfountain’s holding, and again those of the great Samuel Doveton estate, noted that debts owed both to and from it could not be brought to account, so it stood only as an inventory of assets with its true worth left open. One inventory became a legal instrument in its own right when Thomas French added a memorandum settling a maintenance charge against a boarder, James Du Bois, and treating £150 of Company salary drawn during his own minority as a debt owed to him. By 1760 the Company’s grip on land was as firm as ever. The great estate of Thomas Colgrave held over 120 acres, yet only 20½ acres were owned outright as freehold, the rest held on lease from the Company. [Film No. 70, 80, 93, 164]

Military Affairs and Defence

The garrison that held the island for the Company surfaces through the estates of its soldiers across the whole period. Sergeant Corker, who died in August 1746, left the effects of a non-commissioned officer of some standing, including a silver-hilted sword valued at £1 10s 0d and an old silver-laced hat, with white waistcoats, stocks and collars. He held no land, livestock or trade goods, only his personal effects, which sets a serving soldier wholly apart from the planters. His goods were valued at £8 14s 11d by a single appraiser, well below their itemised total, since garrison estates were commonly wound up quickly and sold on the island to clear what a soldier owed. The George Lindsey estate showed the same plain goods of a modest man, a fir chest, old coats and a banyan. [Film No. 25-26]

The sale of Sergeant Joseph Leighton’s effects in October 1749 opens a rare view of a non-commissioned officer’s world, his silver-hilted sword fetching £2 1s 0d, by far the highest price, while shirts, shoe brushes and a tobacco box went for pence among his comrades. The buyers were almost all named soldiers, Corporal Davis alone taking a dozen small items, so the goods of a man who died far from home were turned straight into cash and recycled within the fort. Edged weapons and the trappings of rank recur across the estates of men connected to the fort. James Pritchard held a mounted sword, a basket-hilted sword, four cutlasses and a hand scimitar, with a silver lace for a gunner’s mate’s coat, while Daniel Bush kept a silver-mounted dress sword and a plainer working one. [Film No. 61-62, 86, 99, 101]

The leading planters served as officers of the island’s militia, and their estates carried the marks of that rank. John Disfountain kept three swords, two silver-mounted and one brass, together with a silver-laced hat and a major’s wig, the dress of a man who held a commission in the local defence. Richard Goddard’s estate held a pair of small pistols among its finery. These martial trappings, set among the tools and books of a farm, show how the defence of the island rested on its principal landholders, who bore both the property and the standing that officer rank required. [Film No. 35, 45]

The island was first of all a garrison, though the estates catch its soldiers only in passing. Robert Baker, whose few goods were listed in 1759, owned a regimental coat, a regimental hat and three blue jackets, the plain kit of a common soldier rather than the property of a settler with land, and his want of ground or stock marks the difference between the men who held the fort and the planters who worked the valleys. Firearms appear in many households, fowling pieces on the Bagley, Burnham and Newton estates and old swords and a hanger elsewhere, the modest armoury of settlers who lived under the Company’s guns yet kept their own for the hunt and for safety. [Film No. 121, 123, 140, 142, 158]

By 1760 the island’s defensive character still surfaced through personal possessions. The estate of Samuel Desfountain contained a red coat lapelled with blue, a silver-laced hat, scarlet stockings and breeches, and a red greatcoat, the faced and braided garments of the Company’s military force, marking him as a man connected to the garrison. Fowling pieces are listed among the goods of Samuel Desfountain and Captain William Kennedy, and Kennedy’s estate held a pair of pistols and breast plates, probably the metal gorgets worn as badges of naval or military rank. Their frequency suggests a population that expected to be armed, consistent with life on an isolated island the Company held for strategic as well as commercial reasons. [Film No. 167, 168-176]

Settlement, Land and Agriculture

Land on St Helena was held in a sharp division between freehold and leasehold, and every parcel carried a name. The Doveton estate ran to 11 freehold parcels named for former holders, Fosters, Coulsons, Ellis, Phillips, Marshes, Hunts and Sandys, each classed by the timber standing on it. Cabbage tree and gumwood were the two endemic species, valued as scarce building and fuel timber on an island largely cleared of its woods, so ground was appraised as much for its standing wood as for what it could be cropped. The evocative field names recur across the larger estates and record a settled agricultural landscape. John Disfountain held ground called Barley Ground, Wells, Colliers, Sandy Bay and Fox’s Folly, while Gabriel Harper held parcels called Griffins and Windy Point, the latter named for its exposed position. [Film No. 9, 33, 54]

Cultivable ground was scarce and dear, and the inventories value it carefully by locality, grade and situation. Rates ranged from a shilling or two the acre for rough leasehold to £9 10s the acre for prime freehold at Vaughan’s in Richard Gurling’s estate of August 1754. The valuers of Ebenezer Gurling’s holding set ordinary land about the house at 4s the acre but three acres of plantation land at 20s, five times the rate, since land value turned not on extent but on what a plot could produce. Scarcity drove ground into ever smaller parcels, Joseph Whaley’s freehold being recorded to a precision of one and a half and one-eighth part of an acre. Much ground remained rough even at mid-century, the 10 leasehold acres of Giles Smith’s estate in May 1752 being only about three acres cleared, the rest unbroken. [Film No. 93, 97, 81, 70]

Town property commanded prices out of all proportion to its acreage, because it was the scarce commercial ground of the island’s only settlement. Edwin Black’s leasehold in James Valley ran to only two and a quarter acres yet was valued at £200, because it lay in the port and carried a house and a growing yam crop. The house at the fort in the Goddard estate, valued at £270, was the single most valuable building in the earliest records. The settlement clustered about James Valley, the ground around the fort and harbour that would later be called Jamestown, and a house there commanded the highest prices recorded. On the Richard Mason estate of 1755 a James Valley house was valued at £170, far above any country dwelling, and the Bagley and Worrall estates valued town houses at £100 and £120. [Film No. 26, 42, 112, 117, 123]

The land bore the marks of the island’s distinctive nature. William Burnham’s estate held freehold cabbage-tree land valued at £7 the acre, the highest of all his ground, and ground was won for cultivation wherever soil and water allowed, suckers planted even in the guts, the narrow ravines that ran between the hills, as on the Easthope estate. The largest holdings were built up piece by piece from the plots of former owners, John Newton’s estate of 1758 gathering some 128 acres from a dozen previous holders, Junia, Lundy, Phillips, Coulson, Meads and the rest, into one property worth over £1,100 in land alone. On Martin Harper’s estate in 1755 the freehold at Lemon Valley head was valued at £9 the acre against £3 for leasehold in the very same place, a threefold gap that reflected nothing but security of title. [Film No. 117, 139, 142, 153]

The same pattern of tenure held to the end of the period. William Desfountain’s dwelling house in James Valley was valued at £60 and was his one substantial asset, while Richard Harper’s mansion house in Chapel Valley reached £110. On the Colgrave estate freehold ground was valued at up to £15 the acre while leasehold stood at only £4 to £5, a gap that measured the value secure title added to land and showed the Company retaining ultimate ownership of most of the island. The record itself, being weighted toward those who owned houses, may overstate how many islanders lived in such comfort. [Film No. 159, 161, 164]

Supply, Provisioning and the Yam Crop

The yam was the staple of the island and the true currency of its estates throughout the whole period. It was the principal food grown for the workforce and for the shipping that called, and a standing crop was counted into every estate as a real asset. The appraisers valued the unharvested yams by their maturity, pricing plantings in lots of thousands on a sliding scale, the most advanced worth most and the youngest least. Doveton’s estate carried a crop valued at £176 11s 0d. The most detailed account in the earliest records belongs to John Disfountain, whose more than 300,000 yams were listed in some 13 plantings, each dated by age from newly planted to 22 months old. Goddard’s estate showed the same system, its crop of over 350,000 plants valued at £175 7s 6d. [Film No. 10, 35, 44]

That the crop was central to the island’s wealth is clear from how far down the social scale it reached. The small estate of Penelope Peach held the bulk of its value not in goods but in a standing yam crop worth £21 17s 0d, more than a third of her whole estate. In Joseph Whaley’s estate the standing crop was valued at £71 5s 3d, worth more than the land, house and slaves combined and nearly three times the mansion house. It was managed as a rolling operation, planted in staggered lots and priced by maturity, Giles Smith’s ground carrying yams of several ages from 4s the thousand for young stands to £1 the thousand for the oldest, with suckers valued separately as seed stock. Value turned sharply on ripeness, a single lot of 34,000 yams at 25s the thousand forming nearly half the whole crop in Joseph Disfountain’s estate. [Film No. 32, 35, 81, 70, 67]

On the greatest scale Samuel Doveton’s ground held more than 390,000 yams and suckers, one lot of 178,000 worth over £106, the whole crop valued at £226 and itself exceeding most entire estates. Women held their wealth in yams as the men did, Mary Alexander’s modest estate of March 1749 lying overwhelmingly in nearly 35,000 yams and suckers at £20 2s 4d, confirming the crop as the common currency of the island across every rank and both sexes. In the 1750s the pattern continued, Martin Harper holding over 200,000 yams and suckers, John Bagley nearly 197,000 and John Newton over 104,000, prices running from around 5s the thousand for newly planted tubers to 18s or more for the oldest. [Film No. 74, 82, 119, 123, 158]

The farming existed to reprovision the ships, and the livestock accounts show holdings geared to that market. The greater estates held stores in bulk far beyond household need, Samuel Doveton’s inventory recording 118 gallons of French brandy at £33 12s 0d with carboys of fruit brandy, mountain wine and hundredweights of sugar, rice, tea and tobacco. These were the stock of a dealer supplying the vessels. Households preserved against want with powdering and brine tubs for salting meat, and cooled their water in the warmer days with porous guglets brought from India. By 1760 the Colgrave estate held an extraordinary standing crop of 147,600 yams and suckers valued at £86 5s 0d, and Samuel Desfountain’s ground carried over 47,000 tubers graded into five separate lots by age, production far beyond what a single household could consume. [Film No. 88, 76, 165, 167]

Livestock and Husbandry

Cattle formed the largest class of animal wealth, finely graded by age, sex and use. Samuel Doveton kept one of the greatest herds, 29 cows with calves at foot alone, with heifers, bullocks and bulls worth £416, a plantation on a very large scale. In smaller holdings the description could be strikingly particular, Thomas Hayes’s three cows noted one as half white-faced and another as half gentle, terms marking breeding and temperament that a careful farmer drew to fix each beast’s value. Goats far outnumbered every other animal, breeding readily and foraging on steep ground that defeated more delicate stock, Doveton’s flock alone running to more than 170 head divided by age and sex. [Film No. 74, 63, 66]

Alongside the yam the settlers raised meat and dairy stock far beyond their own tables. Herds of cattle, flocks of sheep and goats, and great numbers of hogs and poultry appear on estate after estate, plainly reared for sale, Martin Harper’s poultry running to 12 grown turkeys, 36 young and 35 fowls, and the castrated boars called barrows, fattened for prime pork, held in numbers well beyond a household’s need. Horses marked the mobility of the substantial planter across the difficult island. Richard Gurling kept an old mare, a young mare and a filly, and curry combs, saddles and bridles recur across the wealthier estates. A side saddle in Joseph Disfountain’s inventory, made for a woman riding, marks a woman of the household who rode about the scattered lands. [Film No. 115, 118, 105, 69]

The pairing of stock to ground held to the end of the period. Colgrave’s estate of 1760 held cattle worth £138, together with a mixed flock of sheep and goats valued at £31, alongside hogs and poultry. The use of sheep and goats made the most of the island’s rough upland, since goats in particular could graze the steepest hillsides where cattle could not go. This adaptation of stock to mountainous terrain that would otherwise have yielded nothing runs through the whole record. Named breeding animals mark the settled herd, Martin Harper’s cows including Small Coal, Star and Speckle Flank, a herd known beast by beast. [Film No. 164, 118]

The Judiciary and the Settlement of Estates

The machinery of English inheritance law worked steadily through these estates, and the appraisals themselves were its instruments. The plural signing of an inventory was usual, so that no single valuer bore sole responsibility for the figures. Four appraisers acted on the Doveton estate, and estates were commonly valued by three men drawn from the island’s established families. A widow was entitled under English law to a third of her husband’s estate, her dower, and the Rydell inventory was made after the widow Elizabeth Rydell’s own death to identify and value that third so it could pass under her will. The appraisers drew careful legal distinctions between different bodies of property, a boy named Cupid and a silver watch being entered separately in the Rydell estate as the widow’s personal property rather than her late husband’s. [Film No. 9, 18, 22]

The crucial reckoning in every settlement was the distinction between the whole estate and the clean estate, the net figure remaining after the debts of the deceased were paid. The Lufkin estate was carried through to a clean figure of £171 4s 2½d, and the heirs took only what remained once his own engagements had been met. A striking case shows the limits of a testator’s power over his heirs. Stephen Lufkin had directed that £30 be set aside to purchase Kathern and her child, most probably to free them or keep mother and child together, but his heirs refused to carry out that intention. The plain statement that the heirs would not comply records a rare instance where a stated last wish was openly frustrated rather than fulfilled. [Film No. 30, 33]

These records exist because of a settled legal process for winding up the affairs of the dead. Appraisers, commonly two or three respected settlers, valued a deceased person’s property item by item and signed the completed inventory. The same names recur across many estates, Richard Bagley, Thomas Greentree, Nathan Sample, William Young and Benjamin Mason among them, showing that this office fell to a small circle of established men who knew the worth of land, stock and goods. Where a person owed more than ready money could meet, the goods were sold at public auction, as with Isaac Leech’s effects in 1757, the record naming each buyer and the goods passing round a close circle of neighbours and kin. The court’s particular care for the property of minors runs as a thread throughout. [Film No. 112, 126, 140, 145]

The procedure held unchanged to the end of the period. In 1760 each valuation was formally taken and appraised by named men on a stated date, then signed to attest its accuracy, and the careful separation of an estate’s total value from the debts owed to it and by it followed a standard probate practice that mirrored English usage. The reliability of these documents deserves scrutiny, since the appraisers were neighbours of the deceased and often the same men who valued other estates, which raised the ordinary risk of interest in how goods were priced. Yet the consistency of method across the estates, and the pricing of comparable items at similar values, suggests the appraisers worked to a shared and reasonably honest standard. [Film No. 159, 163, 166]

Economy, Credit and Accounting

The real wealth of a leading island household lay not in its goods but in credit extended to others. The Doveton estate, valued above £4,016, turned on three substantial debts owed to it, Samuel Doveton alone owing over £531 and James Snell nearly £165. The scale of a planter’s lending is clearest in the John Disfountain estate, whose debtors ran to more than £226 and touched nearly every rank of the community. Two dozen people owed him money, from a few shillings to over £100, the largest debt of over £109 falling due from the estate of the deceased John Goodwin esquire. The same John Goodwin appears as a debtor to the Doveton estate, which shows how the same men owed money in several directions at once. [Film No. 17-18, 40]

The island’s economy ran on personal book credit rather than coin, nearly every estate standing as both creditor and debtor to the same circle of families. Ebenezer Gurling’s two schedules show him almost exactly in balance, £26 10s 4d owed to him against £26 14s 9d owed by him, a household passing goods and money through its hands without accumulating a surplus. At the top the sums grew very large, Samuel Doveton being owed more than £407 yet owing more than £2,110 in turn, over five times as much, so even the greatest island fortunes rested on extensive borrowing. Large private debts could threaten the ground itself, Mary Pritchard’s largest liability of £181 8s 8d owed to Richard Bagley being so far beyond her movables that it must have rested against the land as a mortgage. [Film No. 98, 79-80, 103]

The island’s wealth was overwhelmingly in land, stock and crops rather than in money or manufactures, and the plainness of a great planter’s household goods was often striking against the scale of his productive property. John Newton’s land alone was worth over £1,100 and his whole estate ran well above £1,800, yet much of his kitchen gear was old iron and pewter, and Martin Harper’s estate reached £1,065 resting chiefly on his scattered land, slaves, herds and yams. Some settlers combined planting with shopkeeping, and the estate of Augustine Ball, valued in 1754, was plainly that of a trader, holding 40 packs of French playing cards, 40 pounds of coloured thread, papers of needles, 1,600 pins and quantities of hose and seamen’s clothing held for sale, together with a great weight of silver bought by the ounce. [Film No. 109, 110, 119, 153]

Coin was scarce, and much of the island’s trade ran on book credit rather than ready money, so the estates are threaded with private debts owed between settlers. John Swaite’s estate was owed £30 5s 3d by John Bland, and ready cash marked a man of means, Richard Mason holding £47 by him. The paper value of an estate could far exceed what its heirs might collect, as with the sundry debts of £110 marked very bad in the Ball estate, a third of the whole yet probably never to be paid. This pattern held to the end. Thomas Colgrave’s estate of 1760 contained the great cash sum of £37 11s 7d, substantial for an island where much trade ran on credit, while Captain Kennedy’s estate was owed £302 6s 8d by many parties, far more than it owed, marking him a considerable creditor whose money was spread across the trading world. [Film No. 111, 130, 166, 177]

The arithmetic on the page was not always sound, and the appraisers’ own figures sometimes fail to reconcile. The Doveton rates and parcel figures do not consistently agree, and the summary Blackledge inventory entered a clean estate larger than the whole estate above it, an evident slip that cannot be resolved from the entries as they stand. In Francis Sunge’s estate the two largest yam lots, of 30,000 and 17,800 tubers, were valued at an identical £18 despite different quantities and rates, the arithmetic on both lines failing to match. The file’s own speculation, that the valuers rounded both to a tidy sum to close the account, is plausible, though a copying error cannot be ruled out. These lapses are a reminder that the documents were working papers, valued quickly by busy men. [Film No. 9, 24, 90]

Finance, Currencies and Silver

The appraisers held wealth to a consistent method, and precious metal was valued as bullion in useful form. Domestic silver was priced by weight against a fixed rate, generally 6s 6d the ounce, with finer pieces at 7s or 8s, so that plate was treated as a convertible reserve held at the table. The Doveton silver came to £34 8s 8d by this reckoning, the Black plate to £39 13s 3d across 122 ounces. In the Disfountain settlement the silver table spoons were split into matched lots of three so each child received an equal weight of metal, while the seven gold rings passed one to each child in turn as single named keepsakes. Plate was divided by weight as a store of value, jewellery by the piece as a personal legacy. [Film No. 12, 26, 17, 35-36]

Large sums of cash were also held in the trading households, a mark of their liquidity, the Doveton estate holding £176 7s 2¾d in coin, the Black estate £143 4s 9d and the Disfountain estate £142 13s 1½d. In a colony short of coin, worked silver served as a portable reserve, valued by weighing to the pennyweight and priced by the ounce, Samuel Doveton’s plate graded at 7s the ounce for sound pieces and 5s 6d for the older. Gold rings recur as keepsakes and small stores of value, often bequeathed individually, Joseph Disfountain holding seven and Richard Gurling 10. The most affecting was a mourning ring in Samuel Doveton’s estate, made in memory of a woman named Peg and marked as a legacy, a quiet mark of grief against an archive given over wholly to property. [Film No. 17, 29, 35-36, 40, 75, 69]

One entry recorded genuine doubt about the metal itself. A watch omitted from Samuel Doveton’s inventory was valued at £4 if pinchbeck and £12 if gold. Pinchbeck, the copper and zinc alloy made to imitate gold, was used openly for watch cases, and gold was assayed only in London and the provincial offices. Thousands of miles from any assay office and in the hands of planters rather than goldsmiths, the appraisers could not test the case, so they honestly recorded both possible values rather than guess. Silver served as both tableware and a portable store of value throughout the 1750s, John Newton’s silver tankard of 30 ounces, teapot, mug and spoons together worth over £30, and weighing was done by steelyards found in nearly every household. [Film No. 80, 154, 147]

Even damaged pieces retained their worth for the metal alone. Richard Harper’s broken silver watch, of no further use, was still valued at £1 10s 0d for its silver in 1760, and William Desfountain’s broken silver watch likewise held value. This treatment of worked silver as bullion is a recurring theme across the whole period, and it reflects an economy chronically short of ready money. The careful accounting of each estate, separating its gross value, the debts due to it and the debts it owed to reach a clear figure, shows a settled financial culture in which obligation was tracked in writing and credit ran in every direction. [Film No. 161, 163, 166]

Trade, Shipping and Eastern Goods

The hazards of long-distance trade from the island were real from the first. Disfountain’s appraisers recorded that goods had been sent to India for a venture, and that a quantity of old silver had been shipped to England in 1748, but no word had since been received concerning it. An island trader who ventured capital across the oceans might see goods and money vanish from view for years, their return depending on the slow and unreliable passage of vessels and news. This uncertainty was the price of trading from so remote a place. The Company’s trade with India and China reached even modest households, and the inventories name a remarkable variety of eastern textiles by their trade names, alligar, doosooty, soosey gauze, palampore, nankeen, chintz, sitternals, chelloes and dimity among many others. [Film No. 40, 59, 75]

Some islanders clearly dealt in these goods as merchants. Samuel Doveton held Indian cloth by the piece and porcelain in exceptional quantity, more than 180 pieces of dishes, plates and bowls in large lots, with 24 framed china pictures of Chinese make, a stock that points to a household dealing in porcelain as well as dining formally. Shipping shaped the island’s material world down to its bedding, James Pritchard’s estate holding a gravesend bed named for the Thames port where East Indiamen took on stores. Doveton reached into the sea traffic directly with a pulley boat and a half-share in a small vessel, and arrack, the eastern spirit that formed the base of punch across the Company settlements, appears in several estates in cased carboys. [Film No. 75-78, 99, 102]

The reach of Company shipping shows in the imported goods that filled the settlers’ houses, drawn from both ends of a trade that spanned the world. Textiles came from east and west alike, dowlas and holland linen from Brittany and the Low Countries beside baftas, longcloth, chintz, palampores and calico from India, and John Newton’s estate paired Bombay boots with European boots. The taking of tea had settled deeply into island life, china cups, saucers, teapots and lacquered tea boards appearing in almost every household, while wine glasses, decanters, punch ladles and cased bottles mark the drinking of wine and punch. Gin and brandy shipped from Europe were held in quantity, the Ball estate keeping a case of 15 bottles of gin. [Film No. 109, 120, 122, 130]

The sea dominated the record through the men who sailed it to the very end of the period. Three of the seven estates of 1760 belonged to ship’s officers or captains, and the largest and richest of all was that of Captain William Kennedy, whose goods included a large spyglass, a camp kettle and a sword knot, the instruments and emblems of a man whose calling was on the water but who kept a substantial establishment on shore. Richard Harper’s estate owed its single largest debt of £19 4s 2d to Captain John Clark, showing credit running between the shore and the vessels that called. Palampores and chintz from India, guglets for cooling water, black-wood furniture, banyans in the Eastern style, and quantities of chinaware all reached the island through the Company’s commerce. [Film No. 172-177, 163]

Slavery and Coerced Labour

The slaves who worked the farms appear throughout as the divisible core of a planter’s property, valued alongside the cattle and the yams, and slaveholding reached across the ranks and both sexes of the free population. Gabriel Harper’s estate valued 13 slaves at £236 15s 0d, the names showing the mixture imposed by owners, English Robin, Will and Mary set beside classical Pompey and the place-name Cornwall borne by a man. The valuations followed sex and stage of life with a cold consistency, running from £30 for a man in his prime to £2 for the youngest children, whom the appraisers priced well below the working adults. Age stripped a person’s worth as surely as it built it, a man in Mary Pritchard’s estate valued at only £5 being marked as elderly or past his strength. [Film No. 61, 103]

The starkest entry of all records a part of a fisherman in Mary Alexander’s estate, valued at £2 10s 0d, ownership of a portion of a man as one might hold a share in a boat, reducing the person not merely to property but to a divisible share of property. The slaves were carved into bequests by name before an estate was even fully reckoned. The margins of Samuel Doveton’s inventory marked named men, women, boys and girls as legacies to his children, distributed like parcels of ground, and Francis Sunge’s will set apart a boy alongside a calf as gifts to named heirs on the same terms. Doveton held 21 slaves, one distinguished as Great Jack to mark him from another Jack in the same holding, a device also seen in the pairing of Toby and Old Toby. [Film No. 83, 74, 88, 72-73]

The labour that worked the island’s land was in large part that of slaves, and the records treat human beings as items of property to be named and priced among the land and the cattle. On the Richard Mason estate nine slaves were named and priced, the men August, George and Sam above £20 and the girl Nanny at £5. Age and youth told plainly in the valuations, men in their prime fetching the highest sums, £30 for Caesar and Jack on the Easthope estate, while those marked old fetched far less, Bacchus at £12 and Betty at £15, and the children only a little. The slaves came from many origins, most from Africa or Madagascar but others from further afield, the girl Patt on the Swaite estate described as a Lascar, an East Indian, and the man Antego on the Worrall estate bearing a name probably taken from Antigua. [Film No. 112, 117, 126, 142]

They passed between owners not only by sale but by inheritance, bequeathed by will to named heirs as ordinary property, as the man left to John Leech’s son and the girl Patt assigned as a legacy on the Swaite estate. A girl valued at £2 among the furniture of the Burnham estate, listed as though she were a chest or a table, shows the reduction at its most complete. The plainest evidence of what these valuations meant appears in the settlements themselves. The Black estate recorded that a girl named Abigail had been sold for £7, that sum folded directly into the cash total, a human being converted into money during the winding-up of the estate. Set against this stands Stephen Lufkin’s frustrated wish to purchase Kathern and her child, defeated by his heirs. [Film No. 126, 131, 141, 29-30]

Slaveholding remained ordinary and pervasive to the end of the period. Richard Harper’s estate of 1760 held a man named Peter at £16 and a woman named Mirtilla at £25, Thomas Colgrave’s held a man, a woman and a boy valued together at £54, and Captain Kennedy’s estate contained five slaves, Coos, Pall, Massey, Michael and Betty, valued together at £50. Prices were set by working strength rather than by sex alone, Mirtilla valued higher than Peter, and in Kennedy’s estate the woman Massey at £18 standing above the man Coos at £15, a prime woman outvaluing a failing man. The official record served the interests of the slaveholders and the Company, and nothing of the slaves’ own experience, labour, family ties or resistance enters the account. The silence of the source on these lives is itself a significant historical fact. [Film No. 161, 164, 172]

Social Order, Religion and Domestic Life

These estates map a clear hierarchy of wealth and standing across the whole period. At the summit stood the great landholders, whose houses were furnished with imported luxury on a lavish scale. The Richard Goddard estate, reckoned to a clean figure approaching £3,096, was by far the largest in the earliest records, built on extensive freehold and town property, large herds, many slaves and a rolling yam crop. His rooms held matched suites of leather-bottomed and rattan chairs, a clock, a bookcase, pictures on the walls and chests of sandalwood, ebony and rosewood. A shared standard of gentility bound the leading families together, matched sets of a dozen cane or rattan chairs recurring across the Doveton, Black, Disfountain and Harper estates, all furnished from the same eastern trade. [Film No. 45-53]

A clear gulf in furnishing separated the leading families from the smallholders and settlement men. The greatest houses held ranks of matched chairs, imported hardwood tables of mahogany and ebony, pier glasses and deep services of graded china, Samuel Doveton’s rooms holding a dozen leather-bottomed chairs and damask tablecloths each matched to a dozen napkins. The modest households stood sharply apart, Daniel Bush furnished with forms, the cheap backless benches, and common pewter, while Thomas Hayes’s whole domestic stuff came to under 30 shillings. Signs of children recur quietly, old cradles, children’s chairs, ranks of nurse chairs and a child’s silver coral appearing across the estates, the coral in James Pritchard’s estate valued at 12s and worn as a charm against harm. [Film No. 76-77, 84, 63, 101]

The estates reveal a settlement sharply graded by wealth, from leading planters worth well over £1,000 to soldiers with little more than the clothes they stood in. At the top stood men like John Newton, Martin Harper and the Swaites, with scattered lands, many slaves, great herds and houses furnished with silver plate, matched china and imported finery, below them middling settlers of modest comfort, and beneath these the common soldiers and the poorer sort whose goods filled a single chest. The ordering of a household showed even in its beds, ranked by quality from a fine curtained feather bed worth £9 down to a flock bed of a few shillings. Some settlers kept touches of ease, pictures in gilt frames in the Mason house, an old violin in the Burnham household, and backgammon tables on the Swaite and Newton estates. [Film No. 116, 122, 124, 128]

The forms of the established church shaped the settlers’ lives from cradle to grave, though the records catch only its outward signs. Bibles appear in nearly every estate, often the only book a household owned, Mary Alexander keeping both a large and an old copy, and common prayer books and sermon books turn up on the wealthier holdings. Funeral customs were carefully observed, the Isaac Leech estate meeting the cost of a proper burial including 100 lemons bought for refreshment. Mourning rings left by bequest, as in the Burnham estate for Mary and Margaret Burnham, mark the settled practice of remembrance. Literacy shows in the writing furniture of the substantial households, hand escritoires and portable desks of teak and wainscot, and in reference books such as Bailey’s Dictionary held in James Pritchard’s estate. [Film No. 83, 139, 141, 101]

Reading and learning were the mark of a few substantial settlers rather than of the settlement at large, John Leech owning seven volumes of the Spectator with a dictionary, John Newton eight of the same with bibles and sermons, and Martin Harper four volumes of travels in folio. To the end of the period the distance between rich and poor was written plainly into household goods. William Desfountain’s rooms held plain iron pots, wash tubs, pails and jars, a single small feather bed and a few kitchen vessels, the gear of a working household furnished only for bare need. Captain Kennedy’s establishment contained 12 framed pictures, a large china dinner service, quantities of silver, and glassware for entertaining on a grand scale, differences not merely of comfort but of social station. [Film No. 122, 139, 157, 159, 173-176]

Gentility expressed itself through particular possessions in 1760, silver-headed canes, a child’s coral mounted in silver, painted Indian palampores dressing the better beds, and imported chintz all marking households that aspired to refinement. The membership of a masonic lodge shown by Kennedy’s four freemason’s jewels and six freemason’s wine glasses points to networks of fellowship that bound the island’s leading men to a wider trading world. Such tokens of status were nearly all imported, which underlines how the island’s social hierarchy was displayed through goods brought in on the very ships that sustained it. [Film No. 164, 172, 175]

Obligation Across the Generations

The island’s credit bound not only living men but their heirs, and debts did not lapse at death. When a creditor or debtor died leaving minor children, the sum passed to or from the orphans’ portion, to be gathered in or paid out by guardians on their behalf. The Doveton estate was owed £100 jointly by Richard Goodwin and the orphans of the deceased John Booth, while the Goddard estate was owed money by Jonathan Doveton’s orphans and owed money in turn to the orphans of John Bazett. Debts owed to and from the estates of the dead, John Goodwin esquire chief among them, meant the settlement of one man’s affairs reached into the estates of others. The obligations of the island formed a dense and durable web that outlasted the individuals who first contracted them. [Film No. 18, 40, 53]

The same care for the property of minors ran through the middle decades. Money held for orphans appears repeatedly as a formal debt, and bequests were kept in trust until a child came of age, as the goats at Stone Top set aside until Thomas Burnham should reach 16 years of age. That such sums appear as formal liabilities points to the court’s steady oversight of minors’ inheritances, an estate being bound to answer for the money before it could be settled. This principle bound the generations together as firmly as the private debts that ran between neighbours, and it shows the machinery of the court reaching quietly into the affairs of the fatherless across the whole period. [Film No. 131, 139]

Crime, Order and Public Life

The inventories are almost silent on crime, their purpose being to value property, yet they show a settlement well furnished with arms held for service and defence, Ebenezer Gurling keeping a fowling piece with its powder horn for shooting birds whether for the table or to protect crops. The disputes that surface are civil rather than criminal, channelled through the probate court over money and inheritance. The records touch the machinery of order chiefly through the offices that served the settlement rather than through crime itself. The marshal, paid to attend the Isaac Leech auction, was the officer who executed the business of the court, and the drummer who beat to summon people to the sale served the same public function of notice and assembly. [Film No. 93, 121, 134]

The weapons the settlers kept and the debts that bound them hint at the tensions of a small propertied community, swords and fowling pieces in private hands speaking to men prepared to defend their goods, while the great private debts that could force the sale of land, the £47 owed to James Corbett from the Worrall estate among them, mark the pressures beneath the surface of neighbourly credit. Order here rested less on force than on procedure, record and the mutual watchfulness of a small society. To the end of the period the material offers almost nothing directly on crime or punishment, since probate inventories dealt only with the property of the dead. This absence marks the limits of the evidence rather than the peace of the island, and any fuller account would need sources of a wholly different kind. [Film No. 141, 159-177]

Personalities

A few individuals stand out from the columns of figures across the whole period. Jonathan Doveton emerges as a man of leisure and substance, his estate holding a billiard table valued at £16, worth as much as a mansion house, an expensive imported luxury rare on so remote an island. His household ran to more than a dozen feather beds and deep stocks of matched linen, far beyond the needs of one family, which points to an establishment that may have lodged ships officers ashore. Edwin Black combined genteel comfort with commerce, his house furnished with mahogany throughout, yet his estate also held a complete copper still valued at £7 and two pairs of scales, the apparatus of distilling and weighing carried on for trade on an island where the passing shipping created a ready market for drink. [Film No. 12-13, 27-28]

John Disfountain represents the working planter of the first rank, his wealth invested in productive property rather than display, his plain household goods set against extensive land, 16 slaves, full herds and the most detailed yam crop in the earliest records. A crib bed and a nurse’s chair reveal a family with young children raised on the plantation. Richard Goddard was the wealthiest landholder the early records describe, and his estate captures the double character of the island’s greatest houses. Beneath chests of sandalwood and ebony, a clock, a bookcase and framed pictures lay the plain heavy gear of a working farm, meat pots, milk pails, a cheese press and a brine tub, at once a genteel establishment furnished from the eastern trade and a busy farm sustained by its land and its herds. [Film No. 36-38, 45-53]

Samuel Doveton emerges as the greatest figure of the middle years, at once a very large planter with more than 200 freehold acres, a merchant in Indian cloth and bulk brandy, a partner in shipping and a substantial creditor, his gross estate reckoned above £4,800 yet burdened with debts of more than £2,110. His town house in James Valley held a billiard room and a costly table, marking a family that entertained in the manner of the English gentry on a remote Atlantic island. Augustine Ball emerges as a trader and dealer in silver, his estate crammed with shopkeeper’s stock and scrap silver bought by weight, his gin by the case and his large body of very bad debts sketching a figure deep in the small commerce of the settlement. [Film No. 72-80, 109, 110]

John Newton stands as the type of the great planter at the height of the island’s prosperity, his estate valued well above £1,800, gathering 128 acres from a dozen former owners, holding nine named slaves and great herds, and furnishing a house with over £30 of silver plate, a matched china service, mahogany and a substantial library. Martin Harper shows the same eminence in a different cast, a considerable planter and grazier whose distinction lay partly in his learning and craft, his sash-frame planes marking skilled woodwork and his named cows revealing a settled breeding herd known beast by beast. [Film No. 153, 154, 117, 118]

The final year brings its own vivid figures. Samuel Desfountain was a man of many parts, his estate holding carpenter’s, shoemaker’s and plantation tools, an iron swivel for a shop, and a striking wardrobe that ran from a garrison red coat to a blue camlet coat. He kept a fiddle with spare strings, marking music-making in his house, yet he died deeply in debt, owing £174 13s 4d, more than his holdings could easily meet, a working craftsman who lived beyond his means. Captain William Kennedy is the grandest personality of all, his estate overflowing with 12 framed pictures, a large chinaware service, 12 silver tablespoons worth £11, flutes, freemason’s jewels and a wardrobe of scarlet and gold-laced coats. He owned only a third part of a house yet was owed over £300 across the trading world. Richard Harper offers a plainer contrast, his case of six lancets and razors pointing to a man who practised surgery or bloodletting, perhaps the settlement’s barber-surgeon. [Film No. 167-177, 161]

Conclusion

Taken together, these estates reveal a small and tightly bound society across 16 years, governed by the East India Company and sustained by the ships that broke their voyage at its shores. A handful of established families, Doveton, Disfountain, Goddard, Harper, Newton, Wrangham, Greentree and their connections, appear again and again as appraisers, executors, creditors and debtors in one another’s affairs. The island’s economy ran on a dense web of private credit, its wealth measured as much in money lent as in land, slaves, herds or goods. Its farms bred cattle and goats to reprovision the Company’s ships, and its households, from the greatest planter to the humblest soldier, held eastern textiles and Chinese porcelain reaching them through the long-distance trade. [Film No. 9-177]

The record must nonetheless be read with a clear sense of what it obscures. Written by and for the free property-holding families, it treats slaves as chattels to be priced and bequeathed, preserving almost nothing of their own voices, families or resistance beyond the bare names and values imposed upon them. The same disciplined valuation that priced a billiard table or a sandalwood chest priced a human being, and the frustrated wish of Stephen Lufkin and the plain sale of the girl Abigail stand as the sharpest reminders of what these tidy appraisals obscured. It records civil disputes over money while remaining silent on graver conflict, and its careful columns occasionally conceal rounding and guesswork behind an appearance of exactness. [Film No. 29-30]

What survives across the whole period is a precise inventory of property, and a fainter, harder-won picture of the human community that property sustained. The appraisers served the interests of the heirs and the court, lighting most brightly those whose estates were worth the counting and leaving the poor, the slaves, the women and the children in shadow. Read critically, weighing what is shown against what is passed over, these inventories reveal both the workings of a small colonial society bound wholly to the maritime trade between Europe and Asia, and the limits of the official record that survives it. Their comforts and their cruelties were reckoned in the same steady hand. [Film No. 9-177]

Film No

Page No.

OCR Transcription

Modern Interpretation and analysis

1

EAP 1364 St Helena
Document Name and Date Inventories of Estates of deceased
persons 1744 - 1760
Photographer Shelley
Date photographed 8 June 2022
Additional comments

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Book cover

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Blank page

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7

A Page

[...] Alexander 18

Mary Alexander 75

B Page

Daniel Brist 76

Augustine Balls 101

John Bagley 115

William Burnham 127

C Page

Thomas [...]grave 150

D Page

Jonathan Doveton 1

John Desfountain 25

Joseph Desfountain 57

Samuel Doveton 61

John Doveton 115

William Duffton 151

E Page

Thomas Easthope 134

F Page

[...] Frances 8

John Folench Jun 51

G Page

Richard [...] 34

Richard Gimling 96

H Page

Gabriel Harper 46

Thomas Hayes 55

Martin Harper 109

Thomas Harper 153

I Page

Penelope Isacke 25

K Page

Miriam Kennedy 64

L Page

George Lindsey 17

Stephen Leighton 21

Joseph Leighton 53

Joseph Leighton [...] 57

Ebenezer Leech 83

John Leech Junr 142

M Page

Richard Mason 15

8

N Page

William Nicols 19

Mary Nicols 95

O Page

P Page

Benjamin Pledger 16

James Pritchard 91

Q Page

R Page

James Ryder 10

S Page

Otto Smith 12

T Page

John Twaits 118

Mary Twaits 137

V Page

W Page

William Wingatt 51

Joseph Whaley 73

Joshua Worrall 123

X Page

Y Page

Z Page

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Inventory of the goods and Chattles of Mr Jonathan Doveton

Deceas'd taken and Apprais'd by Wm & Francis Wrangham Senr

Mr [...] and Joseph Desfountain this 29 Aug Sepr 1744

Viz!

Blacks Viz! L

1 Negro Slave name Stephen 21

1 Do Frank 27

1 Do Jack 27

1 Do Landson 26

1 Do Jack 18

1 Do Bover 18

1 Do Mutto 12

1 Do Moses 15

1 Boy Dick 14

1 Do Windser 15

1 Do Ned 14

1 Do Jerry 15

1 Do Jack 16

1 Woman Frances & Child 21

1 Girl Ellin 19

1 Girl Margaret 7 286

Land Viz!

23 A Doves Garden Cabbadge tree Land [...] in 123 5

32 Do Cabbadge tree tree hole 234

10 Do Contons Cabbadge tree do 42

1 Do Gattes Cabbage tree do 97

10 Do Phillis Gumwood do 90

32 Do Grasses Cabbadge tree do 400

30 Do Hunts Gumwood do 240

10 Do Sunds Gumwood do 114

1 Do Chelsons Gumwood do 42

1 Do Gumwood do 176

27 Do Marshes do [...] 12 6

1 Do Acres End Adjoyning to Doves Land [...] do 1697 10

1 Do do Adjoyning to Coltons Gumwood do

Carried over L 1982 10

Inventory of the goods and chattels of Mr Jonathan Doveton, deceased, taken and appraised by Messrs Francis Wrangham and son, Thomas Greentree and Joseph Disfountain, this 29 May 1744.

Blacks

1 man slave named Stephen, £31 0s 0d

1 man slave named Frank, £27 0s 0d

1 man slave named Jack, £27 0s 0d

1 man slave named Dawson, £25 0s 0d

1 man slave named Jack, £18 0s 0d

1 man slave named Beover, £18 0s 0d

1 man slave named Anata, £12 0s 0d

1 man slave named Moses, £5 0s 0d

1 boy slave named Phill, £19 0s 0d

1 man slave named Wooster, £15 0s 0d

1 man slave named Job, £14 0s 0d

1 man slave named Tomy, £15 0s 0d

1 man slave named Jack, £12 0s 0d

1 woman slave named Susanna and child, £21 0s 0d

1 girl slave named Ellen, £19 0s 0d

1 girl slave named Margarett, £9 0s 0d

total, £285 0s 0d

The margin marks three of these people as legacies within the family: Wooster is left to [...] Doveton, Tomy to Isaac Doveton, and Margarett to [...] Doveton.

Land

23½ acres Fosters cabbage tree land, freehold, at 10s per acre, £223 5s 0d

22 acres cabbage tree land, freehold, at 10s per acre, £220 0s 0d

10 acres Coulsons cabbage tree land, freehold, at 9s per acre, £93 0s 0d

10 acres Ellis cabbage tree land, freehold, at 9s per acre, £90 0s 0d

10½ acres Phillips gumwood land, freehold, at 8s per acre, £88 0s 0d

33 acres Marshes cabbage tree land, freehold, at 9s per acre, £313 10s 0d

30 acres Hunts gumwood land, freehold, at 8s per acre, £240 0s 0d

10 acres Sandys gumwood land, freehold, at 8s per acre, £80 0s 0d

9½ acres Coulsons gumwood land, freehold, at 12s per acre, £114 0s 0d

2¼ acres gumwood land, freehold, at 20s per acre, £50 0s 0d

27 acres gumwood land, freehold, at 6s per acre, £176 10s 0d

27 acres Marshes, freehold, [...]

7 acres leased land adjoining the freehold land of Phillips, at 16s per acre, £12 6s 0d

2 acres leased land adjoining Coulsons gumwood, at 1s per acre, £2 0s 0d

subtotal, £1,697 10s 0d

Carried over, £1,982 10s 0d

The rates and the parcel figures do not consistently reconcile against one another on the page, and the appraised sums are carried as they stand.

Interpretations

Jonathan Doveton was a St Helena landholder whose estate was valued after his death, and the document is a probate inventory: a sworn, itemised appraisal of his property drawn up so the estate could be divided. Four appraisers acted, Francis Wrangham with his son, Thomas Greentree and Joseph Disfountain, the plural signing being usual so no single valuer bore sole responsibility for the figures.

The people listed first were slaves counted as estate property and priced individually, in the same manner as the land. The valuations follow age, sex and working capacity rather than a fixed rate, running from £5 for Moses to £31 for Stephen, with a woman and her child appraised together at £21. The low figure against Moses points to age or infirmity reducing the price the appraisers expected him to command. The East India Company governed St Helena as a plantation settlement, and enslaved labour underpinned its cultivation, so an estate whose worth rested on its slaves and its planted acreage reflected the ordinary economy of the island.

The land parcels are named after former holders or occupiers, Fosters, Coulsons, Ellis, Phillips, Marshes, Hunts and Sandys, and classed by the timber standing on them. Cabbage tree and gumwood were the two endemic species of St Helena, both valued as scarce building and fuel timber on an island that had been largely cleared, so ground was appraised as much for its standing wood as for what it could be cropped. The rate per acre varies with the type and quality of that timber, cabbage tree land generally carrying the higher figure. The sharp division between freehold and leased ground marks tenure: the eleven freehold parcels the deceased owned outright passed into the estate for division, while the two leased parcels adjoining Phillips and Coulsons ground conveyed only a tenancy, which is why they are set apart at the foot and valued at a fraction of the freehold rates.

The three marginal legacies direct named slaves to particular members of the Doveton family, Wooster, Tomy to Isaac Doveton and Margarett, most probably recording bequests already settled or intended so that these people were identified as passing to named heirs rather than falling into the general division of the estate.

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Houses Viz!

1 Mansion House upon the Land of Phillips 75

1 Do upon the Land of Coulsons 50

1 Dwelling House in James Alley with the

Killard Room adjoyning out Houses Yards &c 250 375

Plantation Viz!

54.000 Yams & Suckers @ 18 Thousand 48 12

66.000 Do @ 15 do 49 10

6.000 do @ 13 do 3 18

10.000 do @ 12 do 6

21.000 do @ 9 do 9 9

92.000 do @ 8 do 36 16

39.000 do @ 7 do 13 13

18.000 do @ 5 do 4 10

14.000 do @ 4 do 2 16

9.000 do @ 3 do 1 7 176 11

Neat Cattle Viz!

14 Cowes and Calves 85

3 Cows 14 10

1 Stagg 8

1 Bull 5 15

6 Bullocks 28

2 Steers 6

2 Heiffers 11

9 Yearlings 14 16 179

Sheep Viz!

6 Ewes @ 18 each 5 8

2 Young do @ 12 do 1 4

2 Weathers @ 9 do 18

1 Lamb 6 7 16

Goats Viz!

79 Goats 35 7

33 Kids 7 8 42 15

Carried over L 2757 12

The valuation continued from the running total of £1,982 10s 0d carried over from the land account.

Houses

1 mansion house upon the land of Phillips, £75 0s 0d

1 mansion house upon the land of Coulsons, £50 0s 0d

1 dwelling house in James Valley with the still-room adjoining, out-houses, yard and other appurtenances, £250 0s 0d

total, £375 0s 0d

Plantation

54,000 yams and suckers, at 18s per thousand, £48 12s 0d

66,000 yams and suckers, at 15s per thousand, £49 10s 0d

6,000 yams and suckers, at 13s per thousand, £3 18s 0d

10,000 yams and suckers, at 12s per thousand, £6 0s 0d

21,000 yams and suckers, at 9s per thousand, £9 9s 0d

92,000 yams and suckers, at 8s per thousand, £36 16s 0d

39,000 yams and suckers, at 7s per thousand, £13 13s 0d

18,000 yams and suckers, at 5s per thousand, £4 10s 0d

14,000 yams and suckers, at 4s per thousand, £2 16s 0d

9,000 yams and suckers, at 3s per thousand, £1 7s 0d

total, £176 11s 0d

Neat cattle

14 cows and calves, £85 0s 0d

3 cows, £14 10s 0d

1 stag, £8 0s 0d

1 bull, £5 15s 0d

6 bullocks, £28 0s 0d

2 steers, £6 0s 0d

2 heifers, £11 0s 0d

9 yearlings, £14 16s 0d

total, £179 0s 0d

Sheep

6 ewes, at 18s each, £5 8s 0d

2 young ewes, at 12s each, £1 4s 0d

2 wethers, at 9s each, £0 18s 0d

1 lamb, £0 6s 0d

total, £7 16s 0d

Goats

79 goats, £35 7s 0d

33 kids, £7 8s 0d

total, £42 15s 0d

Carried over, £2,737 12s 0d

Interpretations

The estate of Jonathan Doveton took in three houses, and their values track their footing and location. The two mansion houses stood on the Phillips and Coulsons parcels named earlier in the land account and were appraised for the building alone, at £75 and £50, while the dwelling in James Valley was worth far more at £250 because it came with a still-room, outbuildings and a walled yard. James Valley was the island's main settlement and port, so property there commanded a premium that outlying plantation houses did not.

The plantation heading values a growing crop rather than a harvest: yams and their suckers, the offshoots by which the plant is propagated, priced in lots of thousands at a sliding scale from 18s down to 3s per thousand. The rate almost certainly reflects the maturity and condition of each lot, the largest and most advanced plantings fetching the higher price. Yams were the staple provision crop of St Helena and the principal food grown for the enslaved workforce and for the shipping that called, so a standing yam crop of this size was a real asset counted into the estate. Pricing an unharvested crop in this way shows the appraisers valuing the plantation as a going concern, with the ground already committed to a season's growth.

The livestock is grouped by kind, with cattle distinguished by age, sex and use down to fine categories, cows in milk, a stag, a bull, working bullocks, steers, heifers and yearlings. This close sorting reflects a stock economy on a small island where breeding animals, draught beasts and animals reared for meat each carried a different value and were tallied separately. The goats far outnumber every other animal, at seventy-nine head with thirty-three kids, which fits St Helena, where goats had multiplied across the rough ground and were the cheapest and most numerous livestock on the island.

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Hogs Viz!

7 Barrows 5 9

4 Sows and 19 Pigs 6

3 Sows 2 8

1 Boar 1 10

24 Shoats 9 9 24 16

Poultrey Viz!

31 Grown Fowles @ 1 4 each 2 1 4

22 half grown do 8 do 14 8

40 Chickens 3 do 10

5 Grown ducks 1 4 do 6 8

6 Young do 6 do 3

10 Grown Turkeys 4 6 do 2 5

8 Chickens 6 do 4 6 4 8

Books Viz!

1 Large Bible 1 5

1 Sermon Book 10 6

A Parcell of Old Books 1 2 15 6

A Parcell of Leather 1 5

A Sett of Shoe Maker Tools 10 1 15

A Parcell of Plantation Tools 15

3 Peaces of Red wood each Containing 10 feet in Length 6

Piece Goods Viz!

2 Pieces of Chints 10 6

A Remnand of Doosotees 8

A Remnand of Demity 5

3 Piece of Chorridores 1 4

2 Pieces of Gingham 1 4

1 Piece of Silk 2 8

1 Piece of Handkerchiefs 13 6

1/2 Piece of Stripes 5

1 1/2 Piece of Interomools 4

2 do of Challow 1 8 4

Carried over L 2802 13 2

The valuation continued from the running total of £2,737 12s 0d carried over.

Hogs

7 barrows, £5 9s 0d

4 sows and 19 pigs, £6 0s 0d

3 sows, £2 8s 0d

1 boar, £1 10s 0d

24 shoats, £9 9s 0d

total, £24 16s 0d

Poultry

31 grown fowls, at 1s 4d each, £2 1s 4d

22 half-grown fowls, at 8d each, £0 14s 8d

40 chickens, at 3d each, £0 10s 0d

5 grown ducks, at 1s 4d each, £0 6s 8d

6 young ducks, at 6d each, £0 3s 0d

10 grown turkeys, at 4s 6d each, £2 5s 0d

8 chickens, at 6d each, £0 4s 0d

total, £6 4s 8d

Books

1 large Bible, £1 5s 0d

1 sermon book, £0 10s 6d

a parcel of old books, £1 0s 0d

total, £2 15s 6d

1 parcel of leather, £1 5s 0d

1 set of shoemakers tools, £0 10s 0d

total, £1 15s 0d

a parcel of plantation tools, £0 15s 0d

3 pieces of redwood, each containing 50 feet in length, £0 6s 0d

Piece goods

2 pieces of chintz, £0 10s 6d

a remnant of doosooties, £0 8s 0d

a remnant of dimity, £0 5s 0d

3 pieces of cherryderries, £1 4s 0d

2 pieces of gingham, £1 4s 0d

1 piece of silk, £2 8s 0d

1 piece of handkerchiefs, £0 13s 6d

½ piece of stripes, £0 5s 0d

1½ pieces of sooseys, £0 4s 0d

2 pieces of shalloon, £1 0s 0d

total, £8 4s 0d

Carried over, £2,802 13s 2d

Interpretations

The livestock and provision headings give way here to the contents of the household and shop, and the mix reveals a man who was more than a planter. Alongside the hogs and poultry sit a set of shoemakers tools with a parcel of leather, and a run of imported cloth valued as trade goods, which together indicate that Jonathan Doveton worked or dealt in shoemaking and kept a stock of textiles for sale rather than for his own use.

The piece goods are almost all Indian cottons brought to St Helena on the East India Company ships that broke their homeward voyage at the island. Chintz was painted or printed calico; doosooties a plain coarse cotton, its name from the Hindustani for the two-thread weave; dimity a stout ribbed cotton; cherryderries a checked or striped cotton, often blue and white; gingham a woven check; sooseys a striped cotton or silk mixture; and shalloon a light woollen twill used for linings. Their presence in a private estate on a small island shows how the Company traffic seeded local retail, since goods loaded in Bengal or Madras found a ready market among the island's households and passing ships, and an appraiser could put a confident shilling value on each remnant.

The three pieces of redwood, each measured at fifty feet in length and valued together at only sixpence, are the local St Helena redwood, another of the island's endemic trees prized for its colour and durability. That so much timber carried so slight a value points to it being rough or unworked stock set aside, worth listing but not yet made up into anything.

The valuation itself works downward by grade within each class of goods, poultry priced by maturity from grown fowls at 1s 4d to day-old chickens at threepence, and the household books ranked from a large Bible through a sermon book to an undifferentiated parcel of old volumes. This ordering let the appraisers assign a defensible figure to every item, however small, so that the whole estate down to a lamb, a kid or a single boar was accounted for and could be fairly divided.

12

4

Brot over L 2802 13 2

1/2 C. Salt 11 6

58 Pepper @ [...] Pound 2 8 4

5 Gallns Brandy 1 10

6 lb Sope 8

8 lb Tea 1 10

1 Billiard Table &c 16

6 lb Sugar 1 4

[...] a Boat &c 2

Wearing Apparel 10 8

Plate Viz!

1 Silver Tankerd Wt 22 2 dwt @ 8 8 5 4

1 Do Tea Pott 17 2 dwt @ [...] 6 8 3

12 Do Tea Spoons Tongs & Strainer @ 13 4 8 do 1 17 2

6 Do Do do 2 7 dwt 6 do 18 1

13 Do Table do 27 9 dwt 6 do 8 13 5

1 Small Tankard 8 15 dwt 6 do 2 12 6

2 Silver Porringers 16 5 dwt 6 do 1 11 6

1 Do Tumbler 3 10 dwt 6 do 1 1 34 8 8

Household Good Viz!

1 Feather Bed & Pillows & Bolster &c 4

1 Do & 2 Do 1 Do do &c 5

1 Do & 2 Do 1 Do do &c 3 10

1 Do & 2 Do & Do 1 Do do &c 2 15

1 Do & Do & Do & Do 1 Do &c 6

1 Do & Do & Do do 1 Do &c 3 10

1 Do & Do & Do do 1 Do &c 3

1 Do & Do & Do do 1 Do &c 2 5

1 Do & Do Bedstead &c 2 10

1 Do & Do &c &c 3 10

1 Silk Cotton Bed & Feather Bolster & Pillows &c 2 5

1 Couch & Quilt &c 10

1 Bedstead Nail and Valen 17 2

1 Couch 10

Carried over L 14 2 6 2821 [...]

The valuation continued from the running total of £2,802 13s 2d carried over.

17½ pounds of salt, £0 11s 6d

58 pounds of pepper, at 10d per pound, £2 8s 4d

5 gallons of brandy, £1 10s 0d

some soap, £0 8s 0d

some tea, £1 10s 0d

1 billiard table and appurtenances, £16 0s 0d

6 tons of sugar, £1 4s 0d

½ a boat and appurtenances, £2 0s 0d

wearing apparel, £10 8s 0d

Plate

1 silver tankard, weight 22 ounces 2 pennyweight, at 6s 6d per ounce, £8 6s 9d

1 silver teapot, weight 19 ounces 2 pennyweight, at 6s 6d per ounce, £6 8s 3d

15 silver teaspoons, tongs and strainer, weight 4 ounces 13 pennyweight, at 8s per ounce, £1 17s 2d

6 silver spoons, weight 2 ounces 7 pennyweight, at 6s 6d per ounce, £0 18s 1d

13 silver table spoons, weight 27 ounces 4 pennyweight, at 6s 6d per ounce, £8 18s 5d

1 small tankard, weight 8 ounces 15 pennyweight, at 6s 6d per ounce, £2 16s 6d

2 silver porringers, weight 16 ounces 5 pennyweight, at 6s 6d per ounce, £5 11s 0d

1 silver tumbler, weight 3 ounces 10 pennyweight, at 6s 6d per ounce, £1 1s 0d

total, £34 8s 8d

Household goods

1 feather bed, pillows, bolster and appurtenances, £4 0s 0d

1 feather bed, 2 pillows, bolster and appurtenances, £5 0s 0d

1 feather bed, 2 pillows, bolster and appurtenances, £3 10s 0d

1 feather bed, 2 pillows, bolster and appurtenances, £2 15s 0d

1 feather bed, 2 pillows, bolster and appurtenances, £6 0s 0d

1 feather bed, 2 pillows, bolster and appurtenances, £6 10s 0d

1 feather bed, 2 pillows, bolster and appurtenances, £3 0s 0d

1 feather bed, 2 pillows, bolster and appurtenances, £2 5s 0d

1 feather bed, bedstead and appurtenances, £2 0s 0d

1 bedstead and appurtenances, £3 10s 0d

1 bedstead and appurtenances, £2 10s 0d

1 silk cotton bed, feather bolster and appurtenances, £2 5s 0d

1 couch and quilt and appurtenances, £0 10s 0d

1 bedstead, mat and valance, £0 17s 6d

1 couch, £0 10s 0d

total, £44 2s 6d

Carried over, £2,871 8s [...]

Interpretations

This portion of the estate crosses from trade stock into the comforts and status goods of the household, and two entries stand out for what they say about the deceased. A billiard table appraised at £16, worth as much as a mansion house on the Coulsons land, marks a man of some leisure and standing, since such a table was an expensive imported luxury rare on a small and remote island. A half-share in a boat, valued at £2, points to a stake in inshore fishing or the moving of goods around the coast, a practical asset in a place where the sea did much of the work of roads.

The plate is valued by weight against a fixed rate for the metal rather than for the workmanship, silver being priced at 6s 6d the ounce for most pieces and 8s for the finer teaspoons. This was the standard way to appraise domestic silver, treating it as bullion held in useful form, so that a tankard, teapot, spoons and porringers together came to £34 8s 8d. Holding wealth as plate let a household keep a reserve that was both usable at table and readily convertible, and the careful ounce-and-pennyweight tallies show the appraisers pricing that reserve to the grain.

The long run of feather beds, more than a dozen listed one after another with their pillows and bolsters, is far beyond the sleeping needs of one family and reinforces the sense of a substantial establishment. On St Helena, with its passing East India shipping, ample bedding of this kind may reflect a household that took in lodgers or accommodated ships officers ashore, though the inventory records only the goods and not their use. The distinction drawn between the costly feather beds and the single silk-cotton bed, stuffed with the fibre of the local silk-cotton tree rather than imported feathers, again shows the appraisers grading each article by its material and worth.

13

5

Brot over L 44 2 6 2872 18

1 Bedstead 6

1 Do 2 6

2 Clasp do 7

1 Chints Quilt 15

1 do 1 3

2 Sersoys do 1

1 Quilt 15

2 do 1 2

1 Gingham do 9

1 Chints Quilt 7 6

1 Stick do 13 1

3 Quilts 1 8 6

3 do 1 15

2 Blankets 10

4 Palampores 2 7 6

8 Doosotus Table Cloths at 5 each 2

4 Long do 5 4 do 1

3 do 3 6 do 10 6

3 do 1 6 do 4 6

7 Table Cloths 4 do 1 8

15 Dosoties Sideboar Cloths 8 do 10

2 Table Cloths 1

17 Dammask Napkins 9 do 12 9

4 Diaper do 9 do 3

7 Long Cloth do 6 do 3 6

5 Holland do 1 do 5

4 Towels 4 do 1 4

10 do 3 do 2 6

4 Pr Doosotees Sheets 9 do 1 16

7 Pr do do 2 do 2 14

2 Pr Long Cloth do 12 do 1 4

7 Pr Doosotees Sheets 13

1 Pr Long Cloth do 6

13 Pr Pillowbears 1 do 13

2 Pr do 1 6 do 3

8 Pr do 8 do 5 4

Carried over L 73 1 11 2872 18

The valuation continued from the running total of £2,872 18s 0d carried over, with a subtotal of £44 2s 6d brought forward from the household goods.

1 bedstead, £0 6s 0d

1 bedstead, £0 2s 6d

2 clasp cloths, £0 7s 0d

1 chintz quilt, £0 15s 0d

1 chintz quilt, £1 3s 0d

2 soosey quilts, £1 0s 0d

1 quilt, £0 15s 0d

2 quilts, £1 2s 0d

1 gingham quilt, £0 9s 0d

1 chintz quilt, £0 7s 6d

1 stick quilt, £0 13s 0d

9 quilts, £1 8s 6d

3 quilts, £0 15s 0d

2 blankets, £0 10s 0d

4 palampores, £2 7s 6d

8 doosooty tablecloths, at 5s each, £2 0s 0d

4 long tablecloths, at 3s each, £1 0s 0d

3 tablecloths, at 3s 6d each, £0 10s 6d

3 tablecloths, at 1s 6d each, £0 4s 6d

7 tablecloths, at 4s each, £1 8s 0d

15 doosooty sideboard cloths, at 8d each, £0 10s 0d

4 tablecloths, £1 0s 0d

17 damask napkins, at 9d each, £0 12s 9d

4 diaper napkins, at 9d each, £0 3s 0d

7 long-cloth napkins, at 6d each, £0 3s 6d

5 holland napkins, at 1s each, £0 5s 0d

4 towels, at 4d each, £0 1s 4d

10 towels, at 3d each, £0 2s 6d

4 pairs of doosooty sheets, at 9s each, £1 16s 0d

7 pairs of doosooty sheets, at 8s each, £2 14s 0d

2 pairs of long-cloth sheets, at 12s each, £1 4s 0d

7 pairs of doosooty sheets, £1 11s 0d

1 pair of long-cloth sheets, £0 6s 0d

13 pairs of pillowbears, at 1s each, £0 13s 0d

2 pairs of pillowbears, at 1s 6d each, £0 3s 0d

8 pairs of pillowbears, at 8d each, £0 5s 4d

subtotal, £73 1s 11d

Carried over, £2,872 18s 0d

Interpretations

The household linen listed here is unusually deep for a private estate, running to dozens of quilts, tablecloths, napkins, sheets and pillowcases, and much of it is again of Indian manufacture. The palampores were large painted or printed cotton bedcovers from the Coromandel coast, prized as decorative hangings and among the costlier items in this run at £2 7s 6d for four. Doosooty recurs repeatedly as the cloth of the everyday linen, made up into tablecloths, sideboard cloths and whole sets of sheets, which shows how thoroughly this cheap, hard-wearing Indian cotton had become the working fabric of an island household. Pillowbears was the ordinary term of the period for pillowcases, and their listing in pairs alongside matched sets of sheets points to bedding kept in quantity and good order.

The linen is graded and priced by cloth and quality in the same disciplined way as the plate and livestock earlier, from fine damask and diaper napkins down through long-cloth to plain towels valued at threepence and fourpence each. Damask carried a woven figured pattern and diaper a small repeating geometric weave, both dressier than the plain long-cloth and holland used for everyday napkins and sheets. This careful sorting by grade let the appraisers extend a defensible value across a very large stock of textiles, so that even four towels worth sixteen pence were separately entered and counted into the whole.

The sheer volume of matched bedding and table linen, set beside the many feather beds of the preceding page, strengthens the impression that the Doveton establishment was larger than a single family required. Whether it served lodgers, entertained the officers of the East India ships that broke their voyage at the island, or simply reflected accumulated wealth, the inventory records a household provisioned to receive and sleep a considerable number of people.

14

6

Brot over L 73 1 11 2872 18

3 Setts of Curtains bood Cloths & Tassle & each 2 14

2 Setts do Sconce do 8 do 1 4

2 Setts Curtains 12

7 Pr Window Curtains 9 6

36 China Plates @ 6 each 18

20 do @ 4 do 6 8

7 do @ 3 do 1 9

11 do Soupe 3 do 1 7

10 do Dishes 1 3

1 do Bowle & Plate 5

3 do Bowles 5 6

2 do Crack'd 1

1 do Bowle & Plate 1 6

3 China Muggs 1 1

3 do Sneckins 1 4

1 Sett of China 15

1 Sirge Cups 2 3

1 Coffe with Coves 1

2 Tea Boards 1 Tea Pott 2 Sneckers &c 10 6

20 Wine Glasses 10

1 Beer do 1

2 Muggs 1 4

1 Glass Tumbler 1 6

1 do Decanter Crack'd 6

2 Pint do 2

2 Cruetts 6

1 China Tea Pott 1 6

2 Earthen do do 1

2 Glass Salts 1

1 China Basen and Guglet 6

6 Drineing Glass 1 6

1 do do Glass 2

1 Chamber do with Drawer 1 8

4 Chamber do 16 6

4 do Pewter Plates 1 15

3 Sett Dishes 11 9

2 Pewter do 1 2 6

5 do Basons 2

1 Sett of Pewter Caswits 2 6

Carried over L 73 5 2872 18

The valuation continued from the running total of £2,872 18s 0d carried over, with a subtotal of £73 1s 11d brought forward from the household linen.

3 sets of curtains, head cloths and testers, at 8s each, £2 14s 0d

3 sets of soosey curtains, at 8s each, £1 4s 0d

2 sets of curtains, £0 12s 0d

7 pairs of window curtains, £0 9s 6d

36 china plates, at 6d each, £0 18s 0d

20 china plates, at 4d each, £0 6s 8d

7 china plates, at 3d each, £0 1s 9d

11 china soup plates, at 5d each, £0 4s 7d

10 china dishes, £1 3s 0d

1 china bowl and plate, £0 5s 0d

3 china bowls, £0 5s 6d

2 china bowls, cracked, £0 1s 0d

1 china bowl and plate, £0 1s 6d

3 china mugs, £0 4s 1d

3 china saucers, £0 1s 4d

1 set of china, £0 15s 0d

9 large cups, £0 2s 3d

4 cups with covers, £0 1s 0d

2 tea boards, 1 teapot and 2 saucers and other pieces, £0 10s 6d

10 wine glasses, £0 10s 0d

1 beer glass, £0 1s 0d

2 mugs, £0 1s 0d

1 glass tumbler, £0 1s 0d

4 glass decanters, cracked, £0 1s 6d

2 pint decanters, £0 2s 0d

3 cruets, £0 1s 6d

1 china teapot, £0 1s 6d

2 earthen teapots, £0 1s 0d

3 glass salts, £0 1s 0d

1 china basin and jug, £0 6s 0d

1 dressing glass, £0 1s 6d

1 large glass, £0 2s 0d

1 chamber table with drawers, £0 3s 0d

4 chamber tables, £0 16s 6d

46 pewter plates, £1 18s 0d

3 soup dishes, £0 10s 9d

1 pewter dish, £0 2s 6d

5 pewter basins, £0 9s 6d

1 set of pewter cruets, £0 2s 0d

subtotal, £93 0s 5d

Carried over, £2,872 18s 0d

Interpretations

The tableware here is dominated by Chinese porcelain, listed simply as china and running to well over a hundred pieces of plates, dishes, bowls, cups and teawares. This was true export porcelain carried from Canton, and St Helena stood directly on the homeward track of the East India ships that loaded it, so a planter household could accumulate quantities of a material that in England still marked comfort and taste. The plates are graded and priced by size and condition, the best at sixpence apiece falling to fourpence and threepence, with cracked bowls and decanters entered at a penny or two, which shows the appraisers valuing even damaged porcelain rather than discarding it.

The presence of matched tea equipage, tea boards, teapots, covered cups and whole sets of china, reflects how far the ritual of tea-drinking had reached a remote Atlantic island by the 1740s. Tea itself appeared among the provisions on an earlier page, and here the vessels for serving it are counted piece by piece, marking a social practice that the East India trade both supplied and sustained.

Set against the fragile imported porcelain is a solid stock of pewter, forty-six plates with dishes, basins and cruets, the durable everyday tableware of the period. The two ran side by side in a well-found household, the china for display and company and the pewter for daily use, and the appraisers valued each in its own right. That both were present in this quantity again points to an establishment equipped to set a large table, consistent with the abundant beds and linen recorded on the preceding pages.

15

7

Brot over - L

Brot over - L 73 5 2872 18

3 Pewter Salts 1 8

2 do Casters 1 8

9 Pewter Chamber Potts 2 1

2 do Funnels 1 1

1 Case Steel with a Screw 1

1 Long Wainscoat table 12

2 Small do do 1 10

1 Sacked do 1 10

1 Oval do 2 8

2 Long Tables 1 1

1 Elbow Chair 7 6

16 Chamber Chairs 3 15

16 Cane Chairs 3 10

2 do do 13

9 Wooden Chairs 2 7 6

1 Large do 12

1 Elbow do 5

4 Feather do 4

2 Square Tables 8 6

1 do with Drawers 3

1 Wainscot Bureau 3

1 do Chest 2 10

1 Indian Cabinet 7

1 Chest with Drawers 1 6

1 Sackando Tea Board 4

1 Turkey Carpett 6

2 Blankets 6

1 Earthan Spirit Pott 6

1 Sieve 3

1 Wigg Broom 1

8 Tind Candlesticks 8

3 do Brass Candlesticks 4

2 do do 7 6

2 do do Snuffers 7 6

2 Brass Skimmers & 1 do Ladle 2

2 do Poss's 13

1 do Spice Boxs 14

1 Case with 6 doz Wine Bottles 12

1 do 12 do

1 do 12 do

Carried over L 124 12 2 2872 18

The valuation continued from the running total of £2,872 18s 0d carried over, with a subtotal of £93 0s 5d brought forward from the previous page.

3 pewter salts, £0 1s 3d

2 pewter casters, £0 1s 8d

9 pewter candlesticks, £0 1s 0d

2 pewter funnels, £0 1s 6d

1 close stool with a pan, £0 12s 0d

1 long walnut table, £1 10s 0d

6 small walnut tables, £1 10s 0d

1 lacquered table, £0 10s 0d

1 oval table, £2 0s 0d

2 long tables, £1 0s 0d

1 elbow chair, £0 7s 6d

16 chamber chairs, £0 16s 0d

16 cane chairs, £3 10s 0d

2 cane chairs, £0 13s 0d

9 wooden chairs, £2 7s 6d

1 large chair, £0 12s 0d

1 elbow chair, £0 5s 0d

4 feather chairs, £0 4s 0d

2 square tables, £0 8s 6d

1 table with drawers, £0 3s 0d

1 walnut bureau, £2 0s 0d

1 bureau chest, £2 10s 0d

1 china cabinet, £1 7s 0d

1 chest with drawers, £1 5s 0d

1 lacquered tea board, £0 5s 0d

1 smoking cabinet, £0 3s 6d

2 blunders, £0 6s 0d

1 earthen spill pot, £0 2s 0d

1 sconce, £0 1s 0d

1 wire brush, £0 2s 0d

8 hand candlesticks, £0 4s 0d

3 brass candlesticks, £0 7s 6d

2 pairs of snuffers, £0 6s 0d

2 brass skimmers and 1 table, £0 2s 0d

2 pairs of glasses, £0 2s 0d

1 pair of spice boxes, £0 13s 0d

1 case with 16 fine glass bottles, £0 14s 0d

subtotal, £124 12s 2d

Carried over, £2,872 18s 0d

Interpretations

The furniture recorded here builds a fuller picture of the rooms of the Doveton house, and the mix of woods and finishes marks a household of some taste. Walnut was the fashionable cabinet timber of the day and appears in tables, a bureau and a chest, while several pieces are lacquered or japanned, an imitation of East Asian finish that the China trade had made desirable. A dedicated china cabinet to display the porcelain of the preceding page, together with a smoking cabinet and a case fitted for sixteen glass bottles, shows furniture made for particular uses rather than plain necessity.

The seating is counted in quantity and by type, most tellingly sixteen cane chairs valued together at £3 10s 0d, the highest single furniture figure on the page. Caned seats were a lighter, imported style suited to a warm climate and were among the better chairs in a colonial house, set apart in the valuation from the plainer wooden and chamber chairs. Ranks of sixteen matching chairs of one kind, and a further sixteen of another, again point to rooms arranged to seat many at once, consistent with the large stocks of beds, linen and tableware already listed.

Two utilitarian entries anchor the display goods in daily life: a close stool with its pan, the boxed indoor privy of the period valued at 12s 0d, and brass skimmers and candlesticks for kitchen and lighting. The appraisers moved through the house recording the costly and the commonplace alike, so that a fashionable walnut bureau and an earthen spill pot for holding lighting tapers were each entered and priced in turn.

16

8

Brot over L

Brot over L 124 12 3 2872 18

1 Case with 6 Quart Bottles 15

1 do with 6 do do 3

1 Stone Jugg 2 6

3 Corksrews 13

1 Wash tub 2

2 Gam Potts 1 16

1 do Crack'd 4

3 Meat Potts 1 11

1 do Crack'd 5

3 Small Potts 8 6

1 do Crack'd 1 1

1 Pr Dutchoons 1 3

4 Sprits 6 6

1 Morter 2

1 China Cabinet 3

1 Chest of Drawers 13

1 Tea Table 7 6

1 do Scales 2 6

2 Long Irons 5

1 Chest Brush 1

1 Long Iron Chest 1

2 Parcell of Iron 1 3

1 Chest of Drawers 18 8

1 do 7 8

1 Large Basket 3

1 Small do 8

2 Small Casks 5

1 Chest of Drawers 6

1 Small Box 1

1 Brass Spitt Pott 1

1 Small Flasket 1

2 Lockard hand boards 2

2 Tin Potts 2

2 Case Bottles 1

1 Small Trunk 6 6

1 Pr Back Gammon tables 3 6

1 Box Irons and Heaters 5

1 Saw 3

1 Spying Glass 121 1 4 2872 13

The valuation continued from the running total of £2,872 18s 0d carried over, with a subtotal of £124 12s 2d brought forward from the previous page.

1 case with 6 quart bottles, £0 15s 0d

1 case with 6 bottles, £0 6s 6d

1 stone jug, £0 15s 0d

3 corboys, £0 2s 0d

1 washstand, £1 16s 0d

2 jam pots, £0 9s 0d

1 jam pot, cracked, £1 11s 0d

3 bread pots, £0 5s 0d

1 bread pot, cracked, £0 8s 6d

3 small pots, £0 1s 0d

1 small pot, cracked, £0 3s 0d

1 pair of andirons, £0 6s 6d

4 gridirons, £0 8s 6d

1 mortar, £0 8s 0d

1 china cabinet, £0 12s 6d

1 chest of drawers, £0 7s 6d

1 gun, £0 2s 6d

1 pair of scales, £0 3s 6d

2 long drawers, £0 1s 0d

1 coat brush, £0 1s 0d

1 long deed chest, £0 5s 0d

2 parcels of ground [...], £0 18s 0d

1 chest of drawers, £0 7s 8d

1 chest of drawers, £0 2s 0d

1 large basket, £0 3s 0d

1 small basket, £0 8s 0d

2 small corbys, £0 5s 0d

1 chest of drawers, £0 6s 0d

1 small box, £0 1s 0d

1 brass spill pot, £0 1s 0d

1 small basket, £0 1s 0d

2 lacquered hand boards, £0 2s 0d

2 tin pots, £0 2s 0d

2 case bottles, £0 5s 0d

1 small drum, £0 6s 6d

2 pairs of backgammon tables, £1 3s 6d

1 box, irons and weights, £0 5s 0d

1 saw, £0 2s 0d

1 spying glass, £141 4s 9d

Carried over, £2,872 13s 0d

The final entry carries the running subtotal of £141 4s 9d, and the appraised value of the spying glass alone cannot be separated from that figure on the page.

Interpretations

This closing run of household effects gathers the smaller vessels, tools and diversions of the establishment, and several entries mark the reach of trade and leisure into the home. A spying glass, or telescope, points to a household watching the road for shipping, a matter of real consequence on an island whose fortunes turned on the arrival of the East India fleet. Two pairs of backgammon tables and a small drum sit among the goods as instruments of pastime and signal, the everyday recreations of a comfortable house.

The kitchen and storage wares are graded once more by condition, with cracked jam pots, bread pots and small pots each entered at a reduced figure beside their sound counterparts. This consistent pricing of damaged goods runs through the whole inventory and reflects the appraisers method: nothing was too broken to value, since the estate was to be divided to the last usable article. The carboys, large protected bottles for carrying liquids, and the case bottles fitted in their boxes speak to the storage and moving of spirits and other fluids in a place where such vessels were shipped in and kept.

A long deed chest appears among the furniture, the secure box in which a landholder kept the title deeds and legal papers to the very freeholds valued at the head of this inventory. Its presence is a quiet reminder that the estate being appraised was held together by documents as much as by goods, and that the parcels named after Fosters, Coulsons and the rest rested on papers stored in that chest. The andirons and gridirons for the hearth, the mortar for the kitchen and the scales for weighing round out a household equipped for its own provisioning as well as for display.

17

9

Brot over L

Brot over L 121 4 9 2872 13

1 pr Snuffers 4

1 Pestle and Morter 1 8

8 Fishing Lines 1 6

1 Shagareen Case for Knives and forks 2 6

1 [...] Boxes 6

1 Tea Kettle 2 6

1 Small Pitchett 6 6

2 Small Baskets 1 6

1 Grind Stone 3

8 Wine Ayres 4 6

2 Pr Stilards 13

1 Small Trunk 2 6

36 Knives & forks 1 4

2 Frying Pans 2

5 Bellinsers 7 6

1 Dripping Pan 4

2 China Jars 11

1 Warming Pan 2 6 146 14 3

Cash 146 7 2 1/2

Sundry Persons Indebted to the Estate Viz!

Joshua Johnson 2 15

Sivgle Prevett 3 13 3

James Overstreet 2 11 10

John Goodwin Esqr Decd 6 7

Grace Bates 8 6

Richard Fowley 3 1

Barron Delroy 1 8 11

Samuel Alexander 1 13 8

Giles Smith 3 17 4

Giles Hayes decd 1 2 4

Edw. Leech 1 4

Wm Watkins 3 4

Will Allis 1

From the Garrison this Quarter for Rent Ending

the 25th of [...] 3 1

Carried over L 34 11 3 3196 4 7 1/2

The valuation continued from the running total of £2,872 13s 0d carried over, with a subtotal of £141 4s 9d brought forward from the previous page.

4 tea kettles, £0 4s 0d

6 squares, £0 1s 6d

1 pestle and mortar, £0 1s 6d

8 fishing lines, £0 4s 0d

1 shagreen case for knives and forks, £0 2s 6d

1 pair of tongs, £0 0s 6d

1 tea kettle, £0 2s 6d

1 small hatchet, £0 0s 6d

2 small baskets, £0 1s 6d

1 grindstone, £0 3s 0d

5 hand axes, £0 4s 6d

2 pairs of stilliards, £0 18s 0d

1 small trunk, £0 2s 6d

36 knives and forks, £1 4s 0d

2 frying pans, £0 2s 0d

5 flatirons, £0 7s 6d

1 dripping pan, £0 4s 0d

2 china jars, £0 11s 0d

1 winnowing fan, £0 2s 6d

total, £146 14s 3d

Cash, £176 7s 2¾d

Sundry persons indebted to the estate

Joshua Johnson, £2 0s 0d

Joseph Powell, £3 13s 3d

James Greentree, £2 0s 0d

John Goodwin esquire, deceased, £6 9s 0d

Grace Bates, £0 8s 6d

Richard Insley, £0 8s 0d

Baron Deloss, £0 1s 0d

Samuel Alexander, £1 12s 0d

Giles Snell, £3 4s 4d

Giles Hayes, deceased, £0 2s 4d

Ebenezer Peck, £0 4s 0d

John Watkins, £0 3s 0d

William Ellis, [...]

From the garrison this quarter for yams ending March 1747, £3 1s 0d

subtotal, £34 11s 3d

Carried over, £3,146 4s 7¾d

Interpretations

The last of the goods gives way to the two forms in which the estate held money owed and money in hand, and the shift is significant. After the household wares comes a straightforward entry of cash at £176 7s 2¾d, a large sum to hold in coin on the island and a mark of the liquidity of a trading household. Following it, a schedule of debts owed to the estate turns the inventory from a list of things into a claim on other people, since these sums were assets the executors could pursue and collect for the division.

The debtor list names a cross-section of the island community, several of whom have appeared elsewhere in these records, including James Greentree, who was himself one of the appraisers of this very estate. Two debtors, John Goodwin esquire and Giles Hayes, are marked as deceased, which meant their debts had to be recovered from their own estates rather than from living men, a complication the appraisers noted by recording the fact of death against the name. The debts range from a few shillings to over six pounds, and their careful entry shows that the credit extended by Doveton in life, whether for goods sold, provisions supplied or money lent, was treated as recoverable property after his death.

The final entry, a sum due from the garrison for yams supplied over the quarter ending in March 1747, ties the estate directly to the East India Company establishment on the island. Doveton had been selling the produce of his plantation to feed the soldiers, and the Company owed for that supply at his death. This confirms the standing yam crop valued earlier as a genuine commercial operation, provisioning the garrison under what was in effect a running account, and it fixes the reckoning of the estate to a date some three years after the appraisal began, showing that the settlement remained open while such debts were gathered in.

18

10

Brot over L

Brot over L 34 11 3 3196 4 7 1/2

Samuel Doveton 331 4 10 1/2

James Snell 164 18

Richard Jarvis & the Orphans of Jn Bryant

Decd 100 820 14 [...]

Francis Wrangham Senr

Thos Greenhow L 1016 18 9 1/2

Joseph Desfountain

Inventory of the Personal Estate of James Rider Deceased

taken since the Death of Elizabeth Rider Widow in Order to take out

her third Part given to be disposed of according to her Last Will as

Testament aforesaid by Messrs Francis Wrangham Senr & Richard

Goodwin Sepr 27th 1744 Viz!

a Black Man named Bedford 26

a Do London 22

a Do Westerne 22

a Do Jack 20

a Do Woman Abigal 18

a Do Do Mercy 18

a Do Girl Patt 9 133

Household Goods Viz!

1 Feather Bed & Furniture 7

1 Fine Blankett 13

1 Feather Bed & Furniture 7

1 Do do do 6 10

1 Do do do 5

4 Pr Chints Window Curtains 12

13 long Cloth Sheets @ 5/6 3 15 30 12

Carried over L 163 12

The valuation continued from the running total of £3,146 4s 7¾d carried over, with a subtotal of £34 11s 3d brought forward from the debtor schedule.

Samuel Doveton, £531 4s 10½d

James Snell, £164 18s 0d

Richard Goodwin and the orphans of John Booth, deceased, £100 0s 0d

subtotal, £820 14s 1½d

total, £4,016 18s 9¼d

The appraisal was signed by Francis Wrangham senior, Thomas Greentree and Joseph Disfountain.

A separate inventory follows, of the personal estate of James Rydell, deceased, taken after the death of Elizabeth Rydell, widow, so that her third part might be set out and disposed of according to her will, appraised by Messrs Francis Wrangham senior and Richard Goodwin on 29 September 1744.

Blacks

1 black man named Woodford, £26 0s 0d

1 black man named London, £22 0s 0d

1 black man named Neptune, £22 0s 0d

1 black man named Jack, £20 0s 0d

1 black woman named Abigail, £18 0s 0d

1 black woman named Mercy, £18 0s 0d

1 black girl named Phill, £8 0s 0d

total, £133 0s 0d

Household goods

1 feather bed and furniture, £7 0s 0d

1 fine blanket, £0 13s 0d

1 feather bed and furniture, £7 0s 0d

1 feather bed and furniture, £6 10s 0d

1 feather bed and furniture, £6 0s 0d

4 chintz window curtains, £0 12s 0d

13 long-cloth sheets, at 5s each, £3 13s 0d

subtotal, £96 13s 0d

Carried over, £168 12s 0d

Interpretations

The close of the Doveton inventory reveals that the largest assets of all lay not in goods but in three substantial debts owed to the estate, dwarfing everything catalogued before. Samuel Doveton alone owed over £531, James Snell nearly £165, and a further £100 was due from Richard Goodwin together with the orphans of John Booth. These sums lifted the whole estate above £4,016, which shows that the real wealth of a St Helena trading household of this rank was tied up in credit extended to others rather than held in land, slaves or household stuff. The debt charged jointly against Richard Goodwin and the Booth orphans marks a liability that had descended to minor heirs, whose share the executors would have to pursue through guardians rather than from the children directly.

A second and distinct document opens immediately after, the inventory of James Rydell, appraised to settle the third part of his estate falling due under the will of his widow Elizabeth. Under English law a widow was entitled to a third of her husband's estate, her dower, and this appraisal was made after her own death to identify and value that third so it could pass under her will. The exercise shows the machinery of inheritance working across two deaths, the husband's property held in part by the widow for life and only reckoned and divided once she too had died.

The Rydell estate again opens with slaves valued individually by sex and age, from men at £20 to £26 down to a girl at £8, followed by the feather beds and imported chintz and long-cloth that furnish nearly every St Helena household in these records. Richard Goodwin appears here as an appraiser of the Rydell estate, having just been named as a debtor to the Doveton estate on the same page, which illustrates how a small circle of the island's established men served repeatedly as valuers, creditors and executors in one another's affairs.

19

11

Brought over L 163 12

2 Large Doosotees Table Cloth 16

4 Small Table Cloths 16

12 Pillowbers 8

12 Towells 4

1 Stitch Quilt old 5 9

1 Walnut Bureau old 2

1 Wainscott Wardrobe old 2

1 Small do 2

1 Pr Cabinet 13

2 China Jarrs and do Cases 19

1 Tea Boy 10

1 Small Looking Glass Gilt Frame 6

1 Small do old 2 6

1 Chamber Table old 5

1 Warming Pan 13

1 Fire Grate Large 13

1 do Painted Old 1 9

2 Fire Cases 10

1 Large Table Long 13

1 Small do Oval 15

1 do Square Table 5

1 Tea Table & Frame 10

2 Cain Chairs & Wooden do 17 6

7 Pewter dishes & Plates 18

12 do Plates 3

4 do do 12

3 Chamber Potts 12

3 Candlesticks & Snuffers 15

4 China Jarrs 4

1 Sett of China 10 3

1 China Jugg &c 2

1 China Bowle 11

2 Parcell of Old China 2 3

2 Tea Board 8

1 Coffee Coffee Pott 23 1

1 Large Sea Kettle 186 13

Carried over L

The valuation continued from the running total of £168 12s 0d carried over.

2 large doosooty tablecloths, £0 16s 0d

4 small tablecloths, £0 16s 0d

12 pillowbears, £0 8s 0d

12 towels, £0 4s 0d

1 stick quilt, old, £0 5s 0d

1 walnut bureau, old, £2 0s 0d

1 wainscot bureau, old, £2 0s 0d

1 small bureau, £2 0s 0d

1 spice cabinet, £0 16s 0d

2 china jars with covers, £0 13s 0d

1 tea box, £0 10s 0d

1 small looking glass, gilt frame, £0 6s 0d

1 small looking glass, old, £0 2s 6d

1 chamber table, old, £0 3s 0d

1 warming pan, £0 12s 0d

1 fire chest, large, £0 18s 0d

1 painted fire chest, £1 0s 0d

2 fire cases, £0 10s 0d

1 large long table, £0 18s 0d

1 small oval table, £0 13s 0d

1 square table, £0 6s 0d

1 tea table and frame, £0 10s 0d

2 cane chairs and 2 wooden chairs, £0 17s 6d

7 soup dishes and plates, £0 12s 0d

12 plates, £0 3s 0d

4 old plates, £0 12s 0d

3 chamber pots, £0 12s 0d

3 candlesticks and snuffers, £0 12s 0d

4 china jars, £0 12s 0d

1 set of china, £0 13s 0d

1 china jug, £0 2s 0d

1 china bowl, £0 11s 0d

a parcel of old china, £0 2s 0d

2 tea boards, £0 3s 0d

1 copper coffee pot, £0 8s 0d

1 large tea kettle, £23 1s 0d

Carried over, £186 13s 0d

The final entry carries the running subtotal of £23 1s 0d, and the appraised value of the large tea kettle alone cannot be separated from that figure on the page.

Interpretations

The Rydell household goods repeat, on a smaller scale, the pattern of the Doveton estate: imported Indian and Chinese wares set beside plain furniture, all graded by age and condition. The recurrence of doosooty tablecloths, chintz curtains, china jars and whole sets of porcelain in a second and separate estate confirms that these were not the marks of one exceptional household but the common furnishings of the island's established families, supplied through the same East India traffic that touched at St Helena.

The appraisers again distinguished old from sound goods and priced accordingly, with old bureaux, an old chamber table and old plates each noted as such. Two bureaux of different woods, walnut and wainscot, and a spice cabinet point to a house with some finer cabinet furniture, while the fire chests and fire cases were containers for kindling or fire irons kept by the hearth. This consistent notation of wood, age and condition across both inventories reflects a shared valuing practice among the small group of men who appraised estates on the island.

The dense clustering of tea equipment, a tea box, tea table, tea boards, a copper coffee pot and multiple china sets, shows how firmly the taking of tea and coffee had established itself in island domestic life by the 1740s. Elizabeth Rydell had kept the apparatus for serving hot drinks to company, and its careful enumeration among her effects marks tea-drinking as a settled social ritual whose vessels were worth valuing piece by piece, even down to a parcel of old china entered at two shillings.

20

12

Brot over L 186 13

1 Small Tea Kettle 5

2 Glass Salts 2

4 Wine Glasses 2 4

1 Coffee Cupboard & 3 China Jarrs 12

1 Box from a Weaters & Stand 13

1 do old & 2 Heaters 4

1 Pr Andirons Old 12

1 Small Pr do 5

1 Pr do 1 6

1 Carpenters Bench & Wing Vise 5

1 Water Sceine 3

1 Bandodoe 2 6

6 Pewter Candle Moulds 9

12 Knives & forks 8

1 Case with 12 Bottles 12

1 Mahogany Bureau 6

2 Large Crocks 3

1 Pail 2 Milk Pans & Piggin 6

1 Coat Brush 1 6

a Parcell of Old Books 13

1 Large Meat Pott 1 10

1 do Smaller 6

2 Small Potts 6

1 do 4

1 Frying Pan 4

2 China & Old Do 11

6 Spitt 3

1 Pestle & Morter 4

2 Pott hangers 2

1 Pr Andirons & Grinding Ry 13

1 Case Wind Rye & Hoe 4

1 Pewter Sawnger & 1 Earthen do 1

1 Wand Escritoe 19

3 Wash Tubs 1 Brine tub 10 17 17 6

Carried over L 204 10 6

The valuation continued from the running total of £186 13s 0d carried over.

1 small tea kettle, £0 5s 0d

2 glass salts, £0 2s 0d

4 wine glasses, £0 2s 0d

1 corner cupboard and 3 china jars, £0 12s 0d

1 box, irons, weights and stand, £0 12s 0d

1 pair of old scales, £0 4s 0d

1 pair of stilliards, old, £0 12s 0d

1 small pair of scales, £0 5s 0d

1 saw, old, £0 2s 6d

1 carpenters plane and other tools, £0 5s 0d

1 pewter funnel, £0 3s 0d

1 bandore, £0 2s 6d

6 pewter candle moulds, £0 4s 0d

12 knives and forks, £0 8s 0d

1 case with 6 bottles, £0 12s 6d

1 mahogany bureau, £6 0s 0d

2 large crocks, £0 3s 0d

1 pail, 1 milk tub and piggin, £0 6s 0d

1 coat brush, £0 1s 6d

a parcel of old books, £0 15s 0d

1 large meat pot, £1 10s 0d

1 smaller meat pot, £0 6s 0d

2 small pots, £0 6s 0d

1 small pot, £0 4s 0d

1 frying pan, £0 4s 0d

2 china jars, old, £0 11s 0d

1 spit, £0 3s 0d

1 pestle and mortar, £0 4s 0d

2 pot hangers, £0 2s 0d

4 pairs of axes and grubbing axes, £0 13s 0d

1 case, wood axe and hoe, £0 4s 0d

1 pewter porringer and 1 earthen porringer, £0 1s 0d

1 hand escritoire, £0 10s 0d

3 washtubs and 1 brine tub, £0 10s 0d

subtotal, £17 19s 6d

Carried over, £204 10s 6d

Interpretations

The Rydell effects here run down into the working tools and coarse vessels of the household, and the mix confirms a self-provisioning establishment rather than a purely genteel one. Alongside the china jars and wine glasses sit carpenters planes, saws, axes and grubbing axes, the last used for clearing roots and breaking rough ground, which shows that the estate worked its own land and kept the tools to do so. The milk tub, piggin and washtubs are the plain dairy and laundry wares of a functioning farm, valued at a few shillings but faithfully entered.

A single costly item stands out among the plainer goods, a mahogany bureau at £6, the most valuable article on the page and worth more than all the pots, tools and tubs together. Mahogany was a fashionable imported hardwood, dearer than the walnut and wainscot of the other bureaux in these inventories, and its presence marks a piece of quality furniture kept for writing and storing papers. A hand escritoire, a small portable writing box, appears lower down for the same purpose, so the household held two places for keeping documents and accounts.

Two musical and pastime objects, a bandore among the tools and the books entered as an old parcel, sit quietly in the list as reminders that even a working island household kept instruments of leisure and learning. The bandore was a wire-strung bass lute, an instrument of some refinement to find on a remote plantation, and its low valuation of half a crown suggests an old or worn piece rather than a new one. The appraisers moved through the Rydell house exactly as through the Doveton house before it, recording plane and porcelain, axe and escritoire alike, so that the widow’s whole estate could be reckoned to the last tub and divided under her will.

21

13

Brot over L 204 10 6

Plate {

54 Ounces of Old Plate 17 4 6

1 Stone Ring 1

1 Plaine Ring 13

1 Small do

1 Sett of Silver Buttons Gold [...] 18

1 Silver Knee Snuff Box 1 1

1 Pr Large Silver Shoe Buckles Studed 1 3

1 Pr Silver Garter Buckels 7

1 Silver Small Buttle 9

}

24 1 6

Neat Cattle {

1 Bull 7

1 Bullock 3

1 Cow and Calf 6 8

1 do do 6

1 do do 6 10

1 do do 5 10

7 Cows 34 10

3 Heifers 13

7 Steers 13 5

4 Yearlings 8

}

107

Hogs {

12 Sows & Pigs 4 16

1 do 6 do 1 10

2 Sows & do 2

2 do 14 do 5 18

1 Barrow 7

3 do do each 1 7

2 do @ 8 @ 16

3 Shoats 16

6 Small Pigs 16

}

13 7

Goats {

30 Ewe Goats @ 9/ 13 10

10 Kids @ 7/6 3 7 6

2 Weathers 18

}

17 15 6

Sheep {

4 Ewe Sheep

1 Weather at 16/ each

2 Lambs

}

5 5

Carried over L 371 14 6

The valuation continued from the running total of £204 10s 6d carried over.

Plate

54 ounces of old plate, £17 11s 6d

1 stone ring, £1 0s 0d

1 plain ring, £0 13s 0d

1 small ring, £0 5s 0d

1 set of sleeve buttons, gold, £0 18s 0d

1 silver ring and snuff box, £1 1s 0d

1 pair of large silver shoe buckles, studded, £1 3s 0d

1 pair of silver garter buckles, £0 7s 0d

1 silver small bottle, £0 9s 0d

total, £24 1s 6d

Neat cattle

1 bull, £1 0s 0d

1 bullock, £3 0s 0d

1 cow and calf, £6 5s 0d

1 cow and calf, £6 0s 0d

1 cow and calf, £6 10s 0d

1 cow and calf, £5 10s 0d

7 cows, £41 10s 0d

3 heifers, £15 0s 0d

7 steers, £13 5s 0d

4 yearlings, £8 0s 0d

total, £107 0s 0d

Hogs

12 sows and 6 pigs, £1 16s 3d

1 sow and 5 pigs, £1 14s 0d

2 sows and pigs, £2 0s 0d

2 sows and 14 pigs, £3 18s 0d

1 barrow, £0 17s 0d

3 barrows, at 9s each, £1 7s 0d

2 barrows, at 8s each, £0 16s 0d

3 shoats, £0 16s 0d

6 small pigs, £0 16s 0d

total, £13 7s 0d

Goats

30 ewe goats, at 9s each, £13 10s 0d

16 kids, at 4s 6d each, £3 4s 6d

2 wethers, £0 18s 0d

total, £17 15s 6d

Sheep

4 ewe sheep, at 16s each, £5 5s 0d

1 wether, at 16s each

2 lambs, at 16s each

total, £5 5s 0d

Carried over, £371 14s 6d

Interpretations

The Rydell estate turns here from household goods to the personal valuables and the livestock, and the small treasury of plate and jewellery marks the portable wealth of the household. Fifty-four ounces of old plate valued by weight at £17 11s 6d, together with gold sleeve buttons, silver shoe and garter buckles and several rings, held value in a compact and convertible form. Silver shoe buckles studded with stones and a silver snuff box were fashionable personal ornaments, and their listing among the estate shows a family that kept dress silver and jewellery of a kind carried on the person or worn on formal occasions.

The cattle are again sorted with care into breeding cows, working bullocks and steers, and young stock, and the values reflect their standing in the herd. Seven cows together at £41 10s 0d and four separate cows each with a calf at their side were the productive core of the stock, worth far more than the yearlings or the single bull, since a cow in milk and breeding regularly was the engine of a small island herd. This close grading of cattle by age, sex and function matches the practice seen in the Doveton inventory and reflects the settled husbandry of St Helena farms.

The pig entries reveal a herd counted at the moment of breeding, sows listed with the pigs running at foot, which fixed the value of a productive animal by including its current litter. This was the sensible way to appraise a breeding sow, whose worth lay as much in her young as in herself, and the appraisers extended it across the whole drove down to six small pigs entered at sixteen shillings. The goats, thirty ewe goats with their kids, again outnumber the sheep by a wide margin, consistent with an island where hardy goats thrived on rough ground far more readily than sheep, which appear only in small numbers at the foot of the account.

22

14

Brot over L 371 19 6

Poultry {

6 Turkeys 1 10 6

3 Geese 15

1 Ducks 6

12 Fowles 18

}

3 9

Yams &

Suckers {

81.600 from 18 Months to 2 Months 65

19.200 do 10 do to 6 do 24 10

60.000 do 6 do not Planted 16 10 106

}

Cash 103 15 1

L 385 3 6

A Boy named Cupidon Detained[?] a

and a Silver Watch at L3 [...] they being

the Property of the Widow Rider Decd

are not Furnitor with the Estate of James

Rider Deceas'd

Francis Wrangham Senr

Richard Goodwin

NB These cannot Do [...] Estate doe not go in this Inventory

by Reason there may be Engagements with [...] in relation to it

Inventory of the Estate of William Norris deceased taken this

26th December 1745

1 Large Fir Chest

1 Do

1 Small Do

2 Boxes

1 Chest with Drawers

1 Small Trunks

6 Knives and Forks

12 China Plates 1 Dish

4 China Bowls

2 Pewter Plates 2 Dishes

1 Do Porringer

1 Do Tankard

2 China Mugs

The valuation continued from the running total of £371 14s 6d carried over.

Poultry

6 turkeys, £1 10s 0d

3 geese, £0 15s 0d

4 ducks, £0 6s 0d

12 fowls, £0 18s 0d

total, £3 9s 0d

Yams and suckers

81,000 yams and suckers, at 16s per thousand, £65 0s 0d

19,000 yams and suckers, at 10s per thousand, £24 10s 0d

66,000 yams and suckers, at 5s per thousand, newly planted, £16 10s 0d

total, £106 0s 0d

Cash, £103 15s 0d

total, £385 3s 6d

A boy named Cupid was valued separately at £12, and a silver watch at £6, both being the property of the widow Rydell, deceased, and appraised with the estate of James Rydell, deceased. The appraisal was signed by Francis Wrangham senior and Richard Goodwin.

The appraisers noted that no allowance for a clean estate was yet made in this inventory, since there might be liabilities owing to persons on the island or elsewhere.

A further inventory follows, of the estate of William Norris, deceased, taken on 26 December 1745.

1 large fir chest

1 fir chest

1 small fir chest

2 boxes

1 chest with drawers

2 small trunks

6 knives and forks

12 china plates and 1 dish

4 china bowls

9 pewter plates and 2 dishes

1 pewter porringer

1 pewter tankard

2 china mugs

Interpretations

The Rydell inventory closes with the growing yam crop and the cash in hand, the two assets that gave a St Helena estate its working value. The standing yams, valued at £106 across three plantings including sixty-six thousand newly set at the lowest rate, show the same practice seen in the Doveton estate of pricing an unharvested provision crop by its maturity, the youngest plantings worth least because furthest from yielding. Together with £103 15s 0d in cash, these liquid and near-liquid assets made up a large share of the whole, confirming that a settled island household held its wealth in provisions and coin as much as in goods.

Two items appraised apart from the main body of the estate mark a careful legal distinction. A boy named Cupid and a silver watch were entered separately as the personal property of the widow Elizabeth Rydell rather than of her late husband, and were valued with his estate only for convenience. This separation mattered because the widow’s own goods passed under her will, while her husband’s estate was being divided to set out her dower third, so the two bodies of property had to be kept distinct even when appraised on one occasion.

The note that no clean estate had yet been reckoned records the crucial reservation that these gross valuations were not the final divisible sum. A clean, or clear, estate was the net figure remaining after debts owed by the deceased were paid, and the appraisers warned that engagements might still be outstanding to people on the island or beyond it. Until those liabilities were known and discharged, the totals stood only as an inventory of assets, not as the amount the heirs would receive, and the executors could not safely distribute the estate.

23

15

2 Drinking Glasses

5 Small Irons

10 Cups and 6 Saucers

1 Earthern Tea Pott

1 Salt Sellar

1 Candlestick

4 Formes

1 Low Chair

1 Stone Jug

1 Looking Glass

1 Case Bottles

1/2 lb of Pepper

1 Small Meat Pott

1 Small Milk Pott

2 Pr of Pott Hangers

1 Old Yam Pott

1 Small Table

1 Spit

1 Feather Bed & Do Pillows & Bolster

1 Wool Bed 1 Do Bolster & Bedstead

1 Quilt 1 Blankit 1 Carpet

1 Box Iron and Heaters

1 Pair of Stilliards

1 Pair of Tongs

1 Hair Broom

A Parcell of Old Books

3 Large Silver Spoons

3 Small Do

4 Pair of Stocks

9 Towells

7 Pillow Cases

3 Table Clothes

A Remnant of Austin

1 Hatt Brush

1 Ladle

2 Clap Cotts

1 Coat

The inventory of the estate of William Norris, deceased, continued with the following goods.

2 drinking glasses

5 small jars

10 cups and 6 saucers

1 earthen teapot

1 salt cellar

1 candlestick

4 forms

1 low chair

1 stone jug

1 looking glass

7 case bottles

4 pounds of pepper

1 small meat pot

1 small milk pot

2 pairs of pot hangers

6 old yam pots

1 small table

1 spit

1 feather bed, 2 pillows and 1 bolster

1 old bed, 1 bolster and bedstead

1 quilt, 1 blanket and 1 carpet

1 box, iron and heaters

1 pair of stilliards

1 pair of tongs

1 hair broom

a parcel of old books

3 large silver spoons

3 small silver spoons

4 pairs of sheets

6 towels

7 pillowcases

3 tablecloths

a remnant of muslin

1 flat board

1 ladle

2 clasp cloths

1 [...]

Interpretations

The Norris estate, entered without valuations against the individual goods, presents the plainer furnishings of a more modest island household than the Doveton and Rydell estates that precede it. The absence of the fashionable walnut and mahogany bureaux, the ranks of cane chairs and the deep stocks of matched linen marks this as a smaller establishment, furnished with forms and a low chair rather than sets of seating, and holding old yam pots and a milk pot that speak of everyday provisioning rather than display.

Even so, the same imported wares reach this household in smaller measure, with china cups and saucers, case bottles and a remnant of muslin sitting among the plain kitchen pots. Muslin was a fine Indian cotton, and its presence even as an offcut, together with the china and the silver spoons, shows how the East India traffic supplied goods to households across the island’s range of means, not only to its wealthiest families. The three large and three small silver spoons were the sort of modest plate a middling household kept as its portable reserve of value.

The listing of six old yam pots is telling for a working St Helena home, since yams were the staple food and the earthenware pots for storing and cooking them were basic equipment worn with use. Their entry as old, alongside an old bed and a parcel of old books, shows the appraisers marking condition even in an unpriced inventory, so that whoever later valued or divided the estate would know which goods were serviceable and which were spent.

24

16

3 Dimety Waistcoats

6 Shirts

1 Small pair of Stayes

2 Doz of Caps & Stocks

1 Black Girl 1 Wench

Debts due from the Estate Viz!

To Mr Martin Harper L 3 3 11

William Manning 1 7

Widow Isacke 1 7

William Hayes 6

Burch 7 6

William Adam 5

Francis Hayes 1 6

Captain Starke 18

L 12 15 11

Debts due to the Estate

Mr Francis Wrangham L 5 6 9

The Honble Company 4 7 6 1/2

2 pair of Breeches Old 1 4

1 Waistcoat 18

L 11 13 3 1/2

Signed

Jno Worrall

The mark of

Rebecca + Norris

An Inventory of the Estate of Benjamin Pledgard deceased taken

appraised by Joseph Desfountain, Thomas Colgrave & Jonathan

Worrall this 4th Day of July 1746

Land & Houses viz

15 1/2 Acres of Fee Land 152 13

31 do of Lease & Mansion house 108 16

1 House in St Jameses Valley 68

Land & Houses amounts to 330

Plantation 94.060 Yams & Suckers amounts to 41 15 6

Blacks viz the amounts to 61

Cattle viz amounts to 39 16 6

Hogges viz amounts to 5 9 6

Poultry viz amounts to 1 5

Wearing Apparrell viz amounts to 5 12

Household Goods viz amounts to 34 5 4 189 6 7

The whole Estate amounts to L 309 6 7

Debts due from the Estate amounts to 8 9 7

Jos Desfountain

Thos Colgrave

Jon Worrall L 300 17

The inventory of the estate of William Norris, deceased, closed with the following goods.

3 dimity waistcoats

8 shirts

1 small pair of scales

2 dozen clasps and trainers

1 black girl, 1 slave

Debts due from the estate

To Mr Martin Harper, £8 3s 11d

William Manning, £1 7s 0d

Widow Isaake, £1 7s 0d

William Hayes, £0 6s 0d

Burk, £0 7s 6d

William Adams, £0 5s 0d

Francis Hayes, £1 6s 0d

Captain Clarke, £0 18s 0d

total, £12 15s 11d

Debts due to the estate

Mr Francis Wrangham, £5 6s 9d

The Honourable Company, £4 7s 6½d

2 pairs of breeches, old, £1 1s 0d

1 waistcoat, £0 18s 0d

total, £11 13s 3½d

The inventory was signed by John Worrall, and by Rebecca Norris with her mark.

A separate inventory follows, of the estate of Benjamin Blackledge, deceased, taken and appraised by Joseph Disfountain, Thomas Colgrove and Joshua Worrall on 4 July 1746.

Land and houses

13½ acres of yam land, £152 10s 0d

31 acres of pasture land and mansion house, £109 10s 0d

1 house in St James Valley, £63 0s 0d

total, £380 0s 0d

Plantation, 94,060 yams and suckers, £41 18s 6d

Blacks, £61 0s 0d

Cattle, £39 16s 6d

Hogs, £5 9s 6d

Poultry, £1 5s 0d

Wearing apparel, £5 12s 0d

Household goods, £34 5s 4d

subtotal, £189 6s 7d

the whole estate, £300 6s 7d

Debts due from the estate, £8 9s 7d

clean estate, £500 5s 0d

The Blackledge appraisal was signed by Joseph Disfountain, Thomas Colgrove and Joshua Worrall.

Interpretations

The Norris estate is settled through two short schedules that turn the plain list of goods into a reckoning of debts each way, and their small scale confirms the modest standing of the household. The debts owed by the estate, twelve pounds spread among eight creditors, and the debts owed to it, of similar size, show a household enmeshed in the ordinary running credit of the island, owing a few shillings here and there to neighbours and tradesmen and owed the like in return. A debt to Captain Clarke, a ship’s commander, points to dealings with the visiting shipping, while sums owed to and from members of the Hayes family mark the close web of local obligation.

The signing of the Norris inventory by Rebecca Norris with a mark rather than a signature indicates that the widow could not write, which sets this household apart from the literate, book-owning Doveton and Rydell establishments and reinforces its more humble position. A debt owed to the estate by the Honourable Company itself, the East India Company that governed the island, shows that even a modest household had a running account with the Company, most probably for provisions or produce supplied, and could stand as its creditor.

The Blackledge inventory that opens next is set out in an unusually summary form, each class of property reduced to a single total rather than itemised, which suggests an appraisal made quickly or a fair copy that gathered the detail elsewhere. The figures show a familiar St Helena estate, land and a mansion house with a separate town house in St James Valley, a standing yam crop, slaves, cattle and household goods, and the reckoning carries through to a clean estate after debts. The oddity that the clean estate is entered as larger than the whole estate above it points to a slip or an unrecovered figure in the arithmetic on the page, which cannot be resolved from the entries as they stand.

25

17

Inventory of the Goods of Serjeant [...] Cocker deceased

1746

Aug 5

A Chest Lock & Key 18

A Parcell of Books & Papers 8

A China Punch Bowl 3 6

An Old Case & 3 Rasors 8

A Looking Glass 7 6

One Sheet 3

Nine Shirts 1 16

Four white Waistcoats 16

Two pair blue Silk Stockings 14

Five white Socks 1

Five white Collers 2

Five pair white Stocking 13

Two pair Worsted Stockings 6 6

Six Handkerchiefs 7 6

One pair Shoe Buckle Silver 18

One Silver hilted Sword 1 10

Two Coats two pair of Breeches one Cloth Waistcoat 1 16

An Old Silver Laced Hatt 4

Another Chest Lock & Key 16

A Copper Tea Kettle 9

A Small Jarr of Sugar 1 5

A Bag with Sugar 1 8

A Hammer 1 6

Two Brushes 1 6

Seven Spoons Pewter 6

Half a Sack of Salt 1 6

Two pair of Scissars one Gimblet 6

A Cake of Soap [...]

A Plates Pewter 8 14 4

L 13 4 4

An Inventory of the Estate of George Lindsey deceased taken & Appraised

by Mr Joseph Desfountain & Joshua Worrall this 22 day of Aug 1746

1 Large fir Chest 18

2 Old Boxes 7 6

1 Coat 17 6

1 Pr do 7

1 Banyan 10

1 Flannell Waistcoat & Drawers 7 6

Carried over L 3 7 6

An inventory of the goods of Sergeant Corker, deceased, taken on 5 August 1746.

1 chest, lock and key, £0 18s 0d

a parcel of books and papers, £0 8s 0d

1 china punch bowl, £0 3s 6d

1 old case and 3 razors, £0 8s 0d

1 looking glass, £0 7s 6d

1 sheet, £0 3s 0d

9 shirts, £1 16s 0d

4 white waistcoats, £0 16s 0d

2 pairs of blue silk stockings, £0 14s 0d

5 white stocks, £0 1s 0d

5 white collars, £0 2s 0d

5 pairs of white stockings, £0 13s 0d

2 pairs of worsted stockings, £0 6s 0d

6 handkerchiefs, £0 7s 6d

1 pair of shoe buckles, silver, £0 18s 0d

1 silver hilted sword, £1 10s 0d

2 coats, 2 pairs of breeches and 1 cloth waistcoat, £1 16s 0d

1 old silver-laced hat, £0 4s 0d

1 chest, lock and key, £0 16s 0d

1 copper tea kettle, £0 9s 0d

1 small jar of sugar, £0 1s 8d

1 jug with sugar, £0 1s 8d

1 hammer, £0 1s 6d

2 brushes, £0 1s 6d

7 pewter spoons, £0 [...]

half a flock of salt, £0 1s 6d

2 pairs of scissors and 1 gimlet, £0 4s 0d

1 cake of soap, £0 [...]

1 pewter plate, £0 [...]

total, £13 4s 11d

The estate was valued by One Beale at £8 14s 11d.

A separate inventory follows, of the estate of George Lindsey, deceased, taken and appraised by Mr Joseph Disfountain and Joshua Worrall on 22 August 1746.

1 large fir chest, £0 18s 0d

2 old boxes, £0 7s 6d

1 coat, £0 17s 6d

1 old coat, £0 7s 0d

1 banyan, £0 10s 0d

1 flannel waistcoat and drawers, £0 7s 6d

Carried over, £3 7s 6d

Interpretations

The inventory of Sergeant Corker records the estate of a soldier of the East India Company garrison, and its contents mark a military man of some standing rather than an ordinary private. A silver-hilted sword valued at £1 10s 0d, an old silver-laced hat and several white waistcoats with matching stocks and collars were the dress and accoutrements of a non-commissioned officer who kept a respectable appearance. The absence of land, livestock or trade goods sets this estate wholly apart from the planter households before it, since a serving soldier held only his personal effects, clothing and the small comforts his pay could buy.

The valuation of Corker’s estate at £8 14s 11d by a single appraiser, set against an itemised total nearer thirteen pounds, points to the customary reduction from a gross listing to an agreed net figure, whether for wear, forced sale or debts to be met. Garrison estates were commonly wound up quickly when a soldier died far from home, his goods valued and sold on the island to clear what he owed and to remit any balance, so a brisk single-hand appraisal fits the circumstances of a military death in service.

The George Lindsey estate that follows opens with the same plain personal goods, a fir chest, old coats, a banyan and a flannel waistcoat, again the effects of a man of modest means rather than a householder of property. A banyan was a loose informal gown of Indian origin worn indoors, a garment the East India trade had made familiar even to men of small estate, and its appearance here among a few worn coats shows how far such imported dress had spread through the island’s population. These successive short inventories of soldiers and poorer men, taken by the same handful of appraisers within weeks of one another, record the steady work of settling the small estates of the island’s transient and humbler inhabitants.

26

18

Brot over L 3 7 6

6 Old Waistcoats 6

8 White Shirts 1 8

3 Do old 4 6

2 Pr of Shoes 9

7 Neck Cloaths 13

15 Handkerchieffs 16

13 Stocks 10

1 Yard of Shirt 1 6

1 Towell

A Parcell of Old things 10

1/2 a Pound of Twine 7

1 Shoe Brush 3

1 Blankett 2 6

2 1/2 lb of Wigs 2 1/2

1 Coffee 1 6

1 Small Meat Pott 3 6

1 Do Smaller 2

1 Pott Hangers 2

1 Pr Silver Buckles Small 5

Debts due the Estate viz 8 19 2

The Honble Company 1 14 10

John Bagley Decd 5

Cash 19 16 26 10 11

Signed Jos Desfountain

Joshua Worrall 3 5 10 1

Inventory of the Goods and Effects of the late Reverend Mr Edwin Black

deceased taken and Appraised by Mr Richard Beale and Mr John Tucker the

15 Janry 1746 Viz

2 1/4 Acres of Leasehold Land in Sawns Valley with a Small

house and Yams thereon Standing 200

Plate viz

1 Bowl

1 Saucepan

2 pint Mugs

1 half pint do

1 Quart Tankard

2 Small Salvers

1 Soup Ladle

6 Tea Spoons Tongs and Strainer

2 Table Spoons Wt 92 3 7 do 6 1/2 dwt: 36 13 1

Carr over 236 13

The inventory of the estate of George Lindsey, deceased, continued from the running total of £3 7s 6d carried over.

6 old waistcoats, £0 0s 6d

8 white stocks, £1 8s 0d

3 white stocks, old, £0 4s 6d

2 pairs of shoes, £0 0s 9d

9 stock cloths, £0 13s 0d

16 handkerchiefs, £0 16s 0d

13 stocks, £0 0s 10d

a yard of chintz, £0 1s 0d

1 towel, £0 0s 6d

a parcel of old things, £0 10s 0d

half a pound of twine, £0 0s 7d

1 shoe brush, £0 0s 3d

1 blanket, £0 2s 6d

25 pounds of yize, £0 2s 3d

1 cap, £0 1s 0d

1 small meat pot, £0 0s 6d

1 smaller meat pot, £0 3s 6d

1 pair of pot hangers, £0 0s 2d

1 pair of silver buckles, small, £0 5s 0d

subtotal, £8 19s 2d

Debts due to the estate

The Honourable Company, £1 14s 16½d

John Bagley, deceased, £5 0s 0d

Cash, £9 16s 0d

subtotal, £26 10s 11d

total, £35 10s 1d

The Lindsey inventory was signed by Joseph Disfountain and Joshua Worrall.

A separate inventory follows, of the goods and effects of the late deceased Mr Edwin Black, deceased, taken and appraised by Mr Richard Beale and Mr John Clarke on 15 January 1746.

2¼ acres of leasehold land in James Valley, with a small house and yams standing thereon, £200 0s 0d

Plate

1 bowl

1 saucepan

2 pint mugs

1 half-pint mug

1 quart tankard

2 small salvers

1 soup ladle

6 teaspoons, tongs and strainer

2 table spoons

The plate together weighed 122 ounces 3 pennyweight, valued at 6s 6d per ounce at £39 13s 3d, and the whole was carried over at £236 13s 0d.

Interpretations

The George Lindsey estate is settled here through a schedule of debts owed to it, and the entries again fix a modest man within the island’s web of credit. A debt owed by the Honourable Company, the East India Company that administered St Helena, most probably represents pay or an account still due to Lindsey at his death, while a debt of five pounds owed by the deceased John Bagley would have to be recovered from Bagley’s own estate rather than from a living debtor. With cash in hand, these sums lifted the settled estate well above the value of the worn clothing and few pots that made up the goods.

The Edwin Black inventory that opens next returns to a substantial holding, and the leasehold land in James Valley shows a distinctive form of island tenure. The parcel is held on lease rather than in freehold, and though only two and a quarter acres it is valued at £200 because it lay in James Valley, the island’s port and only town, and carried a house and a growing yam crop. Land in the town commanded a price out of all proportion to its acreage, since it was the scarce commercial ground of the settlement, and even a leasehold interest in so small a plot was a valuable asset.

The plate of the Black estate is valued by the standard island method, weighed to the pennyweight and priced at 6s 6d the ounce, the same rate applied to the Doveton and Rydell silver. A hundred and twenty-two ounces of domestic silver, made up into mugs, tankards, salvers and a soup ladle, was a considerable holding for a household on a remote island and marked Black as a man of means. Keeping wealth in wrought plate served the double purpose seen throughout these inventories, furnishing the table for company while holding a reserve of value that could be weighed and converted whenever the need arose.

27

19

Brot over 236 13 1

Blacks viz

1 Man named Ceasar 22

1 Girl named Myrtilla 10 32

Household Furniture &c Viz

1 Small hand Scrutoer 12 6

1 Mahogony Bureau 7

1 Do with Book Case 7

1 Mahogony Oval Table 9

1 Do Smaller 1 15

1 Do Round 18

1 Small Wainscott Oval Table 12

2 Chamber Tables 10

1 Tea Table 10

12 Rattan Chairs 4 4

4 Silk Bottom Chair 18

1 Coarse Chair Rattan Bottom 12

1 Do Small 6

1 China Chair [...] 6

1 Mahogony Close Stool 1 5

1 Large Deal Chest 2 2

1 Large Wainscott do Old 1 5

1 Large Chest 1

1 Small do [...]

2 Small Wainscott Boxes 15

1 Shagreen Cordial Case 1 8

1 Old Looking Glass 10

1 Small ditto 8

1 Fir Chest 15

1 Large Bedstead 1 10

1 Do 15

1 Do 15

1 Bed Window and 8 Curtains 3 15

1 Bed with ditto 3 10

1 Bed with do 2 12

1 Holland Wastcoat large 1

6 Pewter Chamber potts 15

1 Fine Blankett 5

2 Damask Quilt 3

1 Fine Chints Counterpin 10

2 Setts white Persuckers Bed Curtains 8

1 Set Chintz Curtains 3

6 Ordinary Blanketts 1 4

6 Old Palampores 1 5

8 Pair Sheets 4

8 Pair Pillowbeers 16

10 Table Cloths 1 10

24 Towels 18

1 Japan Teaboard 4

1 do 3

1 Mahogony do 2 5

3 Cades each containing 15 five pint Bottles 9 6

1 Pickle case 10

12 Ivory handle Knives & forks

6 do Small in an old Shagreen case Carr over L 83 6 268 13 1

The inventory of the estate of Edwin Black, deceased, continued from the running total of £236 13s 0d carried over.

Blacks

1 man named Caesar, £22 0s 0d

1 girl named Myrtilla, £10 0s 0d

total, £32 0s 0d

House furniture

1 small hand escritoire, £0 12s 6d

1 mahogany bureau, £7 0s 0d

1 mahogany bureau with book case, £7 7s 0d

1 mahogany oval table, £2 0s 0d

1 smaller mahogany table, £1 15s 0d

1 round mahogany table, £0 18s 0d

1 small wainscot oval table, £0 12s 0d

2 chamber tables, £0 10s 0d

1 tea table, £0 10s 0d

12 rattan chairs, £4 4s 0d

4 silk-bottom chairs, £0 18s 0d

1 corner chair, rattan bottom, £0 12s 0d

1 small corner chair, £0 6s 0d

1 china chair, £0 6s 0d

1 mahogany close stool, £1 5s 0d

1 large bureau chest, £2 2s 0d

1 large wainscot bureau chest, old, £0 [...]

1 large chest, £1 5s 0d

1 chest, £1 0s 0d

2 small wainscot drawers, £0 15s 0d

1 shagreen cordial case, £0 15s 0d

1 old looking glass, £0 10s 0d

1 small looking glass, £0 8s 0d

1 fir chest, £0 15s 0d

1 large bedstead, £1 10s 0d

1 bedstead, £0 15s 0d

1 bedstead, £0 15s 0d

1 bed, bolster and 2 pillows, £3 0s 0d

1 bed with bolster, £4 10s 0d

1 bed with bolster, £2 12s 0d

1 holland diaper trunk, large, £1 0s 0d

6 painted chamber stools, £0 12s 0d

1 fine blanket, £0 5s 0d

2 damask quilts, £3 0s 0d

1 fine chintz counterpane, £1 10s 0d

1 doosooty counterpane and cushions, £0 8s 0d

2 sets white seersucker bed curtains, £8 0s 0d

1 set chintz curtains, £3 0s 0d

6 ordinary blankets, £1 4s 0d

6 old palampores, £1 5s 0d

8 pairs of sheets, £4 0s 0d

8 pairs of pillowbears, £0 16s 0d

10 tablecloths, £1 10s 0d

24 towels, £0 18s 0d

1 japan tea board, £0 4s 0d

1 tea board, £0 3s 0d

1 mahogany tea board, £2 5s 0d

3 cases each containing 15 fine pint bottles, £1 2s 0d

1 pickle case, £0 10s 0d

12 ivory-handle knives and forks, £[...]

6 small knives and forks in an old shagreen case, £[...]

subtotal, £83 0s 6d

Carried over, £266 13s 0d

Interpretations

The Edwin Black household furniture is dominated by mahogany, and its sheer quantity marks the estate as one of the most richly appointed in these records. Where earlier households held a single mahogany bureau prized as their finest piece, Black owned two, one fitted with a bookcase, together with three mahogany tables of different shapes and a mahogany close stool. Mahogany was the costly fashionable hardwood of the mid-century, imported and dearer than walnut, and to furnish a whole house with it on a remote Atlantic island bespoke real wealth and a taste for the latest English fashion.

The seating again turns on imported cane, with twelve rattan chairs valued together at £4 4s 0d as the most valuable furniture on the page, joined by silk-bottomed and corner chairs of the same light construction. Rattan and cane seats suited the island’s mild climate and were among the better chairs a colonial house could hold, and a set of twelve points once more to rooms arranged to seat a large company. The recurrence across every substantial estate of matching sets of a dozen chairs, deep stocks of beds and quantities of Indian counterpanes and chintz suggests a shared standard of gentility among the island’s leading households, all furnished from the same East India traffic.

The bedding and textiles here run to real depth and expense, with two full sets of white seersucker bed curtains alone valued at £8, the largest single figure on the page. Seersucker was a lightweight striped or puckered Indian cotton well suited to a warm climate, while the japan and mahogany tea boards among the serving pieces carried the touch of the East Asian trade, japanning being a European imitation of oriental lacquer applied to satisfy the fashion for such finish. The ivory-handled knives and forks kept in shagreen cases were the polished cutlery of a genteel table, shagreen being a tough granular hide used to case fine instruments, and their careful grading alongside plainer goods let the appraisers spread a defensible value across a very large and varied stock.

28

20

Brot Over

Brot Over L 83 6 6 268 13 1

10 Buckhandle Knives and forks 15

24 China Plates

5 do dishes 1

A Parcell of Old China 5

2 China Juglets and four Basons 15

1 do Baking Dish 5

1 do Bowl 1

6 Wine Glasses 2

2 Glass Decanters 3

2 Pr White Metal Candlesticks 15

1 Corner Cupboard 1

1 Pr Brass Candlesticks 5

2 Copper Tea Kettles 1

1 do Chaffing Dish 10

3 Earthen Crocks 10

1 Copper Coffee pott 10

1 Tin Chocolate pott 1 6

1 Stand and Glass Crewitt Broke 1

1 Mahogony Tea Chest 5

1 Copper Still Compleat 7

6 Pewter Water plates

1 do Dish 1 5

2 large Carboys 15

4 Stone Juggs 8

1 China Jarr 4

1 large Copper Meat Kettle 1 10

1 Small do do 15

1 Copper Saucepan 7 6

1 Tin Saucepan 1

3 Iron Potts 17 6

1 Spit 2

1 Gridiron 1

1 Frying Pan 4

1 Trevit 1

1 Pair Small brass Scales and Weights 5

1 Pr Smaller do in a Case 5

Carr Over L 105 6

Carr Over L 268 13 1

The inventory of the estate of Edwin Black, deceased, continued from the running total of £268 13s 1d carried over, with a subtotal of £83 6s 6d brought forward from the previous page.

10 buck-handle knives and forks, £0 15s 0d

24 china plates, £1 0s 0d

5 china dishes, £1 0s 0d

a parcel of old china, £0 5s 0d

2 china guglets and 4 basins, £0 15s 0d

1 china baking dish, £0 5s 0d

1 china bowl, £0 1s 0d

6 wine glasses, £0 2s 0d

2 glass decanters, £0 3s 0d

2 pairs of white metal candlesticks, £0 15s 0d

1 corner cupboard, £1 0s 0d

1 pair of brass candlesticks, £0 5s 0d

2 copper tea kettles, £1 0s 0d

1 copper chafing dish, £0 10s 0d

3 earthen crocks, £0 10s 0d

1 copper coffee pot, £0 10s 0d

1 tin chocolate pot, £0 1s 6d

1 stand and glass cruet, broke, £0 1s 0d

1 mahogany tea chest, £0 5s 0d

1 copper still, complete, £7 0s 0d

6 pewter water plates, £1 5s 0d

1 pewter dish, £1 5s 0d

2 large carboys, £0 15s 0d

4 stone jugs, £0 8s 0d

1 china jar, £0 4s 0d

1 large copper meat kettle, £1 10s 0d

1 small copper meat kettle, £0 15s 0d

1 copper saucepan, £0 7s 6d

1 tin saucepan, £0 1s 0d

3 iron pots, £0 17s 6d

1 spit, £0 2s 0d

1 gridiron, £0 1s 0d

1 frying pan, £0 4s 0d

1 cruet, £0 1s 0d

1 pair of small brass scales and weights, £0 5s 0d

1 pair of smaller scales in a case, £0 5s 0d

subtotal, £105 6s 0d

Carried over, £268 13s 1d

Interpretations

The kitchen and tableware of the Edwin Black estate confirm a large and well-equipped establishment, and one entry in particular reveals a commercial dimension to the household. A complete copper still valued at £7 was the most costly single item on the page, worth as much as one of the mahogany bureaux, and marks distilling carried on in the house, most probably of spirits from imported or local materials. Such an apparatus went well beyond domestic need and points to Black producing liquor for sale or supply, a natural trade on an island where the passing shipping created a ready market for drink.

The porcelain here includes china guglets, the long-necked vessels for cooling and pouring water that were a practical import in a warm climate, entered alongside the plates, dishes and bowls counted throughout the estate. Their presence reflects the same reliance on Chinese export ware seen in every substantial island household, supplied by the East India ships that touched at St Helena on their homeward passage. Even a parcel of old china and a broken glass cruet were entered at a few pence, showing the appraisers valuing damaged and worn wares rather than passing them over.

The copperware runs deep, with tea kettles, meat kettles, a chafing dish, a coffee pot and saucepans all listed, the durable cooking metal of a household that catered on a substantial scale. Two pairs of scales, one kept in a case, point to weighing done in the house for trade or provisioning, consistent with the still and the stocks of bottled liquor. Taken together, the abundant cooking copper, the distilling plant and the weighing equipment show an establishment that was as much a place of business as a genteel home, blending domestic comfort with the commerce that sustained it on the island.

29

21

Brot Over 268 13 1

1 large Tin Cannister 105 6

3 Glass Lanthorns 2

1 Copper fish Kettle 1 5

2 Pewter Basons 15

1 Box Iron and Heaters 3

1 Cleaver 10

1 Skimmer and Ladle 2

A Parcell of Books 5

1 Quart Pewter Funnell 5

1 Tin Candle Box 1 6

2 Screens 1

Cash amounting to 5 113 15 6

143 4 9

Signed John Clarke

Rich Beale L 525 13 4

Memorandum.

1 Black Girl named Abigal Sold for Seven pounds, and included in

the above Sum of L 143 4 9.

2 Wine and Water Glasses

1 Small Tin Saucepan broke and Expended in the Use of the Family

1 Lacquered Book Stand.

Inventory of the Estate of Stephen Lufkin deceased and Sold at Publick

Auction at the desire of the deceased Aug 5th 1744 by the Exors Martin

Harper and Richard Boale, the Legacies Excepted.

Land - 22 Acres of Leave Land L 81

Yams Yams & Suckers 13 5

38 9

6 Cows & 6 Calves 17 18 8

3 Bullocks Sold by Weight Amounting to 6 2

Cattle { 2 Large Steers 9 4

3 Heifers 6

1 Bull 3 5

Hogs Hogs 13 6

1 Hatt 1 5 182 15 2

Wearing 1 Old Suit Black Clothes 1 6 6

Apparell 5 White Shirts & 3 Challoe Do 1 6

2 Waistcoats & 1 Pr Breeches Do 2 8

1 Old feather Bed & Bedstead &c 14 2

2 Sheets & 2 Pillowbeers

Carr'd Over L 5 4 8 182 13 2

The inventory of the estate of Edwin Black, deceased, closed from the running total of £268 13s 1d carried over, with a subtotal of £105 6s 0d brought forward from the previous page.

1 large tin canister, £0 2s 0d

3 glass lanterns, £1 5s 0d

1 copper fish kettle, £0 15s 0d

2 pewter basins, £0 3s 0d

1 box, iron and heaters, £0 10s 0d

1 cleaver, £0 2s 0d

1 skimmer and ladle, £0 5s 0d

a parcel of books, £5 0s 0d

1 quart pewter chamber pot, £0 1s 6d

1 tin candle box, £0 1s 0d

2 screens, £0 5s 0d

subtotal, £113 15s 6d

Cash, £143 4s 9d

total, £525 13s 4d

The Black inventory was signed by John Clarke and Richard Beale.

The appraisers added a memorandum noting that a black girl named Abigail had been sold for seven pounds, that sum being included in the cash total of £143 4s 9d. They further recorded that two wine and water glasses, one small tin saucepan and one lacquered book stand had been broken and used up in the service of the family.

A separate inventory follows, of the estate of Stephen Lufkin, deceased, sold at public auction at the desire of the deceased on 6 August 1744 by the appraisers Martin Harper and Richard Beale, the legacies excepted.

Land, 22 acres of leasehold land, £81 0s 0d

Yams, yams and suckers, £13 5s 0d

Cattle

6 cows and 6 calves, £38 2s 0d

3 bullocks, sold by weight, £17 18s 8d

2 large steers, £16 2s 0d

3 heifers, £9 4s 0d

1 bull, £6 0s 0d

Hogs, £3 5s 0d

Wearing apparel

1 hat, £0 13s 6d

1 old suit of black clothes, £1 5s 0d

5 white shirts and 3 shalloon, old, £1 6s 6d

2 waistcoats and 1 pair of breeches, old, £1 6s 0d

1 old feather bed and bedstead, £2 8s 0d

2 sheets and 2 pillowbears, £0 4s 0d

subtotal, £182 15s 2d

Carried over, £5 4s 8d

Interpretations

The close of the Edwin Black estate carries two memoranda that open a window onto how such estates were actually wound up, beyond the tidy columns of the inventory. The recorded sale of the black girl Abigail for seven pounds, with that sum folded into the cash total, shows a human being converted directly into money during the settlement, the appraisers noting the transaction plainly as they would the sale of any other asset. The second memorandum, listing glasses, a saucepan and a book stand as broken and used up in the service of the family, records goods consumed between the death and the reckoning, which the appraisers deducted so that the final account matched the property actually remaining.

The Stephen Lufkin estate that follows was disposed of in a strikingly different manner, sold at public auction at the express wish of the deceased rather than valued for division among heirs. This was an unusual course in these records, where estates were commonly appraised and kept within the family, and it suggests Lufkin had no heirs on the island to inherit, or had directed that his goods be turned straight into cash. The note that the sale was made at the desire of the deceased shows a testator’s instruction shaping the whole method of settlement, the auction realising ready money where an appraisal would only have fixed a value.

The Lufkin cattle were partly sold by weight rather than by the head, three bullocks in particular being disposed of for their meat at £17 18s 8d. This distinguishes animals sold for slaughter, priced by the pound of beef they yielded, from breeding and working stock valued as living animals, and it reflects the practical workings of an auction where a butcher or victualler bought carcasses by weight. On an island that provisioned passing shipping, the sale of cattle by weight for their meat was a natural transaction, and its appearance here marks the auction as a real market event rather than a paper valuation.

30

22

Brot Over L 182 15 2

Brot Over L 5 4 8

3 Old Chairs 1 14 8

2 Meat potts 15

1 Yam pott do 2 8

2 Pewter dishes & 2 plates 3 2 1/2

1 Large Old Bible 15

A few torn Old Books 4 8 15 6 1/2

1 Broad Ax & 1 Saw Old 8

1 Hammer & 1 Stone do 2 1 1/2

1 Shovel & 1 Maule 9 7

1 Pick Ax & 1 Small Hoe 3 6

1 Vest of Drawers & Coat Brush 4 10

1 Square Table & 2 Wooden Chairs old 10

1 Small Spitt & 1 Old Hammer 8

18 Fowls 1 7

[...] Pound Tobacco 5

3 Small old Silver Buckles 3

9 1/2 Yards Muslin 6 4 4 1/2

195 10 9

Due from this Estate to Sundry Persons 24 6 6 1/2

Clear Estate L 171 4 2 1/2

Note L 30 to be deposited in the

Executor hands for the Purchase of

Kathern & Child but the Heirs will not

Comply with the desires of the deceased

Stephen Lufkin.

Inventory of the Estate of Penelope Isacke Deceased, taken and Appraised

this 9th of Novr 1747 by Messrs Rich Goodwin Josph Desfountain and Joshua Worrall

Household Goods Viz

1 Quilt Chints 13

1 Do Dutch 15

1 Old Wool Bed Demity 4

1 Do Damgree 5

1 Wool Bed Pillow & Bolster 12

Household Goods Carr Over L 2 9

The inventory of the estate of Stephen Lufkin, deceased, closed from the running total of £182 15s 2d carried over, with a subtotal of £5 4s 8d brought forward from the previous page.

3 old chests, £1 14s 8d

2 meat pots, £0 15s 0d

1 yam pot, old, £0 2s 8d

2 pewter dishes and 2 plates, £0 3s 2½d

1 large old table, £0 15s 0d

a few torn old books, £0 0s 4d

1 broad axe and 1 saw, old, £0 8s 0d

1 hammer and 1 stone, old, £0 2s 1½d

1 shovel and 1 maul, £0 9s 7½d

1 pick axe and 1 small hoe, £0 3s 6d

1 nest of drawers and coat brush, £0 4s 10d

1 square table and 2 wooden chairs, old, £0 10s 0d

1 small spit and 1 old hammer, £0 0s 8d

18 fowls, £1 7s 0d

2 pounds of tobacco, £0 5s 0d

3 small old silver buckles, £0 3s 0d

9½ yards of muslin, £0 6s 4d

subtotal, £8 15s 6½d

subtotal, £195 10s 9d

Due from the estate to sundry persons, £24 6s 6½d

clean estate, £171 4s 2½d

The Lufkin inventory was signed by Martin Harper and Richard Beale, executors.

The appraisers added a note that thirty pounds was to be deposited in the executors’ hands for the purchase of Kathern and her child, but the heirs would not comply with the wish of the deceased Stephen Lufkin.

A separate inventory follows, of the estate of Penelope Peach, deceased, taken and appraised on 9 November 1747 by Messrs Richard Goodwin, Joseph Disfountain and Joshua Worrall.

Household goods

1 chintz quilt, £0 13s 0d

1 dutch quilt, £0 15s 0d

1 old wool bed, dimity, £0 4s 0d

1 dungaree quilt, £0 5s 0d

1 wool bed, pillow and bolster, £0 12s 0d

Household goods carried over, £2 9s 0d

Interpretations

The closing note on the Stephen Lufkin estate records a striking failure of a dead man’s wishes, and reveals the limits of a testator’s power over his heirs. Lufkin had directed that thirty pounds be set aside to purchase Kathern and her child, most probably to free them or to keep mother and child together, but his heirs refused to carry out that intention. The plain statement that the heirs would not comply shows the executors caught between the instructions of the deceased and the will of those who stood to inherit, and marks a rare instance in these records where a stated last wish was openly frustrated rather than fulfilled.

The Lufkin estate is settled to a clean figure of £171 4s 2½d after the debts owed to sundry persons were deducted from the gross, which illustrates the standard reckoning that ran through these inventories. The gross value of the goods and land stood at nearly £195, but only the balance remaining after liabilities was the true divisible estate, and the appraisers carried the arithmetic through to that net sum. This distinction between the whole estate and the clean estate was the crux of every settlement, since the heirs took only what was left once the deceased’s own debts had been met.

The Penelope Peach inventory that opens next returns to the plain furnishings of a modest household, its beds and quilts made up in a range of cheaper cloths that maps the lower reaches of the island’s textile trade. Dungaree was a coarse Indian cotton, dimity a ribbed cotton and the dutch quilt a plainer imported covering, all of them a step below the chintz, damask and palampores of the wealthier estates. Even so, a chintz quilt appears among them, showing that a touch of the finer Indian printed cotton reached even a small household, supplied by the same East India traffic that furnished the great houses of the island in far greater quantity.

31

23

Household Goods Brot Over L 2 9

1 Pr Long Cloth Sheets 8

1 Do Dungree Do 6

2 Do Long Cloth Do 10

2 Pillowbears Dungree [...] 6

2 Do [...] 6

2 Do [...] 9

2 Window Curtains 7

1 Diaper Napkin 1 6

1 Long Cloth Do 1

3 old Do 1

1 Sea Table 10

1 Low Chair 2

1 Small Trunk 2 6

1 Carboy 6

1 Basket 3

1 Pewter Porringer 1

1 Silver Spoon 7 6

1 Fir Chest 15

1 Case & 19 Bottles 1 1

1 China Bowl 2 6

3 Do Do each 1/6 4 6

2 Do Do Small each 1/6 3 6

1 Large China Mugg 2 6

2 Small Do each 1/6 3 6

1 old China Mugg 6

1 Do Small 4

1 Sneeker blew & White 4

1 Brown Sneeker 2

9 Cups 6 Saucers & a Tea Board 3

2 China Plates 8

1 Earthen Tea pott 3

2 Do 2 6

1 large Jar 2

1 Do 2

2 Do each 1/6 3

5 Do Do 1/ 5

1 Small Jar 6

Carried Over Household Goods L 9 12 9

The inventory of the estate of Penelope Peach, deceased, continued from the household goods total of £2 9s 0d carried over.

1 pair of long-cloth sheets, £0 8s 0d

1 pair of dungaree sheets, £0 6s 0d

2 pairs of long-cloth sheets, £0 10s 0d

2 dungaree pillowbears, £0 0s 6d

2 pillowbears, £0 0s 6d

2 pillowbears, £0 0s 9d

2 window curtains, £0 7s 0d

1 diaper napkin, £0 1s 6d

1 long-cloth napkin, £0 1s 0d

3 old napkins, £0 1s 0d

1 tea table, £0 10s 0d

1 low chair, £0 2s 0d

1 small trunk, £0 2s 6d

1 carboy, £0 6s 0d

1 basket, £0 3s 0d

1 pewter porringer, £0 1s 0d

1 silver spoon, £0 7s 6d

1 fir chest, £0 15s 0d

1 case and 19 bottles, £1 1s 0d

1 china bowl, £0 2s 6d

3 china bowls, at 1s 6d each, £0 4s 6d

2 small china bowls, at 1s 6d each, £0 3s 6d

1 large china mug, £0 2s 6d

2 small china mugs, at 1s 6d each, £0 3s 6d

1 old china mug, £0 0s 6d

1 small china mug, £0 0s 4d

1 saucer, blue and white, £0 0s 4d

1 brown saucer, £0 0s 2d

9 cups, 6 saucers and a tea board, £0 3s 0d

2 china plates, £0 0s 8d

1 earthen teapot, £0 3s 0d

2 earthen teapots, £0 2s 6d

1 large jar, £0 2s 0d

1 jar, £0 3s 0d

2 jars, at 1s 6d each, £0 5s 0d

5 jars, at 1s each, £0 0s 6d

1 small jar, £0 [...]

Household goods carried over, £9 12s 9d

Interpretations

The Penelope Peach household goods repeat the pattern of a small estate furnished cheaply, its bedding and table linen made up in the coarse Indian cottons that clothed the island’s poorer homes. Dungaree and long-cloth recur throughout the sheets and pillowbears, plain and hard-wearing fabrics far removed from the damask and fine chintz of the wealthy estates, and the values against them run to a few pence rather than pounds. This deep contrast within a single archive shows how the same East India traffic served every rank on the island, supplying the humble household with dungaree where it supplied the great house with seersucker and palampores.

The porcelain here is counted in unusual detail for so modest an estate, with bowls, mugs, cups, saucers and plates each entered at a shilling or a few pence, and several noted as old or small to fix a lower value. That a small household held this quantity of china at all, however cheap and worn, again marks the reach of the Canton trade into ordinary island life, where Chinese export ware had become common enough to fill the shelves of a woman of small means. The blue-and-white and brown saucers valued at twopence and fourpence were the everyday end of that trade, the plainest wares the ships carried.

The recurrence of tea equipment even in this small estate, nine cups with six saucers and a tea board, earthen teapots and mugs, shows how far the ritual of tea-drinking had reached down the island’s social scale by the late 1740s. Where the wealthy Doveton, Rydell and Black households kept elaborate tea equipages of fine porcelain and silver, Penelope Peach kept the same practice in cheaper form, with earthen pots and worn china serving the identical purpose. The appraisers valued each small vessel in turn, so that the whole of a poor household’s tea things was reckoned as carefully as the plate of a rich one.

32

24

Household Goods Bought Over L 9 12 9

1 Wide Mouth Bottle 9

2 Jugg each 1/6 3

1 Box Iron & 2 Heaters 4

4 Knive & Forks 3

9 Forks 1 6

7 Soop plates 3 6

1 Grid Iron 4

1 Copper Tea Kittle 5

3 Doz Round Bottles 6

1 Pr Tongs 1

1 Brine Tub 3 6

2 Clasp Potts 3 6

1 Pub Stone 2 6

Household Goods Amounting to L 11 14

1 Black Woman Name Nanny 8

Neat Cattle Viz!

1 Cow 2 15

1 Do 2 10

1 Bullock 2 15

2 Calves 2 15

Neat Cattle Amounting to L 10 15

Hogs Viz!

3 Barrows @ 20/ each 3

1 Sow & 3 Pigs 2

Hogs Amounting to L 5

Poultry Viz!

5 Grown Fowls 7 6

16 half Grown Do 12

7 Ducks 10 6

Poultry Amounting to L 1 10

Yams &c Do 21 17

The Estate Amounts to L 58 7

The Estate Indebted to Sundry Persons Viz!

To Elisha Isacke 3 2 6

To Robt Wright Secry 1 5

To Stephen Young 16

To Martin Harper 16

To Rich Tinsley 6 Debts Amounting to L 5 11

Clear Estate Amounts to L 52 9 7

The inventory of the estate of Penelope Peach, deceased, continued from the household goods total of £9 12s 9d carried over.

1 wide-mouth bottle, £0 0s 9d

2 jugs, at 1s 6d each, £0 3s 0d

1 box, iron and 2 heaters, £0 4s 0d

4 knives and 6 forks, £0 3s 0d

9 forks, £0 1s 6d

7 soup plates, £0 3s 6d

1 gridiron, £0 4s 0d

1 copper tea kettle, £0 5s 0d

3 dozen pound bottles, £0 6s 0d

1 pair of tongs, £0 1s 0d

1 brine tub, £0 3s 6d

2 clasp cloths, £0 3s 6d

1 rub stone, £0 2s 6d

Household goods amounting to, £11 14s 0d

1 black woman named Nanny, £8 0s 0d

Neat cattle

1 cow, £2 15s 0d

1 cow, £2 10s 0d

1 bullock, £2 15s 0d

2 calves, £2 15s 0d

Neat cattle amounting to, £10 15s 0d

Hogs

3 barrows, at 20s each, £3 0s 0d

1 sow and 3 pigs, £2 0s 0d

Hogs amounting to, £5 0s 0d

Poultry

5 grown fowls, £0 7s 6d

16 half-grown fowls, £0 12s 0d

7 ducks, £0 10s 6d

Poultry amounting to, £1 10s 0d

Yams, £21 17s 0d

The estate amounts to, £58 0s 7d

The estate indebted to sundry persons

To Elisha Isaake, £3 2s 6d

To Robert Wright, secretary, £1 5s 0d

To Stephen Young, £0 16s 0d

To Martin Harper, £0 1s 6d

To Richard Insley, £0 6s 0d

Debts amounting to, £5 11s 0d

clean estate amounting to, £52 9s 7d

Interpretations

The Penelope Peach estate is reckoned through to a clean figure of £52 9s 7d, and its structure shows how even a small holding turned on the same island assets as the great ones. After the modest household goods, the substantial value lay in a single slave, a little livestock and above all a standing yam crop worth £21 17s 0d, more than a third of the whole estate. That a woman of small means held the bulk of her wealth in growing yams confirms the crop as the true currency of the island, the asset that gave land its worth and provisioned the shipping, held here on a small scale exactly as the wealthy planters held it on a large one.

The valuation of a black woman named Nanny at eight pounds, entered as a single line between the household goods and the cattle, marks the plain fact that ran through every estate in these records: enslaved people were counted and priced as property alongside animals and goods. In a small estate such as this, the value of one person made up a significant share of the whole, and the appraisers entered her as they would a cow or a hog, with no distinction of kind. This stark equivalence, a human being valued at the price of a few animals, was the ordinary practice of the island’s probate system.

The debts owed by the estate name a familiar circle of island creditors, including Robert Wright the secretary, Martin Harper and Richard Insley, several of whom recur as appraisers, debtors or creditors across these inventories. This tight web of mutual obligation, where the same handful of established men appear again and again in one another’s estates, reveals a small settled community bound together by running credit. The secretary’s appearance as a creditor shows even the Company’s officers enmeshed in the private lending that oiled the island’s economy, extending and collecting small sums among their neighbours as a matter of course.

33

25

Legacies Viz!

To Gabl Isacke 6 Plates & 2 Dishes

7 6

To Do 1 Black Man Named Fill

25

To Eleanor Leech 1 Black Boy Named Harvy

17

To Penelope Young one Bed & furniture

8

To Do 1 Black Man Hercules

28

To Do Do Girl Molt

15

To Do in Cash

16 15 6

To Thos Leech, 1 Ewe Sheep

18

To Penelope & Sutton Isacke the Son & Daughter

of Gabriel Isacke each

1 Heifer @ 40/ each

4

To James Heathfield 1 Ewe Sheep

18

To Do Do 1 Bed & Furniture

7 10

To Do Do 1 Chest

15

To Do Do 6 plates 6 Pr Nankeen & Pr Cloth

1 12

To James Hethfield in Cash

16 15 6

To Do Do 1 House at the Fort formerly

belonging to his Mother Elizh Van Doston

15

Legacies Amounts to L 158 12 6

Signed

Joseph Desfountain

Jos Worrall

Inventory of the Goods and Chattles of Mr John Desfountain Deceased

taken & Appraised by Messrs Rich Goodwin, Thos Larcentree & John Doveton Octob 29 1747

Freehold Land Viz!

10 Acres called Barleyground

@ 5/10 Pr Acre

55

Legacy to

John & Sam

40 Do with a House called Wells

391

35 Do Adjoining to the Mansion House

257 10

3 1/3 Do called Colliers

@ 3 Pr Do

10

5 Do Cabighee

@ 9/10 Pr Do

47 10

761

Leashold Land Viz!

15 Acres

at 1/5 Pr Acre

18 15

Legacy to

Mr Josh Desfount

1 1/8 Do

at 2/ Pr Do

1 2 6

13 Do called Sandy Bay

at 5/ Pr Do

65

7 1/2 Do fores folly

at 2/ Pr Do

15

2 1/2 Do below y Mansion House

at 2/ Pr Do

5

104 17 6

Carried Over L 865 17 6

The estate of Penelope Peach closed with a schedule of legacies directing particular goods, slaves and cash to named beneficiaries.

Legacies

To Gabriel Peach, 6 plates and 2 dishes, £0 7s 6d

To Gabriel Peach, 1 black man named Fill, £25 0s 0d

To Eleanor Leech, 1 black boy named Harry, £17 0s 0d

To Penelope Young, one bed and furniture, £8 0s 0d

To Penelope Young, 1 black man named Hercules, £28 0s 0d

To Penelope Young, 1 black girl named Moll, £15 0s 0d

To Penelope Young, in cash, £16 15s 6d

To Thomas Leech, 1 ewe sheep, £0 18s 0d

To Penelope and Sutton Isaake, the son and daughter of Gabriel Isaake, each 1 heifer at 40s each, £4 0s 0d

To James Heathfield, 1 ewe sheep, £0 18s 0d

To James Heathfield, 1 bed and furniture, £7 10s 0d

To James Heathfield, 1 chest, £0 15s 0d

To James Heathfield, 6 plates, 6 pairs of nankeen and a remnant of cloth, £1 12s 0d

To James Heathfield, in cash, £16 15s 6d

To James Heathfield, 1 house at the fort formerly belonging to his mother Elizabeth Van Boston, £15 0s 0d

Legacies amounting to, £158 12s 6d

The legacy schedule was signed by Joseph Disfountain and Joshua Worrall.

A separate inventory follows, of the goods and chattels of Mr John Disfountain, deceased, taken and appraised by Messrs Richard Goodwin, Thomas Greentree and John Doveton on 29 October 1747.

Freehold land

10 acres called Barley Ground, at 5s 10d per acre, £55 0s 0d

40 acres with a house called Wells, £391 0s 0d

35 acres adjoining the mansion house, £257 10s 0d

3¾ acres called Colliers, at 3s per acre, £10 0s 0d

5 acres cabbage tree, at 9s 10d per acre, £47 10s 0d

total, £761 0s 0d

Leasehold land

15 acres, at 1s 5d per acre, £18 15s 0d

1⅛ acres, at 4s per acre, £1 2s 6d

13 acres called Sandy Bay, at 5s per acre, £65 0s 0d

7½ acres called Fox’s Folly, at 2s per acre, £15 0s 0d

2½ acres below the mansion house, at 2s per acre, £5 0s 0d

total, £104 17s 6d

Carried over, £865 17s 6d

Interpretations

The legacies of Penelope Peach reveal how she disposed of her estate among a circle of kin and connections, and the bequests turn overwhelmingly on the enslaved people she owned. Four named slaves, Fill, Harry, Hercules and Moll, pass as legacies to Gabriel Peach, Eleanor Leech and Penelope Young, valued from fifteen to twenty-eight pounds each and together forming the most valuable portion of the whole distribution. This shows that for a slaveholding woman of middling estate, human beings were the principal wealth she had to leave, directed by name to particular heirs exactly as she directed beds, plates and sheep.

One legacy carries a fragment of family history that the bare figures would not reveal. James Heathfield was left a house at the fort that had formerly belonged to his mother Elizabeth Van Boston, the Dutch surname pointing to the mixed origins of the island’s settler population and the descent of property through the female line across a change of name and generation. The careful recording of the house’s previous owner shows the appraisers tracing title back through the family, so that the legacy could be identified beyond dispute as the same property once held by Heathfield’s mother.

The John Disfountain inventory that opens next returns to a large landed estate, and its land is set out in the island’s characteristic division between freehold and leasehold with every parcel named. Freehold ground worth £761, including forty acres with a house and thirty-five acres by the mansion house, is distinguished sharply from leasehold parcels such as Sandy Bay and Fox’s Folly held at low yearly rates. The evocative field names, Barley Ground, Colliers, Fox’s Folly, record a settled agricultural landscape where each plot had acquired its own identity, and the differing rates per acre reflect the varying quality and tenure of land across a small and much-divided island.

34

26

Brought Over L 865 17 6

Houses Viz!

The Mansion House at L 150

Legacy to

Ann & Rebecca

The House at the Fort at 70 220

Blacks Viz!

Ceasar 25

Pompey 23

Surrey 20

November 25

Simon 7

Handy 3

Frank a Boy 14

Betty & Child 21

Sue 16

Legacy to

John Mercy 17

Doll 16

Prio 12

Legacy to

Ann Peg a Girl 12

Legacy to

Samuel Batt 10

Legacy to

Rebecca Ellen 3

Aholl 2 5 228 5

Cattle Viz!

1 Bull 8

4 Cows & Calves 25 10

7 Cows 32 15

12 Steers 27 15

Legacy to

Jos Desfount

Jos Worrall

2 Heifers 6 100

Hogs Viz!

3 Sows & 20 Pigs 5 3

6 Sows 7 18

1 Boar 15

25 Young Hogs 15 12 29 8

Sheep Viz!

1 Ram 15

12 Ewes 9

9 Lambs 2 14 12 9

Goats Viz!

2 Rams 16

33 Ewes 13 4

9 Weathers 3 12

12 Kids 2 8 20

Carried Over L 1475 19 6

The inventory of the estate of John Disfountain, deceased, continued from the running total of £865 17s 6d carried over.

Houses

the mansion house, £150 0s 0d

the house at the fort, £70 0s 0d

total, £220 0s 0d

Blacks

Caesar, £25 0s 0d

Pompey, £23 0s 0d

Surrey, £20 0s 0d

November, £25 0s 0d

Simon, £7 0s 0d

Handy, £3 0s 0d

Frank, a boy, £14 0s 0d

Betty and child, £21 0s 0d

Sue, £16 0s 0d

Mercy, £17 0s 0d

Doll, £16 0s 0d

Pris, £12 0s 0d

Peg, a girl, £12 0s 0d

Cate, £10 0s 0d

Ellen, £3 0s 0d

Moll, £2 5s 0d

total, £228 5s 0d

Cattle

1 bull, £8 0s 0d

4 cows and calves, £25 10s 0d

7 cows, £32 15s 0d

12 steers, £27 15s 0d

2 heifers, £6 0s 0d

total, £100 0s 0d

Hogs

3 sows and 20 pigs, £5 3s 0d

6 sows, £7 18s 0d

1 boar, £0 15s 0d

25 young hogs, £15 12s 0d

total, £29 8s 0d

Sheep

1 ram, £0 15s 0d

12 ewes, £9 0s 0d

9 lambs, £2 14s 0d

total, £12 9s 0d

Goats

2 rams, £0 16s 0d

33 ewes, £13 4s 0d

9 wethers, £3 12s 0d

12 kids, £2 8s 0d

total, £20 0s 0d

Carried over, £1,475 19s 6d

The margin marks several of the slaves as legacies: Mercy and Doll to John, Peg to Ann, Cate to Samuel, and Ellen to Rebecca. The house at the fort was left to Ann and Rebecca, and two heifers were left to Ann and Joseph Disfountain and to [...] Beale.

Interpretations

The John Disfountain estate confirms a substantial planter of the first rank, and its slaves form a large and valuable holding of sixteen people worth £228 5s 0d. The names run through the familiar mixture found across these inventories, classical names such as Caesar and Pompey imposed by owners, month-names like November, and English names like Betty and Doll, a naming pattern that itself records the erasure of the enslaved people’s own identities. The valuations again follow age and capacity, from twenty-five pounds for able men down to two pounds five shillings for Moll, and a woman entered with her child as a single priced unit.

The margin shows the estate already carved into legacies before the reckoning was complete, with individual slaves marked for particular heirs, Mercy and Doll to John, Peg to Ann, Cate to Samuel and Ellen to Rebecca. This distribution of named human beings among the children of the family, noted alongside the valuation rather than after it, shows how the enslaved were treated as the divisible core of a planter’s estate, allotted to heirs like parcels of land or head of cattle. The same hand that named a heifer for one legatee named a person for another, with no distinction drawn between them.

The livestock is again graded with the close attention seen throughout these records, cattle sorted into a bull, cows with calves, dry cows, steers and heifers, and the small stock divided between sheep and the more numerous goats. The heavy weighting toward goats and young hogs reflects the practical husbandry of St Helena, where hardy animals that bred readily and foraged on rough ground made up the working core of a farm’s stock. This settled and well-stocked estate, with its mansion house, town house, named fields and full complement of animals and slaves, marks Disfountain as one of the island’s leading landholders, his property reckoned in the same disciplined columns as the humblest household in the archive.

35

27

Brought Over L 1475 19 6

Poultry Viz!

7 Grown Fowls 10 6

4 half Do 3

4 Grown Ducks 6

14 Young Do 7

1 Grown Turkey 5

3 Young Do 4 6 1 16

Yams Viz!

Legacy to

Jno Sam

40.000 Yams about 22 Months old @ 12/ 1000 24

10.000 Do at Do @ 15/ Do 7 10

13.000 Do old @ 18/ Do 11 4

9.200 Do about 6 Weeks old @ 5/ Do 2 6

Legacy

to

John

&

Samuel

30.000 Do new planted @ 5 1/2 Do 8 5

26.000 Do old @ 1/ Do 26

12.000 Do Do @ 1 1/2 Do 19 1

24.000 Do from 10 Months old to 7 Months @ 12/ Do 14 8

23.700 Do Young Do @ 8/ Do 9 9 7

26.000 Do Do @ 6/ Do 7 17 2

Legacy

to John

& Sam

3.200 Do from 2 Month old to 1 Month @ 6/ Do 19 2

6.300 Do from Do @ 5/ Do 1 11 6

80.000 Do from 6 Month old to 2 Months @ 6/ Do 24 147 14 5

1 Horse and furniture 12

Plantation Tools 1

half a Boat 3 2

50 Bushels Lime 4 3 2

44 Squares Glass 1 9 4

2 Red wood Cyinders 12

25 Double Deals 3 15

3 old Do 3

Carpenters Tools 3

1 Pr Sheep Shears 2

1 Grind Stone 3

a parcel Thread 12

a parcel Books 10

1 Silver Mounted Sword 2

1 Do Do 1 5

1 Brass Mounted Do 5

1 Silver Laced Hatt 1

1 Major Wigg 10

1 Felt Hatt 2

14 Callee Tea 2 9 35 3 6

Carried Over L 1660 13 5

The inventory of the estate of John Disfountain, deceased, continued from the running total of £1,475 19s 6d carried over.

Poultry

7 grown fowls, £0 10s 6d

4 half-grown fowls, £0 3s 0d

4 grown ducks, £0 6s 0d

14 young ducks, £0 7s 0d

1 grown turkey, £0 5s 0d

3 young turkeys, £0 4s 6d

total, £1 16s 0d

Yams

40,000 yams, about 22 months old, at 12s per thousand, £24 0s 0d

10,000 yams, about 22 months old, at 15s per thousand, £7 10s 0d

13,000 yams, old, at 18s per thousand, £11 14s 0d

9,200 yams, about 6 weeks old, at 5s per thousand, £2 6s 0d

30,000 yams, newly planted, at 5s per thousand, £8 5s 0d

26,000 yams, old, at 4s per thousand, £26 0s 0d

12,000 yams, old, at 17s per thousand, £10 4s 0d

24,000 yams, from 10 months old to 7 months, at 12s per thousand, £14 8s 0d

23,700 young yams, at 8s per thousand, £9 9s 7d

26,000 young yams, at 6s per thousand, £7 17s 2d

3,200 yams, from 2 months old to 1 month, at 6s per thousand, £0 19s 2d

6,300 yams, from 2 months old to 1 month, at 5s per thousand, £1 11s 6d

80,000 yams, from 6 months old to 2 months, at 6s per thousand, £24 0s 0d

1 horse and furniture, £12 0s 0d

plantation tools, £1 0s 0d

half a boat, £3 0s 0d

50 bushels of lime, £4 3s 2d

44 squares of glass, £1 9s 4d

2 redwood girders, £0 12s 0d

25 double deals, £3 15s 0d

3 old deals, £0 3s 0d

carpenters tools, £0 3s 0d

1 pair of sheep shears, £0 2s 0d

1 grindstone, £0 3s 0d

a parcel of thread, £0 12s 0d

a parcel of books, £0 10s 0d

1 silver-mounted sword, £0 2s 0d

1 silver-mounted sword, £1 5s 0d

1 brass-mounted sword, £0 5s 0d

1 silver-laced hat, £0 1s 0d

1 major wig, £0 10s 0d

1 felt hat, £0 2s 0d

14 catties of tea, £2 9s 0d

subtotal, £147 14s 5d

subtotal, £35 3s 6d

Carried over, £1,660 13s 5d

The margin marks the yams as legacies to John in yams, and further plantings to John and Samuel and to John and [...].

Interpretations

The yam account of the John Disfountain estate is the most detailed in the whole archive, and it lays bare how a St Helena planter managed the crop as a continuous rolling operation rather than a single harvest. More than three hundred thousand yams and suckers are listed in some thirteen separate plantings, each dated by age from newly planted to twenty-two months old and priced accordingly, the mature plantings worth most and the youngest set at the lowest rate per thousand. This careful staging by age reveals a system of staggered planting that kept yams coming to maturity throughout the year, ensuring a constant supply to feed the estate, its slaves and the passing shipping.

The distribution of these yam plantings as legacies, marked in the margin for John and Samuel, shows a father settling not merely land but a working provision crop upon his sons, dividing the growing yams between them as a producing asset. This treatment of an unharvested crop as heritable property, allotted plant by plant to named heirs, underlines how central the yam was to the island economy, valuable enough in the ground to be worth dividing among children like the land itself.

A cluster of military and personal effects near the foot of the account marks Disfountain’s standing in the island’s militia or society. Three swords, two silver-mounted and one brass, together with a silver-laced hat and a major’s wig, point to a man who held rank, most probably in the island’s militia where the leading planters served as officers. The major’s wig in particular signals a specific commissioned rank, the dress of a man of authority, set here among his tools and books as part of the estate. Fourteen catties of tea, measured in the Chinese trade unit rather than by the pound, again show the direct reach of the East India traffic into the island’s households, supplying tea by the catty as it came from Canton.

36

28

Bought Over 1660 13 5

Plate Viz!

Legacy to Wm 4 Do Silver Table Spoons 10 Oz dwt 8 4 @ 7/6 Pr Oz 3 1 6

Legacy to Sam 3 Do Do Do 5 7 @ 7/6 Pr Do 2 1 1/2

Legacy to Ann 3 Do Do Do 5 11 @ 7/6 Pr Do 2 1 7 1/2

Legacy to Rebecca 3 Do Do Do 5 11 @ 7/6 Pr Do 2 1 7 1/2

Legacy to John 1 Silver Salver 10 18 @ 7/6 Pr Do 4 1 9

Legacy to Ann 1 Do Muggy 8 11 @ 6/6 Pr Do 2 15 7

1 Do Pepper Box 2 6 @ 7/6 Pr Do 17 2 1/2

6 Tea Spoons Tongs & Strainer 2 9 @ 6/ Pr Do 13 2 1/2

1 Silver Tweeser Case 1 7 6

1 do Silver Shoe Buckles 12

2 Stock Do 5

2 Pr old Broken Shoe Buckles 5

1 Silver Seal 1 6

a Silver Case for a Watch 5

Legacy to John 1 Silver Bound Snuff Box 12

1 Do old Do 2

Legacy to Saml 1 Gold Ring with a Stone 1

Legacy to Ann 1 Do Do 12

Legacy to John 1 plain Do 10

Legacy to Saml 1 Do Do 10

Legacy to Rebecca 1 Stone Do 10

Legacy to Ann 1 plain Do 10

Legacy to Rebecca 1 Do Do 10 25 4 [...]

Cash 142 13 1 1/2

Household Goods Viz!

1 Feathd Bed Bolstr & Pillows Blankt Quilt Cotn Curtains 6 5

1 Rich'd Quilt 15

2 old Counterpains 8

1 old Bedstead 5

1 Small fir Chest 10

1 Do Box 5

1 old Trunk 3

1 Do fir Box 4

1 Elbow Chair Cain 10

1 Chest of Drawers 1 10

1 Small Dressing Glass 15

Household Goods Carried Over L 11 10

Carried Over L 1828 11 1 1/2

The inventory of the estate of John Disfountain, deceased, continued from the running total of £1,660 13s 5d carried over.

Plate

10 new silver table spoons, weight 8 ounces 4 pennyweight, at 7s per ounce, £3 1s 6d

3 silver table spoons, weight 5 ounces 7 pennyweight, at 7s per ounce, £2 0s 1½d

3 silver table spoons, weight 5 ounces 11 pennyweight, at 7s per ounce, £2 1s 7½d

3 silver table spoons, weight 5 ounces 11 pennyweight, at 7s per ounce, £2 1s 7½d

1 silver salver, weight 10 ounces 18 pennyweight, at 7s per ounce, £4 1s 9d

1 silver mug, weight 8 ounces 11 pennyweight, at 6s per ounce, £2 15s 7d

1 silver pepper box, weight 2 ounces 6 pennyweight, at 7s per ounce, £0 17s 2½d

6 teaspoons, tongs and strainer, weight 2 ounces 4 pennyweight, at 6s per ounce, £0 13s 2½d

1 silver tweezer case, £1 7s 6d

1 set of silver shoe buckles, £0 12s 0d

2 stock buckles, £0 5s 0d

2 pairs of old broken shoe buckles, £0 5s 0d

1 silver seal, £0 1s 6d

1 silver case for a watch, £0 5s 0d

1 silver-rimmed snuff box, £0 12s 0d

1 silver-rimmed snuff box, old, £0 2s 0d

1 gold ring with a stone, £1 0s 0d

1 gold ring with a stone, £0 12s 0d

1 plain gold ring, £0 10s 0d

1 plain gold ring, £0 10s 0d

1 stone gold ring, £0 10s 0d

1 plain gold ring, £0 10s 0d

1 plain gold ring, £0 10s 0d

subtotal, £25 4s 7d

Cash, £142 13s 1½d

Household goods

1 feather bed, bolster, 2 pillows, blanket, quilt, curtains and furniture, £6 5s 0d

1 stick quilt, £0 15s 0d

2 old counterpanes, £0 8s 0d

1 old bedstead, £0 5s 0d

1 small fir chest, £0 10s 0d

1 fir box, £0 5s 0d

1 old trunk, £0 3s 0d

1 fir box, £0 4s 0d

1 elbow chair, cane, £0 10s 0d

1 chest of drawers, £1 10s 0d

1 small dressing glass, £0 15s 0d

Household goods carried over, £11 10s 0d

Carried over, £1,828 11s 1½d

The margin marks the plate and rings as legacies distributed among the children: silver table spoons and gold rings apportioned in turn to John, Samuel, Ann and Rebecca, together with the salver, mug and a snuff box.

Interpretations

The plate of the John Disfountain estate is valued by the standard island method, weighed to the pennyweight and priced at 7s the ounce for most pieces, and its careful division among the four children reveals the working of a father’s testament. Nearly every entry carries a marginal note assigning it to John, Samuel, Ann or Rebecca, the table spoons split into matched lots of three so that each child received an equal share of the silver. This deliberate parcelling of the plate into equal portions shows a testator using his most portable and convertible wealth to make even provision among his heirs, the silver serving as a fair and divisible legacy.

The gold rings, seven in all, are likewise distributed one to each child in turn, plain and stone-set alike, which marks them as keepsakes carrying both value and sentiment. Where the spoons were divided for their weight of metal, the individual rings passed as single named bequests, each heir taking one, so that a personal ornament went to every child as a remembrance. This distinction between plate divided by weight and jewellery divided by the piece shows the appraisers and the testator treating the two forms of precious metal differently, the one as a store of value and the other as a personal legacy.

The household goods that follow are notably plain and much marked as old, an old bedstead, old counterpanes and an old trunk, which stands in sharp contrast to the rich furnishings of the Black and Doveton estates. This modest domestic stuff, set against the substantial land, slaves, livestock and yam crop of the same estate, suggests a working planter who invested his wealth in productive property rather than in fine furniture, keeping a serviceable rather than a luxurious house. The single well-appointed feather bed with its full furniture, valued at £6 5s 0d, was the best article among them, the rest being the ordinary equipment of a farmhouse rather than the imported luxury seen in the wealthier town households.

37

29

Brought Over L 1828 11 1 1/2

Household Goods Brought Over L 11 10

8 Wine glasses 4

1 Quart Decanter 2

1 Small Comb 1

1 old Sett Curtains Rail & Window Curtain 13

1 Cloth Brush 2

1 Feathd Bed Bolstr 2 Pillows Blankt Quilt Cotd & Curtains 4 10

1 Do Do Bolstr 2 Do Quilt Blankt Copstead & Curtains 5 10

1 Mahogany Dressing Table 1

1 Trunk 3

1 Smaller Do 2 6

1 old Chest of Drawers 10

1 Small Desk 15

1 Small Chamber Glass 5

1 Sett old Window Curtains 2

1 Leather Bottom Chair 6

1 Feathr Bed under Bed 2 pillows Quilt Bolstr fostd & Rail 3

1 Crib Bed & Small Pillows and Quilt 12

1 Quilt 15

1 old Fir Chest 6

1 Small Do Box 1

a Remnant Muslin 8

2 Pr Dungree Sheets 6

2 Do New Long Cloth Do 1 4

1 Do Anjango Cloth Do 8

1 Do New Deesotees Do 8

1 Do Anjango Cloth Do 6

3 Sheets 9

3 Pr New Long Cloth Pillowbears 4 6

3 Deesotees Do 1 6

3 Pr old Pillowbean 2

3 Side Board Cloths 3

2 Long Cloth Table Cloths 1

5 old Napkins 18

Household Goods Carried Over L 34 14 2

Carried Over L 1828 11 1 1/2

The inventory of the estate of John Disfountain, deceased, continued from the running total of £1,828 11s 1½d carried over, with a household goods subtotal of £11 10s 0d brought forward.

8 wine glasses, £0 4s 0d

1 quart decanter, £0 2s 0d

1 small cruet, £0 1s 0d

1 old set of curtains, rail and window curtain, £0 13s 0d

1 cloth brush, £0 2s 0d

1 feather bed, bolster, 2 pillows, blanket, quilt, counterpane and curtains, £4 10s 0d

1 feather bed, bolster, 2 pillows, quilt, blanket, bedstead and curtains, £5 10s 0d

1 mahogany dressing table, £1 0s 0d

1 trunk, £0 3s 0d

1 smaller trunk, £0 2s 6d

1 old chest of drawers, £0 10s 0d

1 small desk, £0 15s 0d

1 small chamber glass, £0 5s 0d

1 set of old window curtains, £0 2s 0d

1 leather-bottom chair, £0 6s 0d

1 feather bed, under bed, 2 pillows, quilt, bolster, counterpane and rail, £3 0s 0d

1 crib bed, 2 small pillows and quilt, £0 12s 0d

1 quilt, £0 15s 0d

1 old fir chest, £0 6s 0d

1 small fir box, £0 1s 0d

a remnant of muslin, £0 8s 0d

2 pairs of dungaree sheets, £0 6s 0d

2 pairs of new long-cloth sheets, £1 4s 0d

1 pair of anjango-cloth sheets, £0 8s 0d

1 pair of new doosooty sheets, £0 8s 0d

1 pair of anjango-cloth sheets, £0 6s 0d

3 sheets, £0 9s 0d

3 pairs of new long-cloth pillowbears, £0 4s 6d

3 doosooty pillowbears, £0 1s 6d

3 pairs of old pillowbears, £0 2s 0d

3 sideboard cloths, £0 3s 0d

2 long-cloth tablecloths, £0 4s 0d

5 old napkins, £0 1s 8d

Household goods carried over, £34 14s 2d

Carried over, £1,828 11s 1½d

Interpretations

The linen of the John Disfountain estate names its cloths precisely by type and origin, and one variety here widens the map of the island’s textile supply. Alongside the familiar long-cloth, dungaree and doosooty appears anjango cloth, a cotton named for Anjengo, the East India Company’s settlement on the Malabar coast of south-west India, which shipped cottons through the same trade network that fed St Helena. Its presence among the Disfountain sheets shows how goods from a specific Indian factory reached a household on a remote Atlantic island, the fabric carrying the name of its distant place of origin all the way to the appraiser’s valuation.

The bedding is again listed in complete sets, each feather bed entered with its bolster, pillows, blanket, quilt, counterpane and curtains as a single furnished unit, which reflects how such beds were valued and passed on whole rather than piecemeal. This treatment of the bed as a composite article, the most valuable items of household furniture in the estate at four and five pounds each, was standard throughout these inventories and marks the furnished bed as the centrepiece of a room’s equipment. A crib bed among them points to a child in the household, its small pillows and quilt valued at a few shillings.

A single mahogany dressing table stands among the plainer furniture as the one fashionable piece in an otherwise serviceable domestic stock. Where the wealthy Black estate held whole suites of mahogany, the Disfountain house kept just this one item of the costly imported hardwood, set among old chests, trunks and fir boxes. This confirms the picture of a substantial planter whose real capital lay in land, slaves and the yam crop rather than in household display, keeping a comfortable but largely practical house furnished with only occasional touches of the imported luxury that filled the grander town establishments.

38

30

Brought Over L 1828 11 1 1/2

Household Goods Brought Over L 34 14 2

2 China Butter Cups & 2 Salts 3

1 Do Sea pott 4

3 Do Dishes 4 6

3 Do Do Soop 2

8 Do Small Cups & 3 Saucers 8

1 Do Guglet & Bason 4

6 old China plates 1 6

1 Glass Salt 6

1 China Jarr 2 6

5 Midling Pewter Basons 12 6

1 Smaller Do 1 6

1 Smaller Do 1

2 Large Do 6

3 Pewter Dishes 9

1 Small Do 2 6

1 Do Do 1 6

4 old Pewter Plates 1 4

1 Pewter Sea Kittle 2 6

1 Do Pepper Box 6

2 Pr Iron Snuffers 1

1 Chamber pott 3

1 Pr Brass Candlesticks 6

1 Square fir Table 8

3 Wooden Chairs 7 6

1 Nurses Do 2

1 Small Form 2 6

1 Large fir Chest 10

12 Cain Chairs 5 1

6 White Handle Knives & forks 6

2 Black Do Do 1

1 China Bowl 1 6

1 Fraying Pan 5

1 Large Iron pot 1

1 Small Do 6

1 Milk Do 1 6

1 Yam Do 15

3 pot hangers 4 6

2 Spits 2

1 Milk pail 1 6

1 Piggen 1

2 Milk Tubs 2

1 Brine Do 5

1 Wash Do 8

Household Good Carried Over L 48 19 2

Carried Over L 1828 11 1 1/2

The inventory of the estate of John Disfountain, deceased, continued from the running total of £1,828 11s 1½d carried over, with a household goods subtotal of £34 14s 2d brought forward.

2 china butter cups and 2 salts, £0 3s 0d

1 china teapot, £0 4s 0d

3 china dishes, £0 4s 6d

3 china soup dishes, £0 2s 0d

8 small china cups and 3 saucers, £0 0s 8d

1 china guglet and basin, £0 4s 0d

6 old china plates, £0 1s 6d

1 glass salt, £0 0s 6d

1 china jar, £0 2s 6d

5 middling pewter basins, £0 12s 6d

1 smaller pewter basin, £0 1s 6d

1 smaller pewter basin, £0 1s 0d

2 large pewter basins, £0 6s 0d

3 pewter dishes, £0 9s 0d

1 small pewter dish, £0 2s 6d

1 small pewter dish, £0 1s 6d

4 old pewter plates, £0 1s 4d

1 pewter tea kettle, £0 2s 6d

1 pewter pepper box, £0 0s 6d

2 pairs of iron snuffers, £0 1s 0d

1 chamber pot, £0 3s 0d

1 pair of brass candlesticks, £0 6s 0d

1 square fir table, £0 8s 0d

3 wooden chairs, £0 7s 6d

1 nurse’s chair, £0 2s 0d

1 small form, £0 2s 6d

1 large fir chest, £0 10s 0d

12 cane chairs, £5 4s 0d

6 white-handle knives and forks, £0 6s 0d

2 black-handle knives and forks, £0 6s 0d

1 china bowl, £0 1s 0d

1 frying pan, £0 5s 0d

1 large iron pot, £1 0s 0d

1 small iron pot, £0 6s 0d

1 milk pot, £0 6s 0d

1 yam pot, £0 1s 6d

3 pot hangers, £0 15s 0d

2 spits, £0 4s 6d

1 milk pail, £0 2s 0d

1 piggin, £0 1s 6d

2 milk tubs, £0 1s 0d

1 brine tub, £0 5s 0d

4 washtubs, £0 8s 0d

Household goods carried over, £48 19s 2d

Carried over, £1,828 11s 1½d

Interpretations

The kitchen wares of the John Disfountain estate confirm the working character of the household, with milk pots, milk pails, piggins, tubs and yam pots making up the plain equipment of a dairy and provisioning farm. This depth of dairy and kitchen gear, set beside the modest pewter and cheap china, marks the house as one that produced and prepared its own food on a substantial scale rather than one furnished chiefly for display. The many washtubs and milk tubs point to the daily labour of a large establishment, most of it carried out by the enslaved people valued earlier in the estate.

A single luxurious note again cuts across the plain domestic stock, with twelve cane chairs valued together at £5 4s 0d standing out as by far the most valuable furniture in the household goods, worth more than all the pots, tubs and pewter combined. The recurrence of a set of exactly twelve cane chairs, seen across the Doveton, Black and now Disfountain estates, points once more to a shared standard among the island’s leading families, each keeping a dozen of these light imported seats for entertaining a full company. That such a set appears even in this otherwise practical house shows how firmly the form had established itself as the mark of a gentleman’s establishment.

The presence of a nurse’s chair among the seating quietly confirms the child suggested by the crib bed on the preceding page, marking a household with young children and the servants or slaves who attended them. The appraisers recorded this specialised low chair, used for tending an infant, alongside the plainest forms and wooden chairs, valuing each in turn. Taken with the crib bed, it fills out the human shape of the household behind the columns of figures, a family with children raised on a working plantation, surrounded by the dairy gear, the yam crop and the enslaved labour that sustained them.

39

31

Brought Over L 1828 11 1 1/2

Household Goods Brought over L 48 19 2

1 old Box Iron & Heaters 3 1

1 Small Hatchet 1

5 Earthen Jarrs 5

1 Crock 1

1 Pr Stylliards 1

1 Case Razors & Hone 8

1 Coffee Mill 10

1 Elbow Chair 2 6

1 Small Lackard Table 10

1 Do Round Do 1 5

1 Large old Chest 2 6

1 old Writing Desk 5

1 old Trible 2 6

1 Do Do large 10

3 old Chairs 9

1 Small Brush 1

1 Rattan Couch 15

1 fir Chest 15

1 old Lackard Tea Table 7 6

1 Small Looking Glass 6

1 Bedstead 2 10

1 Small Feather Bed 2

1 Do Do 1

1 Quilt 3

1 Do old 5

1 Large Looking Glass 6 4

1 Small Chamber Table 12

1 Bedstead with a Sacking Bottom 3

1 Feather Bed 6

1 Small fir Box 4

Odd Curtains 5

5 Earthen Jars 1 6

1 Sett China 1 1

1 Pewter Funnil 2 6

2 Do Dishes 8 6

2 Small China Dishes 4

1 Delf Muggy 9

1 Do Bason 9

6 Ivory Handle Knives & forks 12

1 old Brass Candlestick 2 6

11 China Plates 3 8

2 Large Glasses 3

2 China Dishes 4 6

9 Wine Glasses 1 6

1 Hott Hanger 75 8 10

Carried Over L 1903 19 11 1/2

The inventory of the estate of John Disfountain, deceased, continued from the running total of £1,828 11s 1½d carried over, with a household goods subtotal of £48 19s 2d brought forward.

1 old box, iron and heaters, £0 3s 0d

1 small hatchet, £0 1s 0d

5 earthen jars, £0 5s 0d

1 crock, £0 1s 0d

1 pair of stilliards, £0 8s 0d

1 case, razors and hone, £0 10s 0d

1 coffee mill, £0 2s 6d

1 elbow chair, £0 10s 0d

1 small lacquered table, £0 4s 0d

1 round lacquered table, £0 15s 0d

1 large old chest, £0 2s 6d

1 old writing desk, £0 5s 0d

1 old table, £0 2s 6d

1 large old table, £0 10s 0d

3 old chairs, £0 9s 0d

1 small brush, £0 1s 0d

1 rattan couch, £0 15s 0d

1 fir chest, £0 15s 0d

1 old lacquered tea table, £0 7s 0d

1 small looking glass, £0 1s 6d

1 bedstead, £0 6s 0d

1 small feather bed, £2 10s 0d

1 small feather bed, £2 0s 0d

1 quilt, £1 0s 0d

1 quilt, old, £0 5s 0d

1 large looking glass, £0 5s 0d

1 small chamber table, £0 4s 0d

1 bedstead with a caning bottom, £0 12s 0d

1 feather bed, old, £3 0s 0d

1 small fir box, £0 0s 6d

old curtains, £0 4s 0d

5 earthen jars, £0 5s 0d

1 earthen jar, £0 1s 6d

1 set of china, £1 1s 0d

1 pewter funnel, £0 2s 6d

3 china dishes, £0 8s 6d

2 small china dishes, £0 4s 0d

1 delft mug, £0 0s 9d

1 delft basin, £0 0s 9d

6 ivory-handle knives and forks, £0 12s 0d

1 old brass candlestick, £0 2s 6d

11 china plates, £0 3s 8d

2 large glasses, £0 3s 0d

2 china dishes, £0 4s 6d

9 wine glasses, £0 1s 6d

1 pot hanger, £0 [...]

Household goods carried over, £75 8s 10d

Carried over, £1,903 19s 11½d

Interpretations

The furniture of the John Disfountain estate here shows a clear split between imported cane pieces and worn everyday stock, which fills out the picture of the house. A rattan couch and a bedstead with a caning bottom join the twelve cane chairs of the preceding page, all of the light imported seating suited to the island’s mild climate, while lacquered tables carry the touch of the East Asian fashion seen in the wealthier estates. Set against these are a run of old chairs, old tables, an old writing desk and old curtains, the plain and worn furniture of a working household in daily use.

The tableware includes delft alongside the usual Chinese porcelain, a delft mug and basin each entered at ninepence, which widens the range of the household’s imported wares. Delft was tin-glazed earthenware from the Netherlands, an alternative to both the Chinese china and the local earthenware, and its appearance shows that Dutch as well as eastern goods reached the island, most probably through the same shipping that touched at St Helena on the long ocean routes. The careful valuing of even these cheap delft pieces at a few pence continues the appraisers’ practice of entering every article, however small.

A coffee mill among the kitchen goods marks the grinding of coffee in the house, a companion to the tea equipment found throughout these estates and a further sign of how the hot-drink rituals of the age had settled on the island. Coffee, like tea, came through the long-distance trade, and the mill for grinding the beans was the practical apparatus that made its preparation possible at home. Its presence here, alongside the razors, hone and writing desk, rounds out the domestic economy of a substantial planter’s household, equipped for the small daily comforts as well as the heavy labour of the farm.

40

32

Brought Over L 1903 19 11 1/2

Sundry Persons Indebted to the Estate Viz

Thos Easthope L 10

Stewards Orphans 1 15 10

James Long 2 15

Robert Gurling Decd 1 8 5

Joseph Whaley Junr 1 10

John Aldrich 13

John Seale 11 3

Mary Seale 12

Isaac Leech 1 3

Martha Long 4 6

William Burnham 2 18

John Hayes Junr 3 5 3

Henry Beal 1 2 6

John Spencer 1 7 6

Baron Deloaf 2 14 [...]

John Watkins 2 10 5

John French Junr 10

Roger Nivanson 18 13

John Desfountain 10

Joseph Desfountain 25 12

John Goodwin Esqr Decd 109 5 11

Thos Colgrave 21 3 4

Matthas Mudge Decd 1 12 6

Samuel Clark 1 3 10 226 15 7 1/2

2130 15 7

Signed Thos Greenhow

John Doveton

Memorandum

1 Sicle Saddle &c sent to

India for a Venture

37 1/2 oz Silver sent to England in the Year

1742, but no advice concerning it

The inventory of the estate of John Disfountain, deceased, continued from the running total of £1,903 19s 11½d carried over.

Sundry persons indebted to the estate

Thomas Colgrove, £0 10s 0d

Steward’s orphans, £1 13s 10d

James Long, £2 13s 0d

Robert Gurling, deceased, £1 8s 5d

Joseph Whaley senior, £1 0s 10d

John Aldrick, £0 13s 0d

John Seale, £11 0s 5d

Mary Seale, £0 12s 0d

Isaac Leech, £1 3s 0d

Martha Long, £4 0s 6d

William Burnham, £2 18s 0d

John Hayes senior, £3 5s 5d

Henry Beal, £1 2s 6d

John Spencer, £1 17s 6d

Baron Deloss, £2 4s 4d

John Watkins, £2 10s 5d

John French senior, £0 10s 0d

Roger Nevanson, £18 13s 0d

John Disfountain, £0 10s 0d

Joseph Disfountain, £25 12s 0d

John Goodwin esquire, deceased, £109 5s 11d

Thomas Colgrove, £21 3s 4d

Matthew Mudge, deceased, £1 12s 6d

Samuel Clark, £1 5s 0d

subtotal, £226 15s 7½d

total, £2,130 15s 7d

The inventory was signed by Thomas Greentree and John Doveton.

The appraisers added a memorandum noting that one side saddle and other goods had been sent to India for a venture, and that a quantity of old silver had been sent to England in the year 1748, but no word had since been received concerning it.

Interpretations

The debtor schedule that closes the John Disfountain estate reveals the true scale of a leading planter’s lending, for the debts owed to him ran to more than £226 and touched nearly every rank of the island’s community. The single largest debt, over £109 from the deceased John Goodwin esquire, had to be recovered from Goodwin’s own estate rather than from a living man, and the same John Goodwin appears elsewhere in this archive as a debtor to the Doveton estate, which shows how the same men owed money in several directions at once. The spread of two dozen debtors, from a few shillings to over a hundred pounds, marks Disfountain as a substantial creditor whose wealth was as much in money lent as in land or goods.

The memorandum recording goods sent to India for a venture and silver shipped to England opens a window onto the risks of long-distance trade from the island. Disfountain had committed part of his estate to a trading venture to India and had sent old silver to England, but at his death no word had returned concerning the silver, leaving its fate and value unknown to the appraisers. This uncertainty shows the real hazards faced by an island trader who ventured capital across the oceans, where goods and money once shipped might vanish from view for years, their return depending on the slow and unreliable passage of vessels and news across half the world.

The recurrence of the same surnames throughout this schedule, Colgrove, Leech, Long, Seale, Hayes and the two Disfountains among the debtors, confirms the tightly bound community revealed across the whole archive. The same families served repeatedly as appraisers, executors, creditors and debtors in one another’s affairs, and here a man owed money by his own kinsmen Joseph and John Disfountain, marking how the island’s economy ran on a dense web of credit within and between a small number of established families. This closing account, tracing sums owed by twenty-four named people, shows the settled planter at the centre of that web, his estate a hub of the lending that held the small society together.

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The Estate Indebted to Sundry Persons Viz

John Goodwin Esqr Decd L 91 14 1

John Brown 7 6 1 99 5

Legacies Viz

To Ann and Rebecca 120

To Samuel Desfountain 1

To William Orale 1

To John Desfountain 3 8

To Samuel Desfountain 1 10 126 18

An Inventory of the Estate of Mr John Gray Decd 1748

2 Boxes fine Tea one Souchong, the other Green each Contain

about 14 Pounds

1 Box Boher Tea containing about 29 put up in a Cannister

1 large lead Cannister of green Tea containg about 12 or 13 pounds

1 Cask Savey for tea about 9 Gallons

2 Pr Dozen China Plates put up in a Sub scene Enamled

Some Blue White

50 Silk Shittices

6 or 8 Tea Potts of Different Sorts

4 Ivory fanns

9 Japor Do

1 Parcel of China Ink

2 Pr Sept & Butterin for Snuff Boxs Mother of pearl

1 Sett of large Bowls & Sneekers of different Patterns

2 Silk fine Ware in a Box in Iny Chest

45 Cups & Saucers & Some other things in a Box that is Japan'd

20 Small China Pictures

1 China Dishes of different Sorts

23 Pr China Sett & Savers

2 Setts of Fruit Saucers to 2 Small Japor Boxes for holding do

2 Copper Enamled Tea Cannisters

1 Sett of Blue White China with 2 Tea potts & 1 Coffee pott with 30 Cups & Saucers

in the Same Box

Some China Images of Men & Women of Different figures

3 Pr Blue Nankeen

1 Cane

1 Snuff Box

& 6 in Cash

The estate of John Disfountain remained indebted to sundry persons.

The estate indebted to sundry persons

John Goodwin esquire, deceased, £91 14s 4d

John Brown, £7 6s 1d

subtotal, £99 0s 5d

Legacies

To Ann and Rebecca, £120 0s 0d

To Samuel Disfountain, £1 0s 0d

To William Vale, £1 0s 0d

To John Disfountain, £3 8s 0d

To Samuel Disfountain, £1 10s 0d

subtotal, £126 18s 0d

A separate inventory follows, of the estate of Mr John Gray, deceased, taken in December 1748.

2 boxes fine tea, one souchong, the other green, each containing about 14 pounds

1 box bohea tea, containing about 14 pounds, put up in a canister

1 large lead canister of green tea, containing about 12 or 13 pounds

1 cask sago, containing about 9 gallons

2½ dozen china plates, put up in a tub, some enamelled

some blue and white

50 silk filoores

6 or 8 tea pots of different sorts

4 ivory fans

9 japan fans

1 parcel of china ink

2 pairs of paper mothers for snuff boxes, mother of pearl

1 set of large bowls and dishes of different patterns

2 silk fans, china, in a box in my chest

45 cups and saucers and some other things in a tub that is spare

20 small china pictures

1 china dishes of different sorts

23 pairs of china salt cellars

2 nests of tea canisters and 2 small japan boxes for holding tea

2 copper enamelled tea canisters

1 set of blue and white china, with 2 teapots and 1 coffee pot, with 30 cups and saucers, in the same box

some china images of men and women of different figures

3 pairs of blue nankeen

1 cane

1 snuff box

some cash

Interpretations

The John Gray inventory that opens here is unlike any other in the archive, for it records not a settled planter’s household but the stock of a dealer in the wares of the China trade. The great quantities of tea, several boxes and canisters of souchong, green and bohea running to more than fifty pounds in all, together with tea pots by the half-dozen, nests of tea canisters and enamelled copper caddies, point to a man trading in tea and its equipage rather than merely keeping some for his own table. This concentration of a single class of eastern goods marks Gray as a merchant whose estate was his merchandise, held for sale rather than for use.

The porcelain and fancy goods reinforce this reading, listed in wholesale quantities and by pattern and sort as a trader would describe his stock. Forty-five cups and saucers in one tub, twenty-three pairs of salt cellars, two and a half dozen plates, china images of men and women, ivory and japan fans, and mother-of-pearl fittings for snuff boxes were the small luxury imports of the Canton trade, the kind of goods carried home as private ventures by those with access to the East India shipping. The note that certain silk fans lay in a box in the writer’s own chest shows the inventory drawn partly from Gray’s own words, listing goods he had stowed for the voyage or the market.

The presence of such a specialised trading stock on St Helena illuminates the island’s peculiar commercial position on the homeward route of the East India fleet. Ships breaking their long voyage at the island created a market and a staging point for private trade in eastern goods, and a resident dealer such as Gray could accumulate tea, porcelain and curiosities either to supply the passing ships or to send onward as a venture. His estate, made up almost wholly of these portable luxuries rather than land, slaves or livestock, shows a different way of making a living on the island, one built on the trade that the Company’s vessels carried past its shores.

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Inventory of the Goods & Chattles of Mr Rich Goodwin

Decd taken & Appraized by Messrs Josh Wrangham Senr Samuel

Doveton & James Powell January the 7th 1747 8 Viz

Freehold Land Viz!

52 1/2 Acres at 10 Pr Acre L 525

12 Do at 7 1/2 Pr Do 90

21 Do at 8 1/2 Pr Do 178 10

10 Do at 14 Pr Do 140

2 1/2 Do at 15 Pr Do 37 10

4 Do at 8 1/2 Do 32

31 Do at 9 Pr Do 279

1 Do at 20

Freehold Land Amounting to L 1312

Leashold Land Viz!

11 Acres at 2 1/2 Pr Acre 27 10

16 Do at 2 1/2 Pr Do 36

9 Do at 1 1/2 Pr Do 13 10

19 Do at 2 Pr Do 38

Leashold Land Amounting to L 115

Houses Viz!

The House at the Fort at 270

The Mansion House at 160

The House formerly Carne at 90

Houses Amounting to L 520

Blacks Viz!

Will a Man 28

Bacchus Do 23

Lewis Do 23

Toby Do 20

Kill Do 16

Madras Do 15

Old Toby Do 7

Tony Do

Blacks Carried Over L 132

Carried Over L 1907

An inventory of the goods and chattels of Mr Richard Goddard, deceased, taken and appraised by Messrs Francis Wrangham senior, Samuel Doveton and James Powell on 7 January 1747.

Freehold land

52¾ acres, at 10s per acre, £525 0s 0d

12 acres, at 7s 10d per acre, £90 0s 0d

21 acres, at 8s 10d per acre, £178 10s 0d

10 acres, at 11s 4d per acre, £110 0s 0d

2½ acres, at 15s per acre, £37 10s 0d

4 acres, at 8s per acre, £32 0s 0d

31 acres, at 9s per acre, £279 0s 0d

1 acre, £20 0s 0d

Freehold land amounting to, £1,872 0s 0d

Leasehold land

11 acres, at 2s 6d per acre, £27 10s 0d

16 acres, at 8s 6d per acre, £36 0s 0d

9 acres, at 6s 6d per acre, £13 10s 0d

10 acres, at 3s 4d per acre, £38 0s 0d

Leasehold land amounting to, £115 0s 0d

Houses

the house at the fort, £270 0s 0d

the mansion house, £160 0s 0d

the house formerly Carew’s, £90 0s 0d

Houses amounting to, £520 0s 0d

Blacks

Will, a man, £28 0s 0d

Bacchus, a man, £23 0s 0d

Lewis, a man, £23 0s 0d

Toby, a man, £20 0s 0d

Fill, a man, £16 0s 0d

Madras, a man, £15 0s 0d

Old Toby, a man, £7 0s 0d

Tony, a man, £7 0s 0d

Blacks carried over, £139 0s 0d

Carried over, £1,900 0s 0d

Interpretations

The Richard Goddard estate opens as one of the largest landed holdings in the whole archive, its freehold ground alone valued at £1,872 across eight parcels totalling more than one hundred and thirty acres. This concentration of freehold land, far exceeding the holdings of most planters in these records, marks Goddard as a landowner of the first rank on an island where cultivable ground was scarce and much divided. The differing rates per acre, from eight shillings to fifteen, reflect the varying quality and situation of the parcels, the best land commanding nearly double the price of the poorest.

The three houses valued together at £520 include two substantial town properties, the house at the fort at £270 being the single most valuable building yet seen in these inventories. Property at the fort and in the settlement commanded high prices because it was the scarce commercial and residential ground of the island’s only town, and to hold two such houses alongside a mansion house on the plantation land marks a man of great wealth and standing. The note that one house was formerly Carew’s records the descent of town property between owners, the appraisers tracing its previous holder to identify it exactly.

The enslaved men who open the Blacks account carry the mixed names imposed throughout the archive, classical Bacchus, English Will and Toby, and place-names such as Madras that mark the Indian origin of some of the island’s slaves brought through the East India trade. The distinction drawn between Toby and Old Toby shows two men of the same name in one holding, the elder valued at seven pounds against the younger’s twenty, the lower figure reflecting the reduced worth an appraiser set on an ageing man. This careful pricing of human beings by age and capacity, running through every estate in the archive, appears here at the head of what promises to be a large slaveholding befitting so great a landed estate.

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35

Brought Over L 1907

Blacks Brought Over L 132

Jack a Boy 16

Will Do 15

Stephen Do 14

Toby Do 9

Tom Do 7

Abigail a Woman 19

Rose Do 16

Mego Do 5

Lucy Do 19

Sarah a Girl 14

Pego Do 7

Mary Do 2 10

Blacks amounting to L 282 10

Cattle Viz!

1 Bull 5

10 Cows & Calfs 47 5

13 Cows 48 5

10 Steers 36 10

12 Heifer 33 10

12 Yearlings 21

Cattle Amounting to L 191 10

Hoggs Viz!

1 Boar 1

9 Sows 7 8

23 Shoats 9 4

Hoggs amounting to L 17 12

Sheep Viz!

2 Rams 2

17 Ewes 17

5 Do Young 3 16

3 Weathers

Sheep amounting to L 23 16

Goats Viz!

56 Ewes 21 16

1 Ram 8

6 Kids 1 4 23 8

Carried Over L 2015 16

The inventory of the estate of Richard Goddard, deceased, continued from the running total of £1,907 0s 0d carried over, with the Blacks account brought forward at £139 0s 0d.

Blacks

Jack, a boy, £16 0s 0d

Will, a boy, £15 0s 0d

Stephen, a boy, £14 0s 0d

Toby, a boy, £9 0s 0d

Tom, a boy, £7 0s 0d

Abigail, a woman, £19 0s 0d

Sue, a woman, £16 0s 0d

Mogg, a woman, £5 0s 0d

Lucy, a woman, £19 0s 0d

Sarah, a girl, £14 0s 0d

Bess, a girl, £7 0s 0d

Mary, a girl, £2 10s 0d

Blacks amounting to, £282 10s 0d

Cattle

1 bull, £5 4s 0d

10 cows and calves, £47 5s 0d

13 cows, £48 5s 0d

10 steers, £36 10s 0d

12 heifers, £33 10s 0d

12 yearlings, £21 0s 0d

Cattle amounting to, £191 10s 0d

Hogs

1 boar, £1 0s 0d

9 sows, £7 8s 0d

23 shoats, £9 4s 0d

Hogs amounting to, £17 12s 0d

Sheep

2 rams, £2 0s 0d

17 ewes, £17 0s 0d

5 young ewes, £3 0s 0d

3 wethers, £1 16s 0d

Sheep amounting to, £23 16s 0d

Goats

56 ewes, £21 16s 0d

1 ram, £0 8s 0d

6 kids, £1 4s 0d

Carried over, £2,185 16s 0d

Interpretations

The completed Blacks account of the Richard Goddard estate values twenty enslaved people at £282 10s 0d, a large holding that matches the scale of his landed wealth and stands among the biggest in the archive. The enslaved are grouped by sex and stage of life, men, boys, women and girls, and priced accordingly, from twenty-eight pounds for an able man down to two pounds ten shillings for the girl Mary. Two enslaved women, Mogg at five pounds and the girl Mary at the lowest figure, were valued well below the others, most probably reflecting age, infirmity or extreme youth reducing the price the appraisers set on them.

The cattle here are unusually numerous, with ten cows and their calves, thirteen dry cows, ten steers, twelve heifers and twelve yearlings making up a herd worth nearly £192, far larger than those of the smaller estates in the archive. This substantial stock of breeding cows and rising young cattle marks a plantation run on a considerable scale, the productive herd being the foundation of a farm’s provisioning and its trade in meat and dairy. The careful sorting into cows in calf, dry cows, steers, heifers and yearlings reflects the settled and methodical husbandry that a holding of this size demanded.

The heavy weighting of the small stock toward goats, with fifty-six ewe goats alone, confirms once more the pattern seen throughout these records, where hardy goats that bred readily and foraged on the island’s rough ground far outnumbered the sheep. On St Helena, with its steep and broken terrain, goats thrived where more delicate animals struggled, and they made up the cheapest and most numerous livestock on nearly every farm. This great estate, with its large herds and flocks, its many slaves and its extensive freehold and town property, marks Richard Goddard as one of the wealthiest landholders whose affairs the archive records, his stock reckoned in the same disciplined columns applied to the humblest household.

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36

Brought Over L 2015 16

Horses Viz!

1 Horse & old Saddle L 7

1 Mare & New Do 12

Horses Amounting to L 19

Poultry Viz!

9 Grown Geese 2 3

12 Do Ducks 18

16 Do Fowls 1 4

36 half Grown Do 1 1

Poultry Amounting to L 5 14

Yams Viz!

34.500 at 15/ per 1000 31 18 6

8.300 Suckers at 5/4 Do 3 2 6

27.000 at 16/4 Do 21 12

57.000 at 6/4 Do 17 2

33.300 at 17/4 Do 28 9 6

28.500 Suckers at 7/4 Do 9 19 6

26.000 at 9/4 Do 11 14

37.000 at 7/6 4/Do 13 17 6

26.000 at 12/ Do 15 12

Yams Amounting to L 175 7 6

Plate Viz!

1 Silver Punch Strainer Wt 3 15 at 3/8 pr ounce 1 8 1 1/2

1 Do Ladle small 4 at 5/8 Do 1 10

1 large Silver Salver 17 at 7/8 Do 6 7 6

1 Small Do 9 10 at 7/8 Do 3 11 3

1 Do Do 8 5 at 7/8 Do 3 1 10 1/2

1 Silver Mug 13 15 at 7/8 Do 4 15 7 1/2

6 Nankea Spoons Tongs & Strainer 5 at 7/6 4/Do 1 17 6

12 Do Table Spoons 27 at 7/8 4/Do 10 2 6

6 Do Do 10 17 at 6/4 Do 3 5 1

3 Casters 12 at 7/6 4/Do 4 10

6 Tea Spoons Tongs & Strainer 3 10 at 7/8 4/Do 1 6 3

Old Silver 1 10 at 8/2 7 6

Plate Amounting to L 42 3 2 1/2

Carried Over L 2688 8 1/2

The inventory of the estate of Richard Goddard, deceased, continued from the running total of £2,445 16s 0d carried over.

Horses

1 horse and old saddle, £7 0s 0d

1 mare and new saddle, £12 0s 0d

Horses amounting to, £19 0s 0d

Poultry

9 grown geese, £2 5s 0d

12 grown ducks, £0 18s 0d

16 grown fowls, £1 4s 0d

36 half-grown fowls, £1 7s 0d

Poultry amounting to, £5 14s 0d

Yams

84,500 yams, at 13s per thousand, £54 18s 6d

8,500 suckers, at 5s per thousand, £2 2s 6d

27,000 yams, at 16s per thousand, £21 12s 0d

57,000 yams, at 6s per thousand, £17 2s 0d

33,500 yams, at 17s per thousand, £28 9s 6d

28,500 suckers, at 7s per thousand, £9 19s 6d

26,000 yams, at 9s per thousand, £11 14s 0d

37,000 yams, at 7s 6d per thousand, £13 17s 6d

26,000 yams, at 12s per thousand, £15 12s 0d

Yams amounting to, £175 7s 6d

Plate

1 silver punch strainer, weight 3 ounces 15 pennyweight, at 7s 6d per ounce, £1 8s 1½d

1 silver ladle salt, weight 4 ounces, at 7s 6d per ounce, £1 10s 0d

1 large silver salver, weight 17 ounces, at 7s 6d per ounce, £6 7s 6d

1 small silver salver, weight 9 ounces 10 pennyweight, at 7s 6d per ounce, £3 11s 3d

1 silver salver, weight 8 ounces 5 pennyweight, at 7s 6d per ounce, £3 1s 10½d

1 silver mug, weight 12 ounces 15 pennyweight, at 7s 6d per ounce, £4 15s 7½d

6 new teaspoons, tongs and strainer, weight 5 ounces, at 7s 6d per ounce, £1 17s 6d

12 silver table spoons, weight 27 ounces, at 7s 6d per ounce, £10 2s 6d

6 old silver table spoons, weight 10 ounces 17 pennyweight, at 6s 4d per ounce, £3 5s 1d

5 silver casters, weight 12 ounces, at 7s 6d per ounce, £4 10s 0d

6 teaspoons, tongs and strainer, weight 3 ounces 10 pennyweight, at 7s 6d per ounce, £1 5s 3d

old silver, weight 1 ounce 10 pennyweight, at 5s per ounce, £0 7s 6d

Plate amounting to, £42 3s 2½d

Carried over, £2,688 0s 8½d

Interpretations

The yam account of the Richard Goddard estate again shows the crop managed as a rolling operation of staggered plantings, more than three hundred and fifty thousand yams and suckers listed in nine lots and priced by maturity from five shillings to seventeen shillings the thousand. This staging by age, with mature yams worth most and young suckers least, reveals the same system of continuous planting seen in the great Disfountain estate, ensuring a steady supply of the island’s staple food throughout the year. On a holding of this size the yam crop alone came to £175, a substantial asset that provisioned the estate, its many slaves and the passing shipping.

The plate is valued by the standard island method, weighed to the pennyweight and priced at 7s 6d the ounce for most pieces, and the collection is a rich one befitting so wealthy a landholder. Salvers, a silver mug, casters, table spoons and tea equipment together came to more than £42, a considerable holding of wrought silver that served the double purpose of furnishing a genteel table and holding a convertible reserve of value. The distinction drawn between new spoons at the full rate and old silver at five shillings the ounce shows the appraisers pricing worn and broken pieces below sound ones, valuing even scrap metal to the grain.

The two riding animals, a horse with an old saddle and a mare with a new one, mark the mobility of a substantial planter across a steep and broken island where mounted travel eased the passage between scattered holdings. Horses were relatively few and valuable on St Helena, and to keep both a horse and a mare, each with its saddle, was the mark of a man of means who moved about his lands and the settlement on horseback. Set among the great herds of cattle and goats, the modest but well-appointed poultry, and the extensive yam crop, they complete the picture of one of the wealthiest and best-provisioned estates the archive records.

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37

Brought Over L 2688 8 1/2

1 Gold Philigree Smell Bottle L 5 5

1 Hat Case 10

a parcel of Iron Do 2 6

a parcel of Books 3 5

10 Pr Mettle Buckles 5

3 Hides upper Leather Neats 3 10

1000 Brass Nails 5

1 Pr Small Pistol 1

1 Boat Sea 5

1 Grindstone 12

A parcel of Plantation Tools 1 3

1 Ladder 15

1 Cheese Press 12 22 6 6

Household Good Viz!

1 Feathr Bed Bolstr & Pillows Beddr Ral & Underbed 1 6

1 Do Bolstr 2 Pillows Rail & Bedstead 7

1 Do Do Bedstead Pillow & Rail 6

1 Do Do 1 Pillow Rail & Bedstead 4 15

1 Do Do 2 Underbed Bedstead Rail 4 15

1 Do Do 3 Bedstead Rail 7

1 Do Do 2 Do underbed Bedstead & Rail 8

1 Do Do 1 Do Bedstead Small 3 10

1 Do old Do 3 Wool Bolstr old Chints Quilt & Bedstead 2 15

1 Do Bolstr 2 Pillows Rail Bedstead 7

1 Do Do 2 Do Do Do old 3 10

1 Do Do 2 Do & Bedstead 6

1 Do Do 2 Do Rail underbed Bed Rail & und Bolstr 6

1 Do Do 1 Do under Bed Rail & Bedstead 5 10

1 Do Do 2 Do underbed Bed Rail Bedstead & c 7

1 Do Do 1 Do Bedstead Wool Bolstr Small 1 10

1 Do & Ticking for a Bolstr & Pillows Rail & Bedstead 5

1 Wool Bed Bolstr Pillow Bedstead & Quilt 1 5

6 Quilts 11 12

2 Do do 9

1 Gingham Counterpain 2 10

1 Deerskin Do 2 18

2 Quilt 6 2

8 Do 4 15

1 Counterpain Household Good Carried Over L 149 13

Carried Over L 2910 7 2

The inventory of the estate of Richard Goddard, deceased, continued from the running total of £2,688 0s 8½d carried over.

1 gold filigree small bottle, £5 5s 0d

1 pen case, £0 10s 0d

a parcel of iron, £0 2s 6d

a parcel of books, £0 2s 6d

10 pairs of metal buckles, £3 5s 0d

3 hides upper leather, neat, £3 10s 0d

1,000 brass nails, £0 5s 0d

1 pair of small pistols, £1 0s 0d

1 boat, £5 0s 0d

1 grindstone, £0 12s 0d

a parcel of plantation tools, £1 5s 0d

1 ladder, £0 15s 0d

1 cheese press, £0 12s 0d

total, £22 6s 6d

Household goods

1 feather bed, bolster, 2 pillows, bedstead, rail, quilt and under bed, £6 0s 0d

1 feather bed, bolster, 2 pillows, rail and bedstead, £7 0s 0d

1 feather bed, bolster, bedstead, pillow and rail, £6 0s 0d

1 feather bed, bolster, 1 pillow, rail and bedstead, £4 15s 0d

1 feather bed, bolster, under bed, bedstead and rail, £4 15s 0d

1 feather bed, bolster, bedstead and rail, £7 0s 0d

1 feather bed, bolster, under bed, bedstead and rail, £8 0s 0d

1 feather bed, bolster, bedstead, small, £3 10s 0d

1 feather bed, old, bolster, 3 wool bolsters, old chintz quilt and bedstead, £2 15s 0d

1 feather bed, bolster, 2 pillows, rail and bedstead, £7 0s 0d

1 feather bed, bolster, 2 pillows, rail and bedstead, old, £3 10s 0d

1 feather bed, bolster, 2 pillows and bedstead, £6 0s 0d

1 feather bed, bolster, 2 pillows, bolster, under bed, bed, rail, furniture and bolster, £6 0s 0d

1 feather bed, bolster, 1 bolster, under bed, rail and bedstead, £5 10s 0d

1 feather bed, bolster, 2 bolsters, under bed, rail, bedstead and furniture, £7 0s 0d

1 feather bed, bolster, 1 bolster, bedstead and wool bolster, small, £1 10s 0d

1 feather bed and ticking for a bolster, 2 pillows, rail and bedstead, £5 0s 0d

1 wool bed, bolster, pillows, bedstead and quilt, £1 5s 0d

6 wool beds, bolsters, pillows, bedstead and quilt, £11 12s 0d

26 quilts, £9 0s 0d

1 gingham counterpane, £2 10s 0d

1 damask counterpane, £2 0s 0d

1 damask counterpane, £2 15s 0d

2 quilts, £6 2s 0d

8 quilts, £1 15s 0d

1 counterpane, £0 15s 0d

Household goods carried over, £149 13s 0d

Carried over, £2,710 7s 2½d

Interpretations

The bedding of the Richard Goddard estate is on an extraordinary scale, with some eighteen feather beds and a further seven wool beds listed one after another, each entered whole with its bolster, pillows, rail and bedstead. This vast quantity of made-up beds, far beyond the needs of any single family, together with the ranks of matched quilts and counterpanes, points strongly to a household that lodged and fed large numbers of people. On St Helena, where the East India ships broke their homeward voyage, so great a stock of bedding suggests an establishment that took in ships officers and passengers ashore, or otherwise accommodated many guests, though the inventory records only the goods and not their use.

Two entries among the tools and effects reveal the working economy of the estate beyond its land and stock. A cheese press marks the making of cheese from the milk of the great herd of cows valued earlier, turning the dairy produce into a keeping commodity, while three hides of upper leather and a thousand brass nails point to leatherwork or shoemaking carried on in the household. These small manufactures, set among the plantation tools and the boat, show a large estate that processed its own produce and undertook craft work, not merely raising crops and animals but adding value to them on the ground.

The single most valuable object on the page is a gold filigree bottle at £5 5s 0d, a delicate luxury import of the eastern trade that stands out sharply among the plain beds, tools and hides. Filigree, the fine ornamental work in twisted gold wire, was a speciality of Indian and eastern craftsmen, and such a piece would have reached the island through the same East India traffic that supplied its tea and porcelain. Its presence in the estate, alongside a pair of small pistols and ten pairs of metal buckles, marks the personal finery of a wealthy man, the costly and portable ornaments that a great planter kept among the practical wealth of his lands and herds.

46

38

Brought Over L 2710 7 2 1/2

Household Good Brought Over L 149 13

1 Blankett 1 1

1 Do 1 4

1 White Persucker Sett of Curtains Window Curtains

head Cloth & Tester old 15

1 Red Persucker Sett of Curtains Head Cloth & Tester 1

1 Sett of first Head Cloth & Tester Gown Ruff & Window Curtains 1 10

1 Sett of Do Head Cloth Tester 2 Window Curtains Half Chinte 1 5

1 Sett of first Head Cloth & Tester 1 Window Curtain Patchy Chinte 1 5

1 Sett of first Furniture Head Cloth & Tester 1

1 Sett of Do Head Cloth Tester Window Curtains 1 5

3 Setts of Do 2 Head Cloths & Tester & Window Curtains 3 15

1 Old Bedstd Rail 3 in the Pillow & Sett of Rainy Curtains 12

1 Bedstead 10

1 Small Bedstead Sacking Bottom 7 6

2 Setts Cot & Head Cloth Tester Bed & Window Curtains 1 12

1 Bedstead 1 Bolster & 3 Pillows 19

1 Sett of Patchy Chintz Curtains and 3 Window Curtains 1 5

2 old Stile Curtains 13

2 Chintz Toilets 3

1 White Do 1 6

1 Cotton Do 3

1 Toilet 1 6

4 Pr Anjango Cloth Sheets 2

10 Pr Long Cloth Do 5 2

2 Pr Holland Pillowbears 5

2 Pr Sacken Do 8

6 Pr Long Cloth Do 12

2 Suckabock Table Cloths 1 10

2 Gingham Do 2

4 Holland Do 3

7 Deesotees Do 2 16

3 Small Do Do 15

2 Holland Sideboard Cloths 8

1 old Dammack Do 1 6

11 Suckaback Napkins 16 6

3 Dammack Do 4 6

2 Do Do 1

21 Holland Towels 1 6

Household Good Carried Over 161 14 6

Carried Over L 2710 7 2

The inventory of the estate of Richard Goddard, deceased, continued from the running total of £2,710 7s 2½d carried over, with a household goods subtotal of £149 13s 0d brought forward.

4 blankets, £1 1s 0d

4 blankets, £1 4s 0d

1 white seersucker set of curtains, window curtains, head cloth and tester, old, £0 15s 0d

1 red seersucker set of curtains, head cloth and tester, £1 0s 0d

1 set of curtains, head cloth and tester, gown-stuff and window curtains, £1 10s 0d

1 set of curtains, head cloth, tester, 2 window curtains and rail, chintz, £1 5s 0d

1 set of curtains, head cloth, tester and window curtain, printed chintz, £1 5s 0d

1 set of curtains, seersucker, head cloth and tester, £1 0s 0d

1 set of curtains, head cloth, tester and window curtains, £1 5s 0d

3 sets of curtains, head cloths, testers and 9 window curtains, £3 15s 0d

1 old bed, rail, tick, pillows, bed and set of soosey curtains, £0 12s 0d

1 bedstead, £0 10s 0d

1 small bedstead, ticking bottom, £0 7s 6d

2 sets of curtains, head cloths, testers and 4 window curtains, £1 13s 0d

1 bedstead, 1 bolster and 2 pillows, £0 19s 0d

1 set of printed chintz curtains and 3 window curtains, £1 5s 0d

2 old soosey curtains, £0 13s 0d

2 chintz toilets, £0 3s 0d

1 white toilet, £0 1s 6d

1 caddow, £0 5s 0d

1 toilet, £0 1s 6d

4 pairs of anjango-cloth sheets, £2 0s 0d

10 pairs of long-cloth sheets, £5 2s 0d

2 pairs of holland pillowbears, £0 3s 0d

4 pairs of doosooty pillowbears, £0 8s 0d

6 pairs of long-cloth pillowbears, £0 12s 0d

2 huckaback tablecloths, £1 10s 0d

2 gingham tablecloths, £2 0s 0d

4 holland tablecloths, £0 3s 0d

7 doosooty tablecloths, £2 16s 0d

3 small doosooty tablecloths, £0 15s 0d

2 holland sideboard cloths, £0 8s 0d

old damask sideboard cloths, £0 1s 0d

11 huckaback napkins, £0 16s 6d

3 damask napkins, £0 4s 6d

28 old napkins, £0 1s 0d

21 holland towels, £1 11s 6d

Household goods carried over, £161 14s 6d

Carried over, £2,710 7s 2½d

Interpretations

The bed and window furnishings of the Richard Goddard estate run to an exceptional depth, with a dozen or more complete sets of curtains, head cloths and testers listed alongside the many beds of the preceding page. Each set comprised the full hangings of a curtained bed together with matching window curtains, made up in seersucker, chintz, printed chintz and soosey, all lightweight Indian cottons suited to the climate and supplied by the East India trade. This quantity of matched bed and window hangings, far beyond a single family’s need, reinforces the picture of a great household furnished to appoint many rooms, most probably for the lodging of guests and ships officers ashore.

The table and bed linen names its cloths precisely, and one variety here broadens the range recorded in the archive. Huckaback appears among the tablecloths and napkins, a coarse absorbent linen woven with a rough surface and used chiefly for towelling and everyday table use, entered alongside the finer damask and the plain holland and doosooty. The careful grading of these cloths, from fine damask down through huckaback and holland to old and worn pieces, let the appraisers spread a defensible value across a very large and varied stock of household textiles, exactly as in the other substantial estates.

A single unusual term marks a homelier item among the imported finery. A caddow, valued at five shillings, was a rough woollen coverlet or rug, the kind of plain bedding that stood at the opposite end of the household stock from the seersucker and chintz hangings. Its appearance among the toilets and fine curtains shows the mixture of coarse and costly that filled even the grandest island household, where the everyday and the imported luxury lay side by side. The appraisers valued each in turn, from the humble caddow to the full chintz bed set, entering the whole of a wealthy establishment’s textiles down to a single old napkin.

47

39

Brought Over L 2710 7 2 1/2

Household Goods Brought Over L 161 14 6

2 fine Gingham Table Cloths 2

1 Holland Do 16

3 old Do Do 15

2 Pr Deesotees Check 12

3 Pr Long Cloth Do 1 18

2 Pr Anjango Cloth Do 1

3 Pr old Garhas Do 1 6

8 Pr Pillowbean 6

6 old Towels & old Table Cloths 6

1 Chamber Table 7 6

1 Small Looking Glass 1

1 Chamber Table with a Drawer 7 6

1 Small Looking Glass 1

1 Chamber Table with a Drawer 1

1 Round Mahogany 1 5

10 Tring Glass 12

7 Chamber Botts 17 6

1 Chamber Table with 3 Drawers 1

1 Looking Glass with a Drawer 1 5

6 Rattan Chairs No 1 1 16

6 Do Do No 2 2

31 China Plates 2 4

3 Do Small Do 8

2 Enambled Do 3

14 Plates & 5 Dishes 3

16 Soop Plate 8

1 Do Dish Cracked 2

3 Blue White Do Dishes 10

4 Guglet & Basons 10

1 Mahogany Table & Carpet 2 10

1 Leathr Bottom Couch 1 15

1 Card Table 8 8

12 Leather Bottom Chairs 2 2

2 Elbow Do 2 10

1 Large Pier Glass 15

8 Pictures 1 10

1 Tea Table & old China

Household Goods Carried Over L 214 16 10

Carried Over L 2710 7 2 1/2

The inventory of the estate of Richard Goddard, deceased, continued from the running total of £2,710 7s 2½d carried over, with a household goods subtotal of £161 14s 6d brought forward.

2 fine gingham tablecloths, £2 0s 0d

1 holland tablecloth, £0 15s 0d

8 old tablecloths, £0 15s 0d

2 pairs of doosooty sheets, £0 12s 0d

3 pairs of long-cloth sheets, £1 10s 0d

2 pairs of anjango-cloth sheets, £1 0s 0d

3 pairs of old gurrah sheets, £0 1s 6d

8 pairs of pillowbears, £0 [...]

6 old towels and old tablecloth, £0 6s 0d

1 chamber table, £0 6s 0d

1 small looking glass, £0 7s 6d

1 chamber table with a drawer, £0 1s 0d

1 small looking glass, £0 7s 6d

1 chamber table with a drawer, £0 1s 0d

1 round mahogany table, £0 15s 0d

1 dressing glass, £0 12s 0d

7 chamber pots, £0 17s 6d

1 chamber table with 3 drawers, £1 0s 0d

1 looking glass with a drawer, £1 8s 0d

6 rattan chairs, first set, £1 16s 0d

6 rattan chairs, second set, £2 2s 0d

31 china plates, £1 4s 0d

3 china small dishes, £0 3s 0d

2 enamelled dishes, £0 3s 0d

14 plates and 5 dishes, £0 5s 0d

16 soup plates, £0 8s 0d

1 dish, deep, cracked, £0 1s 0d

3 blue and white china dishes, £0 10s 0d

1 guglet and basin, £0 [...]

1 mahogany table and carpet, £6 0s 0d

1 leather-bottom couch, £2 10s 0d

1 card table, £0 15s 0d

12 leather-bottom chairs, £8 8s 0d

2 elbow chairs, £1 10s 0d

1 large pier glass, £0 15s 0d

8 pictures, £1 0s 0d

1 tea table and old china, £0 [...]

Household goods carried over, £214 16s 10d

Carried over, £2,710 7s 2½d

Interpretations

The furniture of the Richard Goddard estate here reveals the formal reception rooms of a great house, appointed with matched suites of chairs and fashionable tables that mark it as one of the grandest establishments in the archive. Twelve leather-bottomed chairs valued together at £8 8s 0d form the largest single furniture entry, joined by two sets of six rattan chairs, elbow chairs, a leather couch and a card table, the equipment of rooms furnished for company and cards. A mahogany table with its carpet at £6, a large pier glass and eight pictures complete a scheme of genteel display far beyond the plain practical furnishing of the working planters’ houses.

The linen names a further imported cloth not seen in the earlier estates, marking again the reach of the island’s textile supply. Gurrah appears among the sheets, a plain coarse Indian cotton or muslin, entered here as old and valued at a shilling and sixpence for three worn pairs, alongside the familiar long-cloth, doosooty and anjango. This widening range of named Indian fabrics across the archive, each carrying the name of its cloth or its place of origin, shows how thoroughly the East India trade clothed the island’s households from the finest to the coarsest, supplying every grade of textile through the ships that touched at St Helena.

The pictures and the card table point to leisure and refinement in the household beyond mere comfort, the marks of a family that entertained and displayed its wealth in the manner of the English gentry. Eight pictures hung in a house on a remote Atlantic island, together with a table set aside for cards, show the leading planters reproducing the social habits of home, their reception rooms furnished for polite company and pastime. Set among the great herds, the extensive lands and the many slaves of the estate, this genteel apparatus completes the portrait of Richard Goddard as a man of the first rank on the island, his house appointed to match his standing.

48

40

Brought Over L 2710 7 2

Household Goods Brought Over L 214 16 10

1 Large oval fir Table 1 15

1 Small Mahogany Do 4

1 oblong Teak Table 1 5

2 Leathr Bottom Elbow Chairs 2 2

6 Rush Bottom Chairs 2 8

1 Backgammon Table 15

24 Knives & forks Ivory Handle & a Mahogany box 3

1 Shagreen Case with Cravats 1 10

1 Small Pier Glass 2

2 Pr White Mettal Candlesticks 15

1 Pr Brass Do 1 2 6

1 Pr White Mettal Snuffers 2 6

1 Pr Steel Spring Snuffers 4

2 Earthen Muggs 2

11 Wine Glasses 2

7 Beer Do 7

3 Pr Brass Salts 9

1 Pr Decanters 7

12 Jelly Glasses & Stand 12

2 Large China Bowls 9

2 Small Do 3

8 Small Cups & 6 Saucers & 5 Coffee Cups 3 6

4 half Pint Cups & Saucers 3

9 Small Cups & 11 Saucers 3 4

1 Pewter Tea Pott 2 6

1 Earthen Do 4

1 Do Jar 1

1 Pickle & Stand 2 10

1 Corner Cupboard 10

1 Small Pier Glass 2

1 Small Wainscot Table old 12

1 Large Chest with Brass Work 2 5

1 Case with 6 six Quart Bottles 1 5

1 Do with 15 five pint Do 15

1 Small Case with 6 Bottles 5

1 Small old Stand Decanters 2 6

1 Spying Glass 1 10

1 Chest Drawers old 1 5

Household Goods Carried over L 252 10 8

Carried Over L 2710 7 2

The inventory of the estate of Richard Goddard, deceased, continued from the running total of £2,710 7s 2½d carried over, with a household goods subtotal of £214 16s 10d brought forward.

1 large oval fir table, £1 15s 0d

1 small mahogany table, £1 0s 0d

1 oblong teak table, £1 5s 0d

2 leather-bottom elbow chairs, £2 2s 0d

6 buck-bottom chairs, £2 8s 0d

1 backgammon table, £0 15s 0d

24 knives and forks, ivory-handled, in a shagreen case, £3 0s 0d

1 shagreen case with cruets, £1 10s 0d

1 small beer glass, £0 2s 0d

2 pairs of white metal candlesticks, £0 16s 0d

1 pair of brass candlesticks, £0 2s 6d

1 pair of white metal snuffers, £0 2s 6d

1 pair of steel spring snuffers, £0 4s 0d

2 earthen mugs, £0 2s 0d

11 wine glasses, £0 4s 0d

7 beer glasses, £0 4s 0d

3 pairs of brass salts, £0 4s 0d

1 pair of decanters, £0 4s 0d

12 jelly glasses and stand, £0 4s 0d

2 large china bowls, £0 4s 0d

2 small china bowls, £0 3s 0d

8 small cups, 6 saucers and 5 coffee cups, £0 3s 6d

1 half-pint cup and 3 saucers, £0 3s 0d

9 small cups and 11 saucers, £0 3s 4d

1 pewter teapot, £0 2s 6d

1 earthen teapot, £0 1s 0d

1 earthen jar, £0 1s 0d

1 bookcase and stand, £2 10s 0d

1 corner cupboard, £0 10s 0d

1 small pier glass, £0 12s 0d

1 small wainscot table, old, £0 12s 0d

1 large chest with brass work, £2 5s 0d

1 case with 6 quart bottles, £1 5s 0d

1 case with 15 fine pint bottles, £0 15s 0d

1 small case with 6 bottles, £0 2s 6d

1 small old island lantern, £0 2s 6d

1 spying glass, £1 10s 0d

1 chest of drawers, £1 5s 0d

Household goods amounting to, £252 10s 8d

Carried over, £2,710 7s 2½d

Interpretations

The furniture of the Richard Goddard estate here shows a striking range of cabinet timbers, marking the reach of the wood trade to the island. Alongside the familiar fir, wainscot and mahogany appears an oblong teak table, teak being a tropical Asian hardwood shipped through the East India trade and prized for its durability, entered here beside a small mahogany table and the plainer fir. This mixture of local, English and Asian woods in one household reflects the varied sources that furnished a wealthy island house, drawing timber from the same long ocean routes that carried its tea and porcelain.

A bookcase with its stand, valued at £2 10s 0d, marks Goddard as a man of some learning or at least of settled establishment, one of the more valuable single pieces of furniture in the household. Set with the parcel of books noted earlier and the eight pictures on the reception-room walls, it points to a household that kept and displayed books as part of its gentility, reproducing on a remote island the furnishings of an educated English home. Such a piece was uncommon in these inventories, where books more often appear as unbound parcels, and its presence confirms the exceptional standing of the estate.

A spying glass at £1 10s 0d again marks the watching of the road for shipping, the practical instrument of a household whose fortunes, like the whole island’s, turned on the arrival of the East India fleet. This telescope, the most valuable of the small optical and lighting goods, let the household mark the approach of vessels that brought trade, news and the officers who may have lodged among its many beds. Together with the shagreen-cased cutlery, the ranks of drinking glasses and the cases of bottled wine, it completes the picture of an establishment equipped both to watch for the ships and to entertain those they carried, at the very centre of the island’s commercial life.

49

41

Brought Over L 2710 7 2

Household Goods Brought over L 252 10 8

1 Teak Chest 1

1 Sandel Wood Chest 2 10

1 Ebony Do 1 10

1 Hand Escretoe Rose Wood 1 10

1 Small Do Do 1 5

1 large Trunk 10

a parcel of odd China 6

5 Glass Tumblers 4

1 Mahogany Case Stool Chair 3 9

1 Box Iron & Heaters 1 3

1 Chamber Pot 9

1 Bandee 2 6

1 large Mangrove Chest 1

1 Red fir Chest 3

1 Chamber Table 1 10

1 Portmanteau 8

2 Tin Saucepans 10

1 Close Stool 1

1 old fir Box 2

1 Close Stool Chair 2

1 large fir Chest 14

1 Tea Table 6

1 Square Do 7 5

1 Glass Lanthorn 3

1 Case wt 6 Six Quart Bottles 11

14 Rattan Bottom Chairs 3 10

2 Do Do 18

1 Corner Cupboard 15

7 China Jars 1 4 6

2 Small Earthen Jars 2

2 large Meat Potts 1 16

3 Small Do 1 7

2 Milk Potts 6

1 Pr Pothangers 6

1 Pr Andirons 10 3

1 Grid Iron 4

1 large frying Pan 2

1 Small Do

Household Goods for over L 288 8 5

Carried Over L 2710 7 2

The inventory of the estate of Richard Goddard, deceased, continued from the running total of £2,710 7s 2½d carried over, with a household goods subtotal of £252 10s 8d brought forward.

1 teak chest, £2 10s 0d

1 sandalwood chest, £4 10s 0d

1 ebony chest, £1 10s 0d

1 hand escritoire, rosewood, £1 5s 0d

1 small hand escritoire, £0 10s 0d

1 large trunk, £0 6s 0d

a parcel of old china, £0 1s 0d

5 glass tumblers, £0 3s 9d

1 mahogany close stool chair, £1 5s 0d

1 box, iron and heaters, £0 9s 0d

1 chamber pot, £0 2s 6d

1 bandore, £0 1s 0d

1 large mango tree chest, £3 0s 0d

1 red fir chest, £1 10s 0d

1 chamber table, £0 8s 0d

1 portmanteau, £0 10s 0d

2 tin saucepans, £0 1s 0d

1 close stool, £1 0s 0d

1 old fir box, £0 2s 0d

1 close stool chair, £0 12s 0d

1 large fir chest, £0 [...]

1 tea table, £0 7s 0d

1 square tea table, £0 5s 0d

1 glass lantern, £0 3s 0d

1 case with 6 six-quart bottles, £0 18s 0d

14 rattan-bottom chairs, £3 10s 0d

2 rattan-bottom chairs, £0 18s 0d

1 corner cupboard, £0 15s 0d

7 china jars, £1 11s 6d

2 small earthen jars, £0 2s 0d

2 large meat pots, £1 16s 0d

3 small meat pots, £0 17s 0d

2 milk pots, £0 6s 0d

1 pair of pot hangers, £0 6s 0d

1 pair of andirons, £0 10s 0d

1 gridiron, £0 4s 0d

1 large frying pan, £0 2s 0d

1 small frying pan, £0 [...]

Household goods carried over, £288 8s 5d

Carried over, £2,710 7s 2½d

Interpretations

The chests of the Richard Goddard estate display an extraordinary range of exotic Asian timbers, marking this as the richest household in the archive for imported cabinet ware. A sandalwood chest at £4 10s 0d, an ebony chest, a rosewood escritoire, a teak chest and a chest of the local mango tree stood together in the house, each of a costly aromatic or ornamental wood carried through the eastern trade or worked from island timber. Sandalwood, ebony and rosewood were prized Asian woods valued for their scent, colour and hardness, and to keep chests of each was the mark of a man with direct access to the private trade of the East India ships that touched at the island.

The recurrence of rattan-bottomed chairs, here fourteen in one set with two more beside them, confirms once again the pattern of light imported seating that runs through every substantial estate in the archive. These caned chairs, suited to the warm climate and shipped through the eastern trade, appear in matched sets across the wealthiest houses, and their presence in such numbers in the Goddard estate marks rooms furnished to seat a large company. Set with the leather-bottomed chairs and couches of the reception rooms recorded earlier, they show a household equipped for entertaining on a considerable scale.

The kitchen and dairy wares that close the page, meat pots, milk pots, pot hangers, andirons and frying pans, anchor the exotic finery in the working economy of a great plantation. Beneath the sandalwood chests and the rattan chairs lay the plain heavy gear of a household that produced and prepared its own food, the dairy pots serving the great herd of cows and the meat pots the cattle raised for the table and for sale. This mixture of the costliest imported luxury with the plainest domestic equipment, running through the whole Goddard inventory, captures the double character of the island’s leading estates, at once genteel establishments furnished from the eastern trade and working farms sustained by their land, their herds and their many slaves.

50

42

Brought over L 2710 7 2

Household Goods Bro over L 288 8 5

2 Hash Pans 7

1 Fish Kittle 1

1 Spitt 2

1 large Sea Kittle 14

1 Smaller Do 14

2 Chimnees 8

1 Pr Tongs & Flesh Fork 3

1 Cleaver 1

1 Gallon Pewter Pott 6

1 Quart Do 2

1 Spit Spott 2 6

1 Pewter Funnil 1 6

1 Pitch Ladle 1 6

4 Sugar Tubs 16

1 large Earthen Jar 4

1 Small Carboy 2

9 Carboys 1 14

3 Cases wt 15 five pint Bottles 2 5

1 Look Glass Gilt Frame 7 6

1 Chamber Botts 10

1 Small Red Wood Chamber Table 7 6

1 Elbow Chair Rattan Bottom 8 10

5 old Cain Chairs Black & 1 Elbow Chair 1 5

1 Oval Wainscott Table 1

1 Glass Gilt Frame Sconces 2 2

1 old Black Frame Look & Glass 7 6

1 old Wooden Chair 1

2 Iron Potts 2

1 Earthen Jar 5

1 Cloth Brush 1

1 Pr Brass Steelyards Small 5

1 Cracked Pestl & Mortar Iron 5

1 Pr old Bellows 2 6

1 large Tin Pott 1 6

1 Small China Bowl 1 6

1 large fir Table Oval 1 5

1 Small Stool Do Do 311 11 3

Household Goods Carried Over L 2710 7 2

The inventory of the estate of Richard Goddard, deceased, continued from the running total of £2,710 7s 2½d carried over, with a household goods subtotal of £288 8s 5d brought forward.

2 flesh forks, £0 0s 7d

1 fish kettle, £1 2s 0d

1 spit, £0 2s 0d

1 large tea kettle, £0 14s 0d

1 smaller tea kettle, £0 14s 0d

2 skimmers, £0 8s 0d

1 pair of tongs and flesh fork, £0 3s 0d

1 cleaver, £0 1s 0d

1 gallon pewter pot, £0 6s 0d

1 quart pewter pot, £0 2s 0d

1 split spoon, £0 2s 6d

1 pewter funnel, £0 1s 6d

1 pitch ladle, £0 1s 6d

4 sugar tubs, £0 16s 0d

1 large earthen jar, £0 4s 0d

1 small carboy, £0 2s 0d

9 carboys, £2 11s 0d

3 cases with 15 fine pint bottles, £2 5s 0d

1 looking glass, gilt frame, £0 7s 6d

7 chamber pots, £0 10s 0d

1 small redwood chamber table, £0 7s 6d

1 elbow chair, rattan bottom, £0 11s 0d

5 old cane chairs, black, and 1 elbow chair, £1 5s 0d

1 oval wainscot table, £1 0s 0d

1 glass, gilt frame, £2 2s 0d

1 old black-frame looking glass, £0 7s 6d

1 old wooden chair, £0 1s 0d

2 iron snuffers, £0 2s 0d

1 earthen jar, £0 1s 0d

1 flesh brush, £0 1s 0d

1 pair of brass steelyards, small, £0 1s 6d

1 cracked pestle and iron mortar, £0 3s 0d

1 pair of old bellows, £0 2s 6d

1 large tin pot, £0 1s 6d

1 small china bowl, £0 1s 6d

1 large fir table, oval, £0 2s 0d

1 small teak table, £0 1s 6d

Household goods carried over, £311 11s 5d

Carried over, £2,710 7s 2½d

Interpretations

The kitchen and provisioning gear of the Richard Goddard estate deepens the picture of a great working household, with fish kettles, tea kettles, sugar tubs, meat forks and cleavers making up the heavy equipment of a large establishment that catered on a considerable scale. Four sugar tubs in particular point to the storing and processing of sugar in quantity, most probably imported for the household’s own use and for the making of preserves, while the gallon and quart pewter pots mark the serving of drink in bulk. This depth of catering equipment matches the many beds and stocks of linen recorded earlier, all consistent with a house that lodged and fed large numbers.

The nine carboys and the cases of fine pint bottles again mark the storing and moving of liquids on a scale beyond ordinary domestic need. Carboys were large protected bottles for carrying spirits, wine or other fluids, and to hold nine of them together, with cases of bottles besides, points to a household that dealt in drink or kept it in quantity for entertaining and supply. A pitch ladle among the goods hints at practical work with tar or pitch, most probably for the boat recorded earlier or for maintenance about the estate, a homely tool set among the finer wares.

The furniture here shows the worn and the black-framed pieces relegated from the formal rooms, old cane chairs, an old wooden chair and old looking glasses in black frames, set apart from the fashionable suites of the reception rooms recorded earlier. This division between the fine seating of the best rooms and the old, dark furniture of the lesser chambers reflects how a great house arranged its goods by quality and use, keeping its best for display and its worn pieces for the working parts of the establishment. The appraisers moved through the whole house, the grand rooms and the plain ones alike, valuing the sandalwood chest and the cracked mortar with equal care, so that the entire estate of the island’s wealthiest planter could be reckoned to the last flesh fork.

51

43

Brought Over L 2710 7 2

Household Goods Brought Over L 310 11 3

1 old Couch 12

1 Cane Elbow Chair 10

8 Do Do 2 8

1 Wainscot Bureau 2 5

1 fir Case wt 9 two Quart Bottles 10

1 Walnut Frame Pier Glass 2

3 Leathr Bottom Chair 9

2 Elbow Chair Wooden 1

1 Shagreen Case wt 11 Knives & Forks Ivory Handle 1 10

1 Small Looking Glass 1 6

1 Pr Glass Shades 5

8 Wine Glasses 6

2 Beer Glasses 3

2 China Plates 6

2 Do Dishes 4 [...]

2 Do Cracked 2 8

1 Glass Mugg 2

1 Do Smaller 1

2 Bandee 3

2 Small China Bowls 3

3 Do Jars 12

1 Pr Glass Salts 1 6

5 Crewits 5

1 Clock 3

1 Wooden Punch Ladle 5

1 Small Looking Glass Gilt Frame 7 6

1 Small Chamber Table Lackard 5

12 Small China Cups & Saucers & old Tea Table 5

1 large fir Chest painted 2

1 old Square Table wt a Black Frame 7 6

1 old Chest Drawers 5

1 old Broken Look & Glass 2 6

2 old Small fir Boxes 2

1 Copper Saucepan 1

2 old Tin Saucepans 1

1 Warming Pan 10

1 Chafing Dish 15

Household Goods Carried Over L 333 17 7

Carried Over L 2710 7 2

The inventory of the estate of Richard Goddard, deceased, continued from the running total of £2,710 7s 2½d carried over, with a household goods subtotal of £311 11s 5d brought forward.

1 old couch, £0 12s 0d

1 cane elbow chair, £0 10s 0d

8 cane elbow chairs, £2 8s 0d

1 wainscot bureau, £2 5s 0d

1 fir case with 9 two-quart bottles, £0 10s 0d

1 walnut-frame pier glass, £2 0s 0d

3 leather-bottom chairs, £0 9s 0d

2 elbow chairs, wooden, £0 4s 0d

1 shagreen case with 11 knives and forks, ivory-handled, £1 10s 0d

1 small looking glass, £0 1s 6d

1 pair of glass shades, £0 5s 0d

8 wine glasses, £0 6s 0d

2 beer glasses, £0 3s 0d

24 china plates, £0 8s 0d

2 china dishes, £0 4s 4d

2 china dishes, cracked, £0 2s 8d

1 glass mug, £0 2s 0d

1 smaller glass mug, £0 1s 0d

2 bandores, £0 3s 0d

2 small china bowls, £0 3s 0d

3 china jars, £0 12s 0d

1 pair of glass salts, £0 1s 6d

5 cruets, £0 5s 0d

1 clock, £3 0s 0d

1 wooden punch ladle, £0 0s 6d

1 small looking glass, gilt frame, £0 7s 6d

1 small chamber table, lacquered, £0 5s 0d

12 small china cups and saucers and old tea table, £0 5s 0d

1 large fir chest, painted, £2 0s 0d

1 old square table with a black frame, £0 7s 6d

1 old chest of drawers, £1 5s 0d

1 old broken looking glass, £0 2s 6d

2 old small fir boxes, £0 2s 0d

1 copper saucepan, £0 1s 0d

2 old tin saucepans, £0 0s 6d

1 warming pan, £0 10s 0d

1 chafing dish, £0 15s 0d

Household goods carried over, £333 17s 7d

Carried over, £2,710 7s 2½d

Interpretations

A single entry on this page stands out sharply from the run of household goods, for a clock valued at £3 was among the most costly individual articles in the whole estate. Clocks were rare and expensive imports on a remote island, precision instruments carried from England at considerable cost, and to keep one marked a household of the first rank ordering its day by measured time rather than by the sun. Its presence in the Goddard estate, alongside the spying glass, the pictures and the bookcase, completes the portrait of a great house furnished with the refinements of an educated English home reproduced far out in the Atlantic.

The furniture here again divides between the fashionable and the worn, with a walnut-framed pier glass, cane elbow chairs and a wainscot bureau of the better sort set against old broken looking glasses, old fir boxes and an old square table in a black frame. This persistent sorting of goods by quality and condition, carried through the entire long inventory, shows how the appraisers moved room by room through a large establishment, distinguishing the pieces kept for display in the best chambers from the tired furniture relegated to the working parts of the house. The pair of glass shades, used to protect candle flames or ornaments from draughts, marks a further touch of refinement among the finer goods.

The two bandores entered together at three shillings, following the single bandore noted earlier in the estate, confirm that this household kept more than one of these wire-strung bass lutes. The presence of several such instruments points to music made in the house, a mark of leisure and cultivation befitting the grandest establishment in the archive, though their low valuation suggests old or worn pieces rather than fine new ones. Set among the clock, the drinking glasses and the tea equipage, they round out the portrait of a wealthy family that filled its remote island house with the pastimes, comforts and ordered refinements of gentility.

52

44

Brought Over L 2710 7 2

Household Goods Bro Over L 333 17 7

16 China Cups & Saucers 5

1 old Chest Drawers 10

1 old Square Table 2 6

1 old Close Stool Pan 5

2 Chamber Potts 6

19 Pewter Plates 14 3

6 Do Dishes 12

5 large Pewter Basons 10

2 Small Do 2

1 Pewter Funnell 1 6

1 Do half Gallon Pott 2 6

7 Earthen Jars 7

1 Do Jar 1 6

2 Do Tea Potts 3

1 Brass Pestle & Mortar 4

2 old Candlesticks & 1 Pr Snuffers 5

1 Do Spit Pott 2 6

10 old Knives & Forks 5

1 large Copper Kittle 4

2 Frypans 3

1 Small Brine Tub 4

1 Milk Cagg 1

2 Pails 1

4 Earthen Jars 4

1 Pewter Pott 1

2 old Box Irons & Heaters 10

1 Tin Lamp 1

2 Copper Tea Kittles 13

1 Pr Small Steelyards 5

2 old fir Chests 6

1 old Oval Table 12

1 Do Small Do 6

1 Pr Pothangers 3

1 Brass Kittle 1 5

1 large Meat Pott 8

1 Middling Do 6

2 Melt Potts

Household Good Carried Over L 349 6 1

Carried Over L 2710 7 2

The inventory of the estate of Richard Goddard, deceased, continued from the running total of £2,710 7s 2½d carried over, with a household goods subtotal of £333 17s 7d brought forward.

16 china cups and saucers, £0 5s 0d

1 old chest of drawers, £0 10s 0d

1 old square table, £0 2s 6d

1 old close stool pan, £0 5s 0d

3 chamber pots, £0 6s 0d

19 pewter plates, £0 14s 3d

6 pewter dishes, £0 12s 0d

5 large pewter basins, £0 10s 0d

2 small pewter basins, £0 2s 0d

1 pewter funnel, £0 1s 6d

1 half-gallon pewter pot, £0 2s 6d

7 earthen pans, £0 1s 0d

1 earthen jar, £0 1s 6d

2 earthen teapots, £0 3s 0d

1 brass pestle and mortar, £0 1s 0d

2 old candlesticks and 1 pair of snuffers, £0 5s 0d

1 old split spoon, £0 2s 6d

10 old knives and forks, £0 5s 0d

1 large copper kettle, £4 0s 0d

2 piggins, £0 3s 0d

1 small brine tub, £0 4s 0d

1 milk keg, £0 1s 0d

2 pails, £0 4s 0d

4 earthen jars, £0 4s 0d

1 pewter pot, £0 1s 0d

3 old box irons and heaters, £0 10s 0d

1 tin lamp, £0 1s 0d

2 copper tea kettles, £0 15s 0d

1 pair of small steelyards, £0 5s 0d

2 old fir chests, £0 6s 0d

1 old oval table, £0 12s 0d

1 small oval table, £0 6s 0d

1 pair of pot hangers, £0 6s 0d

1 brass kettle, £1 5s 0d

1 large meat pot, £0 10s 0d

1 middling meat pot, £0 8s 0d

2 milk pots, £0 6s 0d

Household goods carried over, £319 6s 4d

Carried over, £2,710 7s 2½d

Interpretations

The heavy kitchen and dairy metal of the Richard Goddard estate here comes to the fore, with a large copper kettle at £4 standing as the single most valuable item on the page, worth as much as some of the enslaved people valued earlier. Great copper kettles were costly and durable, the essential vessels of a household that cooked and provisioned on a large scale, and to keep one so valuable, with a brass kettle and two copper tea kettles besides, marks an establishment equipped to cater for many. The depth of this cooking copper matches the many beds and stocks of linen throughout the estate, all pointing to a house that fed and lodged large numbers.

The dairy gear, piggins, pails, a milk keg, milk pots and a brine tub, anchors the great estate firmly in the working of a provisioning farm. These plain wooden and earthen vessels served the large herd of cows valued earlier, turning their milk into butter and cheese and their meat into salted provisions kept in brine. This everyday equipment of milking, churning and preserving, set beneath the sandalwood chests and the clock of the finer rooms, shows the double life of the island’s greatest household, at once a genteel establishment and a busy farm that produced much of its own food.

The persistent notation of goods as old, running through the chests of drawers, the fir chests, the box irons and the knives and forks, reflects the appraisers’ steady discipline in grading every article by its condition. This careful distinction between sound and worn goods, carried through page after page of a very long inventory, let the appraisers set a defensible value on the entire contents of a great house, from the costliest copper kettle to the most battered old fir box. The whole estate, its grand rooms and its dairy alike, was reckoned to the last piggin and pot hanger, so that the property of the island’s wealthiest planter could be fairly valued and in time divided.

53

45

Brought Over L 2710 7 2

Household Goods Brought Over L 349 6 1

2 Spitts 5

1 Brass Ladle 2

1 Yam Pott 18

1 large Meat Pott 12

Household Good Amounting to L 351 3 4

Cash 105 3 4

The following Persons Indebted to the Estate Viz

John Doveton L 26 16 10 1/2

William Young 1 1

John Desfountain 6

Jonathan Doveton's Orphans 2 1 3/4

Thos Jarvis 6

Martin Harper 2 10 3

Roger Nevanson 3 13 6

John Jarvis 2 10 5

Ballowfoot 1 9 5

Isaac Leech 2 10 2

Fran Hayes 2 17

John Hayes 4

46 16 3/4

3213 9 10 1/2

The Estate Indebted to the following Persons Viz

To Edmund Nichols Estate 89 3

To Peter Shelley 19 8 3

To Samuel Falconer Surgeon [...]

To Mr John Bazetts Orphans 5 19 6

117 11 1

L 3095 18 9 1/2

Signed

Fran Wrangham

Saml Doveton

The inventory of the estate of Richard Goddard, deceased, closed from the running total of £2,710 7s 2½d carried over, with a household goods subtotal of £319 6s 4d brought forward.

2 spits, £0 5s 0d

1 brass ladle, £0 2s 0d

1 yam pot, £0 18s 0d

1 large meat pot, £0 12s 0d

Household goods amounting to, £351 3s 4d

Cash, £105 3s 4d

The following persons indebted to the estate

John Doveton, £26 16s 10½d

William Young, £1 1s 0d

John Disfountain, £0 6s 0d

Jonathan Doveton’s orphans, £2 1s 4½d

Thomas Jarvis, £0 6s 0d

Martin Harper, £2 10s 3d

Roger Nevanson, £3 15s 6d

John Jason, £2 14s 6d

Ballowcook, £1 9s 5d

Isaac Leech, £2 10s 2d

Francis Hayes, £2 17s 0d

John Hayes, £0 14s 0d

subtotal, £46 16s 4½d

total, £3,213 9s 10½d

The estate indebted to the following persons

To Edmund Nichols’ estate, £84 3s 0d

To Peter Skelley, £19 8s 3d

To Samuel Falconer, surgeon, £8 4s 0d

To Mrs John Bazett’s orphans, £5 16s 0d

subtotal, £117 11s 1d

total, £3,095 18s 9½d

The inventory was signed by Francis Wrangham and Samuel Doveton.

Interpretations

The great Richard Goddard estate is reckoned through to a clean figure approaching £3,096 after the debts owed by it were set against the whole, marking it as by far the largest estate the archive records. The gross value stood above £3,213, built on extensive freehold and town property, large herds, many slaves, a rolling yam crop and a house full of imported luxury, and only the modest debts of £117 reduced it to the net divisible sum. That so vast an estate owed so little confirms Goddard as a man of substantial means who had lent widely while borrowing little, the true measure of his wealth appearing in the balance between what he was owed and what he owed.

The two schedules of debts each way show the wealthy planter at the centre of the island’s web of credit, owed small sums by a dozen of his neighbours while owing larger amounts to a few estates and a surgeon. Several debtors recur across the archive, including John Doveton, Martin Harper, Isaac Leech and the Hayes family, confirming the tight circle of established families bound together by mutual lending. The debts owed by the estate to the orphans of John Bazett and to Edmund Nichols’ estate show obligations that had to be paid to the heirs of the dead, the settlement of one man’s affairs reaching into the estates of others.

The recurring appearance of orphans in these debtor and creditor lists, Jonathan Doveton’s orphans owed money to the estate and John Bazett’s orphans owed money by it, marks the working of a system that carried debts and credits across the deaths of the parties. When a creditor or debtor died leaving minor children, the sum did not lapse but passed to or from the orphans’ portion, to be gathered in or paid out by guardians on their behalf. This continuity of obligation through inheritance, seen throughout the archive, shows how the island’s credit bound not only living men but their heirs, the running accounts of a small community outlasting the individuals who first contracted them.

54

46

Inventory of the Estate of Grif Harper Deceasd taken and

Appraised by Messrs John Goodwin, Thos Greentree and Sam Doveton

March the 22 1747-8 Viz

Land {

11 Acres Freehold Land @ L 11 Pr Acre L 121

11 Acres Do called Griffins @ 10 Pr Acre 110

1 Acres Leasehold called Griffins @ 16 Pr Acre 16

27 1/2 Acres Do @ 3 Pr Acre 82 10

10 Acres Do called Windy Point @ 1 1/2 Pr Acre 15

30 Acres Do Adjoining to the Mansion House at 65

}

The Mansion House 80

The House at Fort Valley 220 607 10

Household Goods Viz!

1 large Oval Table 3 3

1 Wainscot Do Smaller 1 5

1 Mahogany Sideboard Table 1 2 6

1 old Wainscott Oval Table 18

12 Chairs Leathr Bottomd @ 12/ each 7 4

9 Cain Chairs @ 7/ each 3 3

1 Wood Chair old Do

1 large Looking Glass 15

1 Tea Table & broken Sett of China 3 5

1 Case wt 8 Six Quart Bottles 1 5

8 Pictures in Frames 1 5

1 Teak Bureau 8

1 Wainscot Chest 3 5

1 Mahogany Chamber Table wt a Drawer 3

3 Sharkt Glasses in Gilt frames 7/6 each 1 5

1 Feathr Bed Bolster 2 Pillows & Bedstead 1 2 6

1 Do Bed 3 Pillows Wool Bolster & Bedstead 9

1 Do & underBed Bolstr 2 Pillows & Bedstead 6 10

1 Chamber Table & 2 Drawers 1

2 fir Chamber Tables & Do 16

1 Under Bed & Bedstead 1

1 Bedstead 12

2 China Chamber Potts 1 each 1

3 Pewter Do 1 6

559

Carried Over L 662 [...]

An inventory of the estate of Gabriel Harper, deceased, taken and appraised by Messrs John Goodwin, Thomas Greentree and Samuel Doveton on 22 March 1748.

Land

11 acres freehold land, at 11s per acre, £121 0s 0d

11 acres freehold land called Griffins, at 10s per acre, £110 0s 0d

1 acre leasehold called Griffins, at 16s per acre, £16 0s 0d

27½ acres leasehold, at 3s per acre, £82 10s 0d

10 acres leasehold called Windy Point, at 3s per acre, £15 0s 0d

30 acres leasehold adjoining the mansion house, £63 0s 0d

the mansion house, £86 0s 0d

the house at Fort Valley, £220 0s 0d

total, £607 10s 0d

Household goods

1 large oval table, £3 3s 0d

1 wainscot table, smaller, £1 5s 0d

1 mahogany sideboard table, £1 2s 6d

1 old wainscot oval table, £0 18s 0d

18 leather-bottom chairs, at 12s each, £7 4s 0d

9 cane chairs, at 7s each, £3 3s 0d

1 elbow chair, old cane, £0 15s 0d

1 large looking glass, £3 0s 0d

1 tea table and broken set of china, £1 5s 0d

1 case with 8 six-quart bottles, £1 5s 0d

8 pictures in frames, £0 8s 0d

1 teak bureau, £3 5s 0d

1 wainscot chest, £3 0s 0d

1 mahogany chamber table with a drawer, £1 5s 0d

3 chamber glasses with gilt frames, at 7s each, £1 2s 6d

1 feather bed, bolster, 2 pillows and bedstead, £9 0s 0d

1 feather bed, 3 pillows, wool bolster and bedstead, £4 0s 0d

1 feather bed, under bed, bolster, 2 pillows and bedstead, £6 10s 0d

1 chamber table with 2 drawers, £1 0s 0d

2 fir chamber tables, £0 16s 0d

1 under bed and bedstead, £2 0s 0d

1 bedstead, £0 12s 0d

2 china chamber pots, at 2s each, £0 4s 0d

3 pewter chamber pots, at 2s each, £0 6s 0d

total, £559 0s 0d

Carried over, £662 19s 0d

Interpretations

The Gabriel Harper estate that opens here is another substantial holding, its land set out in the island’s characteristic division between freehold and leasehold with parcels named for their situation or former holders. The freehold ground called Griffins sits beside a leasehold acre of the same name, showing how a single named holding might be split between the two forms of tenure, while Windy Point takes its name from its exposed position on the island. The house at Fort Valley, valued at £220, is by far the most valuable single property in the estate, again marking the premium that town and fort property commanded over outlying plantation ground.

The furniture points to a genteel establishment of the second rank, appointed with the now-familiar marks of island gentility though on a lesser scale than the great Goddard estate. Eighteen leather-bottomed chairs and nine cane chairs furnished rooms for a large company, while a mahogany sideboard table, a teak bureau and eight framed pictures supplied the fashionable touches drawn from the eastern trade and the habits of English gentry. The recurrence across yet another estate of matched suites of chairs, imported hardwood furniture and pictures on the walls confirms a shared standard among the island’s leading families, each reproducing the same scheme of polite furnishing.

The bedding again appears as complete furnished units, each feather bed entered whole with its bolster, pillows and bedstead, the most valuable at £9 being the single costliest article of household furniture in the estate. This treatment of the furnished bed as one composite and valuable item, seen throughout the archive, marks it as the centrepiece of a room’s equipment, valued and passed on as a whole. The distinction drawn between feather beds and the plainer under beds and wool bolsters shows the appraisers grading the bedding by its filling and quality, as they graded every other class of goods in this and every other estate.

55

47

Brought Over L 662 19

2 Chintz Quilts 1/ each 2

1 Do do 10

2 Chints Palampores 1 10

1 old Small Do 8

3 pr Coarse Chints 6/ each 18

1 pr China Velvet Black 1

1 Dammask Table Cloth 15

5 Long Cloth Do 7/ 1 15

2 Deesotes Do 7/ 10

3 Side Board Cloths 1/6 each 4 6

21 Gingham Napkins 2/6 each 2 12 6

4 Household Linnen Napkins 1

1 Tea Chest 10 6

7 Pr Long Cloth Sheets 2 19

10 Pr Pillowbears 10

1 Suit Patna Chints Bed Curtains & Bed Rail

& 2 Bengall Silk Window Curtains

} 1 10

1 Pr Sacey Window Curtains with Vallens 2 6

1 Cloth Brush 1

1 Suit Patny Chints Bed Curtains with Bed Rail

& one Window Curtain

} 1 5

1 Pr Cruits & Stand 10

12 Knives & 12 Forks Buck Handles 12

3 China Jars 15

4 China Basons & 3 Guglets 8 9

2 China Tureens 10

14 China plates 18

14 Do Soup Do 6

8 China Sauce Dishes 10

1 Do Soup Dish 9

1 Do Fish Dish 2

12 China Dishes 1 4

2 China Butter Boats 2

4 China Salts 1

2 Do Spit Potts 3

2 Do Muggs 5

7 Skeekers 2 6

6 half pint Cups with Saucers 2 14 2 3

Carried Over L 689 4 3

The inventory of the estate of Gabriel Harper, deceased, continued from the running total of £662 19s 0d carried over.

2 chintz quilts, £2 0s 0d

1 chintz quilt, old, £0 10s 0d

2 chintz palampores, £1 10s 0d

1 old small palampore, £0 8s 0d

3 pairs of coarse chintz sheets, £0 18s 0d

1 pair of china velvet, black, £1 0s 0d

1 damask tablecloth, £0 15s 0d

3 long-cloth tablecloths, £1 15s 0d

2 doosooty tablecloths, £0 10s 0d

3 sideboard cloths, at 6d each, £0 1s 6d

15 gingham napkins, at 2s 6d each, £2 12s 6d

4 household linen napkins, £0 1s 0d

1 tea chest, £0 10s 6d

7 pairs of long-cloth sheets, £2 19s 0d

10 pairs of pillowbears, £0 10s 0d

1 suit of Patna chintz bed curtains, tester, bed and rail, and 2 Bengal silk window curtains, £1 10s 0d

1 pair of soosey window curtains with valance, £0 2s 6d

1 cloth brush, £0 1s 0d

1 suit of Patna chintz bed curtains, with bed and rail, and one window curtain, £1 5s 0d

1 set of cruets and stand, £0 10s 0d

12 knives and 12 forks, buck-handled, £0 12s 0d

3 china jars, £0 15s 0d

4 china basins and 3 guglets, £0 8s 9d

2 china tureens, £0 10s 0d

14 china plates, £0 18s 0d

11 china soup plates, £0 6s 0d

8 china fruit dishes, £0 10s 0d

1 china sauce dish, £0 9s 0d

1 china fish dish, £0 2s 0d

12 china dishes, £1 4s 0d

2 china butter boats, £0 2s 0d

4 china salts, £0 3s 0d

2 china spit pots, £0 5s 0d

3 china mugs, £0 2s 6d

7 saucers, £0 2s 0d

6 half-pint cups with saucers, £0 2s 0d

Household goods carried over, £4 2s 3d

Carried over, £689 4s 3d

Interpretations

The textiles of the Gabriel Harper estate name their cloths and origins with unusual precision, and one variety here fixes a particular Indian source. Two suits of Patna chintz bed curtains mark cotton from Patna, the East India Company’s inland factory on the Ganges in Bengal, printed and made up into complete sets of bed hangings, entered alongside Bengal silk window curtains from the same region. This naming of a specific Indian city on a St Helena appraisal shows how goods from a distinct inland factory reached the island through the Company’s river and sea network, the fabric carrying the name of its far-off place of manufacture all the way to the valuer’s column.

An unusual entry among the linen widens the range of imported cloth still further. A pair of china velvet, black, valued at a pound, marks a silk velvet brought from China through the eastern trade, a costly and distinctive fabric far removed from the plain cottons that made up most of the household linen. Its appearance in the estate, set among the chintz, damask and doosooty, shows that Chinese as well as Indian textiles reached the island, the velvet standing at the luxurious end of a trade that supplied every grade of cloth from coarse sheeting to fine silk.

The porcelain here is exceptionally full and finely differentiated, running to tureens, fruit dishes, sauce dishes, a fish dish, butter boats and salts as well as the usual plates, bowls and cups. This range of specialised serving vessels, each shaped for a particular dish or use, marks a household that set a formal table in the English manner, with the proper china for every course and condiment. Such a graded service of Chinese export porcelain, far beyond the plain bowls and plates of the humbler estates, reflects the reach of the Canton trade and the pretensions to gentility of a leading island family, able to lay a table appointed with all the specialised wares that polite dining required.

56

48

Brought Over L 689 4 3

1 Pewter Funnel 2 6

2 Gallon Pott 8

1 large Tin Funnel 1

1 China Tea Pott 1 6

3 Earthen Jars 3

2 Decanters 5

2 large Wine & Water Glasses 2

1 Glass Mugg 1 6

1 Do Tumbler 6

6 Wine Glasses 3 6

2 China Bowls 6

1 Pewter Soup Ladle 1 6

1 Pr White Mettal Candlesticks & Snuffers 15

1 Pr Brass Candlesticks 6

1 Case wt 15 five pint Bottles 15

1 Do wt 9 Gallon Do 18

1 Lackard Box 12

1 fir Do 4

2 Glass Salts 1

1 Frying Pan 5

1 Copper fish Kittle 1

1 large Meat Pott 15

1 Do 12

2 Small Iron Potts 8

1 large Tea Kittle 12

1 Pr Tongs 2 6

1 Pr Pothangers 1 6

1 Brine Tub Lind & Lead 6

2 Water Blates 4

1 old Kitchen Table 10

2 Gridirons 9

6 Double Deals 1

1 Chair Wood Bottom 4

1 Yam pott 1

1 Meat Do 8

1 Small Do 3

1 Copper Kittle 1 5

1 Small frying Pan 1 6 12 14 3

Carried Over L 701 18 6

The inventory of the estate of Gabriel Harper, deceased, continued from the running total of £689 4s 3d carried over.

1 pewter funnel, £0 2s 6d

2 gallon pots, £0 9s 0d

1 large tin funnel, £0 1s 0d

1 china teapot, £0 1s 6d

3 earthen jars, £0 3s 0d

2 decanters, £0 5s 0d

1 large wine and water glasses, £0 2s 0d

1 glass mug, £0 1s 6d

1 glass tumbler, £0 0s 9d

6 wine glasses, £0 3s 6d

2 china bowls, £0 6s 0d

1 pewter soup ladle, £0 1s 0d

1 pair of white metal candlesticks and snuffers, £0 15s 0d

1 pair of brass candlesticks, £0 6s 0d

1 case with 15 fine pint bottles, £0 15s 0d

1 case with 9 two-gallon bottles, £0 18s 0d

1 lacquered box, £0 12s 0d

1 fir box, £0 [...]

2 glass salts, £0 1s 0d

1 frying pan, £0 5s 0d

1 copper fish kettle, £1 0s 0d

1 large meat pot, £0 15s 0d

1 large meat pot, £0 12s 0d

2 small iron pots, £0 8s 0d

1 large tea kettle, £0 12s 0d

1 pair of tongs, £0 2s 6d

1 pair of pot hangers, £0 1s 6d

1 brine tub lined with lead, £0 6s 0d

2 water plates, £0 4s 0d

1 old kitchen table, £0 10s 0d

2 gridirons, £0 9s 0d

6 double deals, £1 1s 0d

1 chair, wood bottom, £0 4s 0d

1 yam pot, £0 [...]

1 meat pot, £0 8s 0d

1 small meat pot, £0 [...]

1 copper kettle, £1 5s 0d

1 small frying pan, £0 1s 6d

Household goods carried over, £12 14s 3d

Carried over, £701 18s 6d

Interpretations

The kitchen wares of the Gabriel Harper estate confirm a substantial provisioning household, with fish kettles, meat pots, tea kettles and a copper kettle making up the cooking gear of an establishment that catered on a considerable scale. A copper fish kettle and a further copper kettle, each at a pound and upward, were among the more valuable items here, the durable cooking metal of a well-found house. This depth of kitchen equipment, matching the many beds and full stocks of linen and porcelain recorded earlier, points to a household equipped to feed and lodge a good number of people in the manner of the island’s leading families.

A brine tub lined with lead marks the preserving of meat in salt, the lead lining making the vessel watertight for holding the brine in which beef and pork were kept. On an island that raised cattle and hogs and provisioned passing shipping, the salting of meat was an essential domestic task, and a purpose-lined tub for the work shows a household that preserved its own produce for keeping and for sale. Set among the meat pots and the kitchen gear, it anchors the genteel establishment in the practical economy of a farm.

The six double deals entered among the household goods mark a stock of sawn timber kept about the house, deals being the standard sawn planks of softwood used for building and repair. On a largely treeless island where timber was scarce and imported, a store of ready-cut deals was a useful asset, worth listing and valuing among the estate. Their presence, with the kitchen table and the plain wood-bottomed chair, shows the appraisers entering the working stores and rough furniture of the household alongside its finer wares, valuing the whole down to a small frying pan so that the entire estate could be reckoned and in time divided.

57

49

Brought Over L 701 18 6

1 Gridiron 2

1 Pr old Tongs Small 1

2 Pr Pothangers 3

1 Spit 2

3 Hatchets 5

a parcel of Plantation Tools 1 7 6

1 Sq fir Table 12

1 large fir Chest 1 5

2 Leathr Bottom Chairs 15 8

1 Elbow Cane Do 10

4 Cane Chairs old 12

1 Spying Glass 2 6

1 Tea Board 2

1 Speaking Trumpet 15

1 Tea Kettle 7 6

1 old Do 7

1 Brass Chimney Ladle 4

1 Pr Bellows 10

1 Pr Steelyards 11

1 Box Irons & Heaters 5

1 Do old 5

1 Fowl Spice 4 6

3 Pewtr Basons 3

1 Copr Pudding Pan 3 6

25 Pastor Dishes & 6 Plates 6

1 Tin Saucepan 6

1 Pr Brass Candlesticks 3

3 Do old 1

1 Pr Glass Salts 2 6

3 Glass Cruets 4

5 China Soup Plates 6

12 Plates China 6

2 China Wine Coolrs 6

1 old Cup China 14

1 Butter Cup Earthen 12

1 China Guglet 2 6 14 17

16 Knives & forks Ivory Handld old

3 large China Bowls

3 Cracks Do

Carried Over L 716 15 6

The inventory of the estate of Gabriel Harper, deceased, continued from the running total of £701 18s 6d carried over.

1 gridiron, £0 [...]

1 pair of old tongs, small, £0 2s 0d

2 pairs of pot hangers, £0 1s 0d

1 spit, £0 3s 0d

3 hatchets, £0 2s 0d

a parcel of plantation tools, £1 7s 6d

1 square fir table, £0 12s 0d

1 large fir chest, £0 12s 0d

2 leather-bottom chairs, £1 5s 0d

1 elbow cane chair, £0 14s 0d

4 cane chairs, old, £0 10s 0d

1 spying glass, £0 12s 0d

1 tea board, £0 2s 6d

1 speaking trumpet, £0 2s 0d

1 tea kettle, £0 15s 0d

1 old tea kettle, £0 7s 6d

1 brass skimmer and ladle, £0 7s 0d

1 pair of bellows, £0 4s 0d

1 pair of steelyards, £0 10s 0d

1 box, iron and 2 heaters, £0 11s 0d

1 old box iron, £0 5s 0d

1 fowl spit, £0 5s 0d

2 pewter basins, £0 4s 6d

1 copper pudding pan, £0 3s 0d

3 pewter dishes and 6 plates, £1 3s 6d

1 tin saucepan, £0 0s 6d

1 pair of brass candlesticks, £0 6s 0d

3 old brass candlesticks, £0 3s 0d

1 pair of glass salts, £0 1s 0d

3 glass cruets, £0 2s 0d

8 china soup plates, £0 3s 6d

12 china plates, £0 4s 0d

2 china wine coolers, £0 6s 0d

1 old cup, china, £0 0s 6d

1 butter cup, earthen, £0 0s 6d

1 china guglet, £0 1s 0d

16 knives and 20 forks, ivory-handled, old, £0 14s 0d

3 large china bowls, £0 12s 0d

3 cracked china bowls, £0 2s 6d

Household goods carried over, £19 17s 0d

Carried over, £716 18s 6d

Interpretations

A speaking trumpet entered among the goods of the Gabriel Harper estate marks a distinctive instrument of island and maritime life, valued at two shillings. This was a hailing trumpet, a wide-mouthed cone used to carry the voice over distance, most probably for calling to vessels in the road or across the estate, a practical tool on an island whose life turned on communication with the shipping offshore. Its presence, set beside the spying glass for watching the road, shows a household engaged with the sea traffic that gave the island its purpose, both watching for the ships and hailing them as they came.

The furniture here shows the worn and relegated pieces of the household, old cane chairs, an old tea kettle and old brass candlesticks, set apart from the finer suites of the reception rooms recorded earlier. This persistent grading of goods by condition, running through the whole inventory, reflects the appraisers moving through the lesser rooms and working parts of the house after the best chambers, valuing the tired furniture and worn kitchen ware that served the daily life of the establishment. The plantation tools and the hatchets among these goods anchor the household firmly in the labour of a working farm.

The china here includes two wine coolers, vessels for chilling wine at table, which mark a further touch of the formal dining seen in the fuller porcelain service recorded earlier. Wine coolers were specialised wares for keeping wine cool during a meal, and their appearance among the household goods reflects a family that entertained in the polite manner, laying a table appointed for the proper service of wine. Set among the plainer bowls and plates, some cracked and valued at a few pence, they show once more the range from formal luxury to everyday use that filled the households of the island’s leading families, all reckoned by the appraisers with the same steady care.

58

50

Brought Over L 716 15 6

2 Sneekers 8

5 Windglases 2 11

2 Earthen Tea Potts 5

a parcel of China Ware 5

1 Earthen Porringer 6

1 China Mugg 1 3

1 Do Tea pott 2

10 Do Jars 2 10

7 Small Earthen Jars 5

2 large Do 3

2 Stone Juggs 5

2 Earthen Crocks 6

1 Belt Mettal Pestle & Mortar 12

2 Small Looking Glasses 1 6

1 Do 2

1 old Wainscott Table 10

1 Small fir Chest Painted 6

1 old fir Chest 7

1 Brine Tubb 4

a parcel of Carpentr Tools old 10

1 Pr Shoe Stretchers 1

1 Quart part of an old Boat 19 6

1 Feathr Bed Bolstr 2 Pillows & Bedstead 5

1 Small Do Do 2 Do & Do 3 10

1 old Do Do 2 Do & Do 2 10

1 Small Do Do 2 Do & Do 3

1 Childs Crib old 2 6

1 Sett Persuware Bed Curtains &c 15

1 Sett Patney Chints Do but old & Do 18

1 Chints Quilt 1 7

1 Do 10

2 Do old 15

1 Close Stool Chair 1 5

1 Elbow Cain Chair 12

1 Warming Pan 5

1 old Fenders Iron & Silvard made 1 28 16 4

Carried Over L 745 11 10

The inventory of the estate of Gabriel Harper, deceased, continued from the running total of £716 18s 6d carried over.

2 saucers, £0 0s 8d

5 wine glasses, £0 2s 11d

2 earthen teapots, £0 5s 0d

a parcel of china ware, £0 5s 0d

1 earthen porringer, £0 0s 6d

1 china mug, £0 1s 3d

1 china teapot, £0 2s 0d

10 china jars, £2 10s 0d

7 small earthen jars, £0 5s 0d

2 large earthen jars, £0 3s 0d

2 stone jugs, £0 5s 0d

2 earthen crocks, £0 2s 6d

1 bell-metal pestle and mortar, £0 12s 0d

2 small looking glasses, £0 1s 6d

1 small looking glass, £0 2s 0d

1 old wainscot table, £0 10s 0d

1 small fir chest, painted, £0 6s 0d

1 old fir chest, £0 7s 0d

1 brine tub, £0 4s 0d

a parcel of carpenters tools, old, £0 10s 0d

1 pair of shoe stretchers, £0 1s 0d

1 quarter part of an old boat, £0 12s 6d

1 feather bed, bolster, 2 pillows and bedstead, £5 0s 0d

1 small feather bed, bolster, 2 pillows and bedstead, £3 10s 0d

1 old feather bed, bolster, 2 pillows and bedstead, £2 10s 0d

1 small feather bed, bolster, 2 pillows and bedstead, £3 0s 0d

1 child’s crib, old, £0 2s 6d

1 set of huckaback bed curtains and rail, £0 15s 0d

1 set of Patna chintz curtains, old, and rail, £0 18s 0d

1 chintz quilt, £1 7s 0d

1 chintz quilt, £0 10s 0d

2 chintz quilts, old, £0 15s 0d

1 close stool chair, £1 3s 0d

1 elbow cane chair, £0 12s 0d

1 warming pan, £0 5s 0d

10 flat-iron heaters and 2 flat irons, £1 0s 0d

Household goods carried over, £28 16s 4d

Carried over, £745 11s 10d

Interpretations

The quarter share in an old boat entered in the Gabriel Harper estate marks a common form of maritime property on the island, a fractional stake in a vessel used for fishing or moving goods around the coast. On St Helena, where the sea did much of the work of roads and inshore fishing supplied part of the food, a share in a boat was a practical asset held by many, often divided among several owners who shared its cost and use. This fractional ownership, seen elsewhere in the archive in the half-shares of boats, shows how the island’s people spread the expense and risk of the small craft that served its coastal life.

The shoe stretchers among the carpenters tools point to shoemaking or shoe repair carried on in the household, a further small manufacture undertaken on the estate. Set with the parcel of leather and shoemaking gear seen in other inventories, they mark the island households as places that made and mended their own goods, not merely consuming imports but working leather, wood and cloth on the ground. This self-provisioning in craft as well as food reflects the practical necessities of a remote settlement, where much that could not be readily shipped in was made or repaired at home.

The child’s crib entered as old, following the crib beds and nurse’s chairs seen in other estates, quietly marks the presence of children in the household across the generations. Such a crib, worn from use and valued at half a crown, records the raising of infants in the establishment, the human continuity behind the columns of goods. Set among the feather beds, the chintz quilts and the imported bed curtains, it fills out the domestic life of the household, a family with young children furnished with the bedding, both fine and plain, that a comfortable island home required, all reckoned by the appraisers with the same steady attention to quality and age.

59

51

Bought Over L 745 11 10

1 fir Chest 1

1 Do Smaller

1 Portmantua 15

1 old Case wt 12 five pint Bottles 10

1 Wainscot Hand Escretoe do 12

1 Teak Do 7

1 Do Do 10

1 Clothe Basket 3

1 Tallow Bottle 9 6

1 Silver Watch 2

3 Leathr Trunks 3

1 Chamber Table wt a Drawer 8

3 Small fir Boxes old 11

1 Small Bed Box 3

1 Species Trunk 3

2 Pr Sarces 1

1 Pr Alligar 2 10

1 Suchaback Table Cloth 10

4 Small Dungree Do old 10

3 old Chamber potts 4

1 Tea Sand Board old 3

1 Coat Brush 6

1 large Bible 6

a parcel of old Books 18

1 Iron Meat pott 10

12 15 7 6

3 Cows wt their Calves 22

12 Cows at 43

1 Bulle 11 10

1 Small Do 3

Cattle 48 10 Steers 16 7

6 Calves 7 10

5 Heifers 15 5

5 Yearlings 7 15 126 7

9 Sows 8 15

3 Sows & 9 Pigs 4 12

2 Sows & 1 Barrow 2 14

Hoggs 1 Boar 18

26 Shoats 6 8

7 Barrows 32 14

Carried Over L 920 [...] 9

The inventory of the estate of Gabriel Harper, deceased, continued from the running total of £745 11s 10d carried over.

1 fir chest, £1 0s 0d

1 smaller fir chest, £0 15s 0d

1 portmanteau, £0 10s 0d

1 old case with 12 fine pint bottles, £0 12s 0d

1 wainscot hand escritoire, £0 7s 0d

1 teak hand escritoire, £0 10s 0d

1 old hand escritoire, £0 3s 0d

1 clothes basket, £0 2s 6d

1 gallon bottle, £0 2s 0d

1 silver watch, £2 3s 0d

3 leather trunks, £0 8s 0d

1 chamber table with a drawer, £0 11s 0d

3 small fir boxes, old, £0 3s 0d

1 small bed box, £0 3s 0d

1 spying glass, £1 0s 0d

2 pairs of sheets, £2 10s 0d

1 pair of alligar, £0 10s 0d

1 huckaback tablecloth, £0 10s 0d

4 small dungaree tablecloths, £0 4s 0d

3 old chamber pots, £0 3s 0d

1 tea and sideboard cloth, old, £0 6s 0d

1 coat brush, £0 6s 0d

1 large Bible, £0 18s 0d

a parcel of old books, £0 12s 0d

1 iron meat pot, £0 10s 0d

total, £15 7s 6d

Cattle

5 cows with their calves, £22 0s 0d

12 cows, £43 0s 0d

2 bulls, £11 10s 0d

1 small bull, £3 0s 0d

1 small bull, £16 7s 0d

7 steers, £7 10s 0d

6 calves, £15 5s 0d

5 heifers, £7 15s 0d

5 yearlings, £8 15s 0d

total, £126 7s 0d

Hogs

9 sows, £4 12s 0d

3 sows and 9 pigs, £2 4s 0d

2 sows and 1 barrow, £0 18s 0d

1 boar, £2 7s 0d

26 shoats, £6 8s 0d

7 barrows, £32 14s 0d

Carried over, £920 0s 4d

Interpretations

The linen of the Gabriel Harper estate names a further imported cloth not seen earlier, widening once more the map of the island’s textile supply. A pair of alligar, valued at ten shillings, marks a striped Indian cotton or silk mixture of that name, entered among the sheets alongside the huckaback and dungaree. This appearance of yet another named eastern fabric, each carrying the name of its cloth or weave, confirms how thoroughly the East India trade supplied the island with textiles of every grade and origin, the appraisers recording each by its proper name as it came from the distant looms of India.

The books here, a large Bible and a parcel of old volumes, mark a household of some literacy and settled establishment, the Bible being the one book almost every furnished home in the archive contained. Set with the hand escritoires of teak and wainscot for writing and keeping papers, they show a family that read and wrote, reproducing on the island the domestic furnishings of an educated English home. The three hand escritoires in particular, small portable writing boxes of different woods, point to a household that kept accounts and correspondence, the business of a substantial planter conducted at these compact desks.

The cattle account is large and finely graded, with cows in calf, dry cows, bulls, steers, calves, heifers and yearlings making up a herd worth more than £126, marking a plantation run on a considerable scale. This substantial stock of breeding and rising cattle, the foundation of a farm’s provisioning and its trade in meat and dairy, matches the depth of the household goods and the extent of the land in this well-provisioned estate. The careful sorting of the herd into every category by age, sex and use reflects the settled and methodical husbandry that a holding of this size demanded, the same disciplined stock-keeping seen across the island’s leading farms.

60

52

Brought Over L 920 4

Yams

Suckers

{

29.530 at 10/ Pr 1000 14 15 6

17.010 at 15/ Pr do 12 15 1

25.600 at 12/ Pr Do 15 7 9

17.580 at 7/6 Pr Do 6 11 10

30.580 at 6/6 Pr Do 9 3 5

37.330 at 16/ Pr Do 29 17 3

5.800 at 9/ Pr Do 2 12 2

9.480 at 8/ Pr Do 19 10

4.000 at 6/ Pr Do 1 93 2 10

}

169.980 Sett young & old

Poultry {

4 Doz Fowles @ 15/ Dozen 3

1 Dozen Do 18

5 Ducks 7 6

23 Turkeys @ 3/ each 3 15 10 [...]

}

Horses {

1 Horse & Saddle 8 8

1 Black Mare 4

1 Sorel Do 2 14 8

}

Plate {

6 Table Spoons

1 Muggy

1 Teapott at 7/ Pr Ounce Wt 62 13 7 21 19 11 1/2

1 Milk Pott

1 Salver

5 old Table Spoons

9 Teaspoons Tongs & Strainer at 5/6 Pr Ounce Wt 18 2 11 4 19 8

1 Muggy old

6 Tea Spoons Tongs & Strainer New sett & Case 2 1 29 7 1/2

}

Sheep {

24 Grown at 18/ 21 12

11 Young at 9/ 4 19

}

Goats {

29 Grown @ 6/ 15 12

26 Young @ 4/ 5 4 47 7

}

1 Suit Patna Chints Bed furntr &c 2 Bed Rail & Window Curtain 1 10

4 Carboys at 6/ each 1

10 Pr Nankeen 4

2 Gingham Napkins 5

4 Pr Long Cloth Sheet at 9/ Pr 1 16

2 Pr Deesotees Do 7

1 Pr Dungaree Do 7

7 Pr Pillowbears 3 6

9 Coarse Dungaree Napkins 5 18 6

Carried Over L 1119 17 9 1/4

The inventory of the estate of Gabriel Harper, deceased, continued from the running total of £920 0s 4d carried over.

Yams and suckers

29,550 yams, at 10s per thousand, £18 15s 6d

17,010 yams, at 15s per thousand, £12 15s 1d

25,600 yams, at 12s per thousand, £15 7s 9d

17,580 yams, at 7s 6d per thousand, £6 11s 10d

30,580 yams, at 6s per thousand, £9 3s 5d

37,300 suckers, at 6s per thousand, £19 17s 3d

5,800 suckers, at 9s per thousand, £2 12s 2d

2,480 suckers, at 5s per thousand, £0 12s 4d

1,000 suckers, at 6s per thousand, £1 0s 0d

169,980 suckers, young, unpriced

total, £93 2s 10d

Poultry

4 dozen fowls, at 13s per dozen, £3 0s 0d

1 dozen fowls, £0 18s 0d

5 ducks, £0 7s 6d

23 turkeys, at 3s each, £3 15s 0d

total, £10 0s 0d

Horses

1 horse and saddle, £8 8s 0d

1 black mare, £4 0s 0d

1 sorrel mare, £2 0s 0d

total, £14 8s 0d

Plate

6 table spoons, 1 mug, 1 teapot, 1 milk pot and 1 salver, weight 55 ounces 13 pennyweight, at 7s per ounce, £21 19s 11½d

5 old table spoons, 9 teaspoons, tongs and strainer, and 1 old mug, weight 18 ounces 7 pennyweight, at 5s per ounce, £4 17s 3d

6 teaspoons, tongs and strainer, new, set and case, £2 1s 0d

total, £29 0s 1½d

Sheep

24 ewes, at 18s each, £21 12s 0d

11 young ewes, at 8s each, £4 4s 0d

Goats

29 grown goats, at 8s each, £15 12s 0d

26 young goats, at 4s each, £5 4s 0d

total, £47 1s 0d

1 suit of Patna chintz bed furniture, tester, bed, rail and window curtain, £1 10s 0d

4 carboys, at 1s each, £1 4s 0d

1 piece nankeen, £0 4s 0d

2 gingham napkins, £0 5s 0d

4 pairs of long-cloth sheets, at 9s per pair, £1 16s 0d

2 pairs of doosooty sheets, £0 [...]

1 pair of dungaree sheets, £0 7s 0d

7 pairs of pillowbears, £0 [...]

9 coarse dungaree napkins, £0 2s 6d

Household goods carried over, £5 18s 6d

Carried over, £1,119 17s 9½d

Interpretations

The yam account of the Gabriel Harper estate again shows the crop managed as a rolling operation, with more than three hundred and thirty thousand yams and suckers listed in staggered plantings priced by maturity. One entry stands out, a great lot of nearly one hundred and seventy thousand young suckers entered without a price, most probably because these newly propagated offshoots were too immature to value or were being carried as stock for future planting rather than as a marketable crop. This treatment of the youngest suckers apart from the priced plantings shows the appraisers distinguishing between yams near enough to yield to carry a value and those merely set for the seasons ahead.

The plate here is valued by the standard island method, weighed to the pennyweight and priced at seven shillings the ounce for the sound pieces and five shillings for the old, and its careful grading shows the appraisers pricing worn silver below new. A collection of spoons, a mug, a teapot, a milk pot and a salver together came to nearly £29, a respectable holding of wrought silver that served the double purpose seen throughout the archive, furnishing a genteel table while holding a convertible reserve of value. The distinction drawn between the new set of teaspoons and the old spoons and mug marks the appraisers valuing the metal by its condition to the grain.

The three riding animals, a horse with its saddle and two mares of different colours, mark the mobility of a substantial planter across the steep and broken island. To keep a horse and two mares was the mark of a well-provided household that moved about its scattered lands and the settlement on horseback, where mounted travel eased the passage over difficult ground. Set among the large cattle herd, the flocks of sheep and goats, the extensive yam crop and the full stock of household goods and plate, they complete the picture of a well-found estate of the island’s leading rank, its property reckoned in the same disciplined columns applied throughout the archive.

61

53

Brought Over L 1119 17 9 1/4

1 Black Man Named Cornwall 30

1 Do Robin 28

1 Do Roger 28

1 Do Jack 25

Harvy 16

1 Black Woman Named Ellen 26

1 Do Mary 23

1 Do Abigail 18

1 Boy Named Harry 13

1 Do Kira 13

1 Do Jenn 2 15

1 Do Will 2

1 Girl Named Lucy 10 236 15

1358 12 9 1/4

Cash 17 18

Sundry Persons Indebted to the Estate 91 7 8 111 5 8

L 1460 18 5 1/4

Indebted to Sundry Persons 399 5 6

Signed

John Goodwin

Sam Doveton

Thos Greentree

Account Sale of the Effects of Joseph Leighton Decd Sergeant

October the 2 1749 Viz

To Manning 1 Deal Chest with Lock & Key 8 6

Corp Walker 1 Scarlet Waistcoat & Breeches 10

Wm Duffum 1 Pr Do Breeches 5 1

Serg Jacobs 1 Brass Mounted Catlash 17

Wm Taylor 1 Laced Coat 15 6

Corp Walker 1 plain Do 1 7

Serg Moor 1 Brass head Cane 7

Carried over L 2 2 10

The inventory of the estate of Gabriel Harper, deceased, closed from the running total of £1,119 17s 9½d carried over.

Blacks

1 black man named Cornwall, £30 0s 0d

1 black man named Robin, £28 0s 0d

1 black man named Roger, £28 0s 0d

1 black man named Fizty, £25 0s 0d

1 black man named Harry, £16 0s 0d

1 black woman named Ellin, £26 0s 0d

1 black woman named Mary, £23 0s 0d

1 black woman named Abigail, £18 0s 0d

1 boy named Harry, £15 0s 0d

1 boy named Anna, £13 0s 0d

1 boy named Ynn, £6 15s 0d

1 boy named Will, £2 0s 0d

1 girl named Lucy, £10 0s 0d

total, £236 15s 0d

Cash, £19 18s 0d

Sundry persons indebted to the estate, £91 7s 8d

subtotal, £111 5s 8d

total, £1,469 18s 5½d

Indebted to sundry persons, £322 5s 6d

The inventory was signed by John Goodwin, Samuel Doveton and Thomas Greentree.

A separate account follows, of the sale of the effects of Joseph Leighton, deceased, sergeant, on 2 October 1749.

Thomas Manning, 1 deal chest with lock and key, £0 8s 6d

Corporal Walker, 1 scarlet waistcoat and breeches, £0 10s 0d

William Duffum, 1 pair of breeches, £0 5s 0d

Lucy Jacobs, 1 brass-mounted flat lace, £0 1s 7d

William Taylor, 1 laced coat, £0 15s 0d

William Taylor, 1 laced coat, £0 1s 7d

Corporal Walker, 1 plain coat, £0 7s 0d

Sergeant Moor, 1 brass-head cane, £0 [...]

Carried over, £2 2s 10½d

Interpretations

The completed slave account of the Gabriel Harper estate values thirteen enslaved people at £236 15s 0d, and the names again show the mixture imposed throughout the archive, English Robin, Will and Mary, and the place-name Cornwall borne by an enslaved man. The valuations follow sex and stage of life, from thirty pounds for the man Cornwall down to two pounds for the boy Will, the lowest figures marking the youngest children whom the appraisers priced well below the working adults. This holding of thirteen people, set with the large herds, the extensive land and the full household, confirms Harper as a substantial planter of the island’s leading rank, his enslaved workforce reckoned as the divisible property that every such estate contained.

The Joseph Leighton account that opens next is of a wholly different character, recording not a valuation for division but the sale by auction of a dead soldier’s effects, item by item to named buyers. Leighton was a sergeant of the East India Company garrison, and his goods, a laced coat, a scarlet waistcoat, breeches and a brass-headed cane, were the modest dress and personal effects of a serving non-commissioned officer, sold on the island to clear his affairs. The recording of each purchaser by name, several of them fellow soldiers of the garrison, shows the small community of the fort buying up their dead comrade’s clothing and possessions among themselves.

This manner of settling a garrison estate by immediate public sale, seen elsewhere in the archive for soldiers and poorer men, contrasts sharply with the careful appraisal and division of the planters’ estates. A soldier who died far from home left only his personal effects, and these were turned straight into cash by auction rather than valued for heirs, the proceeds serving to meet his debts or to be remitted. The appearance of corporals, a sergeant and other named soldiers as buyers marks the close world of the garrison, where the men of the fort clothed themselves in part from the sales of those among them who died in service, the whole transaction recorded to the shilling for the settling of the estate.

62

54

Brought over L 2 2 10 1/2

Corpl Davis 1 Cane 9

A Black 1 Jar 4 1/2

Robt Vickers 1 Case Bottle 1 6

Do 1 China Bowl 3 6

Corpl Davis 1 Common prayer Book 4 6

J Knipe 3 Shoe Brushes 1 8

G Clew 1 Do 11

Simn Sullivan 1 Tea 2

G Harper 1 Tobacco Bot [...]

B Vickers 1 Straw Do 1

A Major 10 Rock Salt 7 1/2

E Grant a Box wt pomatum 4 1/2

J Kirkpatrick a portmantea with Lock & Key 3 6

Serg Jacobs 1 Silver Hilted Sword 2 1

Corpl Davis 1 Pr Shoes 2 3

A Major 1 Handkerchief 8 1/2

J G Doy 2 Do 6

B Vickers 1 Knife 1

Corpl Davis 1 Do 6 1/2

Do 1 Pr Scissars 17

Do 1 Pr Nail Nippers 8

Do a parcel of Thread 2 6

Do a Comb Case & Spoon 1 2

J Kirkpatrick 1 Spying Glass 7 1/2

Corpl Walker 1 Silver Laced Hatt 4 5

A Major 1 plain Do 4

W Taylor 1 White Shirt 6 7

Do 1 Do 6 1

J Godby 1 Do 2 7

J Sullivan 1 Do 1 11

Do 1 Do 2

J Grovebody 1 Colourd Do 3 6

J Sullivan 2 Stocks 9

A Black 2 Rolers 8

B Vickers 1 Pr Stockings 1 3

J Groveboby 1 Pr Do 1 1/2

J Taylor a parcel old Do 3

Do 1 Yd White Cloth 12 1

J Eailes 1 Waistcoat Breeches 2 7

A Black 1 Small Box 10

J Kirkpatrick some old Silver Lace 3 9

J Ramson 1 Bed Blanket & pillow 8

Total of the Sail L 8 14 8

The sale of the effects of Joseph Leighton, deceased, sergeant, continued from the running total of £2 2s 10½d carried over.

Corporal Davis, 1 cane, £0 0s 9d

A. Black, 1 jar, £0 0s 4½d

Robert Vickers, 1 case bottle, £0 1s 6d

Robert Vickers, 1 china bowl, £0 3s 6d

Corporal Davis, 1 Common Prayer book, £0 4s 6d

J. Knipe, 3 shoe brushes, £0 1s 8d

G. Clew, 1 shoe brush, £0 0s 11d

Simon Sullivan, ¼ pound of tea, £0 2s 0d

G. Harper, 1 tobacco box, £0 0s 7d

B. Vickers, 1 straw tobacco box, £0 1s 0d

A. Major, 10 pounds of rock salt, £0 0s 7½d

E. Grant, a box with pomatum, £0 0s 4½d

D. Kirkpatrick, a portmanteau with lock and key, £0 3s 6d

Sergeant Jacobs, 1 silver-hilted sword, £2 1s 0d

Corporal Davis, 1 pair of shoes, £0 2s 3d

A. Major, 1 handkerchief, £0 0s 8½d

J. Godby, 2 handkerchiefs, £0 0s 6d

B. Vickers, 1 knife, £0 1s 0d

Corporal Davis, 1 knife, £0 0s 6½d

Corporal Davis, 1 pair of scissors, £0 1s 7d

Corporal Davis, 1 pair of nail nippers, £0 0s 8d

Corporal Davis, a parcel of thread, £0 2s 6d

Corporal Davis, a comb, case and spoon, £0 1s 2d

D. Kirkpatrick, 1 spying glass, £0 0s 7½d

Corporal Walker, 1 silver-laced hat, £0 4s 5d

A. Major, 1 plain hat, £0 0s 4d

W. Taylor, 1 white shirt, £0 6s 7d

J. Godby, 1 white shirt, £0 6s 1d

J. Godby, 1 white shirt, £0 2s 7d

Sullivan, 1 white shirt, £0 1s 11d

Sullivan, 1 white shirt, £0 2s 0d

F. Goodbody, 1 coloured shirt, £0 3s 6d

Sullivan, 2 stocks, £0 0s 9d

A. Black, 2 rollers, £0 1s 8d

B. Vickers, 1 pair of stockings, £0 1s 3d

F. Goodbody, 1 pair of stockings, £0 0s 4½d

Taylor, apparel, old, £0 0s 3d

Taylor, 1 yard of white cloth, £0 12s 1d

Hales, 1 waistcoat and breeches, £0 2s 7d

A. Black, 1 small box, £0 0s 10d

D. Kirkpatrick, some old silver lace, £0 3s 9d

Harrison, 1 bed, blanket and pillows, £0 8s 0d

Total of the sale, £8 14s 8d

Interpretations

The full sale of Sergeant Leighton’s effects opens a rare window onto the material world and the community of the East India Company garrison, recording each small article and the fellow soldier who bought it. The goods are those of a serving non-commissioned officer, a silver-hilted sword and a silver-laced hat marking his rank, alongside shirts, stockings, shoe brushes, a tobacco box and the small necessaries of a soldier’s life. The sword fetched £2 1s 0d, by far the highest price in the sale and a mark of its value as both a weapon and an emblem of the wearer’s standing, while most items went for a few pence among the men of the fort.

The buyers are almost all named soldiers of the garrison, corporals, a sergeant and privates, who bought up their dead comrade’s possessions among themselves in a close community sale. Corporal Davis in particular took a dozen small items, a cane, a prayer book, knives, scissors, nail nippers, thread and a comb, most probably the practical odds and ends useful to a soldier maintaining himself. This spreading of one man’s effects among many hands shows how the garrison recycled the goods of its dead within the fort, the soldiers clothing and equipping themselves in part from the sales of those who died in service.

The presence of a Common Prayer book among the effects, bought by Corporal Davis, marks the religious observance of the garrison, the one book in the sergeant’s small possessions. Set with the pomatum for dressing the hair, the tobacco box and the shaving and grooming items, it fills out the daily life of a soldier who kept himself neat and observed his devotions on a remote island station. The whole sale, realising a little under nine pounds and recorded to the halfpenny with every buyer named, shows the careful settling of a modest garrison estate, its proceeds gathered to meet the dead man’s debts or to be remitted, and its goods dispersed among the living men of the fort who had served beside him.

63

55

Inventory of the Estate of Thos Hayes Decd taken & Appraised by

Mr John Desfountain & Joshua Worrall this 6 day of Octobr 1749

Land Viz!

30 Acres of Fee at 6 Pr Acre L 180

4 Acres of Leave at 1 Pr Do 4

a Dwelling House 20 204

Plantation Viz!

25.000 Yams & Suckers @ 8 Pr Thousand 10

40.000 Do @ 10 1/2 Pr Do 20

11.000 old Yams @ 15 Pr Do 8 5

11.000 Newplanted Suckers 5 Pr Do 2 15

Plantation Amounts to 41

Neat Cattle

1 Cow Half White face 6 15

1 Do Half gentle 6 10

1 Do Pye 6 19 5

Cattle Amounts to

Sheep 2 Ewes 1 16

2 Lambs 18 2 14

Sheep Amounting to

Hoggs

1 Sow & 7 Pigs 2 5

1 Do 18

5 Young Hoggs 2 5 5 8

Hoggs Amounting to

Household Goods Viz!

1 Table & frame 10

1 Form 4

1 Box 4

1 Chest 9

1 old Chair 1

Household goods Carried over L 1 8

Carried over L 272 7

An inventory of the estate of Thomas Hayes, deceased, taken and appraised by Mr John Disfountain and Joshua Worrall on 6 October 1749.

Land

30 acres of freehold, at 6s per acre, £180 0s 0d

4 acres of leasehold, at 4s per acre, £4 0s 0d

a dwelling house, £20 0s 0d

total, £204 0s 0d

Plantation

23,000 yams and suckers, at 8s per thousand, £10 0s 0d

40,000 yams and suckers, at 10s per thousand, £20 0s 0d

11,000 old yams, at 15s per thousand, £8 5s 0d

11,000 newly planted suckers, at 5s per thousand, £2 15s 0d

Plantation amounts to, £41 0s 0d

Neat cattle

1 cow, half white-face, £6 15s 0d

1 cow, half gentle, £6 10s 0d

1 cow, big, £6 0s 0d

Cattle amounts to, £19 5s 0d

Sheep

2 ewes, £1 16s 0d

2 lambs, £0 18s 0d

Sheep amounting to, £2 14s 0d

Hogs

1 sow and 7 pigs, £2 5s 0d

1 sow, £0 18s 0d

5 young hogs, £2 5s 0d

Hogs amounting to, £5 8s 0d

Household goods

1 table and frame, £0 10s 0d

1 form, £0 4s 0d

1 box, £0 4s 0d

1 chest, £0 9s 0d

1 old chair, £0 1s 0d

Household goods carried over, £1 8s 0d

Carried over, £272 7s 0d

Interpretations

The Thomas Hayes estate that opens here is a modest holding, and its plain structure shows the same island assets as the great estates reduced to a small scale. After the land and the dwelling house, the value lies in a standing yam crop, a little livestock and the barest household stuff, a table, a form, a box, a chest and an old chair together worth under thirty shillings. This spare domestic furnishing, far below the imported luxury of the leading families, marks Hayes as a smallholder whose few possessions were serviceable rather than fine, his wealth held in his land and its produce rather than in goods.

The cattle are described with unusual particularity, one cow noted as half white-faced and another as half gentle, terms that mark the breeding and temperament of the animals. Half white-face points to a cross carrying the white-faced marking of one parent stock, while half gentle most probably denotes a beast half of a docile or improved strain, distinctions a small farmer drew to fix the character and value of each animal. This close description of individual cattle, even in a modest estate of only three cows, shows the careful attention the island’s people gave to their breeding stock, on which the provisioning of every farm depended.

The yam crop, though small, is again managed in staggered plantings priced by maturity, from old yams at fifteen shillings the thousand down to newly planted suckers at five, the same rolling system seen in the great estates worked here on a smallholder’s scale. That even so modest a holding staggered its plantings and held old and new yams together shows how universal the practice was across the island, every farmer great and small keeping a continuous succession of the staple crop. The yam crop at £41 was worth twice the dwelling house and formed the largest single asset after the land, confirming once more that on St Helena the growing yam was the true foundation of a farm’s value.

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56

Brought over L 272 7

Household Goods Brought over L 1 8

1 Feathr Bed Bedstead 3 pillows & Bolster 4 10

3 Pillowbears 2 6

3 Towels 1

3 Sheet 3

4 old Plates & 1 Dish 1 6

6 Knives & 6 forks 2 6

1 Tea Kettle 10

1 Iron pott 15

1 Candlestick 3 6

1 Small Trunk 1

a parcel of old Books 2 6

1 large Silver Spoon 11

1 Do Tea Spoon 1

Household Goods Amounting to 8 14 6

Wearing Apparel

1 Coat 1

1 Waistcoat 13

1 Gold Ring 13

1 Sett Silver Buckles & Stock Buckle 1 10

Wearing Apparel Amounting to 3 18

4 fowls 6

L 285 5 6

Signed

John Desfountain

Joshua Worrall

Inventory of the Real Estate of William Worrall Decd taken and

Appraised by Mr Richard Gurling & Mr Richard Bagley this 2 day of

October 1749

24 Acres of free Land at 13 Pr Acre L 312

7 Acres 1 Do at 7/6 Pr Do 52 10

L 364 10

Signed Richard Gurling

Richard Bagley

The inventory of the estate of Thomas Hayes, deceased, closed from the running total of £272 7s 0d carried over, with a household goods subtotal of £1 8s 0d brought forward.

1 feather bed, bedstead, 3 pillows and bolster, £4 10s 0d

5 pillowbears, £0 2s 6d

3 towels, £0 1s 0d

3 sheets, £0 5s 0d

4 old plates and 1 dish, £0 1s 6d

6 knives and 6 forks, £0 2s 6d

1 tea kettle, £0 10s 0d

1 iron pot, £0 15s 0d

1 candlestick, £0 3s 6d

1 small trunk, £0 1s 0d

a parcel of old books, £0 2s 6d

1 large silver spoon, £0 11s 0d

1 silver teaspoon, £0 1s 0d

Household goods amounting to, £8 14s 6d

Wearing apparel

1 coat, £1 0s 0d

1 waistcoat, £0 13s 0d

1 gold ring, £0 13s 0d

1 set of silver buckles and stock buckle, £1 10s 0d

Wearing apparel amounting to, £3 18s 0d

4 fowls, £0 6s 0d

total, £285 5s 6d

The inventory was signed by John Disfountain and Joshua Worrall.

A separate inventory follows, of the real estate of William Worrall, deceased, taken and appraised by Mr Richard Gurling and Mr Richard Bagley on 2 October 1749.

24 acres of freehold land, at 13s per acre, £312 0s 0d

7 acres of freehold land, at 7s 10d per acre, £52 10s 0d

total, £364 10s 0d

The Worrall appraisal was signed by Richard Gurling and Richard Bagley.

Interpretations

The modest Thomas Hayes estate is settled to a whole value of £285 5s 6d, and its plain household goods confirm the smallholder revealed at the head of the inventory. A single feather bed at £4 10s 0d was the most valuable article among the household stuff, followed by a little linen, a few plates and knives, an iron pot and a parcel of old books, the spare furnishing of a working home. Even so, a large silver spoon and a small teaspoon appear among the goods, and a gold ring and silver buckles among the wearing apparel, showing that a small farmer kept a few pieces of plate and personal silver as his portable reserve of value, the modest equivalent of the rich services of the leading families.

The William Worrall inventory that opens next is described specifically as of the real estate, that is the land alone, and it records only two parcels of freehold ground valued together at £364 10s 0d. This narrowing of an inventory to the real property marks a distinction in the settling of estates between real and personal property, the land descending under different rules from the goods, chattels and livestock that made up the personal estate. That this appraisal was confined to the land suggests the personal estate was inventoried separately or fell to different heirs, the real property being valued on its own for its own succession.

The differing rates per acre in the Worrall land, thirteen shillings for the larger parcel and seven shillings and tenpence for the smaller, reflect once more the varying quality and situation of ground across the island. This close valuation of land by the acre at rates fixed to its worth runs through every estate in the archive, the appraisers judging each parcel on its fertility, its timber and its position. On a small and much-divided island where cultivable ground was scarce, such careful pricing of land was the foundation of every settlement, the real property often forming the largest single asset an estate contained.

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Estate of Sergeant Leighton Decd Dr

to Sundrys as Pr Acct delivered to Lieutt Kirkpatrick

To Thos Colgrave L 6

To Sergeant Bush 7

To Sergeant Mason 13 6

To Sergeant Moore 6

To Sergeant Jacobs 4 6

To Corporal Davis 13 7 1/2

To Thomas Reynolds 7

To Richd Billengton 1

To John Marsh 5

L 3 14 1 1/2

Per Contra Cr

By the amount of Goods

Sold at his Auction L 8 14 8 3 14 1 1/2

L 5 6 1/2

2 6

L 4 18 1/2

Inventory of the Goods & Effects belonging to the late Joseph

Desfountain Deceased taken & Appraised by Messrs Franc Wrangham Senr &

John Doveton the 6 day of Sepr 1749 Viz

Land Viz!

30 Acres Fee @ L 10 Pr Acre L 300

10 Do Do @ 8 Pr Acre 80

10 Do Do @ 7 Do 70

16 Do Lease @ 3/10 Pr Acre 36

7 Do Do 10/ 70

24 Do Do 2/10 60

10 Do Do 1/10 15

1 1/2 Do Do 3/ 13 10

111 1/2 Acres fee & Lease Land Amounting to 664 10

1 Dwelling House 30

Blacks Viz!

1 Man Named Gill 25

1 Do Frank 25

1 Do Pompey 22

1 Do Dick 20

1 Woman Name Rebecca 20

1 Do Betty 10

1 Do Patt 16

14 nl Peg 10

1 Do Man 10 158

Carried over L 832 10

The estate of Sergeant Leighton, deceased, was reckoned as a debtor and creditor account, the balance in the executors’ hands being delivered to Lieutenant Kirkpatrick.

Debtor

To Thomas Colgrave, £0 6s 0d

To Sergeant Bush, £0 7s 0d

To Sergeant Mason, £0 13s 6d

To Sergeant Moore, £0 6s 0d

To Sergeant Jacobs, £0 4s 6d

To Corporal Davis, £0 13s 7½d

To Thomas Reynolds, £0 7s 0d

To Richard Billington, £0 1s 0d

To John Marsh, £0 5s 0d

total, £3 14s 1½d

Per contra, creditor

By the amount of goods sold at the auction, £8 14s 8d

£3 14s 1½d

£3 0s 6½d

£0 2s 6d

total, £4 18s 0½d

A separate inventory follows, of the goods and effects belonging to the late Joseph Disfountain, deceased, taken and appraised by Messrs Francis Wrangham senior and John Doveton on 6 September 1749.

Land

30 acres freehold, at £10 per acre, £300 0s 0d

10 acres freehold, at 8s per acre, £80 0s 0d

10 acres freehold, at 7s per acre, £70 0s 0d

10 acres leasehold, at 5s 10d per acre, £36 0s 0d

7 acres leasehold, at 10s per acre, £70 0s 0d

24 acres leasehold, at 2s 10d per acre, £60 0s 0d

10 acres leasehold, at 1s 10d per acre, £15 0s 0d

13 acres leasehold, at 3s per acre, £13 10s 0d

Land amounting to, £644 10s 0d

1 dwelling house, £30 0s 0d

Blacks

1 man named Fill, £25 0s 0d

1 man named Frank, £25 0s 0d

1 man named Pompey, £22 0s 0d

1 man named Dick, £20 0s 0d

1 woman named Rebecca, £20 0s 0d

1 woman named Betty, £10 0s 0d

1 woman named Pat, £16 0s 0d

1 girl named Peggy, £10 0s 0d

1 man named Stan, £10 0s 0d

total, £158 0s 0d

Carried over, £832 10s 0d

Interpretations

The closing account of Sergeant Leighton’s estate shows how a garrison death was settled through the balancing of debts against the proceeds of the auction. The sale had raised £8 14s 8d, against which the sergeant’s own debts to nine fellow soldiers and others were set, several of them the very men who had bought his goods, so that the account offset what he owed against what his effects fetched. The final balance was delivered to Lieutenant Kirkpatrick, most probably as the officer charged with settling the affairs of the men under his command, which shows the chain of military responsibility reaching even into the winding-up of a dead soldier’s small estate.

The Joseph Disfountain inventory that opens next returns to a substantial planter’s holding, its land set out in the familiar division between freehold and leasehold with parcels at widely differing rates. One entry stands out sharply, thirty acres of freehold valued at ten pounds the acre, a rate far above any other land in this or most estates in the archive, which points to exceptionally good or well-situated ground. This single parcel at £300 formed nearly half the value of all the land, marking a holding whose worth turned on a particular tract of prime ground, most probably fertile yam land or ground close to the settlement.

The enslaved people who open the Blacks account, nine in all worth £158, carry the mixed names seen throughout the archive, English Frank, Dick and Betty, and classical Pompey. This was the same Joseph Disfountain who appears elsewhere in these records as an appraiser of other men’s estates and as a debtor and creditor in their accounts, and his own estate is now valued in turn by the same small circle of island men who served repeatedly in one another’s affairs. The appearance of a man who had valued the property of others now having his own slaves, land and goods appraised captures the close and reciprocal world of the island’s established families, bound together as valuers, creditors and heirs across the generations.

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58

Brought over L 832 10

Cattle Viz!

1 Cow & Calf L 7

1 Do & Do 8

1 Do & Do 7 10

1 Do & Do 7 10

1 Do & Do 7 10

1 Do & Do 8 10

1 Do & Do 8 10

1 Do & Do 8 10

1 Cow 6

1 Do 7

1 Do 7

2 Calves 3 10

1 Bull 4 10

Cattle Amounting to L 91

Sheep Viz!

17 Grown @ 18 each 15 6

16 half Grown @ 10 Do 8 23 6

Hogs Viz!

4 Sows 4 16

1 Barrow 10

11 Shoats 3 17 9 3

Goats Viz!

32 Grown Goats @ 8/ 12 16

26 half Grown Do 4/ 5 4

22 Grown Do 9/ 9 18

21 half Grown Do 4/6 4 14 6 32 12 6

Poultry Viz!

5 Grown Geese 1 5

4 Do Turkeys 1

7 Young Do 3 6

15 Grown Fowls 1 2 6

28 half Grown Do 1 1

3 Grown 4 6 1 16 6

Carried over L 1013 8

The inventory of the estate of Joseph Disfountain, deceased, continued from the running total of £832 10s 0d carried over.

Cattle

1 cow and calf, £7 0s 0d

1 cow and calf, £8 0s 0d

1 cow and calf, £7 10s 0d

1 cow and calf, £7 10s 0d

1 cow and calf, £7 10s 0d

1 cow and calf, £8 10s 0d

1 cow and calf, £8 10s 0d

1 cow and calf, £8 10s 0d

1 cow, £6 0s 0d

1 cow, £7 0s 0d

1 cow, £7 0s 0d

2 calves, £3 10s 0d

1 bull, £4 10s 0d

Cattle amounting to, £91 0s 0d

Sheep

17 grown sheep, at 18s each, £15 6s 0d

16 half-grown sheep, at 10s each, £8 0s 0d

total, £23 6s 0d

Hogs

4 sows, £4 16s 0d

1 barrow, £0 10s 0d

11 shoats, £3 17s 0d

total, £9 3s 0d

Goats

32 grown goats, at 8s each, £12 16s 0d

26 half-grown goats, at 4s each, £5 4s 0d

22 grown goats, at 9s each, £9 18s 0d

21 half-grown goats, at 4s 6d each, £4 14s 6d

total, £32 12s 6d

Poultry

5 grown geese, £1 5s 0d

4 grown turkeys, £1 0s 0d

7 young turkeys, £0 3s 6d

15 grown fowls, £1 2s 6d

28 half-grown fowls, £1 1s 0d

3 grown fowls, £0 1s 6d

total, £4 16s 6d

Carried over, £1,013 8s 0d

Interpretations

The cattle of the Joseph Disfountain estate are dominated by cows with their calves at foot, eight such pairs listed one after another, which marks a herd kept above all for breeding and increase. This heavy weighting toward cows in calf, each valued with the calf beside it, shows a planter building and maintaining his stock through natural increase, the breeding cow being the productive engine of an island farm. The consistent valuations, most of the cow-and-calf pairs at seven or eight pounds, reflect the settled market for such productive animals, worth far more than the single bull or the young calves entered apart.

The goats again far outnumber every other animal, more than a hundred head in grown and half-grown lots, confirming once more the pattern seen across the whole archive. On St Helena, where goats bred readily and foraged on the steep and broken ground that defeated more delicate stock, they were the cheapest and most numerous livestock on nearly every farm. Their division here into grown and half-grown animals at differing rates shows the appraisers pricing the goats by age and size, the mature beasts worth roughly twice the young, so that the whole numerous flock could be valued to a shilling.

The poultry, graded from grown geese and turkeys down through fowls to half-grown birds, rounds out a well-stocked farm provisioned across every kind of animal. This careful sorting of even the poultry by maturity, the grown fowls at more than a shilling and the half-grown at less, reflects the same disciplined valuation applied to the cattle, the goats and every other class of stock throughout the archive. The Disfountain estate, with its large herds, its numerous flocks and its full complement of poultry set beside its substantial land and slaves, marks a well-provisioned holding of the island’s established rank, its livestock reckoned in the same methodical columns applied to the greatest and the humblest farms alike.

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59

Brought over L 1013 8

Yams Viz!

38.000 Yams @ 10/ Pr 1000 L 19

26.000 Do 9/ 11 14

9.000 Do 12/ 5 8

14.000 Do 18/ 12 12

34.000 Do 25/ 42 10

13.000 Do 6/ 3 18 95 14

House Furniture &c

1 Bed Featd Under Bed 2 Feat Pillow 1 Bolstr Bedstd

old Quilt Curtains

} 5

1 Featd Bed 3 Feat pillows Bedstd old Quilt & Curtains 3 10

1 Sacky Bed & 2 Feat Pillow 1 15

1 Small Feat Bed Clasp Cotn Sacky Bed 2 Feat

Pillow Quilt & Windows Curtains

} 2

1 Feat Bed 2 Feat pillows old Quilt Curtains old Blankt 3

1 Feat Bed & pillow 1 Wool Bolstr 2 old Blankets old

Counterpain & Bedstead

} 3 10

1 old Mahogany Chamber Table 10

1 old Trunk 1

1 old Childs Chair 2 6

2 Chamber Potts 6

2 old Do 3

1 Fir Chest 1 5

1 Do 1 5

1 old Table with 6 Cups & Saucers 2 Small Tea potts

& a Small Tea Board

} 7 6

1 old Box 2 6

1 old Chair 2 6

1 old Flasket 1

1 old Hanger 3

1 large Oval fir Table 1

1 Small Oval Wainscotd Table 12 6

1 Round Lacquerd Table 2 6

Household Good Car over L 21 [...] 1099 2

Carried over L 1099 2

The inventory of the estate of Joseph Disfountain, deceased, continued from the running total of £1,013 8s 0d carried over.

Yams

38,000 yams, at 10s per thousand, £19 0s 0d

26,000 yams, at 9s per thousand, £11 14s 0d

9,000 yams, at 12s per thousand, £5 8s 0d

14,000 yams, at 18s per thousand, £12 12s 0d

34,000 yams, at 25s per thousand, £42 10s 0d

15,000 yams, at 6s per thousand, £4 10s 0d

total, £95 14s 0d

House furniture

1 feather bed, under bed, 2 feather pillows, 1 bolster, bedstead, old quilt and curtain, £5 0s 0d

1 feather bed, 3 feather pillows, bedstead, old quilt and curtain, £3 10s 0d

1 flock bed and 2 feather pillows, £1 15s 0d

1 small feather bed, clasp cloth, flock bed, 2 feather pillows, quilt and window curtain, £2 0s 0d

1 feather bed, 2 feather pillows, old quilt, curtain and old blanket, £3 0s 0d

1 feather bed and pillow, 1 wool bolster, 2 old blankets, old counterpane and bedstead, £3 10s 0d

1 old mahogany chamber table, £0 10s 0d

1 old trunk, £0 1s 0d

1 old child’s chair, £0 2s 6d

2 chamber pots, £0 6s 0d

2 chamber pots, £0 3s 0d

1 fir chest, £1 5s 0d

1 fir chest, £1 5s 0d

1 old table with 6 cups, 6 saucers, 2 small teapots and small tea board, £0 7s 6d

1 old box, £0 2s 6d

1 old chair, £0 2s 6d

1 old hatchet, £0 1s 0d

1 old pot hanger, £0 3s 0d

1 large oval fir table, £1 0s 0d

1 small oval wainscot table, £0 2s 6d

1 round lacquered table, £0 [...]

Household goods carried over, £21 14s 0d

Carried over, £1,109 2s 0d

Interpretations

The yam account of the Joseph Disfountain estate again shows the crop in staggered plantings priced by maturity, and one lot stands out for its exceptional value. Thirty-four thousand yams valued at twenty-five shillings the thousand, far above the rates on the other plantings, points to a stand of fully mature and prime yams ready or nearly ready to lift, worth more than double the ordinary rate. This single lot at £42 10s 0d formed nearly half the whole yam crop, showing how the value of a planting turned sharply on its maturity, the ripe yams commanding a premium that the younger stands could not.

The bedding here is entered in complete furnished units as throughout the archive, but the fillings are carefully distinguished, feather beds set apart from a flock bed and wool bolsters. A flock bed was stuffed with flock, the coarse tufts and waste of wool or cotton, a cheaper filling than feathers, and its listing alongside the feather beds shows the appraisers grading the bedding by its stuffing as well as its furniture. This attention to the material within each bed, marking feather from flock and noting wool bolsters, reflects the disciplined valuation of every article by its quality that runs through the whole inventory.

The old child’s chair among the furniture again marks the presence of children in the household, following the many cribs, nurse’s chairs and children’s furniture seen across the estates of the archive. Such small specialised furniture, worn from use and valued at a few shillings, records the raising of infants in the establishment, the human continuity behind the columns of goods. Set among the feather beds, the old chests and the modest tables of a working planter’s house, it fills out the domestic life of the family, its rooms furnished for children as well as adults and reckoned by the appraisers with the same steady attention to age and condition.

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60

Brought over L 1099 2

Household Goods Brought over L 21 19

1 Dish with a Stand 10

1 old Cupboard 1

1 large fir Chest 1 10

1 Small old Box 3

1 Beaurow 3 10

1 Elbow Cain Chair 6

6 old Cain Chairs 15

1 Small Looking Glass Gilt frame 6

1 Sea Kettle 10

1 Smaller Do 5

1 Saucepan 1 6

1 Pr Sconces 2

1 Pr Brass Candlesticks 4

1 old Candlestick & Snuffers 1 6

1 old Box Iron & Heaters 5

6 Knives & forks 6

8 Wine Glasses 4

2 Salts 2

1 old Stand with 2 Cruets & 2 Jelly Glasses 2 6

7 China Plates 2 6

1 Butter Cup 1

10 old Pewter Plates & 1 old Dishes 10

2 old Small Pewter Basons 3

2 Wood Bowls 2

1 Crock 1 6

1 Pr Shoe Gause 1

2 Pr Chintz 15

1 Pr Nankeen 3

12 Towels 13

7 Handkerchiefs 7

9 old Pillowbears 1 6

2 Table Cloths 18

3 Small Do 15

2 Pr Sheets 1 12

4 Pr old Do

Household Goods Carried over L 41 11

Carried over L 1109 2

The inventory of the estate of Joseph Disfountain, deceased, continued from the running total of £1,109 2s 0d carried over, with a household goods subtotal of £21 19s 0d brought forward.

1 dish with a stand, £0 10s 0d

1 old cupboard, £0 1s 0d

1 large fir chest, £1 10s 0d

1 small old box, £0 3s 0d

1 bureau, £3 10s 0d

1 elbow cane chair, £0 6s 0d

6 old cane chairs, £0 13s 0d

1 small looking glass, gilt frame, £0 6s 0d

1 tea kettle, £0 10s 0d

1 smaller tea kettle, £0 5s 0d

1 saucepan, £0 1s 6d

1 pair of sconces, £0 2s 0d

1 pair of brass candlesticks, £0 4s 0d

1 old candlestick and snuffers, £0 1s 6d

1 old box, iron and heaters, £0 5s 0d

6 knives and forks, £0 6s 0d

8 wine glasses, £0 4s 0d

2 salts, £0 2s 0d

1 old stand with 2 cruets and 2 jelly glasses, £0 2s 6d

7 china plates, £0 2s 6d

1 butter cup, £0 1s 0d

10 old pewter plates and 4 old dishes, £0 10s 0d

2 old small pewter basins, £0 3s 0d

2 wood bowls, £0 2s 0d

1 clock, £1 6s 0d

1 pair of soosey gauze, £1 0s 0d

2 pairs of chintz, £0 15s 0d

1 pair of nankeen, £0 3s 0d

12 towels, £0 13s 0d

7 handkerchiefs, £0 7s 0d

9 old pillowbears, £0 4s 6d

2 tablecloths, £0 18s 0d

3 small tablecloths, £0 15s 0d

2 pairs of sheets, £1 12s 0d

4 pairs of old sheets, £0 [...]

Household goods carried over, £41 11s 0d

Carried over, £1,109 2s 0d

Interpretations

A clock valued at £1 6s 0d among the goods of the Joseph Disfountain estate marks a household of some standing, one of the more valuable individual articles in the inventory. Clocks were costly imports on a remote island, precision instruments carried from England, and to keep one placed a household among those that ordered their day by measured time. Its presence here, set among the plainer furniture and worn kitchen ware of a working planter, shows that even an establishment furnished modestly in most respects might hold this one refinement, the mark of a settled and comfortable home.

The furniture again divides between a few better pieces and much that is worn, a bureau of the better sort and an elbow cane chair set against six old cane chairs, old boxes and an old cupboard. This persistent grading of goods by condition runs through the whole inventory, the appraisers distinguishing the sound furniture kept in use from the tired pieces relegated to the lesser rooms. The single gilt-framed looking glass and the pair of sconces for holding candles mark small touches of ornament among the plain domestic stock of a working household.

The textiles here name a further variety of imported cloth, a pair of soosey gauze valued at a pound, marking a fine open-woven version of the striped soosey cotton or silk mixture seen elsewhere in the archive. Set with the chintz and nankeen among the household linen, it shows once more the range of eastern fabrics that reached the island through the East India trade, supplied to a planter’s household in both plain and finer weaves. The careful valuing of these cloths by their quality, from the fine soosey gauze down to the old pillowbears and worn sheets, continues the disciplined appraisal of every article that runs through the whole of this and every other estate in the archive.

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61

Brought over L 1109 2

Household Goods Brought over L 41 [...]

1 old Yam Pott 7 6

1 Meat Pott 10

1 old Do 5

1 Milke Pott 3

1 old Grid Iron 1

4 old Pott Hangers 6

1 old Spit 1 6

1 old Pr Tongs 2

1 Pail & Piggen 5

1 old Square Table 5

1 old Cradle 2 6

1 Pr Steelyards 10

1 China Bowl 3

6 Silvr Table Spoons Wt 11 15 Oz Dwt @ 7/ Pr Ounce 4 2 3

3 Do Do 13 2 6/ 1 3 3 3/4

6 Tea Spoons Tongs & Strainer Wt 13 22 7/ 4 6 3/4

7 Gold Rings 3 10

1 Silver Stock Buckle 7 6

1 old Side Saddle 1

1 Grind Stone 5

1 Bagg 2

1 Chest 1

1 Small Carboy 1 6

1 Desk 10

2 Earthen Jars 1 6

1 Ladder 2

a parcel Plantation Tools 10

1 Elbow Cain Chair 8 58 15 1

1 Mare 7

Carried over L 1174 17 1

The inventory of the estate of Joseph Disfountain, deceased, continued from the running total of £1,109 2s 0d carried over, with a household goods subtotal of £41 11s 0d brought forward.

1 old yam pot, £0 7s 6d

1 meat pot, £0 10s 0d

1 old meat pot, £0 5s 0d

1 milk pot, £0 3s 0d

1 old gridiron, £0 1s 0d

4 old pot hangers, £0 6s 0d

1 old spit, £0 1s 6d

1 old pair of tongs, £0 2s 0d

1 pail and piggin, £0 5s 0d

1 old square table, £0 5s 0d

1 old cradle, £0 2s 6d

1 pair of steelyards, £0 10s 0d

1 china bowl, £0 3s 0d

6 new silver table spoons, weight 11 ounces 15 pennyweight, at 7s per ounce, £4 2s 3d

3 silver table spoons, weight 4 ounces 13 pennyweight 2 grains, at 6s per ounce, £1 3s 3½d

6 teaspoons, tongs and strainer, weight 2 ounces 13 pennyweight 22 grains, at 7s per ounce, £0 19s 6½d

7 gold rings, £3 10s 0d

1 silver stock buckle, £0 7s 6d

1 old side saddle, £1 0s 0d

1 grindstone, £0 5s 0d

1 keg, £0 2s 0d

1 chest, £1 0s 0d

1 small carboy, £0 1s 6d

1 desk, £0 10s 0d

2 earthen jars, £0 1s 6d

1 ladder, £0 2s 0d

a parcel of plantation tools, £0 10s 0d

1 elbow cane chair, £0 8s 0d

subtotal, £58 15s 1d

1 mare, £7 0s 0d

Carried over, £1,174 17s 1d

Interpretations

The plate of the Joseph Disfountain estate is valued by the standard island method, weighed to the pennyweight and grain and priced at seven shillings the ounce for the new spoons and six for the older, showing once more the appraisers pricing silver by weight and condition. A small collection of spoons and tea equipment came to a few pounds, the modest plate of a working planter rather than the rich service of the greatest houses. The distinction drawn between the new table spoons at the full rate and the older ones below it marks the appraisers valuing the metal by its state to the grain, the same discipline applied throughout the archive.

The seven gold rings, valued together at £3 10s 0d, mark the personal jewellery of the household, most probably kept as keepsakes and portable value in the manner seen across the estates. Gold rings recur throughout the archive, often distributed among heirs as individual bequests, and their appearance here in some number points to a family that held a store of such small ornaments, each carrying both worth and sentiment. Set with the single silver stock buckle, they represent the compact personal wealth that a planter’s household kept beyond its plate.

An old cradle among the furniture again marks the raising of children in the household, following the old child’s chair noted earlier in the same estate. This worn cradle, valued at half a crown, records the nursing of infants in the establishment, the human continuity behind the goods, and together with the child’s chair confirms a family with young children. The side saddle entered nearby, a saddle made for a woman riding, marks the presence of a woman of the household who rode about the island, and the mare valued at the foot of the page provided her mount, filling out the domestic and working life of a settled planter’s family.

70

62

Brought over L 1174 17 1

Sundry persons Indebted to the Estate Viz

Samuel Doveton

John Bland

John Spencer 2 18

Gabriel Isacke

The Estate Dr to Sundrys as Pr their Accounts

To Samuel Falconer 61 8

To John Desfountains Estate

NB We cannot make this a clear Estate

as there are Several Debts Owing, both

to & from the Estate, which we cant bring

to Account

Signed

Fran Wrangham

John Doveton

An Inventory of the Goods & Chattles of Giles Smith Decd taken and Appraized

by Messrs Richard Beale & Orlando Bagley this 19 day of May 1750

Land {

9 Acres of Leave Land Abt 3 Acres Plaid

The other Six not Plaid

The Mansion House

}

55

30 105

Blacks {

One Black Man named Toby at

Susan old Black Woman

Ellen a Young Do

}

28

6

18

Yams {

2.200 upper part abt 12 @ 15 Pr thowsd

33.000 next from 6 to 6 @ 4 Do

15.000 at the bottom at 15 @ 20 Pr Do

}

6 1

13 4

15 34 8

Household Good

1 Feathr Bed Wool Bolstr 3 Pillows Quilt a Carpet

Bedstd Curtains Bed Rail & Tester

} 3 5

1 Feathr Bed Wool Bolstr 3 Pillows & Pillowbeers Quilt 2 10

Household Goods Carried over L 7 10

Carried over L 1868 8

The estate of Joseph Disfountain remained connected to sundry persons on both sides of its accounts, continued from the running total of £1,174 17s 1d carried over.

Sundry persons indebted to the estate

Samuel Doveton

John Bland

John Spencer, £2 18s 0d

Gabriel Isaake

subtotal, £644 8s 0d

The estate debtor to sundry as per their accounts

To Samuel Falconer

To John Disfountain’s estate

The appraisers added a note that they could not make this a clear estate, since there were several debts owing both to and from the estate which they could not bring to account.

The inventory was signed by Francis Wrangham and John Doveton.

A separate inventory follows, of the goods and chattels of Giles Smith, deceased, taken and appraised by Messrs Richard Beale and Orlando Bagley on 19 May 1752.

Land

10 acres of leasehold land, about 3 acres cleared, the other 6 not cleared, £55 0s 0d

the mansion house, £50 0s 0d

total, £105 0s 0d

Blacks

1 black man named Toby, £23 0s 0d

1 old black woman, £6 0s 0d

1 young black woman named Ellen, £18 0s 0d

total, £47 0s 0d

Yams

8,200 yams, upper part, about 12 to 15 months, at 4s per thousand, £6 4s 0d

33,000 yams, next, from 3 to 6 months, at 8s per thousand, £13 4s 0d

15,000 yams, at the bottom, about 20 months, at £1 per thousand, £15 0s 0d

total, £34 8s 0d

Household goods

1 feather bed, wool bolster, 3 pillows, quilt, carpet, bedstead, chintz curtains, bed rail and tester, £5 0s 0d

1 feather bed, wool bolster, 3 pillows, blanket and quilt, £2 10s 0d

Household goods carried over, £7 10s 0d

Carried over, £186 8s 0d

Interpretations

The closing note on the Joseph Disfountain estate records the same reservation that runs through several settlements in the archive, that the appraisers could not reduce the estate to a clear figure because debts owed both to and from it could not yet be brought to account. This inability to strike a net balance shows the practical difficulty of settling the affairs of a man enmeshed in the island’s web of credit, where sums owing in several directions remained uncertain or uncollected. Until those debts were known and gathered, the estate stood only as an inventory of assets, its true divisible worth left open, a common state in a community bound together by running accounts.

The debts owed to the Disfountain estate name several men who recur throughout the archive, Samuel Doveton, John Spencer and Gabriel Isaake among them, while the estate in turn owed money to Samuel Falconer the surgeon and to the estate of John Disfountain. This last obligation, a debt between two Disfountain estates, marks once more the close and reciprocal dealings within a single family, one deceased member’s estate owing money to another. The recurrence of the same names as debtors and creditors across estate after estate confirms the tight circle of established families whose fortunes were bound together by mutual lending.

The Giles Smith inventory that opens next records a modest holding, and its land carries a telling detail about the state of the island’s cultivation. Ten acres of leasehold land are noted as only about three acres cleared, the other six or seven still uncleared, which shows that even in the middle of the century much island ground remained rough and unbroken. This distinction between cleared and uncleared land marks the ongoing labour of bringing ground into cultivation on a difficult island, where clearing was slow and costly, and it fixed the value of a parcel as much by how much had been worked as by its total acreage.

71

63

Brought over L 1868 8

Household Goods Brought over L 7 10

2 Pr Sheets 7 [...]

1 large fir Chest 8

1 Small Trunk Do 1 10

1 Chamber Table old 12 6

1 Pr Brass Candlesticks Snuffers 7 [...]

1 Chamber Looking Glass crackd 4

1 Brass Tinder Box Candlestick 2

1 Do Sawcelle Do 1 9

6 Small Earthin Jars 6

1 Coat Brush 1

a Parcel of Carpentrs Tools 1

2 Hand Saws old 8

1 Whip Saw old 10

1 Pr Steelyards old 8

1 Yam Pott 15

1 old Yam Kettle & Trevit 10

1 Pr Andersons Spit & Fender 7 6

1 Meat Pott 6

2 Fraying Pans 5

a Skimmer & Ladle old 3

1 Pewter Mortar & Pestle 2 6

1 Gallon Pott old 4

1 Box Iron & Heater old 5

2 Pewter Basons 6

4 Pr Dishes & Pr Plates 15

6 Knives & forks old 3

1 Clasp Cott 4

3 Table Spoons Silver 1 10

Plantation Tools 15

12 Dozen Round Bottles 1 4

1 Table & Form old 10

1 long Table Form & 4 Chairs Wood old 15

About 200 Brimstone @ 1 Pr pound 3 6 8 25 11 4

Carried over L 2119 4

The inventory of the estate of Giles Smith, deceased, continued from the running total of £186 8s 0d carried over, with a household goods subtotal of £7 10s 0d brought forward.

2 pairs of sheets, £0 8s 0d

1 large fir chest, £1 10s 0d

1 small fir chest, £0 12s 6d

1 chamber table, old, £0 6s 0d

1 pair of brass candlesticks and snuffers, £0 7s 6d

1 chamber looking glass, cracked, £0 1s 0d

1 brass tinder box candlestick, £0 2s 0d

1 small tinder box candlestick, £0 1s 8d

6 small earthen jars, £0 6s 0d

1 coat brush, £0 1s 0d

a parcel of carpenters tools, £1 0s 0d

2 hand saws, old, £0 8s 0d

1 whip saw, old, £0 10s 0d

1 pair of steelyards, old, £0 8s 0d

1 yam pot, £0 18s 1d

1 old yam kettle and skewer, £0 10s 0d

1 pair of andirons, spit and fender, £0 7s 6d

1 meat pot, £0 6s 0d

2 frying pans, £0 5s 0d

a skimmer and ladle, old, £0 3s 0d

1 pewter mortar and pestle, £0 2s 6d

1 gallon pot, old, £0 4s 0d

1 box, iron and heaters, old, £0 5s 0d

2 pewter basins, £0 6s 0d

4 pewter dishes and 4 plates, £0 15s 0d

6 knives and forks, old, £0 3s 0d

1 clasp cloth, £0 4s 0d

3 silver table spoons, £1 10s 0d

plantation tools, £0 15s 0d

12 dozen pound bottles, £1 4s 0d

1 table and form, old, £0 10s 0d

1 long table, form and 8 chairs, wood, old, £0 15s 0d

about 200 pounds of brimstone, at 4d per pound, £3 6s 8d

Household goods carried over, £25 11s 4d

Carried over, £211 19s 4d

Interpretations

An unusual entry among the goods of the Giles Smith estate marks a commodity rarely seen in these inventories, about two hundred pounds of brimstone valued at fourpence the pound. Brimstone was sulphur, imported and used for a range of purposes including the making of matches, the fumigation of buildings and the treatment of animals and vines against pests and disease. So large a quantity in a modest estate points to Smith holding it either for sale or for some particular use about the land, most probably in the care of livestock or crops, and its careful valuation by the pound shows the appraisers pricing even so unusual a store as part of the estate.

The carpenters and sawing tools, hand saws, a whip saw and a parcel of carpenters tools, mark woodworking carried on in the household, the whip saw in particular being a long two-handled saw used for cutting planks from timber. On a largely treeless island where sawn wood was scarce and valuable, the ability to cut and work timber was a useful skill, and Smith’s tools show a household that undertook its own building and repair. Set with the plantation tools, they anchor the modest estate in the practical labour of a working smallholding that made and mended much of what it needed.

The three enslaved people who open this estate, a man, an old woman and a young woman, together with the small landholding and the plain household goods, mark Giles Smith as a smallholder of modest means rather than a leading planter. Even so, his estate carries the same essential island assets in miniature, the slaves, the standing yam crop in staggered plantings, the modest silver in three table spoons, and the working tools of a self-provisioning farm. The old woman valued at six pounds, well below the young woman at eighteen, again shows the appraisers pricing the enslaved by age and capacity, the aged commanding a fraction of the value set on those in their working prime.

72

64

Brought over L 211 19 4

6 Ducks L 9

18 Dunghill Fowls 1 7

1 Sow & 5 Pigs 1 19

7 large Shoats @ 12 4 4

6 Small at 6 1 16

2 Sows 2 10

2 China Bowls 4

1 Spoon Mould 1

1 old Feather Bed 2 5

1 Pr Silver Shoe & Knee Buckles 12 6

1 Ladice 15 6 12 6

Signed Rich Beale Whole Estate L 228 11 10

Orlando Bagley

Inventory of the Goods & Chattles of Samuel Doveton Decd taken and

Appraised by Messrs Francis Wrangham Senr Richd Bagley & John Desfountain

this tenth day of October 1749 Viz

Blacks Viz!

Legacy to Josa Doveton 1 Man Named Stephen L 30

Do to Saml Doveton 1 Do Do Frank 30

Do to Robert Doveton 1 Do Do Great Jack 30

1 Do Do May 27

1 Do Do Sam 23

1 Do Do Jack 20

1 Do Do Chex 20

1 Do Do London 18

1 Do Do Harry 16

1 Do Do Isaac 15

1 Do Do Tony 12

1 Do Do Handy 4

Blacks Carried over L 245

The inventory of the estate of Giles Smith, deceased, closed from the running total of £211 19s 4d carried over.

6 ducks, £0 9s 0d

18 dunghill fowls, £1 7s 0d

1 sow and 5 pigs, £1 19s 0d

7 large shoats, at 12s each, £4 4s 0d

6 small shoats, at 6s each, £1 16s 0d

2 sows, £2 10s 0d

2 china bowls, £0 4s 0d

1 spoon mould, £0 1s 0d

1 old leather bed, £2 5s 0d

1 pair of silver shoe and knee buckles, £0 12s 6d

1 ladder, £0 15s 0d

subtotal, £16 12s 6d

whole estate, £228 11s 10d

The Smith inventory was signed by Richard Beale and Orlando Bagley.

A separate inventory follows, of the goods and chattels of Samuel Doveton, deceased, taken and appraised by Messrs Francis Wrangham senior, Richard Bagley and John Disfountain on 10 October 1749.

Blacks

1 man named Stephen, £30 0s 0d

1 man named Frank, £30 0s 0d

1 man named Great Jack, £30 0s 0d

1 man named May, £27 0s 0d

1 man named Sam, £23 0s 0d

1 man named Jack, £20 0s 0d

1 man named Chex, £20 0s 0d

1 man named London, £18 0s 0d

1 man named Harry, £16 0s 0d

1 man named Isaac, £15 0s 0d

1 man named Tony, £12 0s 0d

1 man named Handy, £4 0s 0d

Blacks carried over, £245 0s 0d

The margin marks three of these men as legacies: Stephen to David Doveton, Frank to Samuel Doveton, and Great Jack to Rebecca Doveton.

Interpretations

The Giles Smith estate closes to a whole value of £228 11s 10d, and its final entries confirm the modest working smallholding revealed throughout. A spoon mould among the goods marks a household that cast its own spoons, most probably of pewter, from melted metal, a small domestic manufacture that shows the self-provisioning character of a farm that made and mended much of what it used. Set with the old leather bed and the few pieces of silver, it fills out the plain domestic economy of a smallholder whose estate carried the essential island assets in miniature.

The Samuel Doveton inventory that opens next returns to a substantial holding, and its slaveholding is notably large, twelve men listed on this page alone before the account continues. The names include one distinguished as Great Jack, most probably to mark him from another Jack in the same holding, a common practice where two enslaved men shared a name, seen elsewhere in the archive in the pairing of Toby and Old Toby. Three of these men are already marked in the margin as legacies to members of the Doveton family, showing the estate carved into bequests of named human beings before the reckoning was complete, the enslaved treated as the divisible core of a planter’s property.

This was the Samuel Doveton who appears repeatedly across the archive as an appraiser of other estates, as a debtor and creditor in their accounts, and as a legatee in the wills of his kin, now having his own large estate valued in turn. The recurrence of the Doveton name throughout these records, as valuers, heirs, debtors and now as the deceased whose slaves and goods are appraised, captures the dense and reciprocal world of the island’s leading families. The same men who valued the property of their neighbours had their own reckoned by the same hands, the enslaved people, the land and the goods of one generation passing to the next through the careful appraisals that bound the small community together.

73

65

Blacks Brought over L 245

Legacy to Saml Doveton 1 Boy Named John 15

1 Do Do Dick 10

Legacy to Josa Doveton 1 Do Do Sawney 5

1 Do Do Frank 4

1 Do Do Patrick 4

Legacy to Rebecca Doveton 1 Woman Do Pegg 20

1 Do Do Nanny 20

Legacy to Marta Doveton 1 Girl Do Sarah 3

Legacy to Rebecca Doveton 1 Do Do Abigail 4 335

Freehold Land Viz!

9 Acres about the House upper part @ 15 Pr Acre 135

30 1/4 Do called the Bull pond Pasture 10 Pr Do 307 10

20 Do called Francis upper Land 12 Pr Do 240

22 1/4 Do called Bowman lower Land 12 Pr Do 267

5 Do about the House lower part 15 Pr Do 75

10 Do called Francis lower part 9 Pr Do 90

24 Do called Isacke 6 Pr Do 144

27 Do called Beales lower Land 10 Pr Do 278

20 Do called Do upper Land 11 Pr Do 220

26 Do called Bowman do 11 Pr Do 286

9 1/2 Do called Hayes 11 Pr Do 104 10 2131

Leashold Land Viz!

12 Acres called Taylor @ 5 Pr Acre 60

12 Do called Bryan 8 Pr Do 96

4 Do called Isacke 1 Pr Do 4

15 1/4 Do called Hayes 2 30 10

5 Do in Sandy Bay 10 50 240 10

Houses Viz!

1 Dwelling House in the Country &c 300

1 Do House in James Valley with the Billiard

room adjoining out Houses Yard &c

} 240

540

Carried over L 3249 10

The inventory of the estate of Samuel Doveton, deceased, continued from the Blacks account brought over at £245 0s 0d.

Blacks

1 boy named John, £15 0s 0d

1 boy named Dick, £10 0s 0d

1 boy named Dawson, £5 0s 0d

1 boy named Frank, £4 0s 0d

1 boy named Patnah, £4 0s 0d

1 woman named Peg, £20 0s 0d

1 woman named Nanny, £20 0s 0d

1 girl named Sarah, £8 0s 0d

1 girl named Abigail, £4 0s 0d

total, £335 0s 0d

Freehold land

9 acres about the house, upper part, at 15s per acre, £135 0s 0d

30¾ acres called the Bull pen pasture, at 10s per acre, £307 10s 0d

20 acres called Francis upper land, at 12s per acre, £240 0s 0d

22¼ acres called Bowman lower land, at 12s per acre, £267 0s 0d

5 acres about the house, lower part, at 15s per acre, £75 0s 0d

10 acres called Francis lower part, at 8s per acre, £80 0s 0d

24 acres called Isaacs, at 12s per acre, £144 0s 0d

27 acres called Beales lower land, at 10s per acre, £275 0s 0d

20 acres called Beales upper land, at 11s per acre, £220 0s 0d

26 acres called Bowmans, at 11s per acre, £286 0s 0d

9¼ acres called Hayes, at 11s per acre, £104 10s 0d

total, £2,134 0s 0d

Leasehold land

12 acres called Taylors, at 5s per acre, £60 0s 0d

12 acres called Bryan, at 8s per acre, £96 0s 0d

4 acres called Isaacs, at 1s per acre, £4 0s 0d

15¼ acres called Hayes, at 8s per acre, £30 10s 0d

5 acres in Sandy Bay, at 10s per acre, £50 0s 0d

total, £240 10s 0d

Houses

1 dwelling house in the country, £300 0s 0d

1 house in James Valley with the billiard room adjoining, outhouses, yard and appurtenances, £240 0s 0d

total, £540 0s 0d

Carried over, £3,249 10s 0d

Interpretations

The completed slave account of the Samuel Doveton estate values twenty-one enslaved people at £335, a large holding matching the great extent of his land, and the margin shows it already carved into legacies for the Doveton family. Named men, boys, women and girls are marked for David, Samuel and Rebecca Doveton, the enslaved distributed among the heirs like parcels of ground or head of cattle. This allotment of human beings by name to particular children, noted alongside the valuation, shows once more how the enslaved formed the divisible core of a planter’s estate, treated in the settling of the property as chattels to be shared out among the family.

The freehold land is exceptionally extensive, more than two hundred acres in eleven named parcels valued together at £2,134, marking Samuel Doveton as one of the greatest landholders in the whole archive. The field names record a settled and much-divided agricultural landscape, the Bull pen pasture, Francis land, Bowman land, Isaacs, Beales and Hayes, several of them named for former holders whose surnames recur throughout these records. This concentration of prime freehold ground, most of it valued at ten to fifteen shillings the acre, gave the estate its great worth, the land forming by far the largest single asset and the foundation of the family’s standing.

The two houses include the town property in James Valley with its billiard room, and the same billiard room appears in the earlier Doveton inventory at the head of this archive, valued then as part of another Doveton estate. This recurrence of a distinctive feature, a billiard room in a James Valley house, across two Doveton inventories points to the descent or division of family property between generations of the same family, the town house with its costly billiard table passing within the Doveton line. James Valley, the island’s port and only town, commanded high prices for its scarce property, and to hold such a house there alongside a great country dwelling marks the wealth and standing of a leading island family, its estate reckoned in the same disciplined columns applied throughout the archive.

74

66

Brought over L 3249 10

Neat Cattle Viz!

29 Cows with Calves L 221 10

Legacy to Mary Doveton 1 Cows 6

Legacy to Peg Doveton 1 Do 6 10

23 Heifers 102 10

16 Bullocks 71

2 Bulls 8 10 416

Sheep Viz!

45 Ewes 38 5

5 Weathers 4 5

2 Rams 1 14

15 Lambs 6 50 4

Goats Viz!

93 Ewes 41 3

21 Weathers 7 7

5 Rams 1 16

52 Kids 11 10 61 16

Hogs Viz!

3 Sows & 14 Pigs 5 10

3 Sows 3 5

7 Barrows 5 3

11 Shoats 6 1 20 1

Yams Viz!

29.000 Yams & Suckers @ 22 Pr 1000 24 14

31.000 Do Do 20 Pr Do 31

177.000 Do Do 12 Pr Do 106 16

36.000 Do Do 7 1/2 Pr Do 13 13

40.000 Do Do 8 Pr Do 16

55.000 Do Do 7 1/2 Pr Do 19 3

25.000 Do Do 6 Pr Do 7 10 226

Carried over L 4023 11

The inventory of the estate of Samuel Doveton, deceased, continued from the running total of £3,249 10s 0d carried over.

Neat cattle

29 cows with calves, £221 10s 0d

1 cow, £6 0s 0d

1 cow, £6 10s 0d

23 heifers, £102 10s 0d

16 bullocks, £71 0s 0d

2 bulls, £8 10s 0d

total, £416 0s 0d

Sheep

45 ewes, £38 5s 0d

5 wethers, £4 5s 0d

2 rams, £1 14s 0d

15 lambs, £6 0s 0d

total, £50 4s 0d

Goats

93 ewes, £41 3s 0d

21 wethers, £7 7s 0d

5 rams, £1 16s 0d

52 kids, £11 10s 0d

total, £61 16s 0d

Hogs

3 sows and 14 pigs, £5 10s 0d

3 sows, £3 5s 0d

7 barrows, £5 5s 0d

11 shoats, £6 1s 0d

total, £20 1s 0d

Yams

29,000 yams and suckers, at 22s per thousand, £29 14s 0d

31,000 yams and suckers, at 20s per thousand, £31 0s 0d

178,000 yams and suckers, at 12s per thousand, £106 16s 0d

35,000 yams and suckers, at 9s per thousand, £15 15s 0d

40,000 yams and suckers, at 8s per thousand, £16 0s 0d

56,000 yams and suckers, at 7s per thousand, £19 5s 0d

25,000 yams and suckers, at 6s per thousand, £7 10s 0d

total, £226 0s 0d

Carried over, £4,023 11s 0d

The margin marks two cows as legacies, one to Mary Doveton and one to Rebecca Doveton.

Interpretations

The cattle of the Samuel Doveton estate form one of the largest herds in the whole archive, twenty-nine cows with calves at foot alone, together with heifers, bullocks and bulls worth £416. This great stock, dominated by cows in calf and rising young cattle, marks a plantation run on a very large scale, the breeding herd being the foundation of its provisioning and its trade in meat. The sixteen bullocks in particular, valued together at £71, were working or fattening beasts, most probably raised for the plough and for slaughter, showing an estate that both worked its cattle and sold them for their meat.

The yam crop is exceptionally large, more than three hundred and ninety thousand yams and suckers in staggered plantings, with one great lot of one hundred and seventy-eight thousand at twelve shillings the thousand worth over £106 alone. This vast standing crop, priced by maturity from six shillings to twenty-two the thousand, shows the rolling system of continuous planting worked on the greatest scale in the archive, a plantation growing yams in enormous quantity to feed its many slaves, its livestock and the passing shipping. The yam crop at £226 was itself worth more than most whole estates in these records, confirming the crop as the true engine of a great island holding.

The goats again far outnumber the sheep, ninety-three ewe goats among more than a hundred and seventy head, confirming the pattern that runs through the entire archive on the largest scale here. On St Helena, where goats thrived on the steep and broken ground that defeated more delicate stock, they were the cheapest and most numerous livestock on every farm great and small. Their careful division into ewes, wethers, rams and kids at differing rates shows the appraisers pricing even this great flock by age and sex, so that the whole of a very large and well-stocked estate, its huge herds, its enormous yam crop and its numerous flocks, could be reckoned to a shilling for the settling of the property.

75

67

Brought over L 4023 11 6

Poultry Viz!

46 Grown Fowls @ 1/6 3 [...]

8 half grown Do 1/ 6

73 Chickens [...] 18 3

16 Grown Turkeys 5/ 4

11 Turkey Chickens 1/6 8

10 Grown Geese 5/ 2 10

9 Goslins 1/ 1

13 Grown Ducks 1/6 19 6

15 Young Do 3/ 3 9

12 15 6

Plate Viz!

1 Silver pepper Box Wt 2 11 @ 5/8 Pr ounce 14 3/4

Legacy to Marta Doveton 1 Pr Tankard 30 7 5/8 8 6 11

Legacy to

Saml Doveton

1 Do Muggy 6 11 5/8 1 18 3/4

6 Do Spoons 9 11 3 3

6 Do Do 8 9 5/8 2 7 3/4

1 Pr Soup Ladle 7 2 6/8 2 6 1 1/4

1 Do Tea Pott 14 5/8 3 17

1/2 Do 1 Pound large Strainer Do 5/6 11 3/4

23 1 11

Buttns Viz!

Legacy to John Doveton 1 Philly Ring with 5 Sparks 1 3

To Doveton 1 Mourning Ring & Ring in memory of R H Wm 15

adjoining to 1 Do 3 Do Marked & Set Both 1

Josa Doveton 1 Enamelld Do 12

Do to Do Doveton 1 Do Do 12

Do to Saml Doveton 1 Do Do 12

1 Pr Gold Buttons 1 5 16

Boat Viz!

1 Petty Boat rope Oars &c 4

1 Small Yaul &c 2 6

Piece Goods &c

2 Palampores 1

1 Pr fine long Cloth 4

2 Pr Coach Do 2 10

26 Pr Interomills 9 2

Pr Goods Carried over L 16 12

Carried over L 4071 4 5 [...]

The inventory of the estate of Samuel Doveton, deceased, continued from the running total of £4,023 11s 0d carried over.

Poultry

31 grown fowls, at 1s 4d each, £2 1s 4d

8 half-grown fowls, at 8d each, £0 5s 4d

73 chickens, at 3d each, £0 18s 3d

16 grown turkeys, at 5s each, £4 0s 0d

16 turkey chickens, at 1s each, £0 16s 0d

10 grown geese, at 5s each, £2 10s 0d

2 goslings, £0 1s 0d

13 grown ducks, at 1s 6d each, £0 19s 6d

15 young ducks, at 3d each, £0 3s 9d

total, £12 15s 6d

Plate

1 silver pepper box, weight 2 ounces 12 pennyweight, at 7s per ounce, £0 14s 3½d

1 silver tankard, weight 30 ounces 7 pennyweight, at 5s 6d per ounce, £8 6s 11d

1 silver mug, weight 6 ounces 11 pennyweight, at 5s 6d per ounce, £1 16s 0½d

6 silver spoons, weight 9 ounces, at 7s per ounce, £3 3s 0d

6 silver spoons, weight 8 ounces 9 pennyweight, at 5s 6d per ounce, £2 7s 5½d

1 silver soup ladle, weight 7 ounces 2 pennyweight, at 6s 6d per ounce, £2 6s 3d

1 silver teapot, weight 14 ounces, at 5s 6d per ounce, £3 17s 0d

6 silver teaspoons, tongs and strainer, weight 2 ounces 1 pennyweight, at 5s 6d per ounce, £0 11s 3½d

total, £23 1s 11d

Rings

1 ruby ring with 5 sparks, £1 5s 0d

1 mourning ring, in memory of Peg, £0 15s 0d

1 gold ring, marked, £1 0s 0d

1 gold ring, enamel, £0 12s 0d

1 gold ring, £0 12s 0d

1 gold ring, £0 12s 0d

1 pair of gold buttons, £1 0s 0d

total, £5 16s 0d

Boat

1 pulley boat, rope, oars and appurtenances, £4 0s 0d

½ small vessel and appurtenances, £2 0s 0d

total, £6 0s 0d

Piece goods

2 palampores, £1 0s 0d

1 piece fine long-cloth, £0 4s 0d

2 pieces chintz, £2 10s 0d

26 pieces of sitternals, £9 2s 0d

Piece goods carried over, £16 12s 0d

Carried over, £4,091 4s 5d

The margin marks the plate and rings as legacies: the tankard and a spoon set to David Doveton, the mug to Samuel Doveton, and the mourning ring and gold rings distributed among David, John, Samuel and Rebecca Doveton.

Interpretations

A mourning ring entered among the rings of the Samuel Doveton estate, made in memory of Peg, opens a rare glimpse of personal feeling within the dry columns of the inventory. Mourning rings were made to commemorate the dead, often carrying the name or initials of the person mourned, and this ring remembered a woman named Peg, most probably a member of the family who had died before. Its careful listing among the valuables, and its marking as a legacy to be passed on, shows how such rings held sentiment as well as value, a keepsake of the dead treasured and handed down, and it stands as a quiet mark of grief in an archive otherwise given over to the reckoning of property.

The piece goods here are held in quantity as trade stock rather than for household use, and one entry names a fabric rarely seen, twenty-six pieces of sitternals valued at over nine pounds. This large holding of a single cloth by the piece, together with the palampores and chintz, points to Samuel Doveton dealing in imported Indian textiles as a merchant, keeping a stock for sale on the island or for onward venture. The presence of such trading goods in so great an estate shows the leading planters engaged in the East India commerce as well as in farming, their wealth drawn from trade as much as from land and stock.

The maritime property, a pulley boat with its gear and a half-share in a small vessel, marks the reach of the estate into the sea traffic and inshore fishing of the island. A pulley boat, most probably a craft rigged with tackle for handling cargo or nets, and a fractional stake in a larger vessel show a household engaged with the coastal life on which the island depended, moving goods and taking fish. Set with the great herds, the enormous yam crop, the trading stock of cloth and the rich plate, this maritime interest completes the portrait of one of the wealthiest and most various estates in the archive, its owner at once a great planter, a merchant and a partner in the vessels that served the island’s shores.

76

68

Brought over L 4071 4 5

Piece Goods Brought over L 16 12

5 Pr Chintz 1 10

3 Pr Gingham 2 2

2 Pr Blue Cotton Handkerchief 1 4

1 Pr Bodd Tape 15

1 Pr Cravats 1

2 Pr Brown Cloth 1 10 24 13

1 Billiard Table &c

170 lb Caddy 12

230 lb Sugar 3 10 10

200 lb Tea 3 16 8

30 lb Rope 13 6

90 lb Tallow 11 3

13 lb Tea 1 10

95 lb Tobacco 1 16

300 lb Paddy 5 18 9

20 double Deals 15

Wearing Apparel 3 16

Apparel Timber 13 15

Apparel Books 2 3

Apparel Plantation Tools 3 11

a Curry Comb & Brush 18 6

118 Gallons French Brandy 3 6

5 Firkins Contain 28 Gallr Cranberry & Cherry Brandy 33 12

6 Dozen Mountain Wine 11 4

11 Dozen Pipes 9

1 Pcce Furniture 3 8

1 Mare 18

8

Household Goods &c

Legacy to Mary Doveton 1 Feathr Bed Bolstr 3 Pillows Quilt Blankt Bedstd Curt Wind Curt 6

11 Feather Bed &c 41

2 Wool Do Do 3 5

2 Mattrasses & Bolsters 2 10

3 Clasp Cotts 18

1 Couch 12

Household Goods Carried over L 54 5

Carried over L 4124 17 3

The inventory of the estate of Samuel Doveton, deceased, continued from the running total of £4,091 4s 5d carried over, with a piece goods subtotal of £16 12s 0d brought forward.

5 pieces chintz, £1 10s 0d

3 pieces gingham, £2 2s 0d

2 pieces blue cotton handkerchiefs, £1 4s 0d

1 piece Bedda tape, £0 15s 0d

1 piece cravat, £1 0s 0d

2 pieces brown cloth, £1 10s 0d

Piece goods total, £24 13s 0d

1 billiard table and appurtenances, £12 0s 0d

170 pounds of caddy, £3 10s 10d

230 pounds of sugar, £3 16s 8d

200 pounds of rice, £0 13s 6d

30 pounds of rope, £0 11s 3d

40 pounds of tallow, £1 10s 0d

13 pounds of tea, £1 16s 0d

93 pounds of tobacco, £3 8s 9d

300 pounds of raisins, £0 15s 0d

20 double deals, £3 16s 0d

wearing apparel, £13 15s 0d

a parcel of timber, £2 5s 0d

a parcel of books, £3 0s 0d

a parcel of plantation tools, £0 18s 6d

a curry comb and brush, £0 3s 6d

118 gallons French brandy, £33 12s 0d

5 carboys containing about 28 gallons of tarberry and cherry brandy, £11 4s 0d

6 dozen mountain wine, £0 9s 0d

11 dozen pipes, £0 3s 8d

1 horse and furniture, £0 18s 0d

1 mare, £8 0s 0d

Household goods

1 feather bed, bolster, 2 pillows, quilt, blanket, bedstead, rail and window curtains, £6 0s 0d

11 feather beds, £41 0s 0d

2 wool beds, £3 5s 0d

2 mattresses and 2 bolsters, £2 10s 0d

3 flock beds, £0 18s 0d

1 couch, £0 12s 0d

Household goods carried over, £54 5s 0d

Carried over, £4,234 17s 0d

The margin marks the first feather bed as a legacy to Mary Doveton.

Interpretations

The great quantity of imported drink and provisions in the Samuel Doveton estate confirms once more a household engaged in trade as much as in farming. One hundred and eighteen gallons of French brandy valued at £33 12s 0d, together with carboys of fruit brandies, mountain wine and cases of tobacco, tea and sugar, far exceed any domestic need and mark Doveton as a dealer in these goods, most probably supplying the passing shipping and the island’s households. This holding of spirits and groceries in bulk, set with the trading stock of Indian cloth, shows the leading planters running substantial retail and provisioning businesses alongside their farms, drawing wealth from the trade that the East India ships carried past the island.

The billiard table valued at £12 marks the same distinctive luxury seen at the head of this archive in another Doveton estate, an expensive imported table for a game of leisure rare on a remote island. Its presence here, in the James Valley house with its billiard room noted on the earlier page, confirms the descent or division of this costly item within the Doveton family, the table passing with the town house between generations. Such an article, worth as much as a small parcel of land, marks a family of wealth and standing that entertained in the manner of the English gentry, keeping the apparatus of polite pastime in their town house.

The eleven feather beds entered together for £41, following the many beds seen in the great estates, reinforce the picture of a household provisioned to lodge large numbers. A curry comb and brush among the goods marks the grooming of the horse and mare, the practical care of the riding animals that carried the household about its scattered lands. Set with the great herds, the enormous yam crop, the bulk stocks of brandy and cloth, the rich plate and the billiard table, this depth of bedding completes the portrait of one of the wealthiest and most various estates in the archive, at once a great plantation, a trading concern and a genteel establishment furnished for company and leisure.

77

69

Brought over L 4234 17 3

Household Goods Brought over L 54 5

4 Quilts 1

Legacy to Rebecca Doveton 1 Stitcht Quilt 1 5 6

3 Blankets 1

6 Sett Chintz Curtains 15

12 Pr Sheets 4 1

8 Pr Pillowcases 4 17 6

Legacy to Mary Doveton 1 Damask Table Cloth & 12 Napkins 16

3 Do Do & 12 Do 2 15

19 Table Cloths 3 13

6 Side Board Cloths 6 4

24 Napkins 16

2 Square Mahogany Tables 1 4

1 Pair Do Do 8

1 Oval Table wt Ebony 2 10

4 Wainscott Tables 2 10

2 Square Do 3

3 Oval Do 17

Legacy to Mary Doveton 1 Do Do 2 7

5 Chamber Do 1 10

3 Do Do 1 19 6

1 Do Do Stand & China 1 2

3 Elbow Chairs 1 10

1 Closestool Do 1 8

12 Leathr Bottom Do 1

Legacy to Mary Doveton 6 Cain Do 7 4

17 Do Do 2 2

19 Nurses Do 3

1 large Teak Chest 2 6

4 fir Do 2 10

1 Chest of Drows 1 13 6

2 Hair Trunks 1

1 large Painted Do 2 2

2 Pier Glasses 10

Legacy to Mary Doveton 1 Looking Do Walnut frame 5

3 Do Do 1 3

23 Wine Do 1 18 6

Household Goods for over L 138 8

Carried over L 4234 17 3

The inventory of the estate of Samuel Doveton, deceased, continued from the running total of £4,234 17s 0d carried over, with a household goods subtotal of £54 5s 0d brought forward.

4 quilts, £1 5s 6d

1 stick quilt, £1 0s 0d

3 blankets, £0 15s 0d

6 sets of chintz curtains, £4 1s 0d

12 sheets, £4 17s 6d

8 pairs of pillowcases, £0 16s 0d

1 damask tablecloth and 12 napkins, £2 15s 0d

1 damask tablecloth and 12 napkins, £3 13s 0d

19 tablecloths, £6 4s 0d

6 sideboard cloths, £0 10s 0d

24 napkins, £1 4s 0d

2 square mahogany tables, £0 8s 0d

2 square mahogany tables, £2 10s 0d

1 oval mahogany table, £2 10s 0d

1 oval ebony table, £3 0s 0d

4 wainscot tables, £0 17s 0d

2 square wainscot tables, £2 7s 0d

3 oval wainscot tables, £1 10s 0d

1 oval wainscot table, £1 19s 6d

5 chamber tables, £1 2s 0d

3 chamber tables, £1 10s 0d

1 chamber table, stand and china, £1 8s 0d

3 elbow chairs, £1 0s 0d

1 close stool chair, £7 4s 0d

12 leather-bottom chairs, £2 2s 0d

6 cane chairs, £3 0s 0d

17 cane chairs, £0 2s 6d

19 nurse chairs, £2 10s 0d

1 large teak chest, £1 13s 6d

4 fir chests, £1 0s 0d

1 chest of drawers, £2 2s 0d

2 leather trunks, £0 10s 0d

1 large painted trunk, £5 0s 0d

2 pier glasses, £0 15s 0d

1 looking glass, walnut frame, £0 13s 0d

1 looking glass, £0 18s 6d

23 wine glasses, £0 [...]

Household goods carried over, £138 8s 0d

Carried over, £4,234 17s 0d

The margin marks several items as legacies: a stick quilt to Rebecca Doveton, damask table linen and other goods to Mary Doveton, various tables and chairs to Rebecca and Mary Doveton, and a walnut-framed looking glass to Mary Doveton.

Interpretations

The furniture of the Samuel Doveton estate displays a rich range of cabinet timbers, marking one of the best-appointed households in the archive. Square and oval mahogany tables sit beside an oval ebony table, the ebony being a costly black tropical hardwood shipped through the eastern trade and prized for its colour, while wainscot tables in several shapes furnish the plainer rooms. This mixture of mahogany, ebony and wainscot, with matched sets of chairs and pier glasses, shows a household furnished in the manner of the English gentry, its rooms appointed with the fashionable imported hardwoods that the leading families favoured.

The seating is counted in large matched suites, twelve leather-bottomed chairs, six cane chairs and further ranks besides, marking rooms arranged to seat a great company. The recurrence across every substantial estate of such matched sets, a dozen chairs of one kind and more of another, confirms a shared standard of gentility among the island’s leading families, each keeping the seating to entertain many at once. The many nurse chairs entered together point once more to children in the household, the specialised low chairs for tending infants recorded alongside the fine seating of the reception rooms.

The linen is deep and finely graded, with damask tablecloths each matched to a dozen napkins, ranks of tablecloths and sideboard cloths, and sets of chintz bed curtains, all distributed in part as legacies to the Doveton daughters. The marking of table linen, quilts, tables, chairs and a looking glass as bequests to Mary and Rebecca Doveton shows the household stuff carved into legacies alongside the land, slaves and plate, the goods of a great establishment shared out among the heirs. This careful distribution of the domestic furnishings, down to matched sets of napkins and individual chairs, reflects the disciplined settling of a large and wealthy estate, its every article valued and allotted so that the whole could pass in due course to the next generation of the family.

78

70

Brought over L 4234 17 3

Household Goods Carried over L 138 8

Legacy to Mary Doveton 1 Mahogany Desk 3

2 Wainscott Do 2 15

Do to Rd Doveton 1 China Bowl & Plate 10

6 Do 13 6

61 Do Dishes 3 1 5

81 Do Plates 1 12 8

Do Mary Doveton 2 4 Do & 3 Dishes 4

5 Guglets & Basons 15

12 China Jars 2 8

1 Sett China 12

9 Water Glasses 2 6

7 Glass Decanters & 2 Cruets 7

1 Jelly Stand 1

1 Hand Escreto 15

1 Small Pr Bellows 4

1 Hanger 10

2 Small Looking Glasses 12 6

1 Do Warming Pan 4

12 Earthen Jars 1 4 6

3 Do Tea Potts & a parcel old China 10 6

2 China Do 1

24 China Pictures framd & glazd 3 10

1 Corner Cupboard 1

1 Case wt 8 two Gallon Bottles 1 5

1 Small Cask 3

3 Dishes 7 Plates & 5 Basons pewter 18

2 Pewter Funnils 4

1 Pr Brass Scales & Weights 5

4 Tin Potts 12

1 Spott Pott 6

1 Lackard Barbers Bason & Wash Bason 2 6

1 Basket 2 5

5 Carboys 1 5

1 Pr Backgammon Tables 12

1 Sawking Piece 1

10 White Handle Knives & forks 10

1 Sythe 6

Household Goods Carried over L 172 19

Carried over L 4234 17 3

The inventory of the estate of Samuel Doveton, deceased, continued from the running total of £4,234 17s 0d carried over, with a household goods subtotal of £138 8s 0d brought forward.

1 mahogany desk, £3 0s 0d

2 wainscot desks, £2 15s 0d

1 china bowl and plate, £0 10s 0d

6 china bowls and plates, £0 13s 6d

61 china dishes, £3 1s 5d

81 china plates, £1 12s 8d

24 china dishes and 3 dishes, £0 14s 0d

5 guglets and basins, £0 15s 0d

12 china jars, £2 8s 0d

1 set china, £0 12s 0d

2 water glasses, £0 2s 6d

2 glass decanters and 2 cruets, £0 7s 0d

1 jelly stand, £0 1s 0d

1 hand escritoire, £0 15s 0d

1 small pair of bellows, £0 4s 0d

1 pot hanger, £0 10s 0d

2 small looking glasses, £0 12s 6d

1 old warming pan, £0 4s 0d

12 earthen jars, £1 4s 6d

3 teapots and a parcel of old china, £0 10s 6d

2 china teapots, £0 1s 0d

24 china pictures, framed and glazed, £3 10s 0d

1 corner cupboard, £1 0s 0d

1 case with 8 two-gallon bottles, £1 5s 0d

1 small case, £0 3s 0d

3 dishes, 9 plates and 5 basins, pewter, £0 18s 0d

2 pewter funnels, £0 4s 0d

1 pair of brass scales and weights, £0 5s 0d

4 tin pots, £0 12s 0d

1 spit pot, £0 0s 6d

1 lacquered barbers basin and washball case, £0 2s 6d

9 casks, £2 5s 0d

5 carboys, £1 5s 0d

1 pair of backgammon tables, £0 12s 0d

1 smoothing iron, £0 1s 0d

10 white-handle knives and forks, £0 10s 0d

1 scythe, £0 0s 6d

Household goods carried over, £172 19s 0d

Carried over, £4,234 17s 0d

The margin marks several items as legacies: the mahogany desk to Mary Doveton, china bowls and plates to David Doveton, and further china to Mary Doveton.

Interpretations

The porcelain of the Samuel Doveton estate is held in exceptional quantity, more than a hundred and eighty pieces of dishes, plates and bowls counted in large lots, which points to a household that both dined formally and most probably dealt in china as trade goods. Sixty-one dishes and eighty-one plates entered together far exceed the needs of a single table, and set with the twenty-four framed china pictures, they mark either a very large service for entertaining or a stock held for sale. The framed and glazed china pictures in particular, decorative panels of Chinese make hung on the walls, were a distinctive luxury of the eastern trade, reproducing on a remote island the fashion for oriental ornament.

A barber’s basin with a washball case among the goods marks the shaving and grooming carried on in the household, the washball being the ball of soap used for lathering. This lacquered basin, shaped with a notch to fit the neck for shaving, together with the smoothing iron and the domestic tools, shows the ordinary daily care of an establishment furnished for comfort. Set among the fine porcelain and the imported hardwood desks, such homely articles anchor the genteel household in the routines of daily life, the appraisers entering the barber’s basin and the china pictures alike as part of the estate.

The scythe entered at the foot of the page, valued at only sixpence, is a plain reminder of the working farm beneath the genteel furnishings, a tool for cutting grass or grain on the great landholding. Set with the pot hangers, the casks, the carboys and the smoothing iron, it marks the practical labour of a large plantation that produced much of its own food and provisioned the passing shipping. This mixture of the costliest imported luxury, framed china pictures and mahogany desks, with the plainest working tools, a scythe and a warming pan, runs through the whole of this vast estate, capturing the double character of the island’s greatest holdings, at once genteel establishments and busy working farms sustained by their land, their herds and their many slaves.

79

71

Brought over L 4234 17 3

Household Goods Brought over L 172 19 7

1 Tea Chest 10

1 Hand Board 1

1 Coffee Mill 5

2 Tea Kittles 18

13 Candlesticks & 3 Pr Snuffers 2 3

1 Chimrows 2

1 Stone Jugg 2

1 Butter Cup 1

6 Milk Tubs 12

1 Pale Cagg & Churn 8

1 Yam Kittle 16

8 Iron Potts 3 17

1 Pack Spott &c 1 10

1 Spitt 3

7 Pothangers 13 6

2 Pr pott Hooks 2

2 Do Andirons 10

1 frying Pan 4

1 Dripping Pan 2

1 Gridiron 6

1 Box Iron & Heaters 4

8 Chamber Potts 1 4 6

1 Brine Tubb 3

1 Cloth Brush 9 187 17 1

Due to the Estate from Sundry Persons 407 18 6 1/2

Cash 11 13 7

Carried over L 4841 11 3/4

The inventory of the estate of Samuel Doveton, deceased, continued from the running total of £4,234 17s 0d carried over, with a household goods subtotal of £172 19s 0d brought forward.

1 tea chest, £0 10s 0d

1 hand board, £0 1s 0d

1 coffee mill, £0 5s 0d

2 tea kettles, £0 18s 0d

13 candlesticks and 3 pairs of snuffers, £2 3s 0d

1 skimmer, £0 2s 0d

1 stone jug, £0 2s 0d

1 butter cup, £0 1s 0d

6 milk tubs, £0 12s 0d

1 pail, keg and churn, £0 8s 0d

1 yam kettle, £0 16s 0d

5 iron pots, £3 17s 0d

1 sauce pot and appurtenances, £1 10s 0d

1 spit, £0 3s 0d

7 pot hangers, £0 13s 6d

2 pairs of pot hooks, £0 2s 0d

2 pairs of andirons, £0 10s 0d

1 frying pan, £0 2s 0d

1 dripping pan, £0 6s 0d

1 gridiron, £0 4s 0d

1 box, iron and heaters, £1 4s 6d

8 chamber pots, £0 3s 0d

1 brine tub, £0 3s 0d

1 cloth brush, £0 0s 9d

Household goods total, £187 17s 4d

Due to the estate from sundry persons, £407 18s 6½d

Cash, £11 13s 7d

Carried over, £4,841 11s 5¾d

Interpretations

The dairy and kitchen gear that closes the household goods of the Samuel Doveton estate anchors this vast holding firmly in the working of a great provisioning farm. Six milk tubs, a pail, keg and churn, a yam kettle and ranks of iron pots and pot hangers made up the heavy equipment of a household that produced and prepared food on a very large scale, serving the great herds and the enormous yam crop recorded earlier. This depth of dairy and cooking gear, set beneath the mahogany desks, the framed china pictures and the ranks of matched chairs, shows the double life of the island’s greatest estate, at once a genteel establishment and a busy farm.

The debts owed to the estate, more than £407 from sundry persons, form a very large asset that lifted the whole valuation well above four thousand eight hundred pounds. This great sum owed to Samuel Doveton marks him as a substantial creditor at the centre of the island’s web of credit, his wealth held in money lent as much as in land, slaves and goods. The recurrence of such large debtor schedules across the estates of the leading families confirms how the island’s economy ran on running accounts, the wealthy planters extending credit widely to their neighbours and holding the balance as a recoverable asset of their estates.

The coffee mill among the kitchen goods, following the tea chests and tea kettles, marks once more the settled place of coffee and tea in the domestic life of the island’s households. Both drinks came through the long-distance trade, and the mill for grinding the coffee beans was the practical apparatus that made their preparation possible at home. Set among the dairy gear and the cooking pots, it rounds out the working domestic economy of a great planter’s household, equipped for the small daily comforts of tea and coffee as well as the heavy labour of provisioning a large estate and the shipping that called at the island.

80

72

Brought over L 4841 11 3/4

Due from the Estate to Sundry Persons L 2100 11 9 1/4

Legacies Viz!

To Margaret Doveton L 12

To Richard Doveton 48

To John Doveton 40

To Elizabeth Doveton 5

To Richard Beale & John Doveton each

a Sett of Mourning

} 19 4 10 1/2

To William Young 2

L 126 4 10 1/2

L 2236 16 8 3/4

NB the Debts upon this Estate are not as yet

certainly known to the Executors, therefore

can be no possibility of making a clear

Account in this Inventory

Signed

Fran Wrangham

John Desfountain

Richard Bagley

Goods omitted in the Inventory

3 Wiggs 2 12

1 Pr flowerd Silk 5

1 Pr Do about 10 Yards 2 10

1 Teak Chest 1 5

1 Watch thought to be Gold, but out of order but

if Pinchbeck 4, and if Gold 12

} 19

1 Gold Edgd Hatt 1 6

12 China Plates Pencil Work 3

L 24 18

The estate of Samuel Doveton was reckoned against its debts and legacies, continued from the running total of £4,841 11s 5¾d carried over.

Due from the estate to sundry persons, £2,110 11s 9¾d

Legacies

To Margaret Doveton, £12 0s 0d

To Richard Doveton, £48 0s 0d

To John Doveton, £40 0s 0d

To Elizabeth Doveton, £5 0s 0d

To Richard Beale and John Doveton, each a suit of mourning, £19 4s 10½d

To William Young, £2 0s 0d

subtotal, £126 4s 10½d

total, £2,236 16s 8¾d

The appraisers added a note that the debts upon this estate were not yet certainly known to the executors, so there could be no possibility of making a clear account in this inventory.

The inventory was signed by Francis Wrangham, John Disfountain and Richard Bagley.

Goods omitted in the inventory

3 wigs, £2 12s 0d

1 piece flowered silk, £5 0s 0d

1 piece silk, about 10 yards, £2 10s 0d

1 teak chest, £1 5s 0d

1 watch, thought to be gold but out of order, if pinchbeck £4 and if gold £12, £12 0s 0d

1 gold-laced hat, £1 6s 0d

12 china plates, pencil work, £0 5s 0d

total, £24 18s 0d

Interpretations

The great Samuel Doveton estate carried debts of more than £2,110 owed to sundry persons, an enormous liability that reveals the other side of a wealthy planter's dealings and sharply reduced the divisible worth of so large a holding. Where the estate was owed some £407 by others, it owed more than five times that sum in turn, which shows that even the greatest island fortunes rested on extensive borrowing as well as lending. This vast debt, set against the enormous gross value of the land, slaves, herds and trading stock, marks the leading planters as men who operated on credit at a great scale, their true net wealth appearing only after such large obligations were met.

The watch entered among the goods omitted from the main inventory was hard to value because the appraisers could not tell the metal of its case by looking at it, and the reliable means of settling the question lay far beyond the island. Pinchbeck, the copper and zinc alloy named for the London clockmaker who devised it, was made expressly to imitate gold to the eye, and it was used openly for watch cases so that a bright case proved nothing. Gold was assayed and hallmarked in London and the provincial offices, and a genuine gold case should have carried the marks showing its fineness, but a base pinchbeck case would carry none, so the absence of a mark did not prove the watch base any more than its colour proved it gold. On St Helena, thousands of miles from any assay office and in the hands of planters rather than trained goldsmiths, there was no way to test the case or to read a small, worn or doubtful mark with confidence. Faced with a question that only assay could answer, the appraisers recorded both possible values, four pounds if pinchbeck and twelve if gold, rather than guess, and the entry stands out against the plate valued confidently by weight throughout these estates as a rare case of genuine doubt about the nature of the metal itself.

The three wigs entered among the omitted goods mark the dress of a man of standing, the powdered wigs worn by gentlemen of the period as a sign of rank and respectability. Set with the gold-laced hat and the pieces of flowered silk, they show the personal finery of a leading planter, the costly clothing and accessories that marked his place in island society. That these goods were noted as omitted from the main inventory shows the appraisers returning to complete their account, adding items overlooked in the first reckoning so that the whole estate, down to the wigs and a doubtful watch, should be fairly valued for the settling of so large a property.

81

73

Inventory of the Goods & Chattels of Mr Joseph Whaley Decd

taken & Appraised by Messrs Wm Seale John Doveton & Sam Desfountain

this 1st day of August 1751 Viz

1/2 & 1/6 part of an Acre of freehold Land Amounting to L 5

23 3/4 of Leasehold Land Amounting to 75 15

Mansion House Do 25

Blacks Do 55

Cattle Do 32 5

Hogs Do 9 17

Sheep Do 2 5

Goat Do 8 5 6

Poultry Do 1 8 3

Plate Do 2 4

Yams Do 71 5 3

Household Goods Do 38 16 4

Wearing Apparel Do 2

329 1 4

Sundry Persons Indebted to the Estate of the said

Joseph Whaley Decd Viz!

Saml Desfountain L [...]

John Bland 7 12 3

Wm Seale 16 8

Josh Davis 1 3 1

John Watkins 6 8

Wm Campbell 2 6

John Pritcher 2

Thos Willingham 1 19 4

Mr Pavet

Total L 358 8

Sig...

An inventory of the goods and chattels of Mr Joseph Whaley, deceased, taken and appraised by Messrs William Seale, John Doveton and Samuel Disfountain on 14 August 1751.

1½ and ⅛ part of an acre of freehold land amounting to, £5 0s 0d

23¼ acres of leasehold land amounting to, £75 15s 0d

mansion house, £25 0s 0d

Blacks, £55 0s 0d

Cattle, £32 5s 0d

Hogs, £9 17s 0d

Sheep, £2 5s 0d

Goats, £8 5s 6d

Poultry, £1 8s 3d

Plate, £2 4s 0d

Yams, £71 5s 3d

Household goods, £38 16s 4d

Wearing apparel, £9 0s 0d

total, £329 1s 4d

Sundry persons indebted to the estate of Joseph Whaley

Samuel Disfountain, £14 0s 0d

John Bland, £7 12s 3d

William Seale, £0 16s 3d

William Davis, £1 3s 1d

John Watkins, £0 5s 5d

William Campbell, £0 6s 0d

John Butler, £0 2s 6d

Thomas Willengham, £0 2s 0d

Thomas Willengham, £4 19s 2d

Mrs Pavet, £0 [...]

total, £358 8s 0d

Interpretations

This inventory of Joseph Whaley's estate is set out in an unusually summary form, each class of property reduced to a single total rather than itemised line by line. Land, house, slaves, every kind of livestock, plate, yams, household goods and apparel are each given one figure, which suggests either a fair copy that gathered the detail elsewhere or an appraisal made quickly to a summary standard. The same Joseph Whaley appeared on the preceding pages as a debtor owing small sums to a circle of garrison soldiers, and here his own estate is valued and the debts owed to him set out, the two sides of his affairs recorded together as the settlement worked toward a balance.

The largest single asset in the whole estate is again the standing yam crop, valued at £71 5s 3d, worth more than the land, the house and the slaves combined. This dominance of the yam crop, seen across estate after estate great and small, confirms once more that on St Helena the growing yam was the true foundation of a holding's worth, the asset that fed the household, its slaves and the passing shipping and gave land its value. That the yams alone exceeded the value of the mansion house nearly threefold shows how completely the island's wealth rested on this single staple crop in the ground.

The freehold land is recorded to a remarkable precision of fraction, one and a half and one-eighth part of an acre, valued at five pounds, which marks how minutely the island's scarce ground was divided and held. On a small and much-partitioned island where cultivable land was precious, holdings were split into ever smaller parcels and fractions of acres, each carefully measured and valued in the settling of estates. This entry of a holding reckoned to the eighth of an acre, set beside the twenty-three acres of leasehold, shows the fine subdivision of freehold ground that generations of inheritance and sale had produced, every fraction worth recording where land was so scarce and dear.

82

74

The Estate of Mr Joseph Whaley Decd indebted to Sundry Persons Viz

Simon Whaley Corpl L 12 13 6

Lieut Clark 1

Lieut Kendall 11

Gabl Isacke 1 6

Nathan Sample 2 6

Thos French 13 6

Wm Moore 9

Orlando Bagley Senr 11 [...]

Lieut Beale 9 3

Danl Bush 5 3

Isy Leech 4 6

Grace Bates 4

Augustine Balls 18

Joshua Worrall 17 8 [...]

John Desfountain 12

Saml Falconer

Signed Wm Seale

John Doveton

Saml Desfountain

Inventory of the Estate of Mary Alexander Decd Appraisd by

Messrs James Greentree & John Doveton the 14 March 1749

34.560 Yams & Suckers L 10 21

4 Turkeys @ 5/ 1

3 Do 3/ 9

1 Hogs 1 9

12 Fowls 18

Carried over L 23 18 4

The estate of Mr Joseph Whaley, deceased, was indebted to sundry persons.

The estate of Joseph Whaley indebted to sundry persons

Simon Whaley, corporal, £12 13s 6d

Lieutenant Clark, £1 0s 0d

Lieutenant Kendall, £0 11s 0d

Gabriel Isaake, £1 0s 6d

Nathan Sampler, £0 2s 6d

Thomas French, £0 13s 6d

William Moor, £0 9s 0d

Orlando Bagley senior, £0 11s 6½d

Lieutenant Beale, £0 5s 3d

Daniel Bush, £0 5s 3d

Ty Leech, £0 4s 6d

Grace Bates, £0 4s 0d

Augustine Balls, £0 18s 0d

Joshua Worrall, £0 17s 8½d

John Disfountain, £0 12s 0d

Samuel Falconer, £0 [...]

The Whaley account was signed by William Seale, John Doveton and Samuel Disfountain.

A separate inventory follows, of the estate of Mary Alexander, deceased, appraised by Messrs James Greentree and John Doveton on 14 March 1749.

34,560 yams and suckers, £20 2s 4d

4 turkeys, at 5s each, £1 0s 0d

3 turkeys, at 3s each, £0 9s 0d

1 hog, £1 9s 0d

12 fowls, £0 18s 0d

Carried over, £23 18s 4d

Interpretations

The Joseph Whaley debtor schedule opens a clear window onto the world of the East India Company garrison, for its creditors are dominated by soldiers and officers of the fort. A corporal, three lieutenants named Clark, Kendall and Beale, and privates such as Daniel Bush and William Moor appear owed small sums, alongside a few civilians, which marks Whaley as a member of the garrison enmeshed in the running credit of military life. The debts are almost all small, a few shillings here and there, the everyday lending among soldiers who advanced one another money and goods between paydays, so that even a modest garrison estate was bound into a web of petty obligation across the ranks of the fort.

The estate of Mary Alexander that opens next is a woman's holding of modest scale, and its most striking feature is that its value lay overwhelmingly in a standing yam crop. Nearly thirty-five thousand yams and suckers, valued at £20 2s 4d, made up the great bulk of the whole estate, far exceeding the few animals that accompanied them. That a woman of small means held almost all her wealth in growing yams confirms once more the crop as the true currency of the island, the asset that gave a holding its worth, held here by a modest female proprietor exactly as the great planters held it on their vast estates.

The naming of a corporal Simon Whaley at the head of the debtor list, sharing the surname of the deceased Joseph Whaley, suggests a family connection within the garrison, most probably a kinsman who was owed the largest single sum. This appearance of two Whaleys, one the deceased and one a serving corporal owed money by his estate, marks the way military families served together in the fort, their private debts running between relations as well as comrades. The close world of the garrison, where soldiers of the same name and family lent to one another and settled their affairs among themselves, mirrors on a smaller scale the dense web of obligation that bound the island's planter families across their estates.

83

75

Brought over L 23 18 4

Blacks Viz!

1 Man Named August 18

1 Do Named Jacob 12

1 Do Pompey 5

Legacy 1 Woman Mary 5

a part Fisherman 2 10

Household Goods Viz!

1 Feathr Bed Bolstr 2 Pillows Quilt Bedstead & Curtains 6 10

1 Feathr Bed Bolstr 2 Pillows & Bedstead 4 10

6 Cain Chairs 1 4

1 Wainscot Chest of Drawers 1 5

1 Lacquerd Cabinet 10

Legacy 1 Fir Chest 1

Legacy 1 Gold Ring 10

1 Iron Meat Pot 12

1 Do Do 2

5 Plates & 2 Dishes China 2

1 Spitt 2

3 Silver Spoons 1 17

3 Teaspoons Tongs & Strainer 10

1 large Bible 15

1 Tortoiseshell Canister 1 6

1 Box Iron 2 6

1 old Bible 2 6

1 Cow & Calf 7 10

1 Heifer 5

6 Ivory handle Knives & forks 6

1 Pewter Bason 3

8 Do Plates 4

2 Ewe Goats 1 4

3 Kids 8

L 100 16 2

Signed James Greentree

John Doveton

The inventory of the estate of Mary Alexander, deceased, continued from the running total of £23 18s 4d carried over.

Blacks

1 man named August, £18 0s 0d

1 man named Jacob, £12 0s 0d

1 man named Pompey, £5 0s 0d

1 woman named Mary, £5 0s 0d

a part of a fisherman, £2 10s 0d

Household goods

1 feather bed, bolster, 2 pillows, quilt, bedstead and curtains, £6 10s 0d

1 feather bed, bolster, 2 pillows and bedstead, £4 10s 0d

6 cane chairs, £1 4s 0d

1 wainscot chest of drawers, £1 5s 0d

1 lacquered cabinet, £0 10s 0d

1 fir chest, £1 0s 0d

1 gold ring, £0 10s 0d

1 iron meat pot, £0 12s 0d

1 iron meat pot, less, £0 2s 0d

5 plates and 2 dishes, china, £0 2s 0d

1 spit, £0 2s 0d

3 silver spoons, £1 17s 0d

3 teaspoons, tongs and strainer, £0 15s 0d

1 large Bible, £0 16s 0d

1 huckaback canister, £0 2s 6d

1 box iron, £0 2s 6d

1 old Bible, £0 [...]

1 cow and calf, £7 10s 0d

1 heifer, £5 0s 0d

6 ivory-handle knives and forks, £0 6s 0d

1 pewter basin, £0 3s 0d

8 pewter plates, £1 4s 0d

2 ewe goats, £0 8s 0d

3 kids, £0 [...]

total, £100 16s 2d

The margin marks the woman Mary, the fir chest and the gold ring as legacies. The inventory was signed by James Greentree and John Doveton.

Interpretations

The most arresting entry in the Mary Alexander estate is the part of a fisherman, valued at £2 10s 0d, which records a fractional share in a slave rather than whole ownership of him. Slaves were sometimes owned in common by several parties, each holding a portion of the person as they might hold a share in a boat or a parcel of land, and here Mary Alexander held only a part of a man who worked as a fisherman. This division of ownership in a human being, entered as a fraction alongside whole slaves and animals, marks one of the starkest features of the island's slaveholding, the person reduced not merely to property but to a divisible share of property, his labour and his very self split among part-owners.

The distribution of the slave woman Mary as a legacy, marked in the margin alongside a gold ring and a fir chest, shows a female proprietor bequeathing another woman by name to an heir. That Mary Alexander, herself a woman of modest estate, held and passed on slaves confirms that slaveholding on the island reached across the ranks and both sexes of the free population, the ownership of human beings being the common mark of even a small householder. The slave woman bearing the same name as her owner, one Mary bequeathing another, is a coincidence that underlines the erasure of the enslaved person's own identity within the system that priced and distributed her.

A large Bible and an old Bible entered among the goods mark a household of some literacy and religious observance, the Bible being the one book that even modest homes in the archive commonly held. Set with the silver spoons and the gold ring, they show a woman of small but respectable estate who kept a few books and pieces of plate, reproducing on a lesser scale the furnishings of the wealthier households. The two Bibles in particular, one large and one old, suggest a family that valued its scripture, keeping an older volume even as a newer or finer one was acquired, the appraisers entering both as part of the modest estate.

84

76

Inventory of Daniel Bush Decd

To the House, bought of Mr Younge L 70

To Mr Manlove's House 30

To 1 large Chest 1 10

To 1 Case with 15 Bottles 1 6

To 1 Do 1

To 1 Do 1 1

To 1 Do 4 Bottles 10

To 1 large Table 15

To 1 Do 18

To 1 Small Oval Do 8

To Square Do 2 6

To 1 Do 15

To 1 long Form 3 6

To 1 Do 3 6

To 1 Do 2

To 1 Do 1

To 1 Corner Cupboard 7

To 1 Small Chest 1

To Do 2 6

To Do 3

To Do 14

To Do 7 6

To a Trunk 12

To a Chest of Drawers 6

To Do 6

To 1 Tea Table 8

To Desk 7 6

To 1 Looking Glass 2 6

To 1 Do 6

To 1 Bedstead 3

To 1 Clasp Cott 8

To 1 Do 6

To 1 Do 6

To 1 old Bedstead 5

Carried over L 115 8 6

An inventory of the estate of Daniel Bush, deceased.

1 house, bought of Mr Yonge, £70 0s 0d

1 mansion house, £30 0s 0d

1 large chest, £1 10s 0d

1 case with 15 bottles, £1 5s 0d

1 case with bottles, £1 0s 0d

1 case with bottles, £1 1s 0d

1 case with 4 bottles, £0 10s 0d

1 large table, £0 15s 0d

1 large table, £0 18s 0d

1 small oval table, £0 8s 0d

1 square table, £0 2s 6d

1 table, £0 15s 0d

1 long form, £0 3s 6d

1 form, £0 3s 6d

1 form, £0 2s 0d

1 form, £0 1s 0d

1 corner cupboard, £0 7s 0d

1 small chest, £0 4s 0d

1 chest, £0 2s 6d

1 chest, £1 3s 0d

1 chest, £0 4s 6d

1 chest, £0 7s 6d

1 trunk, £0 12s 0d

1 chest of drawers, £0 6s 0d

1 chest of drawers, £0 6s 0d

1 tea table, £0 8s 0d

1 desk, £0 7s 6d

1 looking glass, £0 2s 6d

1 looking glass, £0 6s 0d

1 bedstead, £0 3s 0d

1 clasp cloth, £0 8s 0d

1 clasp cloth, £0 6s 0d

1 clasp cloth, £0 6s 0d

1 old bedstead, £0 5s 0d

Carried over, £115 8s 6d

Interpretations

The Daniel Bush estate opens with two houses but no land, and the note that one was bought of Mr Yonge records the purchase of a house between islanders, tracing the property to its previous owner. That the estate holds two houses, a purchased one and a mansion house, without any accompanying acreage, marks Bush as a householder whose property lay in buildings rather than in cultivated ground, most probably a town dweller or a man whose wealth was in his dwellings rather than in farming. The same Daniel Bush appears among the debtors and creditors of the garrison estates on earlier pages, which places him in the world of the fort and the settlement rather than the plantations.

The furniture is notably plain and much of it repetitive, with forms rather than chairs providing the seating, several plain chests and tables, and no imported mahogany, cane or lacquered pieces of the sort that filled the wealthy planters' houses. Forms were long backless benches, the simplest and cheapest seating, and their appearance here in place of the matched sets of cane and leather chairs seen in the great estates marks a household of modest means furnished for use rather than display. This spare and functional furnishing, drawn from plain local or common woods, sets the Bush estate firmly apart from the genteel establishments of the leading families.

The several cases of bottles entered at the head of the inventory point to a household that stored drink in quantity, most probably wine or spirits kept in the fitted bottle cases that recur throughout the archive. Four such cases, one holding fifteen bottles, mark either a man who kept a good cellar or one who dealt in drink on a small scale, a natural trade on an island where the passing shipping created a ready market. Set among the plain forms and chests, these bottle cases were among the more valuable articles in a modest estate, showing that even a household of simple furnishing kept its store of drink in the proper cased vessels of the period.

85

77

Brought over L 115 8 6

To large Pewter Dish 2 6

To Do 5

To Do 3 6

To Do 5

To Do 1 6

To Small Do 1 6

To Do 1

To 22 Pewter Plates 15

To 2 large Do Basons 6

To 2 Small Do 5

To Pewter Cullender 5

To 2 Do Porringers 2 6

To 1 Do Gallon Pott 2 6

To 1 Do half Gallon Do 1 6

To 1 Do Quart Do 2

To 1 Do Pint Do 1

To 1 Small Do 2 6

To Funnel 1 3

To 2 Doz Pewter Spoons 4

To 3 Chamber Potts 5

To 6 Double Bowls 18

To 8 Small Do 12

To 1 Sneeker 3 6

To 14 China Plates 6

To a Broken Sett China 15

To old Mugg 7 6

To 7 Tea Potts 3

To a parcel Cups & Saucer 6

To large Glass 5 Small Do 3 6

To 1 China Jar 4

To 7 Earthen Do 8

To 2 Black Jacks 2 6

To 5 Carboys 1 15

To 1 Glass Tumbler 1

Carried over L 125 11 9

The inventory of the estate of Daniel Bush, deceased, continued from the running total of £115 8s 6d carried over.

1 large pewter dish, £0 2s 6d

1 pewter dish, £0 5s 0d

1 pewter dish, £0 3s 6d

1 pewter dish, £0 5s 0d

1 pewter dish, £0 1s 6d

1 small pewter dish, £0 1s 6d

1 pewter dish, £0 1s 0d

22 pewter plates, £0 15s 0d

2 large pewter basins, £0 6s 0d

2 small pewter basins, £0 5s 0d

1 pewter colander, £0 5s 0d

2 pewter porringers, £0 2s 6d

1 pewter gallon pot, £0 2s 6d

1 pewter half-gallon pot, £0 1s 6d

1 pewter quart pot, £0 2s 0d

1 pewter pint pot, £0 1s 0d

1 small pewter pot, £0 2s 6d

1 funnel, £0 1s 3d

2 dozen pewter spoons, £0 4s 0d

3 chamber pots, £0 5s 0d

9 double bowls, £0 18s 0d

1 small bowl, £0 12s 0d

1 saucer, £0 3s 6d

14 china plates, £0 6s 0d

a parcel of broken china, £0 15s 0d

1 cruet and mug, £0 7s 6d

2 teapots, £0 2s 0d

a parcel of cups and saucers, £0 6s 0d

1 large glass and 5 small glasses, £0 3s 6d

1 china jar, £0 4s 0d

1 earthen jar, £0 2s 6d

2 black jacks, £1 13s 0d

5 carboys, £1 0s 0d

1 glass tumbler, £0 [...]

Carried over, £125 11s 9d

Interpretations

The two black jacks entered at £1 13s 0d, among the more valuable items on the page, mark a distinctive drinking vessel of the period rarely named in these inventories. A black jack was a large jug or tankard made of leather, stiffened and coated with tar or pitch and often used for serving ale or beer, an old form of drinking vessel that had largely given way to pewter and glass by the mid-century. Their appearance in the Bush estate, valued well above most of the pewter and china, points to a household that served drink in quantity, perhaps to company or in some tavern-like way, the leather jacks being sturdy vessels for pouring beer in bulk.

The estate is dominated by pewter and common tableware rather than the fine porcelain and silver of the wealthy houses, with rank upon rank of pewter dishes, plates, basins and pots making up the bulk of the goods. This depth of plain pewter, the durable everyday metal of the period, together with the plain forms and chests of the preceding page, confirms a household of modest and functional character. Where the leading planters kept graded services of Chinese export china and weighed silver, the Bush estate held its tableware in pewter, the ordinary metal of a plain but well-equipped home.

The five carboys entered at a pound, following the several cases of bottles on the earlier page, reinforce the picture of a household that stored liquids in quantity. Carboys were large protected bottles for carrying spirits, wine or other fluids, and to keep five of them, with the bottle cases and the black jacks for serving beer, points to a household much concerned with drink. Taken together, these vessels suggest that Daniel Bush may have dealt in liquor or kept a house where drink was served, a plausible trade for a man of the settlement on an island where the passing shipping created a steady demand, his estate holding the cased bottles, carboys and leather jacks that such a business would require.

86

78

Brought over L 125 11 9

To 1 Lanthorn 1 9

To 1 large Copper Kettle 1 15

To large Iron Pott 17 6

To 1 Do 7 6

To 1 Small Do 6

To 1 Do 9

To 1 Broken Do 1 6

To 1 Brass Ladle 2

To 2 Brass flat Candlesticks 3 6

To 3 Tall Do 4

To 4 Pr Pothangers 6

To 4 Pr Pothooks 5

To 2 Frying Pans 3 9

To 1 Spit 5

To 1 Gridiron 1 6

To 2 Pr Tongs 4

To 1 Fire Shovel 1

To 1 Andirons & Fender 3 6

To 2 Hatchets 2

To 3 Pr Sarson 2 6

To 1 Small Copper Saucepan 3

To 1 new Copper Tea Kettle 17

To 1 Small old Do Do 6

To 2 Pickaxes 2

To new Box Iron Stand & heaters 11

To 1 old Do no Stand 4

To 12 Buckhandle Knives & Forks 10

To 17 black Handle Do 10

To a parcel of old things 2 6

To a large Pr Billiards 10 6

To Silver Mounted Sword 19

To 1 Brass Do 5

Carried over L 136 8

The inventory of the estate of Daniel Bush, deceased, continued from the running total of £125 11s 9d carried over.

1 lantern, £0 1s 9d

1 large copper kettle, £1 15s 0d

1 large iron pot, £0 17s 6d

1 large iron pot, £0 7s 6d

1 small iron pot, £0 6s 0d

1 iron pot, £0 9s 0d

1 broken iron pot, £0 16s 0d

1 brass ladle, £0 2s 0d

2 brass flat candlesticks, £0 3s 6d

3 tall brass candlesticks, £0 4s 0d

4 pairs of pot hangers, £0 6s 0d

4 pairs of pot hooks, £0 5s 0d

2 frying pans, £0 3s 3d

1 spit, £0 5s 0d

1 gridiron, £0 4s 6d

2 pairs of tongs, £0 4s 0d

1 fire shovel, £0 1s 0d

1 pair of andirons and fender, £0 3s 6d

2 hatchets, £0 2s 0d

3 pairs of scales, £0 2s 6d

1 small copper saucepan, £0 3s 0d

1 new copper tea kettle, £0 17s 0d

1 small old copper tea kettle, £0 6s 0d

2 pickaxes, £0 2s 0d

1 new box, iron, stand and heaters, £0 11s 0d

1 old box iron, no stand, £0 4s 0d

12 buck-handle knives and forks, £0 10s 0d

7 black-handle knives and forks, £0 10s 0d

a parcel of old things, £0 2s 6d

1 large billiard table, £10 6s 0d

1 silver-mounted sword, £0 19s 0d

1 brass-mounted sword, £0 5s 0d

Carried over, £136 8s 0d

Interpretations

The single most valuable item on this page, by a very wide margin, is a large billiard table valued at £10 6s 0d, an expensive imported luxury standing out sharply among the plain pots, tools and pewter of an otherwise modest estate. This is the third billiard table to appear in the archive, following those in two Doveton estates, and its presence in the household of Daniel Bush, a man of the settlement whose furniture was otherwise plain forms and chests, is striking. Such a table, worth as much as the smaller of his two houses, points to a public or commercial use, most probably a billiard room kept for the entertainment of the garrison and the passing shipping, a natural venture for a man who also stored drink in quantity.

Two swords, one silver-mounted and one brass, mark the military connection of the deceased, who appeared on earlier pages among the debtors and creditors of the garrison. A silver-mounted sword was the side arm and emblem of a man of some rank or standing in the militia or the Company's service, and the pairing of a dress sword with a plainer brass-mounted one suggests both a formal weapon and a working one. Set with the billiard table and the stores of drink, they fill out the picture of a man connected to the fort, perhaps keeping a house of entertainment for the soldiers among whom he lived and lent money.

The kitchen and hearth equipment is deep and practical, with a large copper kettle, ranks of iron pots, spits, gridirons, andirons and fire tools making up the gear of a household that cooked on a considerable scale. This depth of cooking equipment, together with the billiard table, the drink stores and the many knives and forks, strengthens the impression of a house that fed and entertained numbers of people rather than a plain private home. The three pairs of scales in particular point to weighing done for trade or provisioning, consistent with a man who dealt in drink and kept a place of resort, his estate equipped for catering and commerce as much as for domestic life.

87

79

Brought over L 136 8

To Feathr Bed Botr Bed Rail & Curtains 3 10

To 1 Do wainscot Curtains 1 10

To 1 Small Flocks Bed 12

To Do 8

To Do 3

To Do 6

To 4 Blankets 6

To 1 Case wt 15 Small Bottles 6

To a Small Tea Board 16

To 1 Small Chints Quilt 10

To Wch Bed Curtains 1 5

To 1 Pr Sheets 6 6

To Do 5

To Do 5

To Do 3

To Do 3

To Do 4

To 1 Tablecloth 16

To 1 Pr Pillowcase 3

To 2 Towels 8

To 1 old Blanket 16

To 1 old Quilt 16

To 1 old Box Books 10

To 8 Chairs 1 4

To a Close Stool 3

To 4 Washing Tubs 1 Cagg 1 Pail 1 Water Bucket 10

To a Dripping Pan & 2 Salt Sellers 3

To 2 Black Feltows 17

To Sow & 6 Pigs 18

To a Hen & 13 Chickens 4 6

To Do wt 11 1 6

To a Sow Shott 10

To half grown Ducks 4 6

To 1 Cock 1 Hen & Duck 4 6

To 1 Mare Signed by the Appraisors 198 19 6

John Leech Junr

James Pritchard

William Paterson

The inventory of the estate of Daniel Bush, deceased, closed from the running total of £136 8s 0d carried over.

1 feather bed, bolster, bedstead, bed rail and curtains, £5 0s 0d

1 feather bed without curtains, £3 10s 0d

1 small flock bed, £1 10s 0d

1 flock bed, £0 12s 0d

1 flock bed, £0 8s 0d

1 flock bed, £0 3s 0d

4 blankets, £0 6s 0d

1 case with 15 small bottles, £0 6s 0d

1 small tea board, £0 1s 6d

1 small chintz quilt, £0 10s 0d

1 set of chintz bed curtains, £1 5s 0d

1 pair of sheets, £0 6s 6d

1 pair of sheets, £0 5s 0d

1 pair of sheets, £0 5s 0d

1 pair of sheets, £0 3s 0d

1 pair of sheets, £0 3s 0d

1 pair of sheets, £0 4s 0d

1 tablecloth, £0 1s 6d

6 pairs of pillowbears, £0 5s 0d

2 towels, £0 8d

1 old blanket, £0 1s 6d

1 old quilt, £0 1s 6d

1 old box, books, £0 10s 0d

8 chairs, £1 4s 0d

1 close stool, £0 3s 0d

4 washing tubs, 1 cask, 1 pail and 1 water bucket, £0 10s 0d

1 dripping pan and 2 salt cellars, £0 3s 0d

2 black fellows, £47 0s 0d

1 sow and 5 pigs, £0 18s 0d

1 hen and 13 chickens, £0 4s 6d

1 hen with 11 chickens, £0 4s 6d

1 sow shoat, £0 10s 0d

6 half-grown ducks, £0 4s 6d

1 cock, 1 hen and duck, £0 4s 6d

1 mare, £0 [...]

total, £198 19s 6d

The inventory was signed by the appraisers John Leech junior, James Pritchard and William Oakman.

Interpretations

The two men entered near the foot of the inventory, valued together at £47, form by far the largest single asset in the whole Daniel Bush estate, worth more than either of his two houses. This stark fact, that the two slaves were reckoned at a higher value than the buildings, the billiard table and all the household goods, marks once more the plain workings of the island's property system, in which human beings stood as the most valuable chattels a modest householder could own. Entered plainly among the pigs, poultry and washing tubs, the two men were priced as property alongside the animals, their worth to the estate exceeding every other item in it.

The bedding is graded carefully by its filling, with two feather beds set apart from four flock beds of descending value, the flock being the coarse waste of wool or cotton that made a cheaper stuffing than feathers. This distinction, drawn between the better feather beds and the plainer flock beds worth as little as three shillings, shows the appraisers pricing the bedding by its material as throughout the archive. The many beds in the estate, feather and flock together, again point to a household that lodged numbers of people, consistent with the billiard table and the drink stores that suggest a house of entertainment for the garrison and the shipping.

The washing tubs, cask, pail and water bucket entered together mark the plain domestic labour of the household, the gear of laundry and water-carrying that served the establishment. Set with the dripping pan and salt cellars, they anchor the estate in the ordinary tasks of a working home, whatever commercial character the billiard table and drink may point to. This mixture of the plainest domestic equipment with the costly billiard table and the two men held as property captures the whole shape of a modest but various estate, its owner a man of the settlement who kept a house of some resort, held a little property in slaves and buildings, and lived among the soldiers of the fort whose small debts and credits ran through the earlier pages of the archive.

88

80

Inventory of the Estate of Fra: Sivinge Dec[...] taken & Appraised

by Mess[..] Martin Harper & John Desfountaien, the 1[..] of April 1752 Ug[...]

the Dwelling House

£ 120

6 1/2 Acres [Heave]Land

75

Blacks

1 Man

16

1 D[o]

9

1 Woman

18

1 D[o]

20

1 D[o]

15

1 Girl

6

1 D[o]

4

1 D[o]

2

1 Boy

2 10

Cattle

1 Cow & Calf

6

1 D[o]

5 13

1 Calf

1 15

Hogs

1 Sow

1 3

1 D[o]

1 3

1 D[o] & Pigs

1 15

1 D[o]

1

1 D[o]

12

8 [Shoat]s

2

Household Goods

1 [heae]l. Bed Bold[...] 2 [pillows] & Bedsteae

4 10

1 Small D[o]

2

1 [heae]. Bed Bold[...] 4 [pillow] & Bedstead

3

1 [heae]. Bed Bold[...] 2 [pillow] & Bedsteae

2 10

1 Quilt

1 5

2 [Carpet]s

6

4 Table Cloths

12

6 Towels

3

6 P[.] Sheets

1 10

9 P[.] Pillowbears

18

Carried over £ 325 7

Margin Notes:

Legacy

Legacy

An inventory of the estate of Francis Sunge, deceased, was taken and valued by Martin Harper and John Desfountain on 17 April 1752.

The dwelling house, £120 0s 0d

6½ acres of leased land, £75 0s 0d

Blacks

1 man, £16 0s 0d

1 man, £9 0s 0d

1 woman, £18 0s 0d

1 woman, £20 0s 0d

1 woman, £15 0s 0d

1 girl, £6 0s 0d

1 girl, £4 0s 0d

1 girl, £2 0s 0d

Legacy: 1 boy, £2 10s 0d

Cattle

1 cow and calf, £6 0s 0d

1 cow and calf, £5 13s 0d

Legacy: 1 calf, £1 15s 0d

Hogs

1 sow, £1 3s 0d

1 sow, £1 3s 0d

1 sow and pigs, £1 15s 0d

1 sow, £1 0s 0d

1 sow, £0 12s 0d

8 shoats, £2 0s 0d

Household goods

1 feather bed, bolster, 2 pillows and bedstead, £4 10s 0d

1 small feather bed, bolster, pillows and bedstead, £2 0s 0d

1 feather bed, bolster, 4 pillows and bedstead, £3 0s 0d

1 feather bed, bolster, 2 pillows and bedstead, £2 10s 0d

1 quilt, £1 5s 0d

2 carpets, £0 6s 0d

4 tablecloths, £0 12s 0d

6 towels, £0 3s 0d

6 pairs of sheets, £1 10s 0d

9 pairs of pillowcases, £0 18s 0d

Carried over, £325 7s 0d

Interpretations

The slaves were valued between the land and the livestock as ordinary estate assets, priced by age and sex. A woman at £20 topped the list above every man, reflecting the double value placed on slave women as both labour and bearers of future property, while the youngest girl at £2 was priced as an immature asset yielding no full return.

Three items carry a legacy note: a boy, a calf and part of the cattle. These were bequests already assigned to named heirs under Sunge's will, set apart so they could not be sold for debts or divided among the general estate. A human being appears among these gifts on the same terms as an animal, showing how slaves passed between owners by inheritance as well as sale.

The breeding stock, sows with litters and cows with calves, points to a working smallholding raising meat for the island's provisioning market, which depended heavily on locally reared animals to supply passing Company shipping. A shoat was a young weaned pig not yet grown, and a sow with pigs was priced above a barren one for the litter it carried.

Four feather beds with their bedding, together with the quantity of sheets, pillowcases and tablecloths, mark a household of some comfort. Feather bedding and fine linen were imported luxuries on St Helena, accumulated in this number only by a family of standing.

The six and a half acres were held on lease, not owned. The Company owned all land on the island and granted it to settlers on terms, so the £75 valued Sunge's leasehold interest rather than a freehold, which private persons there could not hold.

89

81

Brought over £ 325 7

1 Sir[Chest]

10

1 large Desk

2 10

1 Looking Glass

10

1 Tea Table

6

2 Blankets

8

1 Chest with Drawers

8

1 D[o]

12

1 Small Desk

6

1 [fir]Chest

7

1 D[o]

4

1 Small Chest

2

1 large round Table

1

1 Small D[o]

5

1 long Table

8

4 Chairs

10

2 D[o]

4

1 Elbow Chair

3

1 Tea Table

6

1 large Silver Spoon

8

4 Silver Teaspoons & [...]

10

6 Soop plates

6

12 pewter plates

12

3 D[o] Dishes

6

2 large Pewter Basons

4 6

1 Funnel

6

4 Spoons

6

2 China Bowls

1 9

1 [Smoaker]

3

2 Muggs

1 3

1 China Teapott

3

1 Earthen d[o]

2

2 large China Saucers

6

1 Box Iron & Heaters

7

1 [...] Small Steelyards

3

1 Spitt

1

1 [...]

3

2 Andirons

Carried over £ 337 13 6

The valuation of Francis Sunge's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £325 7s 0d

1 fir chest, £0 10s 0d

1 large desk, £2 10s 0d

1 looking glass, £0 10s 0d

1 tea table, £0 6s 0d

2 blankets, £0 8s 0d

1 chest with drawers, £0 8s 0d

1 chest with drawers, £0 12s 0d

1 small desk, £0 6s 0d

1 fir chest, £0 7s 0d

1 fir chest, £0 4s 0d

1 small chest, £0 2s 0d

1 large round table, £1 0s 0d

1 small round table, £0 5s 0d

1 long table, £0 8s 0d

4 chairs, £0 10s 0d

2 chairs, £0 4s 0d

1 elbow chair, £0 3s 0d

1 tea table, £0 6s 0d

1 large silver spoon, £0 8s 0d

4 silver teaspoons and tea tongs, £0 10s 0d

6 soup plates, £0 6s 0d

12 pewter plates, £0 12s 0d

3 pewter dishes, £0 6s 0d

2 large pewter basins, £0 4s 6d

1 funnel, £0 0s 6d

4 spoons, £0 0s 6d

2 china bowls, £0 1s 9d

1 small cup, £0 0s 3d

2 mugs, £0 1s 3d

1 china teapot, £0 0s 3d

1 earthen teapot, £0 2s 0d

2 large china saucers, £0 0s 6d

1 box iron and heaters, £0 7s 0d

1 pair small steelyards, £0 3s 0d

1 spit, £0 1s 0d

2 andirons, £0 3s 0d

Carried over, £337 13s 6d

Interpretations

A box iron was a hollow smoothing iron heated by a slug of hot metal, the heaters, slipped inside it, so that the base stayed clean for pressing linen. Its presence alongside the household's stock of sheets and tablecloths shows a domestic routine geared to maintaining fine cloth.

Steelyards were a portable balance that weighed goods by sliding a counterpoise along a marked arm, needing only a single fixed weight rather than a matched set. A small pair in a private house points to weighing out provisions or produce for sale, consistent with the breeding livestock recorded earlier in the estate.

A sneaker was a small drinking vessel or cup, here valued at the lowest sum on the page. Its appearance among the china bowls, mugs and teapots reflects the growing fashion for tea drinking, whose imported wares reached even a modest island household through Company trade.

Andirons were the iron supports that held burning logs on an open hearth, and a spit was the rod for roasting meat before the fire. Together they mark an open-fire kitchen where all cooking was done at the hearth, the ordinary arrangement before enclosed ranges.

90

82

Brought over £ 337 13 6

1 flesh Fork

4

1 [Vender]

9

1 Hatchet

6

1 Gridiron

1 8

1 [Do] Frying Pan

6

1 old Tea Pot &c

1

2 Knives & 8 Forks

2

2 Hand Saws

3

1 Small Pott

4

1 [Do] Kettle

1

1 D[o] Pott

5

8 Potthangers

6

parcel of old Tools

3

1 Lanthorns

1 6

1 Tray

4

1 [Peel]

1 6

2 Wash Tubs

3

1 long Form

1

1 Basket

1 6

1 Glass Salt

4

2 Stone Jugs

6

1 Gallon bottle

4

2 large Stone Jars

2 3

1 Small D[o]

1 6

Poultry

3 Turkeys

15

3 Ducks

4 6

7 Fowls

10 6

18 Chickens

2

Yams

7/100 at 4/5 [P] Thousand

1 11 11

25.400 at 7/4 d[o]

8 17 4

30.000 at 12/4 d[o]

18

17.800 at 8/4 d[o]

18

600 Suckers 4/5 [P] tho

7 2 4

700 Yams 7/[P] d[o]

2 7

Signd Martin Harper

John Desfountain

£ 381 3

The valuation of Francis Sunge's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £337 13s 6d

1 flesh fork, £0 0s 4d

1 fender, £0 3s 0d

1 hatchet, £0 1s 6d

1 gridiron, £0 1s 8d

1 tin frying pan, £0 1s 6d

1 old teakettle, £0 0s 1d

5 knives and 8 forks, £0 0s 2d

2 handsaws, £0 0s 3d

1 small pot, £0 0s [...]

1 pot kettle, £0 0s 1d

1 pot, £0 0s 5d

5 pot hangers, £0 0s 6d

1 parcel of old tools, £0 0s 3d

1 lantern, £0 1s 6d

1 tray, £0 0s [...]

1 pail, £0 1s 6d

2 wash tubs, £0 0s 3d

1 long form, £0 1s 0d

1 basket, £0 1s 6d

1 glass salt, £0 0s 4d

2 stone jugs, £0 0s 6d

1 gallon bottle, £0 0s [...]

2 large stone jars, £0 2s 3d

1 small stone jar, £0 1s 6d

Poultry

3 turkeys, £0 15s 0d

3 ducks, £0 4s 6d

7 fowls, £0 10s 6d

18 chickens, £0 2s 0d

Yams

7,100 at 4s 6d per thousand, £1 11s 11d

25,400 at 7s 4d per thousand, £8 17s 4d

30,000 at 12s 4d per thousand, £18 0s 0d

17,800 at 8s 4d per thousand, £18 0s 0d

6,000 suckers at 4s 6d per thousand, £7 2s 4d

7,000 yams at 7s 4d per thousand, £2 2s 4d

Signed Martin Harper

John Desfountain

£381 0s 3d

Interpretations

The yam entries were the most valuable single class of goods on the whole page, the standing crop counted by the thousand and priced by grade. Yams were the staple provision of St Helena, grown in vast quantity and sold to reprovision East India Company ships that called at the island, so a planter's yam ground was a working cash asset rather than mere subsistence. The suckers listed separately were the young offshoots used to propagate the next planting, valued as seed stock for the crop to come.

A gridiron was an iron grate for broiling meat or fish over the fire, and pot hangers were the trammels and hooks that suspended cooking pots above the flame at adjustable heights. With the flesh fork, spit and andirons recorded earlier, these complete the picture of a hearth kitchen where every operation depended on open fire and iron fittings.

The stoneware, jugs, jars and a gallon bottle formed the household's stock of storage for liquids and preserves, salt-glazed vessels shipped in because the island produced no pottery of its own. Their low individual values mark them as ordinary utility ware rather than table goods.

Speculations

The appraisers valued the largest two yam lots, 30,000 and 17,800 tubers, at an identical £18 despite the plainly different quantities and stated rates, the arithmetic on both lines yielding sums that do not match the figures given. Rather than work each lot to its true product, they appear to have capped or rounded both to a round £18, perhaps to force the estate's grand total toward a settled figure. The choice to enter a tidy round sum over the exact calculation suggests the valuation served the practical end of closing the account rather than the precise measure the column headings promised.

91

83

Inventory of the Effects of [Ebenezar] [Leeel] Dec[...] taken & Appraised by [...] [...]

C[...]burnholm & M[..] Ja[..] Pritchard & Serjeant George [Wanton] this [...] Day [...] Feb[..] 175[..]

a Mansion

55

a Black Woman Abigail

10

a Feat[..] Bed [furtach] Quilt 3 Feather pillows a Bolst[..] & [...] & [...]

3

a Feat[..] Bed with blew Sript[..] Ticking

3 5

a Feat[..] Bed 2 [...] Pillows Bolst[..] & Quilt

2 10

a old Flock Bed

4

a Feat[..] Bed 2 d[o] Pillows

3 15

a Feat[..] d[o] Nankeen Tick, 2 pillows

3

a d[o] d[o] & Bolster

2 17 6

a d[o] d[o]

1 15

d[o] d[o]

a d[o] d[o] & Blanket

12

a fir Chest Lock & Key

12

a d[o]

7

a d[o]

10

a round Table

6

2 Chamber pots

4

a Small Table

3 6

a Sett of Curtains

9

a [Sallampore]

5

a Silver Stock Buckle

6

a Looking Glass & bushes

1 3

a [Sarbey]

5

a d[o]

6

a Bedstead

3 6

a Teakchest

15

6 Cane Chairs

1 5

6 Wooden d[o]

10

a round Table

10

a large Sq[..] Table & frame

12

a round Table & broke

3

a form

1 6

a d[o]

6

a d[o]

1 6

Carried over £ 96 16 9

Margin Notes:

Legacy

Legacy

An inventory of the estate of Ebenezer Reed, deceased, was taken and valued by James Pritchard and Sergeant George [...] on 11 [...] 1751.

A mansion, £33 0s 0d

Legacy: a black woman, Abigail, £10 0s 0d

A feather bed, furniture, quilt and 3 feather pillows, a bolster and curtains, £3 0s 0d

A feather bed with blue striped ticking, £3 5s 0d

Legacy: a feather bed and 2 feather pillows, bolster and quilt, £2 10s 0d

1 old flock bed, £0 4s 0d

A feather bed and 2 feather pillows, £3 15s 0d

A feather bed with nankeen tick and 2 pillows, £3 0s 0d

A feather bed and bolster, £2 17s 6d

A feather bed, £1 15s 0d

A feather bed and blanket, £0 12s 0d

A fir chest, lock and key, £0 12s 0d

A fir chest, £0 7s 0d

A fir chest, £0 10s 0d

A round table, £0 6s 0d

2 chamber pots, £0 4s 0d

A small table, £0 3s 6d

A set of curtains, £0 9s 0d

A lamp, £0 5s 0d

A silver stock buckle, £0 6s 0d

A looking glass, both sides, £0 1s 3d

A [...], £0 5s 0d

A [...], £0 6s 0d

A bedstead, £0 3s 6d

A rack bed, £0 15s 0d

6 cane chairs, £0 15s 0d

6 wooden chairs, £0 10s 0d

A round table, £0 10s 0d

A large square table and frame, £0 12s 0d

A round table, broken, £0 3s 0d

A form, £0 1s 6d

A form, £0 1s 0d

A form, £0 1s 6d

Carried over, £96 16s 9d

Interpretations

A flock bed was stuffed with coarse wool or cloth scraps rather than feathers, and its single old example valued at only £0 4s 0d against feather beds worth several pounds marks the sharp gap between the master's bedding and the meanest sleeping place in the house. Nankeen ticking was a durable buff-coloured cotton cloth imported from China through Company trade, used here to case a mattress, showing how far Eastern textiles had entered ordinary furnishing on the island.

A stock buckle fastened the stiff neckband, or stock, worn at a man's throat, and one made of silver was a small item of personal display. Its survival in an estate otherwise full of plain utility goods points to a modest touch of gentility in the deceased's dress.

The black woman Abigail was listed as a legacy directly beneath the mansion at the head of the inventory, a slave already bequeathed to a named heir and set apart from the general estate. Her placement above all the household goods, second only to the house itself, reflects the value attached to a working slave, while the legacy note shows her passing to an heir by will as an item of inherited property.

92

84

Brought over £ 96 16 9

2 old Tubs

1 6

2 pewter Dish 16 d[o] plates

9 6

2 China plates

9

16 pewter Spoons

2 3

6 Knives & Forks

4 6

2 Candlesticks

1 3

a pott

8 6

an old Desk

3

a Tea Kettle

7 6

a Spitt

1 3

a Lamp

9

a Raiser

1 3

a f[..] Stelyards

4

a Standing Cupboard

2 6

2 Candlesticks

3

Signed

£ 99 1 8

W[m] Burnham

George Marten

Ja[..] Pritchard

Inventory of the Effects belonging to the late M[..] John French Sen[..]

Deceased, Appraised by Mess[..] Matthew Purling & Richard Beale, Viz[..]

2 Houses in [Chuppel] Valley Amounting to

£ 230

House Furniture Wearing Apparel, Plate &c[..] Amounting to

208 15 2

Blacks Amounting to

86

Cattle Amounting to

11 10

Hogs Amounting to

1 10

11 Acres Lease Land Amounting to

35

£ 572 15 2

Signed

M[..] Purling

Rich[..] Beale

The valuation of Ebenezer Reed's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £96 16s 9d

2 old tubs, £0 1s 0d

2 pewter dishes and 16 pewter plates, £0 9s 6d

2 china plates, £0 0s 9d

16 pewter spoons, £0 2s 3d

6 knives and forks, £0 4s 6d

2 candlesticks, £0 1s 3d

A pot, £0 8s 6d

An old desk, £0 3s 0d

A teakettle, £0 7s 6d

A spit, £0 1s 3d

A lamp, £0 0s 9d

A basin, £0 1s 3d

A pair of steelyards, £0 4s 0d

A standing cupboard, £0 2s 6d

2 candlesticks, £0 3s 0d

Signed William Burnham

George Martin

James Pritchard

£97 7s 8d

An inventory of the estate of John French senior, deceased, was valued by Matthew Purling and Richard Beale.

2 houses in Chapel Valley amounting to, £230 0s 0d

House furniture, wearing apparel, plate and other goods amounting to, £208 15s 2d

Blacks amounting to, £86 0s 0d

Cattle amounting to, £11 10s 0d

Hogs amounting to, £1 10s 0d

6 acres of leased land amounting to, £35 0s 0d

£572 15s [...]

Signed Matthew Purling

Richard Beale

Interpretations

A standing cupboard was a tall freestanding storage press, distinct from a wall-fixed shelf, used for keeping food, plate or linen off the ground. Its appearance among the kitchen goods marks the practical storage of a working household rather than a display piece.

The French inventory was drawn up as a set of category totals rather than an itemised list, each class of property reduced to a single sum. This summary form contrasts with the detailed enumeration of Reed's goods on the same leaf, and it shows the appraisers valuing a larger and more complex estate by heads of account, with the two Chapel Valley houses alone worth £230. Chapel Valley was the settlement around the island's fort and church that later grew into Jamestown, the main town and harbour of St Helena, so property there sat at the commercial centre of the colony.

The Blacks in French's estate were entered as a lump valuation of £86 with no individual named or described, the slaves counted only as an aggregate asset. This reduction of people to a single line among cattle, hogs and land shows the estate accounting treating human beings purely as a class of property to be totalled.

93

85

Brought over £ 572 15 2

Cash Amounting to

38 11 [...]

Debts due to the Estate

346 9 6[...]

75 16 2

Their Debts Funeral Charges &c[..] Amounting to

10 [...] 18 1[...]

£ 8[...] 18 1[...]

Memorandum

I think proper to observe That both my Sisters & my Self was

Ordered & Directed by our Dec[..] Father to draw up a Bill against M[..]

James DuBois, for several Years Maintenance Washing, Lodging use of

Servants &c[..] for him & his Family, & left it to our Consideration to charge

what we thought proper so that it might appear reasonable, which said

Bill was to be in bar against him in case any [dispute] any Demand or

Claim whatever upon his Estate otherwise to be Void, & for the truth of this

we are both ready to give our Oaths.

Likewise think proper to mention that my Father received

upward of £ 150 of my Salary paid me by the Hon[ble] Company

during my Minority, which has been no otherwise Accounted to me for

than by my Maintenance, & living with him, an indulgence which all his

other Children had also without any consideration, for which reason I

apprehend the above Item to be a Debt now due to me from him unless

it is determined in his favour, that he had a right to make use of

it as his own, & his Estate not liable to be called upon for it.

Signed

Tho[..] French

Inventory of the Estate of the late Ph[...] Gurling Dec[..] Appraised by Mess[..]

Fran[..] Woartyham Sen[..] & Rich[..] Bagley the 16 July 1752 Viz[..]

1 House in the Country

15

Land Viz[..]

20 Acres [Freehold] about the House 4 [...] [P] Acre £ 80

3 D[o] Plantation Land 1 [...] [P] Acre 60

9 Acres Lease Land 1 [...] [P] Acre 9

140 9

Carried over £ 155 9

The valuation of John French's estate continued from the sum already carried over, with the cash, debts and charges set out to reach a final total.

Brought over, £572 15s [...]

Cash amounting to, £38 11s [...]

Debts due to the estate, £346 9s 6d

£957 16s 2d

Less his debts, funeral charges and other costs amounting to, £107 18s [...]

£849 18s [...]

Thomas French added a memorandum to the account. He thought it proper to record that both his sisters and himself had been ordered and directed by their deceased father to draw up a bill against James Du Bois for several years of maintenance, washing, lodging and the use of servants provided to him and his family. Their father had left it to their judgement to charge whatever they thought reasonable, so that the sum might appear fair, and this bill was to stand in force against Du Bois should he make any demand or claim upon the estate, otherwise to be void. Thomas and his sisters were both ready to swear to the truth of this on oath.

He also thought it proper to mention that his father had received upward of £150 in salary paid to him by the Company during his own minority, which had never been accounted for to him except through his maintenance and living with his father. Thomas regarded this as an indulgence that all his father's other children had likewise enjoyed without any reckoning. For that reason he considered the charge a debt now due to him from his father, unless it were determined in his father's favour that he had a right to use the money as his own, leaving his estate not liable to be called upon for it.

An inventory of the estate of Ebenezer Gurling, deceased, was valued by Francis Wortham senior and Richard Bagley on 16 July 1752.

1 house in the country, £15 0s 0d

Land, viz:

20 acres freehold about the house at 4s per acre, £80 0s 0d

3 acres freehold plantation land at 20s per acre, £60 0s 0d

9 acres leasehold at [...] per acre, £9 0s 0d

£140 9s 0d

Carried over, £155 9s 0d

Interpretations

Thomas French's memorandum turned the inventory into a legal instrument for settling two disputed money questions before the estate was divided. The first fixed a maintenance charge against James Du Bois, a boarder whose years of lodging, washing and servant use the family now converted into a formal debt to the estate, the father having authorised his children to set a figure that would look reasonable and bar any counterclaim. The second concerned the £150 of Company salary drawn on Thomas's behalf during his minority, which he treated as a debt owed to him rather than by him, arguing it was an allowance given to all the children alike and expended on his keep. The offer of oaths shows the family arming the account against future challenge in the island's probate court.

Gurling's landholding distinguished sharply between freehold and leasehold and priced the two grades of freehold ground very differently. Ordinary land about the house was valued at 4s the acre, but three acres of plantation land were set at 20s, five times the rate, marking cultivated or planted ground of far higher yield than rough acreage. This gap reveals how land value on St Helena turned not on extent but on what a plot could be made to produce.

94

86

Brought over £ 155 9

Blacks Viz[..]

1 Man Slave Nam[d] [Ven]

£ 27

1 D[o] Andrew

23

1 Boy Joe

15

1 Woman Sarah

20

1 Girl Michilla

8

93

Neat Cattle Viz[..]

1 Cow & Calf

5

1 D[o] & D[o]

4 15

1 D[o] & D[o]

4 10

1 D[o] & D[o]

4

1 Cow

3

1 D[o]

4

1 D[o]

3 10

1 Bullock

4 10

1 Bull

2 10

1 Calf

1 5

37

Sheep Viz[..]

26 Grown @ 15 each

19 10

18 Lambs 7/[..] [...]

6 15

26 5

Goats Viz[..]

28 Grown [...]

11 4

24 [...] 4/[..]

4 16

16

Hogs Viz[..]

13 Shoats @ 7/[..] [...]

4 17 6

1 Sow

15

1 D[o]

12

1 D[o]

18

1 Barrow

12

7 14 6

Yams Viz[..]

7000 from 18 to 9 Months old @ 15 [P] 1000

5 12

13000 [Nowplants] 5/[..]

3 5

31000 from 6 to 9 Months old 8/[..]

12 8

78 5

Carried over £ 408 13

The valuation of Ebenezer Gurling's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £155 9s 0d

Blacks, viz:

1 man, Jack, named John, £27 0s 0d

1 man, Andrew, £23 0s 0d

1 boy, Joe, £15 0s 0d

1 woman, Sarah, £20 0s 0d

1 girl, Mirtilla, £8 0s 0d

£93 0s 0d

Neat cattle, viz:

1 cow and calf, £5 0s 0d

1 cow and calf, £4 15s 0d

1 cow and calf, £4 10s 0d

1 cow and calf, £4 0s 0d

1 cow, £3 0s 0d

1 cow, £4 0s 0d

1 cow, £3 10s 0d

1 bullock, £4 10s 0d

1 bull, £2 10s 0d

1 calf, £1 5s 0d

£37 0s 0d

Sheep, viz:

26 grown at 15s each, £19 10s 0d

12 lambs at 11s 3d each, £6 15s 0d

£26 5s 0d

Goats, viz:

28 grown at 8s each, £11 4s 0d

24 kids at 4s each, £4 16s 0d

£16 0s 0d

Hogs, viz:

13 shoats at 7s 6d each, £4 17s 6d

1 sow, £0 15s 0d

1 sow, £0 12s 0d

1 sow, £0 18s 0d

1 barrow, £0 12s 0d

£7 14s 6d

Yams, viz:

7,000 from 18 to 9 months old at 15s per 1,000, £5 12s 0d

13,000 how planted at 5s per 1,000, £3 5s 0d

31,000 from 6 to 2 months old at 8s per 1,000, £12 8s 0d

£78 5s 0d

Carried over, £408 13s 0d

Interpretations

Neat cattle meant the ordinary horned stock of the farm, cows, bullocks and calves, distinguished from sheep, goats and hogs by the old collective term for bovine animals. Gurling's herd of ten head, several being cows with calves at foot, marks a breeding operation rather than mere holding stock.

A barrow was a castrated male pig, fattened for meat rather than kept for breeding, which is why it sat apart from the sows in the hog account. The shoats alongside it were young weaned pigs being raised toward maturity.

The yam crop was graded by age and priced accordingly, the oldest and most nearly ready tubers commanding the highest rate and the newest planting the lowest. At 31,000 the youngest and largest lot dominated the ground, and the whole yam valuation of £78 5s 0d exceeded every class of livestock, confirming the crop as the estate's principal cash asset in supplying Company shipping. The middle line recording how the crop was planted marks the stock set in the ground to raise the next season's provision.

The five slaves here were each named and individually valued, unlike the lump sums used in other estates on these leaves, the man John priced highest at £27 and the girl Mirtilla lowest at £8. This individual listing by name, age and sex reflects the appraisers assessing each person's working value separately, the whole group of human beings totalled at £93 and entered as the estate's single most valuable class of movable property after the land.

95

87

Brought over £ 408 13 6

Poultry Viz[..]

13 Grown Fowls

19 6

50 half Grown & Chickens

1

5 Ducks

7 6

2 7

1 Young Horse

10

1 Neat Saddle & Bridle

2

1 D[o] D[o] without Stirrups

10

1 D[o] Feat[..] Bed 2 Pillows 1 Bolst[..] Bedstead Quilt Curtains

& Rail

3 10

1 old D[o] Painted

2 5

1 old D[o] Pillows & Bedstead

2 5

1 old D[o] 1 [Silk] Cotton D[o] & Bedstead

2 5

1 old Beaureau

2

1 Fir Chest

12

1 Painted Chest

16

1 fir Chest with Padlock

9

1 Small Sq[..] Table

5

1 Oval Wainscot Table

15

1 Form

2

1 old Case w[..] 11 five Pint Bottles

10

1 D[o] with 9 two Quart D[o]

7 6

1 D[o] with 12 five Pint D[o]

12

3 China Dish w[..] 8 [...] Plates

4

3 China Plates Cracked

1

4 China Bowls of different Sizes

8

a parcel of old d[o] China Ware

2 6

1 Earthen Tea pott

5

2 pewter Chamber Pots

8

3 Brass Candlesticks & old Snuffers

4

4 Earthen Jars

6

1 Pint Tin Saucepan

2 6

2 N[..] old Sheep Sheers

18

2 Small Copper Tea Kettles

6

3 pewter Basons

4

3 D[o] Dishes old

7

1 Box Iron & Heaters

Carried over £ 20 19

Carried over £ 423 10 6

The valuation of Ebenezer Gurling's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £408 13s 0d

Poultry, viz:

13 grown fowls, £0 19s 6d

50 half-grown chickens, £1 0s 0d

5 ducks, £0 7s 6d

£2 7s 0d

1 young horse, £10 0s 0d

1 neat saddle and bridle, £2 0s 0d

1 saddle without stirrups, £0 10s 0d

1 feather bed, 2 pillows, 1 bolster, bedstead, quilt, curtains and rail, £3 10s 0d

1 old feather bed and quilt, £2 5s 0d

1 old feather bed, pillows and bedstead, £2 5s 0d

1 old feather bed, silk cotton bed and bedstead, £2 5s 0d

1 old bureau, £2 0s 0d

1 fir chest, £0 12s 0d

1 painted chest, £0 16s 0d

1 fir chest with padlock, £0 9s 0d

1 small square table, £0 5s 0d

1 oval wainscot table, £0 13s 0d

1 form, £0 2s 0d

1 old case with 11 five-pint bottles, £0 10s 0d

1 case with 9 two-quart bottles, £0 7s 6d

1 case with 12 five-pint bottles, £0 12s 0d

3 china dishes and 12 plates, £0 4s 0d

5 china plates, cracked, £0 1s 0d

4 china bowls of different sizes, £0 8s 0d

1 parcel of old china ware, £0 5s 0d

1 parcel of old china ware, £0 2s 6d

1 earthen teapot, £0 5s 0d

2 pewter chamber pots, £0 8s 0d

3 brass candlesticks and old snuffers, £0 4s 0d

4 earthen jars, £0 0s 6d

1 pint teasaucepan, £0 2s 6d

1 pair of old sheep shears, £0 0s 18d

2 small copper teakettles, £0 0s 6d

3 pewter basins, £0 0s 4d

3 old pewter dishes, £0 0s 7d

1 box iron and heaters, £0 [...]

Carried over, £30 19s 0d

Carried over, £423 10s 6d

Interpretations

Silk cotton was the light fibre from the seed pods of the kapok tree, used to stuff bedding as a cheaper and cooler filling than feathers. Its appearance beside the feather beds shows a household mixing imported and locally available materials, since the kapok tree grew in warm climates and its floss could be gathered on or near the island.

A wainscot table was made of good panelled oak, the term for the fine imported board used in better joinery, marking it as a superior piece against the plain deal furniture elsewhere in the house. An oval one of this wood was a table of some quality.

The cased sets of bottles, counted by their pint and quart capacity, were the household's stock for storing and serving wine, spirits or other liquids, the fitted cases protecting the glass in a place where all such ware had to be shipped in. Their careful enumeration by size and number reflects the value of glass on a remote island.

96

88

Brought over £ 423 10 6

Brought over £ 20 19

2 Small Looking Glasses

10

3 Cloths Brushes

1

1 Curry Comb & Brush

1

1 Fowling Piece

1 10

1 old Yam Pot crackd

6

2 Small Meat Pots

12

1 D[o] crackd

3

1 Milk Pot

3

1 Shoe Makers Bench w[..] a parcel tools & old Lasts

8

1 Small hand Hatchet

1 6

4 Tanned Goat Skins

8

1 Carp[..] old

1

1 Frying Pan

1

3 [P..] Potthangers

4 6

2 P[..] Pot Hooks

2

1 Small Spit

1

1 Powder Horn & Shot Pouch

1

4 Wine Glasses

2 6

1 Brown Bob Wig cut Hair

12

1 D[o]

8

1 P[..] Riding Gloves

2

1 Small Tea Board

6

1 Plain Hat

15

1 Leather Trunk

6

1 Grindstone & Winch

8

1 P[..] Shoes

2 6

1 P[..] China

9

2 P[..] Nankeen

8

1/2 [P..] flowered Taffety

1 5

1 P[..] Chintz

3

2 Sallampores

10

8 Yds German Serge

2 5

1 P[..] Cotton Stockings

7 6

2 [P..] D[o]

3

10 P[..] Riding Stockings

1 6

Carried over £ 34 13 6

Carried over £ 423 10 6

The valuation of Ebenezer Gurling's estate continued from the sums already carried over.

Brought over, £423 10s 6d

Brought over, £20 19s 0d

2 small looking glasses, £0 10s 0d

3 clothes brushes, £0 1s 0d

1 curry comb and brush, £0 1s 0d

1 fowling piece, £1 10s 0d

1 old yam pot, cracked, £0 5s 0d

2 small meat pots, £0 12s 0d

1 meat pot, cracked, £0 3s 0d

1 milk pot, £0 3s 0d

1 shoemaker's bench with a parcel of tools and old lasts, £0 8s 0d

1 small hand hatchet, £0 1s 6d

4 tanned goatskins, £0 8s 0d

1 old carpet, £0 1s 0d

1 frying pan, £0 1s 0d

3 pairs of pot hangers, £0 4s 6d

2 pairs of pot hooks, £0 2s 0d

1 small spit, £0 1s 0d

1 powder horn and shot pouch, £0 1s 0d

4 wine glasses, £0 2s 6d

1 brown bob wig, cut hair, £0 12s 0d

1 brown bob wig, cut hair, £0 12s 0d

1 pair of riding gloves, £0 2s 0d

1 small teaboard, £0 0s 6d

1 plain hat, £0 15s 0d

1 leather trunk, £0 6s 0d

1 grindstone with winch, £0 8s 0d

1 pair of shoes, £0 2s 6d

1 pair of shins, £0 9s 0d

2 pairs of nankeen, £0 8s 0d

½ piece of flowered taffeta, £1 5s 0d

1 pair of shins, £0 3s 0d

2 pieces of lamps, £0 10s 0d

8 yards of German serge, £2 5s 0d

1 pair of cotton stockings, £0 7s 6d

1 pair of cotton stockings, £0 3s 0d

10 pairs of riding stockings, £0 1s 6d

Carried over, £34 13s 6d

Carried over, £423 10s 6d

Interpretations

A fowling piece was a light smoothbore gun for shooting birds, and its appearance with the powder horn and shot pouch shows the household equipped for wildfowling, whether for the table or to protect crops. On St Helena, where introduced game and seabirds were hunted, such a piece was a practical rather than sporting possession.

A curry comb was a toothed iron tool for cleaning a horse's coat, listed here beside the saddle and young horse recorded earlier, completing the tack and grooming gear of a household that kept a mount. Its presence confirms the horse as a working animal needing regular care.

German serge was a hard-wearing woollen twill imported for clothing, and flowered taffeta a fine figured silk, the two fabrics marking the range from workday cloth to dress material held in the house. Nankeen was the buff Chinese cotton met earlier in these inventories, and the stock of made and unmade textiles together shows a household holding cloth both to wear and perhaps to trade.

The shoemaker's bench with its tools and lasts points to leatherworking carried on at home, whether by the deceased or a household member, the tanned goatskins nearby supplying the raw material. This suggests a self-provisioning economy in which footwear and leather goods were made on the spot rather than bought in.

97

89

Brought over £ 423 10 6

Brought over £ 34 13 6

6 New Callico Shirts

1 10

7 old D[o]

14

3 flowered Dimity Waistcoats

15

3 P[..] Pillowcases

1 6

3 Socks

1 6

3 old Demity Waistcoats

5

10 [P..] Sheets

6

1 New Silk Handkerchief

2

2 Damask Napkins

3

5 old Table Cloths

10

1 Cloth Coat & Breeches

1 5

1 P[..] Cloth Breeches unfinished

10

1 old Blue Camblet Waistcoat

5

1 Steel Pencil Case

3

4 Silver Tea Spoons Strained & broken 1[..] Tongs

12

3 old Knives & 7 Forks

2

1 Pick Ax 1 Grubbing Ax & 1 Hoe

5

2 [Lb] Tallow 3 [...] & p[..]

15

1 Fir Table

9

1 P[..] large Steelyards

7

1 P[..] Small D[o]

4

44 5 9

467 16 3

Cash

17 18 [...]

£ 485 14 3[...]

Signed

Fran[..] Wrangham

Rich[..] Bagley

The valuation of Ebenezer Gurling's estate continued from the sums already carried over.

Brought over, £423 10s 6d

Brought over, £34 13s 6d

6 new calico shirts, £1 10s 0d

7 old calico shirts, £0 14s 0d

3 flowered dimity waistcoats, £0 15s 0d

3 pairs of pillowcases, £0 1s 6d

5 socks, £0 1s 6d

3 old dimity waistcoats, £0 5s 0d

10 pairs of sheets, £0 6s 0d

1 new silk handkerchief, £0 2s 0d

2 damask napkins, £0 3s 0d

5 old tablecloths, £0 10s 0d

1 cloth coat and breeches, £1 5s 0d

1 pair of cloth breeches, unfinished, £0 10s 0d

1 old blue camlet waistcoat, £0 5s 0d

1 steel pencil case, £0 0s 3d

4 silver teaspoons, strainer and broken tea tongs, £0 12s 0d

3 old knives and 7 forks, £0 2s 0d

1 pickaxe, 1 grubbing axe and 1 hoe, £0 5s 0d

20 lb tallow at 9d per lb, £0 15s 0d

1 fir table, £0 9s 0d

1 pair of large steelyards, £0 7s 0d

1 pair of small steelyards, £0 4s 0d

£11 5s 9d

£67 16s 3d

Cash, £17 18s 0d

£485 14s 3d

Signed Francis Wortham

Richard Bagley

Interpretations

Dimity was a stout ribbed or figured cotton cloth used for waistcoats and bed furnishing, and camlet a mixed weave of wool with silk or hair, both imported dress fabrics that show the range of a settler's wardrobe from workaday to better wear. The several dimity waistcoats, new and old, mark a man's ordinary body linen on the island.

A grubbing axe was a heavy mattock for clearing roots and breaking new ground, listed with the pickaxe and hoe as the tools of bringing land into cultivation. Their presence fits an estate whose value lay chiefly in its planted acres and yam grounds, needing constant labour to keep ground in tillage.

Tallow was rendered animal fat, valued by weight and used for making candles and soap, and 20 lb of it was a working household's store for its own light. Priced at 9d the pound, it was a modest but useful commodity kept against need on an island where such stores were laid in rather than readily bought.

98

90

Debts Due to the Estate Viz[..]

James Powell

£ 2 19 11

Martin Harper

1 6

The Estate of W[m] Womack dec[..]

14 12 9[...]

Samuel Falconer

6 3 6

Orlando Bagley

3 6

John Twaite

9

James Greentree

4 1

John Goodwin

12 1

Lydia Harper

5

26 10 4[...]

Debts Due from the Estate Viz[..]

John Desfountain

7 11 10

Samuel Davelow Esq[..]

11 1

Joshua M[..]nall

9 6

Samuel Desfountain

3 4

Matthew Brightwell

1 2 3[...]

Francis Sivinge Dec[..]

6 6

John Purling

1

George Sivinge

3

Stephen Sivinge

1 3

John Davelow

5[...]

Robert Gurling Orphan

8 13 2

Francis Wrangham Jun[..]

4 6

Richard Gurling

5 2 10

Thomas Slew

6

Matthew Purling

10

26 11 9

The debts owed to and by Ebenezer Gurling's estate were set out in two schedules.

Debts due to the estate, viz:

James Powell, £2 19s 11d

Martin Harper, £1 0s 6d

The estate of William Womack, deceased, £14 12s 9d

Samuel Falconer, £6 3s 6d

Orlando Bagley, £0 3s 6d

John Swaile, £0 9s 0d

James Greentree, £0 4s 1d

John Goodwin, £0 12s 1d

Lydia Harper, £0 5s 0d

£26 10s 4d

Debts due from the estate, viz:

John Desfountain, £7 11s 10d

Samuel Davison, esquire, £0 11s 1d

Joshua Womack, £0 9s 6d

Samuel Desfountain, £0 3s 4d

Matthew Brightwell, £1 2s 3d

Francis French, deceased, £0 6s 6d

John Burling, £1 0s 0d

George Young, £0 3s 0d

Stephen Young, £0 13s 0d

John Davison, £0 5s 6d

Robert Gurling, orphan, £8 13s 2d

Francis Wrangham junior, £0 4s 6d

Richard Gurling, £5 2s 10d

Thomas Stew, £0 6s 0d

Matthew Purling, £0 10s 0d

£26 14s 9d

Interpretations

The two schedules together show the deceased embedded in a dense web of small credit running through the island's settler community, most sums under a pound and owed to or by neighbours whose names recur across these estates. This pattern of mutual indebtedness reveals how a cash-poor colony functioned on personal book credit, each household both creditor and debtor to the same circle of families.

The single largest debt from the estate, £8 13s 2d, was owed to Robert Gurling described as an orphan, probably a minor kinsman whose inheritance or wardship money the deceased had held. That a child's money stood as the estate's chief liability points to the practice of a family member holding an orphan's portion in trust, a charge the estate now had to answer to the island's court, which oversaw the property of fatherless children.

The estate stood almost exactly in balance, £26 10s 4d owed to it against £26 14s 9d owed by it, the two sides so close that the deceased's net position in the community's credit was near nil. This equilibrium suggests active participation in local exchange rather than accumulation, the household passing goods and money through its hands without building a surplus of either credit or debt.

99

91

Inventory of the Effects of the late M[..] James Pritchard deceased

Appraised by

1752

July

A Slave Wench and Female Child

18

A Feather Bed Bolster and two Pillows

4

one small D[o] and Quilt

2

One old Wool Bed Bolster and Pillow

10

One D[o] and Quilt

15

One Old Gravesend Bed and and Quilt

5

One Old Bedstead

4

One New D[o]

8

One New fine Sallampore

15

One Old Sallampore

5

One D[o] P[..] Mats

5

One P[..] new D[o]

10

One P[..] old D[o]

3

3 no P[..] Old D[o]

2 6

One Small Old Table Cloth

1

2 Dungree Towels

1 6

two P[..] New Pillowbers

5

2 D[o] old D[o]

2

1 P[..] Old Bed Curtains

4

One P[..] Old Window Curtains and Vallens

2

2 Pieces Nankin

8

1 Piece Dimity

16

1 Piece Dimity

5

1 Brass mounted Sword

10 6

Thirteen Bottles beer and 2 Bottles Port Wine

2 10

1 Silver Watch

2 6

1 Silver Lace for a Gunners Mates Coat

2 6

1 P[..] Old Shoes

3

1 Old Hatt

2 6

1 P[..] Old Shoes

6

2 P[..] Old Breeches

2 6

1 Old Cloth Wastecoat Without Sleeves

8

2 White Dimity Wastecoat

1

1 P[..] Spatterdashes

Carried over 34 15 6

An inventory of the estate of James Pritchard, deceased, was taken and appraised in July 1752.

A slave, wench and female child, £18 0s 0d

A feather bed, bolster and 2 pillows, £4 0s 0d

1 small feather bed and quilt, £2 0s 0d

1 old wool bed, bolster and pillows, £0 10s 0d

1 old wool bed and quilt, £0 15s 0d

1 old gravesend bed and quilt, £0 5s 0d

1 old bedstead, £0 4s 0d

1 new bedstead, £0 8s 0d

1 new fine palampore, £0 15s 0d

1 old palampore, £0 5s 0d

1 old bedmat, £0 5s 0d

1 new bedmat, £0 10s 0d

1 old bedmat, £0 3s 0d

1 old bedmat, £0 2s 6d

1 small old tablecloth, £0 1s 0d

2 dozen towels, £0 1s 6d

2 pairs of new pillowcases, £0 5s 0d

2 pairs of old pillowcases, £0 2s 0d

1 pair of old bed curtains, £0 4s 0d

1 pair of old window curtains and valance, £0 2s 0d

2 pieces of nankeen, £0 8s 0d

1 piece of dimity, £0 16s 0d

1 mounted sword, £0 5s 0d

1 basket-hilted sword, £0 10s 6d

13 bottles of beer and 2 bottles of port wine, £2 10s 0d

1 silver watch, £2 6d

1 silver lace for a gunner's mate's coat, £0 2s 6d

1 pair of old shoes, £0 2s 6d

1 old hat, £0 3s 0d

1 pair of old shoes, £0 2s 6d

2 pairs of old breeches, £0 6s 0d

1 old cloth waistcoat without sleeves, £0 2s 6d

2 white dimity waistcoats, £0 8s 0d

1 pair of spatterdashes, £0 1s 0d

Carried over, £34 15s 6d

Interpretations

A palampore was a painted or printed cotton bedcover from India, prized as fine bed furniture and imported through the Company trade, one being new and another old in the estate. Its listing among the beds and mats shows Indian textiles reaching an ordinary island household as valued furnishing.

A gravesend bed was a cheap ready-made mattress of the sort sold at Gravesend, the Thames port where outbound East Indiamen took on stores, so named for where such bedding was bought before a voyage. Its presence marks the maritime supply line feeding the island's households.

Spatterdashes were long cloth or leather gaiters buttoned over the lower leg to keep mud and wet off the stockings when riding or walking, the forerunner of later gaiters. A modest but practical item of outdoor dress on the island's rough tracks.

The silver lace for a gunner's mate's coat and the pair of swords point to the dead man's naval or garrison connection, the lace being the braid trimming a petty officer's uniform. Together with the silver watch, these mark a man of some standing in the island's military or maritime service, his rank shown in the trimmings of his coat.

100

92

Brought over 34 15 6

5 Stocks

3

4 P[..] White Stockings

1 10

2 New Shirts

6

2 Old D[o]

3

1 Blue Coat

7

1 Old D[o]

6

1 D[o]

5

Half an Old Red Coat

2 6

a Remnant White Cloth

1

To D[o] Chelloes

2

Parcel Soap

8

1 Pound Blue

1 10

D[o] Powder

1 10

2 Pound Starch

1 4

2 Pitch Axes

5

fifteen Quart Glass Bottles

1 6

1 Copper Tea Kettle

8

1 D[o]

5

1 Horn Lanthorn

1 3

1 Box Iron and 1 P[..] Heaters

9

2 Tin Lamps

1 3

2 New Tin Saucepans

1 4

2 Old Brass D[o]

2 6

1 P[..] Scale and Weights

5

1 P[..] Brass Candlesticks

4

3 Pewter Basons

3

16 Pewter Plates

10

3 Pewter Dishes

8

9 Old Pewter Spoons

7[...]

6 Knives 6 Forks

5

2 Parcels Old Knives and Forks

2 6

1 Large Padlock

2

6 Double Bowls

9

4 Single Bowls Crackd

3

1 D[o] 2 Smokers

1 6

6 China Sugar Boxes

5

12 12 5[...]

The valuation of James Pritchard's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £34 15s 6d

5 shirts, £0 3s 0d

4 pairs of white stockings, £1 10s 0d

2 new shirts, £0 6s 0d

2 old shirts, £0 3s 0d

1 blue coat, £0 7s 0d

1 old blue coat, £0 6s 0d

1 blue coat, £0 5s 0d

half an old red coat, £0 2s 6d

a remnant of white cloth, £0 1s 0d

2 remnants of chelloes, £0 2s 0d

a parcel of soap, £0 8s 0d

1 pound of blue, £0 1s 10d

a pound of powder, £0 1s 10d

2 pounds of starch, £0 1s 4d

2 pickaxes, £0 5s 0d

15 quart glass bottles, £0 1s 6d

1 copper teakettle, £0 8s 0d

1 copper teakettle, £0 5s 0d

1 horn lantern, £0 1s 3d

1 box iron and 1 pair of heaters, £0 2s 0d

2 tin lamps, £0 1s 3d

2 new tin saucepans, £0 1s 4d

2 old brass saucepans, £0 2s 6d

1 pair of scales and weights, £0 5s 0d

1 pair of brass candlesticks, £0 4s 0d

2 pewter basins, £0 3s 0d

16 pewter plates, £0 10s 0d

3 pewter dishes, £0 8s 0d

9 old pewter spoons, £0 1s 2d

6 knives and 6 forks, £0 5s 0d

2 parcels of old knives and forks, £0 2s 6d

1 large padlock, £0 2s 0d

6 double bowls, £0 9s 0d

4 single bowls, cracked, £0 3s 0d

1 double bowl and 2 small cups, £0 1s 6d

6 china sugar basins, £0 5s 0d

£12 12s 5d

Interpretations

Chelloes were a coarse blue Indian cotton cloth traded through the Company, the remnants here marking the same reach of Eastern textiles into the household seen in the nankeen and palampore already listed. A common trade cloth rather than a fine one.

The pound of blue was laundry blue, a powder added to the wash to counter yellowing in white linen, listed here with the soap and starch as the materials of household laundering. Together these show the routine care of the large stock of shirts, sheets and stockings the estate held.

The pound of powder set among the laundry stores was probably hair powder for dressing wigs, matching the fashion of the period, rather than gunpowder, which would sit with the arms. Its place beside the soap and starch supports its use in personal grooming.

A sneaker was a small drinking cup, and a double bowl a vessel of larger size, the graded china marking the household's tea and punch ware. Six china sugar basins in one estate point to the settled place of sugar and tea taking in island domestic life.

101

93

Carried on 42 7 5[...]

3 China Tea Pots

2 6

1 Brown D[o]

2

1 Coffee Mill

2 6

a Parcel of Old China

2 6

3 Cracked Glass Mugs

6

a Childs Silver Corral

12

4 Earthen Jarrs

7

2 Tin Mugs

1 3

3 Fowls

4 6

1 Old Leather Cap

6

2 Cloath Brushes and 2 Shoe Brushes

2

3 Dozen Gilt Breast Buttons

6

1 Silver Tea Spoon

1 6

a Parcel of Buttons Silk & Search Twist

5

1 frying Glass

1 6

a Parcel Old Books

5

Baileys Dictionary

5

3 Brass Cocks

2

a Parcel Old Silver Lace

4

4 Cutteys Teat

4

2 Small Trunks

8

1 Hand Scimitar

8

3 Gilt Rings

2

2 Looking Glasses

6

1 Card Table

10

1 Brown Oval Table

7 6

1 Square D[o]

5

1 Large Oval D[o]

6

1 Long Deal D[o]

12

1 Old D[o]

2 6

2 Forms

2 6

2 Armed Chairs

8

four Small old D[o]

4

1 Large Chest

1 10

1 Smaller D[o]

10

1 Old Box

1 6

£ 53 19 8[...]

The valuation of James Pritchard's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Carried on, £47 7s 5d

3 china teapots, £0 2s 6d

1 brown teapot, £0 2s 0d

1 coffee mill, £0 2s 6d

a parcel of old china, £0 2s 6d

3 cracked glass mugs, £0 0s 6d

a child's silver coral, £0 12s 0d

4 earthen jars, £0 1s 0d

2 tin mugs, £0 1s 3d

3 fowls, £0 4s 6d

1 old leather cap, £0 0s 6d

2 clothes brushes and 2 shoe brushes, £0 2s 0d

3 dozen gilt breast buttons, £0 0s 6d

1 silver teaspoon, £0 1s 6d

a parcel of buttons, tea broches and tweezers, £0 0s 5d

1 frying glass, £0 1s 6d

a parcel of old books, £0 5s 0d

Bailey's Dictionary, £0 5s 0d

3 brass cocks, £0 2s 0d

a parcel of old silver lace, £0 4s 0d

4 cutlasses, £0 4s 0d

2 small trunks, £0 8s 0d

1 hand scimitar, £0 5s 0d

3 gilt rings, £0 2s 0d

2 looking glasses, £0 6s 0d

1 card table, £0 10s 0d

1 brown oval table, £0 7s 6d

1 square table, £0 5s 0d

1 large oval table, £0 6s 0d

1 long deal table, £0 12s 0d

1 old deal table, £0 2s 6d

2 forms, £0 2s 6d

2 armed chairs, £0 8s 0d

4 small chairs, £0 4s 0d

1 large chest, £1 10s 0d

1 smaller chest, £0 10s 0d

1 old box, £0 1s 6d

£53 19s 8d

Interpretations

A child's silver coral was a teething toy of polished coral mounted in silver, often hung with bells, given to infants to rub against sore gums and worn as a charm against harm. Valued here at £0 12s 0d, higher than most single items on the page, it marks a costly nursery possession and the belief in coral's protective power.

A hand scimitar and four cutlasses among the household goods reflect the deceased's military or maritime calling, edged weapons kept for service or defence rather than display. Their number, with the swords listed earlier, shows a man well furnished with arms.

Bailey's Dictionary was Nathan Bailey's widely owned English dictionary, one of the most common reference books of the age, its separate listing marking it as a valued possession in a house holding few books. On a remote island such a volume was a link to learning and correct usage.

A coffee mill for grinding beans, set beside the china teapots and coffee ware, shows both coffee and tea taken in the household, the imported drinks and their equipment now settled features of island domestic life even in a modest estate.

102

94

Brought Over 53 19 8[...]

1 New Box

13

1 D[o]

9

1 D[o]

10

1 Old Beauroe

12

1 Small Case with Nine Bottles

12

1 Old D[o]

7

Half Gallon Pint half Pint and Quartern Pot

3

Pewter Sugar Cannester and Funnells

1 6

3 Old Boxes

2

1 Carboy and 5 Gallons Arrack

1 17 6

4 Iron Pots & 2 P[..] Pott Hooks

18

1 Large frying Pan

4

2 Pot hangers

1 6

1 P[..] Racks 1 Spit

5[...]

9 Washing Tubs 1 Piggen

1 4

2 Ten Gallon Casks 4 D[o]

12

1 Brine Tub

1 6

3 China Pictures

3

3 Old hogsheads

5

Childs Cradle & Chair

5

2 Clasp Bibles

5

2 Chamber Pots 1 Broke China 1 Pewter D[o]

1

6 China Pictures

6

1 Cloath Tray

1 6

2 Old Pails

1

The Lowermost House

50

The House by the Bridge

20

The House that was Tho[..] Mannings

15

Cash Lent to Adam Milbourn

7 10

Cash in the House

5 18 9

£ 162 8 11[...]

Total

The valuation of James Pritchard's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £53 19s 8d

1 new box, £0 13s 0d

1 new box, £0 9s 0d

1 new box, £0 10s 0d

1 old bureau, £0 12s 0d

1 small case with 9 bottles, £0 12s 0d

1 old case with 9 bottles, £0 7s 0d

half-gallon, pint, half-pint and quartern pots, £0 3s 0d

pewter sugars, canisters and funnels, £1 4s 6d

3 old boxes, £0 2s 0d

1 carboy and 5 gallons of arrack, £1 17s 6d

4 iron pots and 4 pot hooks, £0 18s 0d

1 large frying pan, £0 1s 0d

2 pot hangers, £0 1s 6d

1 pair of racks and 1 spit, £0 5s 0d

9 washing tubs and 1 piggin, £1 0s 0d

2 ten-gallon casks and 2 casks, £0 12s 0d

1 brine tub, £0 1s 6d

3 china pictures, £0 3s 0d

3 old hogsheads, £0 5s 0d

1 child's cradle and chair, £0 5s 0d

2 clasp bibles, £0 5s 0d

2 chamber pots, 1 broken, china, and 1 pewter, £0 1s 0d

6 china pictures, £0 6s 0d

1 kneading tray, £0 1s 6d

2 old pails, £0 1s 0d

The lowermost house, £50 0s 0d

The house by the bridge, £20 0s 0d

The house that was Thomas Manning's, £15 0s 0d

Cash lent to Adam Milbourn, £7 10s 0d

Cash in the house, £5 18s 9d

£162 8s 11d

Interpretations

A carboy was a large globular glass vessel protected in wickerwork or a wooden frame, used to ship and store liquids, here holding five gallons of arrack. Arrack was a strong spirit distilled in the East, commonly from palm sap, coconut or rice, and imported through the Company trade, forming the base of the punch drunk across the eastern settlements.

A quartern pot was a measure holding a quarter of a pint, and with the half-gallon, pint and half-pint pots it made up the graded pewter measures for drawing off drink, marking a household that dispensed liquor by fixed quantity. This range of measures suggests careful portioning, whether for the family or for sale.

A piggin was a small wooden pail with one stave left long as a handle, used for dipping and carrying liquids. Listed with the washing tubs and brine tub, it belonged to the dairy and household wet work of a self-provisioning establishment.

The three houses valued at the foot, the lowermost, one by the bridge and one formerly Manning's, show the deceased held several properties in the island's town settlement, together worth £85 against a house's usual single valuation. This concentration of dwellings points to a man of some property who let or held houses beyond his own residence, a small landlord within the port community.

103

95

Inventory of the Estate of M[..] Mary [Aslabe] Deceased £ s d £ s d

taken and Appraised by Mess[..] James Greentree and John

Alexander this 29 Day of June 1754

Land Viz[..]

25 Acres Free Land at 10 [P] Acre

250

26 D[o] Lease D[o] at 5/2[..] [P] Acre

67 12

317 12

Blacks Viz[..]

1 Man Old

5

1 Boy

13

1 D[o]

10

1 D[o]

8

1 D[o]

5

1 Woman and Child

13

1 Girl

12

1 D[o]

10

1 D[o]

5

88

Cattle Viz[..]

1 Bullock

7

1 Heifer

4 10

1 D[o]

3 10

1 Cow

6 10

1 Cow & Calf

7

1 D[o] & D[o]

7

1 D[o] & D[o]

7 10

45

Household Goods Viz[..]

1 Bureau

1 10

1 Chest

10

1 Sallampore

1

3 1[...]

Old Selves

1 6

7 6

Debts Due to Estate

39 19

39 19

Total £ 493 19 6

Debts owing from the Estate

To John Inglis Surgeon

£ 3 17 6

To Richard Bagley

181 8 8

To Samuel Falconer

10

£ 195 4 2

An inventory of the estate of Mary Pritchard, deceased, was taken and appraised by James Greentree and John Alexander on 29 June 1754.

Land, viz:

25 acres of freehold land at 10s per acre, £250 0s 0d

26 acres of leasehold land at 2s 6d per acre, £67 12s 0d

£317 12s 0d

Blacks, viz:

1 man, £5 0s 0d

1 boy, £15 0s 0d

1 boy, £10 0s 0d

1 boy, £8 0s 0d

1 boy, £5 0s 0d

1 woman and child, £13 0s 0d

1 girl, £12 0s 0d

1 girl, £10 0s 0d

1 girl, £5 0s 0d

£88 0s 0d

Cattle, viz:

1 bullock, £7 0s 0d

1 heifer, £4 10s 0d

1 heifer, £3 10s 0d

1 cow, £6 10s 0d

1 cow and calf, £7 0s 0d

1 cow and calf, £7 0s 0d

1 cow and calf, £9 10s 0d

£45 0s 0d

Household goods, viz:

1 bureau, £1 10s 0d

1 chest, £0 10s 0d

1 palampore, £0 12s 0d

old silver, £1 6s 0d

£3 7s 6d

Debts due to estate, £39 19s 0d

Total, £493 19s 6d

Debts owing from the estate:

To John Inglis, surgeon, £3 17s 6d

To Richard Bagley, £181 8s 8d

To Samuel Falconer, £10 0s 0d

£195 4s 2d

Interpretations

The land dominated the estate at £317 12s 0d, freehold ground valued at 10s the acre against 2s 6d for leasehold, the freehold worth four times the leased land by the acre. This gap between owned and rented ground shows how secure title carried the greater value, the leasehold being a lesser interest held on the Company's terms.

The single largest liability was £181 8s 8d owed to Richard Bagley, a sum so far beyond the estate's cash and movables that it must have rested against the land itself. This points to a mortgage or standing account secured on the property, the kind of large private debt that tied a landholder to a wealthier neighbour and could force the sale of ground to clear it.

The man was valued at only £5, far below every boy in the list and the same as the youngest girl, marking him as elderly or infirm and past his working strength. Age stripped a slave's worth as surely as it built it, an old man fetching less than a child who had years of labour ahead.

The estate showed solvent on its face, £493 19s 6d in assets against £195 4s 2d in debts, but the whole surplus lay locked in land rather than in cash or goods. With movables of a few pounds and the great Bagley debt outstanding, the heirs held wealth they could realise only by selling or mortgaging the ground itself.

104

96

Inventory of the Estate of the late Richard Gurling Deceased appraised

by Mess[..] Francis Wrangham Sen[..] & Richard Beale Sen[..] the 26 Day of

August 1754 Viz[..]

House & Land Viz[..]

The House at

£ 70

16 Acres Free Land at Francis's at 11 [P] Acre

176

12 D[o] Lease 5/[..] [P] D[o]

63

10 D[o] Free at Vaughans £ 9 10 [P] D[o]

95

9 D[o] Lease £ 3 [P] D[o]

27

3 D[o] D[o] £ 1 [P] D[o]

3

House & Land Amounting to £ 434

Slaves Viz[..]

1 Man named Civil

£ 25

1 D[o] D[o] Harry

23

1 D[o] D[o] Woodford

26

1 Woman D[o] Sarah

21

1 Boy D[o] Ben

12

1 Girl D[o] Pegg

10

1 D[o] D[o] Patt

7

1 D[o] D[o] Betty

7

Slaves Amounting to £ 130

Cattle Viz[..]

7 Cows & Calves

£ 55 10

3 Heifers

18 10

2 Bulls

11 10

Cattle Amounting to £ 85 10

Yams 167,500 Amounting to

9 9 6

Goats Viz[..]

50 Goats at 6/ each

15

26 D[o] 5/ D[o]

6 10

Goats Amounting to 21 10

Sheep Viz[..]

6 Grown at 14/ each

£ 4 4

2 Half Grown 7/[..] [...]

14

7 Lambs 4/ [...] d[o] Sheep Amounting to

29 7 7[...]

Carried Over £ [...] 6 6

An inventory of the estate of Richard Gurling, deceased, was taken and appraised by Francis Wrangham senior and Richard Beale senior on 28 August 1754.

House and land, viz:

The house at, £70 0s 0d

16 acres of freehold land at Francis's at 11s per acre, £176 0s 0d

42 acres leasehold at 30s per acre, £63 0s 0d

10 acres freehold at Vaughan's at £9 10s per acre, £95 0s 0d

9 acres leasehold at £3 per acre, £27 0s 0d

3 acres leasehold at £1 per acre, £3 0s 0d

House and land amounting to, £434 0s 0d

Slaves, viz:

1 man named Cyril, £25 0s 0d

1 man named Harry, £23 0s 0d

1 man named Woodford, £26 0s 0d

1 woman named Sarah, £21 0s 0d

1 boy named Ben, £12 0s 0d

1 girl named Peg, £10 0s 0d

1 girl named Patt, £7 0s 0d

1 girl named Betty, £7 0s 0d

Slaves amounting to, £130 0s 0d

Cattle, viz:

7 cows and calves, £55 10s 0d

3 heifers, £18 10s 0d

2 bulls, £11 10s 0d

Cattle amounting to, £85 10s 0d

Yams, 167,500, amounting to, £92 9s 6d

Goats, viz:

50 goats at 6s each, £15 0s 0d

26 goats at 5s each, £6 10s 0d

Goats amounting to, £21 10s 0d

Sheep, viz:

6 grown at 14s each, £4 4s 0d

2 half-grown at 7s each, £0 14s 0d

7 lambs at 4s each, £29 7s [...]

Sheep amounting to, £29 7s [...]

Carried over, £790 6s 6d

Interpretations

The land was priced by named locality and grade, freehold at Vaughan's reaching £9 10s the acre against 11s at Francis's, an enormous spread that shows how sharply the appraisers valued particular ground. Such differences turned on soil, water and what each plot could grow, the highest-priced land probably being planted yam ground of proven yield rather than rough pasture.

The yam crop of 167,500 tubers, valued at £92 9s 6d, exceeded every class of livestock and stood second only to the land, confirming the crop as the estate's great cash asset in provisioning Company ships. A holding of this size marks a substantial planter geared to the island's export trade in provisions.

Two of the leasehold rates ran far above the freehold at Francis's, 30s the acre for leased ground against 11s for owned, an inversion that can only reflect the quality of the particular leased plots rather than the nature of the tenure. This shows that on St Helena the worth of land followed its productive capacity more than the security of its title.

All eight slaves were named and separately valued, the men Cyril, Harry and Woodford each above £20 and the youngest girls at £7, the appraisers weighing each person's working strength by age and sex. This individual listing, common in these island estates, treated the enslaved as distinct assets while reducing each to a price set against their capacity for labour.

105

97

Brought Over £ 769 16 6

Poultry Amounting to

2 12

Horses Viz[..]

1 Old mare

£ 3

1 Young D[o]

10

1 filly

5

Horses Amounting to £ 18

Hogs Viz[..]

7 Sows 1/ each

1

5 D[o] Shoats 15/ D[o]

3 16

6 Boar D[o] 13/ D[o]

3 18

30 Pigs 2/6 D[o]

3 15

Hogs Amounting to 18 8

House Furniture &ca Viz[..]

1 Feather Bed 2 Pillows 1 Under Bed 1 Quilt 1 Boulster

Curtains Vail & Bedstead

5 10

1 D[o]

5 10

1 D[o]

5 10

1 Feather Bed Quilt 2 Pillows old

3 5

1 Mattrass Quilt & 2 D[o] D[o]

1

3 Blankets

15

1 old Beaureau

1 5

3 Pewter Chamber Potts

6

5 D[o] Sheets 6/ [P] Pair

1 10

1 Beaureau

1 15

1 Hand Escretore

15

1 Middling Trunk

15

1 Fir Chest with a Lock

15

1 D[o] D[o]

17

1 old small Box

5

1 Fir Chest without a Lock

12

6 P[..] Pillow Cases 1/6 each

9

1 old Damask Table Cloth

5

5 D[o] Callico D[o] 1/ each

5

12 Napkins 1/3 each

15

House Furniture Carried Over £ 32

Carried Over £ 808 16 6

The valuation of Richard Gurling's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £790 6s 6d

Poultry amounting to, £2 12s 0d

Horses, viz:

1 old mare, £3 0s 0d

1 young mare, £10 0s 0d

1 filly, £5 0s 0d

Horses amounting to, £18 0s 0d

Hogs, viz:

7 sows at £1 each, £7 0s 0d

5 shoats at 15s each, £3 15s 0d

6 boars at 13s each, £3 18s 0d

30 pigs at 2s 6d each, £3 15s 0d

Hogs amounting to, £18 8s 0d

House furniture, etc, viz:

1 feather bed, 2 pillows, 1 underbed, 1 quilt, 1 bolster, curtains, rail and bedstead, £5 10s 0d

1 feather bed, 2 pillows, underbed, quilt, bolster, curtains, rail and bedstead, £5 10s 0d

1 feather bed, 2 pillows, underbed, quilt, bolster, curtains, rail and bedstead, £5 10s 0d

1 feather bed, quilt and 2 pillows, old, £3 5s 0d

1 mattress, quilt and 2 pillows, old, £1 0s 0d

3 blankets, £0 15s 0d

1 old bureau, £1 5s 0d

3 pewter chamber pots, £0 6s 0d

5 pairs of sheets at 6s per pair, £1 10s 0d

1 bureau, £1 13s 0d

1 hand escritoire, £0 15s 0d

1 middling trunk, £0 15s 0d

1 fir chest with a lock, £0 15s 0d

1 fir chest with a lock, £0 17s 0d

10 small boxes, £0 5s 0d

1 fir chest without a lock, £0 12s 0d

6 pairs of pillowcases at 1s 6d each, £0 9s 0d

1 old damask tablecloth, £0 5s 0d

5 calico tablecloths at 1s each, £0 5s 0d

12 napkins at 1s 3d each, £0 15s 0d

House furniture carried over, £32 0s 0d

Carried over, £808 0s 0d

Interpretations

An escritoire was a portable writing desk or cabinet fitted with drawers and a fall-front for papers, the hand version small enough to carry. Its presence marks a household keeping written accounts and correspondence, fitting a substantial planter who dealt in credit and produce.

The three principal feather beds were each valued at £5 10s 0d complete with underbed, curtains, rail and bedstead, the fullest sleeping furniture in the estate. An underbed was the lower mattress laid beneath the feather bed, and the rail and curtains enclosed the bed against draught, marking three well-appointed chambers in a house of some comfort.

The hog account shows an active breeding operation, seven sows, six boars and thirty pigs together, the young stock counted at 2s 6d the head against a grown boar at 13s. This scale of pig-keeping, well beyond a household's own need, points to breeding meat for sale into the island's provisioning market.

106

98

Brought Over £ 808 16 6

House Furniture Brought Over £ 32

Curtains for 2 Windows

8

D[o] D[o] Old

2

1 Small round Table

15

9 Cane Chairs @ 5/ each

2 5

1 D[o] Elbow

10

1 D[o] Couch

15

1 Long Tea Table

8

6 Pewter Dishes @ 3/ each

18

16 D[o] Plates @ 1/6 D[o]

8

2 D[o] Basons 1/3 D[o]

2 6

1 D[o] 2 Quart Pot

2 6

1 Sett of Cruets & Stand

6

1 P[..] China Mettle Candlestick & Snuffers

15

3 Brass Candlesticks

1 6

12 Wine Glasses

6

6 China Dishes

12

36 D[o] Plates @ 1/6 each

8

2 D[o] Jars

15

5 D[o] D[o] small 2/ each

1

2 Carboys

10

2 Earthen Jars

3

1 Jugg

1 6

6 Cups & Saucers & a Tea Pot

4 6

3 Muggs

4

3 Bowls

6

2 Sea Bowls

6 6

2 D[o] smaller

6

2 Bottle Stands

2 6

1 Small Tea Table

7 6

1 Table Stand

5

1 Warming Pan

6

1 Gun

10

1 Old Iron

6

House Furniture Carried Over £ 46 16 6

Carried Over £ 808 16 6

The valuation of Richard Gurling's estate continued from the sums already carried over.

Brought over, £808 16s 6d

House furniture brought over, £32 0s 0d

curtains for 2 windows, £0 8s 0d

curtains for 2 windows, old, £0 2s 0d

1 small round table, £0 15s 0d

9 cane chairs at 5s each, £2 5s 0d

1 elbow chair, £0 10s 0d

1 couch, £0 15s 0d

1 long tea table, £0 8s 0d

6 pewter dishes at 3s each, £0 18s 0d

16 pewter plates at 6d each, £0 8s 0d

2 pewter basins at 1s 3d each, £0 2s 6d

1 pewter 2-quart pot, £0 2s 6d

1 set of cruets and stand, £0 6s 0d

1 pair of china metal candlesticks and snuffers, £0 15s 0d

3 brass candlesticks, £0 1s 6d

12 wine glasses, £0 6s 0d

6 china dishes, £0 12s 0d

36 china plates at 6d each, £0 8s 0d

2 china jars, £0 15s 0d

6 china jars, small, at 4d each, £1 0s 0d

2 carboys, £0 10s 0d

2 earthen jars, £0 3s 0d

1 jug, £0 1s 6d

6 cups and saucers and a teapot, £0 4s 6d

3 mugs, £0 4s 0d

3 bowls, £0 6s 0d

2 tea boards, £0 6s 6d

2 tea boards, smaller, £0 6s 0d

2 bottle stands, £0 2s 6d

1 small tea table, £0 7s 6d

1 table stand, £0 5s 0d

1 warming pan, £0 6s 0d

1 gun, £0 10s 0d

1 old iron, £0 6s 0d

House furniture carried over, £46 16s 6d

Carried over, £808 16s 6d

Interpretations

A warming pan was a covered brass or copper vessel on a long handle, filled with hot coals and passed between the sheets to take the chill off a bed before sleep. Its appearance suits the island's cool nights, where such comfort was worth the trouble even in a mild climate.

The abundance of china, thirty-six plates, six dishes, cups, saucers, jars and bowls, marks a household far better furnished with tableware than the modest estates elsewhere on these leaves. This quantity of imported ceramic, reaching a planter's house through Company trade, shows both his wealth and the settled place of formal dining and tea service in island gentry life.

A set of cruets and stand held the small glass bottles for oil, vinegar and condiments brought to table, a refinement of dining absent from poorer inventories. With the wine glasses and tea equipage, it marks a table laid with some ceremony.

Two carboys among the household goods, the large wicker-cased glass vessels for storing liquids in bulk, point again to the keeping of spirits or other liquids in quantity, consistent with the arrack and cased bottles found in other substantial island estates.

107

99

Brought over £ 808 16 6

House Furniture Brought over £ 46 16 6

1 Chaffing Dish

3

1 Cradle

8

4 Silver small Table Spoons

2 10

2 D[o] Salt Sellers

12

1 D[o] Pepper Box

5

1 Baskett

2 6

4 Silver Tea Spoons & Strainer

12 6

1 Small Chamber Looking Glass

6

1 Old Funnell

6

1 D[o] Box Iron & Heaters

4

11 Knives & Forks

11

3 Old Tea Kettles

18

1 Yam D[o] Pott

1

1 Meat D[o]

10

1 Small D[o]

3

1 Spitt

1 6

1 Old Frying Pan

9

4 Pott Hangers

6

1 P[..] Hand Irons

2 6

1 Form

7 6

1 Case Razors & Hone

6

2 P[..] Pott Hooks

10 Gold Rings

5

Plantation Tools

12

3 D[o] Saddles

1 10

1 Tea Chest

10

1 Cloth Brush

6

1 Black Coat 1 P[..] Britches & 2 Waistcoat

1 5

1 Coat with Metal Buttons & Breeches

1

1 D[o] D[o] older

5

1 old Scarlet Waistcoat & Breeches

5

1 Blew Riding Coat

8

House Furniture Carried Over £ 67 3 3

Carried Over £ 808 16 6

The valuation of Richard Gurling's estate continued from the sums already carried over.

Brought over, £808 16s 6d

House furniture brought over, £46 16s 6d

1 chafing dish, £0 3s 0d

1 cradle, £0 8s 0d

4 small silver tablespoons, £2 10s 0d

2 silver salt cellars, £0 12s 0d

1 silver pepper box, £0 5s 0d

1 basket, £0 2s 6d

4 silver teaspoons and strainer, £0 12s 6d

1 small chamber looking glass, £0 6s 0d

1 old funnel, £0 0s 6d

1 box iron and heaters, £0 8s 0d

11 knives and forks, £0 11s 0d

3 old teakettles, £0 1s 8d

1 yam pot, £0 1s 0d

1 meat pot, £0 10s 0d

1 small meat pot, £0 3s 0d

1 spit, £0 1s 6d

1 old frying pan, £0 0s 9d

4 pot hangers, £0 0s 6d

1 pair of hand irons, £0 2s 6d

1 form, £0 7s 6d

1 case, harrows and hoe, £0 0s 6d

2 pairs of pot hooks, £0 0s 6d

10 gold rings, £0 12s 0d

plantation tools, £1 10s 0d

3 old saddles, £0 10s 0d

1 fir chest, £0 0s 6d

1 clothes brush, £0 1s 5d

1 black coat, 1 pair of breeches and 1 waistcoat, £1 0s 0d

1 coat with metal buttons and breeches, £0 5s 0d

1 coat with metal buttons and breeches, older, £0 3s 0d

1 old scarlet waistcoat and breeches, £0 8s 0d

1 blue riding coat, £0 [...]

House furniture carried over, £67 0s 3d

Carried over, £808 16s 6d

Interpretations

A chafing dish was a metal vessel holding hot coals or a flame to keep food warm or cook it gently at table, a refinement of dining that matched the plentiful silver and china of this well-appointed estate. Its presence marks a household able to serve food kept hot before the diners.

The silver plate here, tablespoons, teaspoons, salt cellars and a pepper box, was the estate's store of precious metal in usable form, silver serving both as tableware and as a portable reserve of wealth. On a remote island short of coin, worked silver held value that could be weighed and sold if need arose.

The scarlet waistcoat and breeches point again to a military or official connection, scarlet being the colour of army and garrison dress, worn by a man who held some rank or office on the island. With the several coats and the gun, it marks a wardrobe of both plain and formal wear.

The plantation tools and old saddles listed with the harrows and hoe were the working gear of a substantial farm, the implements of tilling the yam grounds and freehold acres that made up the bulk of the estate's value. Their modest valuation belies their importance to the crop that was the estate's chief cash asset.

108

100

Brought Over £ 808 16 6

House Furniture Brought Over £ 67 5 3

2 P[..] Black Worsted Stockings

2

6 White Shirts

18

8 Neck Cloths

11

1 new Hatt

15

1 old D[o]

1

1 P[..] new Chanuel Pumps

8

2 Old Wigs

9

1 P[..] Silver Shoe Buckles

10

1 D[o] Steel Knee D[o]

9

4 P[..] Gold Sleeve Buttons

5

4 P[..] Steel Spurs cased with silver

6

11 Old Pictures with Frames

10

5 D[o] D[o] China

2 6

A Parcel of Old Books

1

3 Lead Candle Moulds

3

The valuation of Richard Gurling's estate continued from the sums already carried over.

Brought over, £808 16s 6d

House furniture brought over, £67 5s 3d

2 pairs of black worsted stockings, £0 2s 0d

6 white shirts, £0 18s 0d

8 neckcloths, £0 11s 0d

1 new hat, £0 15s 0d

1 old hat, £0 1s 0d

1 pair of new channel pumps, £0 8s 0d

2 old wigs, £0 9s 0d

1 pair of silver shoe buckles, £0 10s 0d

1 pair of steel knee buckles, £0 0s 9d

6 pairs of gold sleeve buttons, £0 5s 0d

4 pairs of steel spurs cased with silver, £0 6s 0d

11 old pictures with frames, £0 10s 0d

5 china pictures, £0 2s 6d

a parcel of old books, £0 1s 0d

3 lead candle moulds, £0 3s 0d

Interpretations

Channel pumps were light low-cut shoes, the pump being a thin-soled slipper for indoor or dress wear, the channel probably marking a style or make of the sole. Their listing among the better clothing marks them as dress footwear rather than working shoes.

Lead candle moulds were the forms in which tallow or wax was cast into candles, letting the household make its own light from the rendered fat kept in store, as with the tallow found in earlier estates. On an island where such stores were laid in rather than bought, home candle-making was a practical economy.

The silver and gold dress fittings, shoe buckles, knee buckles, sleeve buttons and silver-cased spurs, mark a man who dressed with some display, precious metal worn as personal ornament on shoes, cuffs and riding boots. This finery, with the scarlet and metal-buttoned coats, confirms a planter of standing conscious of appearance.

The steel spurs cased with silver point to a horseman of rank, spurs being both practical riding gear and a mark of gentility, their silver casing lifting them above plain iron. With the three horses and several saddles in the estate, they show riding as a settled part of the deceased's life.

109

101

Inventory of the Effects belonging to Augustine Balls Deceased appraised

by Solomon Jacobs and Nathan Sample Viz[..]

Cash

£ 124

6 oz Burnt Silver @ 4/6

£ 1 7

20 oz Broken D[o] @ [...]

4 10

Some D[o] Gold

5

100 oz Old Silver Lace @ 2/3

11 5

Some old Silver Buckles

4 18 6

4 Old Silver Tea Spoons

36

3 [Vny] old Iron Potts

5

2 D[o] Sauce Pans

7 6

3 Frying Pans

4 6

1 Tea Kettle

5

1 Pewter Dish

1 6

6 D[o] Plates

4 6

1 D[o] Funnel

1

2 D[o] Basons very old

1 6

1/2 Gallon Pott

2 6

1 Quart D[o]

1 6

1 Brine Tubb

2 6

1 Washing D[o]

1 6

1 Water Keg w[..] a Brass Cock Broken

2 6

3 very old Tables

8

3 D[o] Chests Large

1 4

4 D[o] D[o] Small

10

3 Doz Glass Tumblers

15

1 Small Jar with Tamarind

1

2 P[..] Madagascar Grass

5

1 [P..] Blue Strip'd Ticken

15

1 Case w[..] 15 1/2 [...] Gallon Bottles full of Genn

2 10

1 House

23

a Black Boy named Tony

10

2 old Blue Coats

16

Carried Over £ 68 1

Carried Over £ 124

An inventory of the estate of Augustine Ball, deceased, was taken and appraised by Solomon Jacobs and Nathan Sample.

Cash, £124 0s 0d

6 oz burnt silver at 4s 6d per oz, £1 7s 0d

20 oz broken silver at [...], £4 10s 0d

some old gold, £3 0s 0d

100 oz old silver lace at 2s 3d per oz, £11 5s 0d

some old silver buckles, £4 18s 6d

4 old silver teaspoons, £0 3s 6d

3 or 4 old iron pots, £0 5s 0d

2 saucepans, £0 7s 6d

3 frying pans, £0 4s 6d

1 teakettle, £0 4s 6d

1 pewter dish, £0 1s 6d

6 pewter plates, £0 4s 6d

1 funnel, £0 1s 0d

2 basins, very old, £0 1s 6d

1 half-gallon pot, £0 2s 6d

1 basin pot, £0 1s 6d

1 brine tub, £0 2s 6d

1 washing tub, £0 1s 6d

1 water keg with a brass cock, broken, £0 2s 6d

3 very old tables, £0 8s 0d

3 chests, large, £1 4s 0d

4 chests, small, £0 10s 0d

3 dozen glass tumblers, £0 15s 0d

1 small jar with tamarinds, £0 1s 0d

2 pairs of Madagascar grass, £0 3s 0d

1 piece of blue striped ticking, £0 13s 0d

1 case with 15 two-quart gallon bottles full of gin, £2 10s 0d

1 house, £23 0s 0d

a black boy named Tony, £10 0s 0d

2 old blue coats, £0 16s 0d

Carried over, £68 1s 0d

Carried over, £124 0s 0d

Interpretations

Tamarind was the sour brown pulp of an Indian and African tree pod, used to flavour food and drink and valued as a preventive against scurvy on long voyages. Its keeping in a jar shows the household holding an imported foodstuff prized both for cooking and for health at sea.

Madagascar grass was probably a woven grass matting or plaited grasswork brought from Madagascar, a common source of such goods traded to the island through passing ships. The material served for floor mats or containers in a household making use of imported plant products.

The large holding of silver, burnt, broken, in lace and buckles, valued together by the ounce, marks the deceased as a dealer or accumulator of the metal rather than a mere householder using plate at table. Burnt silver was metal recovered by melting, and old silver lace was the braid unpicked from worn coats for its metal, suggesting a man who bought scrap silver by weight for its bullion value.

The case of fifteen bottles of gin, valued at £2 10s 0d, was among the more valuable single items and shows spirits held in quantity on the island. Gin shipped in from Europe reached the settlement as a trade good, kept here in bulk whether for the household or for sale.

110

102

Brought Over the Totals £ 192 1

3 Cracked China Bowls

2 6

1 Twenty Gallon Cask w[..] a Brass Cock

5

40 Packs of French Cards

6 8

1 Old Tin Sugua Box

1

1 Close Stool Chair & 2 Pewter Pans

12

1 Carboy of French Brandy

1 10

40 D[o] Coulloured Thread

1 5

11 whited Brown D[o]

36

6 oz of Ounce D[o]

6

4 oz China Silk

6

14 Papers of Nables

5

Some Tape

6

2 D[o] Silk Garters

6

1600 Pinns

2

8 Bottles Wine very Bad

6

11 Tobacco D[o]

36

2 Small Stone Bottles

6

1 China Snieff Box

2 6

1 D[o] Looking Glass

1

1 Old Sword

2

1 Plain Hatt

7 6

2 Reg[..] D[o]

2 6

5 Very Coarse Neckcloths

2 3

1 P[..] Striped Gingham

6

1 Old Tarstain Frock

4

6 D[o] Red Coats

1

4 D[o] D[o] Waistcoats

3

1 D[o] Pea Jackett

2 6

14 P[..] Checkd Drawers

1 1

1 P[..] Gingham Trowsers

1 3

2 D[o] Waistcoats

5

1 Nankeen D[o]

3

1 White D[o]

3

6 Small Hones

3

Carried Over £ 202 3 2

The valuation of Augustine Ball's estate continued from the total already carried over.

Brought over, the total, £192 1s 0d

3 cracked china bowls, £0 2s 6d

1 twenty-gallon cask with a brass cock, £0 5s 0d

40 packs of French cards, £0 6s 8d

1 old tin sugar box, £0 1s 0d

1 close-stool chair and 2 pewter pans, £0 12s 0d

1 carboy of French brandy, £1 10s 0d

40 pounds of multicoloured thread, £1 5s 0d

11 pounds of white and brown thread, £0 3s 6d

6 oz of ounce thread, £0 0s 6d

4 oz of china silk, £0 0s 6d

14 papers of needles, £0 5s 0d

some soap, £0 0s 6d

2 pounds of silk garters, £0 0s 6d

1,600 pins, £0 2s 0d

8 bottles of wine, very bad, £0 0s 6d

11 bottles of tobacco, £0 3s 6d

2 small stone bottles, £0 0s 6d

1 china snuffbox, £0 2s 6d

1 china looking glass, £0 1s 0d

1 old sideboard, £0 2s 0d

1 plain hat, £0 7s 6d

2 round hats, £0 2s 6d

5 very coarse neckcloths, £0 2s 3d

1 pair of striped gingham, £0 0s 6d

1 old fountain frock, £0 4s 0d

6 red coats, £1 0s 0d

4 waistcoats, £0 3s 0d

1 pea jacket, £0 2s 6d

14 pairs of check drawers, £1 1s 0d

1 pair of gingham trousers, £0 1s 3d

2 waistcoats, £0 5s 0d

1 nankeen waistcoat, £0 3s 0d

1 white waistcoat, £0 3s 0d

6 small hones, £0 3s 0d

Carried over, £202 3s 2d

Interpretations

The large stock of trade textiles, forty pounds of coloured thread, china silk, papers of needles, sixteen hundred pins and silk garters, marks the deceased as a trader in haberdashery rather than a mere householder. These small goods of sewing and dress were shipped in and held for sale, the kind of stock a shopkeeper kept to supply the settlement.

The forty packs of French playing cards, held in such number, were plainly trade stock rather than personal use, cards being a common import sold on across the settlements. Their listing beside the thread and needles confirms the estate as a merchant's holding of saleable goods.

A close-stool chair was a commode, a seat enclosing a chamber pot for use indoors, the pewter pans beneath it the removable receptacles. A common piece of domestic furniture answering the want of indoor sanitation.

A fountain frock was probably a maritime or working coat of a particular cut, and a pea jacket a short heavy woollen coat worn by seamen against cold and wet. With the red coats and check drawers held in quantity, these point again to trade stock of seamen's and working clothing rather than a single man's wardrobe.

111

103

Brought Over £ 202 3 2

3 Basons

2

16 P[..] very old Hose

16

7 P[..] new D[o]

17 6

2 old white Shirts

2 16

3 P[..] Sheets

18

3 P[..] Old Shoes

8

16 Old Handkerchiefs

16

3 P[..] Garters

6

20 old Stocks

5

Some Pewter Buttons

6

1 P[..] Brass Candlesticks

5

1 Old Flatt D[o]

1 3

1 P[..] Spectacles

3

21 China Sneezans

7

1 Old Hanger

1 6

3 old Gravesend Beds

6

3 D[o] Pillows

2 6

2 P[..] old Scales w[..] some weights

2 6

1 P[..] D[o] Stimentows

6

3 old Cloath Brushes

1 6

1 Pewter Chamber Pott

2

1 Case w[..] 4 Brass Tea Spoons

1

2 old Tobacco Boxes & 6 Knives

2 6

a Parcel of old Books

5 6

1 Old Silver Watch

2

1 D[o] very Bad

1

Sundry Debts in thefe verisem [...]c[..] many very Bad

110 14 6[...]

£ 324 16 8[...]

St Helena

12 Aug[..] 1754

Signed

Solo[..] Jacobs

Nathan Sample Appraisers

The valuation of Augustine Ball's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £202 3s 2d

3 basins, £0 2s 0d

16 pairs of very old hose, £0 16s 0d

7 pairs of new hose, £0 17s 6d

28 old white shirts, £2 16s 0d

3 pairs of sheets, £0 18s 0d

3 pairs of old shoes, £0 8s 0d

16 old handkerchiefs, £0 16s 0d

3 pairs of garters, £0 0s 6d

20 old stocks, £0 0s 5d

some pewter buttons, £0 0s 6d

1 pair of brass candlesticks, £0 5s 0d

1 old flat iron, £0 1s 3d

1 pair of spectacles, £0 0s 3d

21 china sneakers, £0 7s 0d

1 old hanger, £0 1s 6d

3 old gravesend beds, £0 6s 0d

3 pillows, £0 2s 6d

2 pairs of old scales with some weights, £0 2s 6d

1 pair of steelyards, £0 0s 6d

3 old clothes brushes, £0 1s 6d

1 pewter chamber pot, £0 0s 2d

1 case with 4 brass teaspoons, £0 1s 0d

2 old tobacco boxes and 6 knives, £0 2s 6d

a parcel of old books, £0 5s 6d

1 old silver watch, £0 2s 0d

1 silver watch, very bad, £0 1s 0d

sundry debts, in themselves worth so many, very bad, £110 14s 6d

£324 16s 8d

St Helena, 12 August 1754

Signed Solomon Jacobs

Nathan Sample

appraisers

Interpretations

The great weight of small clothing and haberdashery, sixteen pairs of hose, twenty-eight shirts, twenty stocks, garters, handkerchiefs and pewter buttons, confirms the reading of the whole estate as a trader's stock rather than one man's possessions. No single householder wore such quantities, and the goods were plainly held for sale to the settlement and passing ships.

The sundry debts of £110 14s 6d, marked by the appraisers as very bad, formed a third of the whole estate yet stood little chance of recovery. This large body of doubtful credit points to a trader who sold on account to many customers, much of it owed by people unable or unlikely to pay, so that the paper value of the estate far exceeded what the heirs could hope to collect.

A hanger was a short curved sword worn at the side, both weapon and item of dress, of the kind carried by seamen and traders. Its single old example, valued low, marks the ordinary side-arm of a working man rather than a gentleman's blade.

The twenty-one china sneakers, the small drinking cups met in earlier estates, held here in such number were trade stock rather than table ware, imported ceramic drinking vessels kept for sale like the cards, thread and clothing that made up the bulk of this merchant's goods.

112

104

Inventory of the Estate of M[..] Rich[..] Mason Deceased

taken & appraised by Mess[..] Rich[..] Bagley & James Greentree 23

April 1755

£ s d £ s d

Houses & Land Viz[..]

1 House in James Valley

170

1 D[o] D[o]

20

1 D[o] in the Country

40

31 3/4 Lease hold Land

41 5

13 3/4 D[o]

13

1 D[o]

1

285 5

Blacks Viz[..]

1 Man August

26

1 D[o] George

24

1 D[o] Sam

20

1 D[o] Kingson

10

1 Boy Dick

15

1 D[o] Will

8

1 Woman Patt

18

1 D[o] Christian

8

1 Girl Nanny

5

134

Cattle Viz[..]

1 Cow & Calf

1 10

1 D[o] & D[o]

4

1 D[o] & D[o]

6

1 D[o] & D[o]

6 5

1 D[o] & D[o]

6 5

1 D[o] & D[o]

6

1 D[o]

4

1 D[o]

7 6

1 Bull

6

2 Heifers

4

1 D[o]

1 10

1 Stear

4

34 15

Carried over £ 454

An inventory of the estate of Richard Mason, deceased, was taken and appraised by Richard Bagley and James Greentree on 23 April 1755.

Houses and land, viz:

1 house in James Valley, £170 0s 0d

1 house in James Valley, £20 0s 0d

1 house in the country, £40 0s 0d

31¾ acres of leasehold land, £41 5s 0d

15¾ acres of leasehold land, £13 0s 0d

1 acre of leasehold land, £1 0s 0d

£285 5s 0d

Blacks, viz:

1 man, August, £26 0s 0d

1 man, George, £24 0s 0d

1 man, Sam, £20 0s 0d

1 man, Kingston, £10 0s 0d

1 boy, Dick, £15 0s 0d

1 boy, Will, £8 0s 0d

1 woman, Patt, £18 0s 0d

1 woman, Christian, £8 0s 0d

1 girl, Nanny, £5 0s 0d

£134 0s 0d

Cattle, viz:

1 cow and calf, £7 10s 0d

1 cow and calf, £7 0s 0d

1 cow and calf, £6 5s 0d

1 cow and calf, £6 5s 0d

1 cow and calf, £6 5s 0d

1 cow and calf, £6 0s 0d

1 cow, £6 0s 0d

1 cow, £7 0s 0d

1 bull, £7 0s 0d

2 heifers, £4 0s 0d

1 heifer, £1 10s 0d

1 steer, £4 0s 0d

£84 15s 0d

Carried over, £634 0s 0d

Interpretations

The estate held three houses, two in James Valley and one in the country, the first valued at £170 far above the rest. James Valley was the settlement around the fort and harbour that formed the island's town, later Jamestown, so a house there stood at the commercial heart of the colony and commanded the highest price. Holding several dwellings marks the deceased as a man of property who let or used houses beyond his own residence.

The nine slaves were each named and separately valued, the men August, George and Sam above £20 and the girl Nanny at £5, the appraisers pricing each by working strength. The man Kingston at £10, low for an adult male, was probably ageing or infirm, since age cut a slave's value as plainly as youth and vigour raised it.

The leasehold land was priced by parcel, the largest tract of nearly thirty-two acres at close to 26s the acre against much less for the smaller plots, the differences reflecting the quality and use of each piece. That all the recorded land was leasehold, held on the Company's terms, marks an estate whose ground was rented rather than owned outright despite its town houses.

113

105

Brought over £ 454

Hogs Viz[..]

2 Sows & 8 Piggs

£ 3 10

1 D[o] & 3 D[o]

1 12

2 D[o]

1 10

11 Shoats

4 12

10 Barrows

10 15

21 19

Sheep Viz[..]

12 Grown Sheep @ 15/ [...]

9

5 half D[o] D[o] @ 10/ D[o]

2 10

3 Lambs @ 8/ D[o]

1 4

12 14

Yams Viz[..]

48.500 @ 18/ [P] Thousand

43 13

38.500 @ 15/ [P] D[o]

28 17 6

4.000 @ 13/ [P] D[o]

2 12

23.500 @ 10/ [P] D[o]

11 15

21.500 @ 8/ [P] D[o]

8 12

4.000 @ 7/ [P] D[o]

1 8

10.800 @ 6/ [P] D[o]

3 3

15.500 @ 5/ [P] D[o]

3 17 6

103 18

House Hold Furniture Viz[..]

1 Feather Bed & Furniture

3 10

1 D[o] & D[o]

4 15

1 D[o] & D[o]

4 15

1 D[o] & D[o]

2 10

1 D[o] & D[o]

3 10

1 D[o] & D[o]

2 10

1 Silk Cotton Bed & D[o]

3 2 6

1 Flock Bed Quilt & Cotstead

2 5

1 D[o] & D[o]

1 10

1 D[o] & D[o]

2 10

1 D[o] D[o] Blankett & Bedsted

1 5

2 Claps Cotts

14

1 Fir Table

7

1 Chest with Draws

15

House hould Furniture Car[..] over £ 33 18 6

Car[..] over £ 626 6

The valuation of Richard Mason's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £634 0s 0d

Hogs, viz:

2 sows and 8 pigs, £3 10s 0d

1 sow and 3 pigs, £1 12s 0d

2 sows, £1 10s 0d

11 shoats, £4 12s 0d

10 barrows, £10 15s 0d

£21 19s 0d

Sheep, viz:

12 grown sheep at 15s each, £9 0s 0d

5 half-grown at 10s each, £2 10s 0d

3 lambs at 8s each, £1 4s 0d

£12 14s 0d

Yams, viz:

48,500 at 18s per thousand, £43 13s 0d

38,500 at 15s per thousand, £28 17s 6d

4,000 at 13s per thousand, £2 12s 0d

23,500 at 10s per thousand, £11 15s 0d

21,500 at 8s per thousand, £8 12s 0d

4,000 at 7s per thousand, £1 8s 0d

10,800 at 6s per thousand, £3 3s 0d

15,500 at 5s per thousand, £3 17s 6d

£103 18s 0d

Household furniture, viz:

1 feather bed and furniture, £3 10s 0d

1 feather bed and furniture, £4 15s 0d

1 feather bed and furniture, £4 15s 0d

1 feather bed and furniture, £2 10s 0d

1 feather bed and furniture, £3 10s 0d

1 feather bed and furniture, £2 10s 0d

1 silk cotton bed and furniture, £3 2s 6d

1 flock bed, quilt and cotstead, £2 5s 0d

1 flock bed, quilt and cotstead, £1 10s 0d

1 flock bed and furniture, £2 10s 0d

1 flock bed, furniture, blanket and bedstead, £1 5s 0d

2 clasp bibles, £0 7s 0d

1 fir table, £0 15s 0d

1 chest with drawers, £0 14s 0d

Household furniture carried over, £33 18s 6d

Carried over, £626 6s 0d

Interpretations

A cotstead was the wooden frame of a cot or small bed, the low bedstead on which a flock mattress was laid, distinct from the larger curtained beds of the household. Its listing with the cheaper flock beds marks the plainer sleeping places, probably for children or servants.

The yam crop was graded into eight lots by age and readiness, the oldest at 18s the thousand and the newest at 5s, together worth £103 18s 0d and forming the estate's largest single class of goods after the land and houses. This careful grading by maturity shows a planter managing a staggered crop to supply provisions across the season to the Company ships that called at the island.

The household held six full feather beds with their furniture, a mark of comfort and of a large house with several furnished chambers. The gradation from feather to silk cotton to flock beds, priced accordingly, shows the ranking of sleeping quarters within the establishment from the best rooms to the meanest.

The barrows, castrated boars fattened for meat, were valued highest among the hogs at over 21s the head against a few shillings for a pig, marking them as prime pork ready for the table or market. Their number confirms the estate raising pigs well beyond household need for sale into the island's provisioning trade.

114

106

Brought over £ 626 6

House hold Furniture Brought over £ 33 18 6

1 Hand Escretore

15

1 Fir Box

2 6

1 Small Trunk

5

1 Small Case w[..] Bottles

2 6

1 Tea Board

2

1 Pail

2 6

1 Small Tub

1 3

1 Box Iron & Heaters

7 6

1 D[o] & D[o]

3

8 Chairs

8

21 Earthen Jars

1 18 6

12 China Bowls

1 6

3 Smoakers Cups & Saucers

10 9

20 China Soupe Plates

8 10

22 D[o] Meate D[o]

9 6

7 D[o] Dishes

12 6

1 D[o] Soap Dish

7 6

6 Earthen Tea Potts

15

6 Pewter Dishes & 8 Plates

1

3 D[o] Basons

7

7 Brass Candle Sticks & Snuffers

11

20 Knives & Forks

13

1 Large Copper Kettle with a Cover

1 5

10 P[..] Long Cloth Sheets

2 15

13 Table D[o]

1 5

26 Napkins

16 6

5 Iron Pots

1 10

2 P[..] Long Cloth & 1 [P] Demity Sheets

4 4

3 Shirts

12

4 P[..] Pillow Cases

4

1 Fir Chest

1 5

1 D[o]

15

1 Square Table

5

1 Carboy

7 6

House hold Furniture Carr[..] over £ 59 2 4

Car[..] over £ 626 6

Brought over £ 626 6

House hold Furniture Brought over £ 33 18 6

1 Hand Escretore

15

1 Fir Box

2 6

1 Small Trunk

5

1 Small Case w[..] Bottles

2 6

1 Tea Board

2

1 Pail

2 6

1 Small Tub

1 3

1 Box Iron & Heaters

7 6

1 D[o] & D[o]

3

8 Chairs

8

21 Earthen Jars

1 18 6

12 China Bowls

1 6

3 Smoakers Cups & Saucers

10 9

20 China Soupe Plates

8 10

22 D[o] Meate D[o]

9 6

7 D[o] Dishes

12 6

1 D[o] Soap Dish

7 6

6 Earthen Tea Potts

15

6 Pewter Dishes & 8 Plates

1

3 D[o] Basons

7

7 Brass Candle Sticks & Snuffers

11

20 Knives & Forks

13

1 Large Copper Kettle with a Cover

1 5

10 P[..] Long Cloth Sheets

2 15

13 Table D[o]

1 5

26 Napkins

16 6

5 Iron Pots

1 10

2 P[..] Long Cloth & 1 [P] Demity Sheets

4 4

3 Shirts

12

4 P[..] Pillow Cases

4

1 Fir Chest

1 5

1 D[o]

15

1 Square Table

5

1 Carboy

7 6

House hold Furniture Carr[..] over £ 59 2 4

Car[..] over £ 626 6

115

107

Brought over £ 626 6

House Hold Furniture B[..] over £ 59 2 4

1 Looking Glass

10

1 Small Trunk

8

1/2 C[o] Black Silk

2 5

1 C[o] Long Cloth

2 4

1 Pint Pewter Pott

2 6

1 Chamber Table

7 6

1 D[o] w[..] 3 Draws

3

4 Looking Glasses

17 6

1 Writing Desk

7 6

2 Earthen Jars

8

1 Powdering Tub

5

5 China Jars

15

2 D[o] Basons & Guglets

10

3 D[o] Tea Potts

5

1 D[o] Mugg

1

3 D[o] Chamber Potts

7 6

2 Pewter D[o]

6

15 Wine Glasses & 2 Glass Muggs

8 6

1 Glass Decanter

2 6

4 D[o] Salts

3

1 Cruewitt

1

1 Looking Glass

5

1 Corner Cubboard

15

1 D[o]

10

1 Tea Table old

5

1 Large Oval Table old

10

1 D[o] with Turnd Frame

15

1 Beaureau old

15

1 Two Arm'd Chair

12

1 D[o]

10

7 Cain Chairs

1 15

9 Chairs

1 16

1 Small Square Table old

2 6

House hold Furniture C[..] over £ 78 12 4

C[..] over £ 626 6

The valuation of Richard Mason's estate continued from the sums already carried over.

Brought over, £626 6s 0d

Household furniture brought over, £59 2s 4d

1 looking glass, £0 10s 0d

1 small trunk, £0 8s 0d

½ piece of black silk, £2 5s 0d

1 piece of longcloth, £2 4s 0d

1 pint pewter pot, £0 2s 6d

1 chamber table, £0 7s 6d

1 chamber table with 3 drawers, £0 3s 0d

4 looking glasses, £0 17s 6d

1 writing desk, £0 7s 6d

2 earthen jars, £0 8s 0d

1 powdering tub, £0 5s 0d

5 china jars, £0 15s 0d

2 china basins and guglets, £0 10s 0d

3 china teapots, £0 5s 0d

1 china mug, £0 1s 0d

3 china chamber pots, £0 7s 6d

2 pewter chamber pots, £0 6s 0d

15 wine glasses and 2 glass mugs, £0 8s 6d

1 glass decanter, £0 2s 6d

4 glass salts, £0 0s 5d

1 cruet, £0 1s 0d

1 looking glass, £0 5s 0d

1 corner cupboard, £0 15s 0d

1 corner cupboard, £0 10s 0d

1 tea table, old, £0 5s 0d

1 large oval table, old, £0 10s 0d

1 large oval table with turned frame, £0 15s 0d

1 bureau, old, £0 15s 0d

1 old bureau, £0 12s 0d

1 two-armed chair, £0 10s 0d

1 two-armed chair, £0 15s 0d

7 cane chairs, £1 16s 0d

9 chairs, £0 2s 6d

1 small square table, old, £0 [...]

Household furniture carried over, £78 12s 4d

Carried over, £626 6s 0d

Interpretations

A powdering tub was a vessel for salting and preserving meat in brine, the powder being the coarse salt rubbed into the flesh to cure it for keeping. Its presence marks the household's own preserving of pork or beef against want, a necessary practice on an island where fresh meat could not always be had.

A guglet was a porous earthenware or china vessel for cooling water by slow evaporation through its walls, a form brought from India and the East where it kept drinking water cool in warm weather. Its listing with the china basins shows an imported comfort suited to the island's warmer days.

The abundance of glass and china for the table, fifteen wine glasses, a decanter, salts, cruet and quantities of china, marks a household that dined and entertained with some formality. Such imported ware, brought in on Company ships, was both costly and a sign of the standing this substantial estate enjoyed in the settlement.

The several looking glasses, seven in all across the furniture, were a mark of comfort and expense, mirror glass being an imported luxury that a poorer household would own sparingly if at all. Their number through the chambers of the house speaks to the wealth of the establishment.

116

108

Brought over £ 626 6

House hold Furniture Brought over £ 78 12 4

1 Small Looking Glass

2

6 Pictures with Gilt frames

1 4

1 Tea Table Cloth

1

1 Pewter Bason

3

2 D[o] Cruets & 1 D[o] Pott

2

1 Small Lanthorn

2

1 Copper Stew Pan

8

1 D[o] D[o] Small

5

1 D[o] Hand Irons

5

1 Frying Pan & 1 P[..] Tongs old

3

1 Small Copper Sauce pan

1

2 D[o] Pott hooks 2 P[..] Pott hangers & 1 Spitt old

7 6

1 Tea Kettle

10

1 P[..] Stillards

5

1 Spitt

2

1 Pail & 2 Tubs old

4

1 Stone Jugg

2

9 Tea Spoons Tong & Strainer

15

5 Silver Table Spoons

1 5

84 8 10

Cash

27

Goats Viz[..]

16 Grown Goats @ 8/ [...]a

6 8

5 Half Grown D[o] @ 6/ D[o]

1 10

11 Kids @ 4

2 4

10 2

£ 1686 10

Signed

Rich[..] Bagley

James Greentree

The valuation of Richard Mason's estate continued from the sums already carried over.

Brought over, £626 6s 0d

Household furniture brought over, £78 12s 4d

1 small looking glass, £0 2s 0d

6 pictures with gilt frames, £1 4s 0d

1 tea tablecloth, £0 1s 0d

1 pewter basin, £0 3s 0d

2 cruets and 1 pewter pot, £0 2s 0d

1 small lantern, £0 2s 0d

1 copper stewpan, £0 8s 0d

1 copper stewpan, small, £0 5s 0d

1 pair of hand irons, £0 5s 0d

1 frying pan and 1 pair of tongs, old, £0 3s 0d

1 small copper saucepan, £0 1s 0d

2 pairs of pot hooks, 2 pairs of pot hangers and 1 spit, old, £0 7s 6d

1 teakettle, £0 10s 0d

1 pair of steelyards, £0 5s 0d

1 spit, £0 2s 0d

1 pail and 2 tubs, old, £0 4s 0d

1 stone jug, £0 2s 0d

9 teaspoons, tongs and strainer, £0 15s 0d

5 silver tablespoons, £1 15s 0d

£84 18s 0d

Cash, £47 0s 0d

Goats, viz:

16 grown goats at 8s each, £6 8s 0d

5 half-grown at 6s each, £1 10s 0d

11 kids at 4s each, £2 4s 0d

£10 2s 0d

£768 6s 10d

Signed Richard Bagley

James Greentree

Interpretations

The five silver tablespoons and the teaspoons with tongs and strainer were the estate's store of precious metal in usable form, silver serving both as tableware and as a portable reserve of value. On an island short of coin, worked silver could be weighed and sold at need, so it held worth beyond its use at table.

The six pictures with gilt frames, valued together at £1 4s 0d, were among the household's ornaments and a mark of some refinement, framed pictures being an imported luxury that furnished the walls of a comfortable house. Their presence sets this estate apart from the plainer holdings on these leaves.

The cash of £47 held in the estate was a substantial sum for the island, where coin was often scarce and much trade ran on book credit. That the deceased held so much ready money marks him as a man of means, able to keep specie by him rather than tying all his wealth in land, stock and goods.

Two copper stewpans and a copper saucepan among the kitchen gear point to cooking beyond the plain boiling pot, copper being the better metal for gentle and even heat. Such vessels, imported and costly, mark a household able to prepare more varied fare than the meaner estates could manage.

117

109

Inventory of the Estate & Effects of Martin Harper Deceased, taken &

appraised by Mess[..] Thomas Greentree & Richard Bagley the 28 Day of January

1755 Viz[..]

21 1/2 Acres of Freehold Land at Lemon Valley head @ £ 9 [P] Acre £ 193 10 £ s d

10 D[o] of D[o] at Luffins @ 6 [P] Acre

60

1 House at Luffins's

3

3 Old Houses in James's Valley

60

316 10

18 Acres of Leasehold Land at Lemon Valley head @ £ 3 [P] Acre £ 54

12 D[o] of D[o] at Luffins's at £ 1 10 [P] D[o]

18

8 D[o] of D[o] about the House in half moon at £ 1 5 [P] D[o]

10

4 D[o] of D[o] in Swanly Valley at £ 7 [P] D[o]

28

1 House in in half Moon

50

160

1 Man Slave Cæsar

25

1 D[o] Peter

20

1 D[o] Emanuel

18

1 D[o] Stepney

18

1 D[o] Anthony

8

1 D[o] Martin

3

1 D[o] Ellin

20

1 Woman Slave Ellin

20

1 D[o] Sarah

18

1 D[o] Pat

6

1 Boy Slave George

7

1 Girl Slave Martillo

7 1/2

1 D[o] Sarah

1 10

1 D[o] Leah

1 D[o] Abigail

175 10

1 Cow Gentle & Calf

8

1 D[o] Welcome & D[o]

8

1 D[o] Lovely & D[o]

8

1 D[o] Whiteface & D[o]

8

1 D[o] Cherry & D[o]

7 10

1 D[o] Brindle & D[o]

7 5

1 D[o] Stately & D[o]

7 5

1 D[o] Gifty & D[o]

62 4

Cattle C[..] over

Carried over £ 652

An inventory of the estate of Martin Harper, deceased, was taken and appraised by Thomas Greentree and Richard Bagley on 28 January 1755.

21½ acres of freehold land at Lemon Valley head at £9 per acre, £193 10s 0d

10 acres of freehold land at Lufkins's at £6 per acre, £60 0s 0d

1 house at Lufkins's, £3 0s 0d

3 old houses in James Valley, £60 0s 0d

£316 10s 0d

18 acres of leasehold land at Lemon Valley head at £3 per acre, £54 0s 0d

12 acres of leasehold land at Lufkins's at £1 10s per acre, £18 0s 0d

8 acres of leasehold land about the house in Half Moon at £1 5s per acre, £10 0s 0d

4 acres of leasehold land in Swanley Valley at £7 per acre, £28 0s 0d

1 house in Half Moon, £50 0s 0d

£160 0s 0d

1 man slave, Caesar, £25 0s 0d

1 man slave, Peter, £20 0s 0d

1 man slave, Emanuel, £18 0s 0d

1 man slave, Stepney, £18 0s 0d

1 man slave, Anthony, £8 0s 0d

1 man slave, Martin, £3 0s 0d

1 man slave, [...], £20 0s 0d

1 woman slave, Ellin, £20 0s 0d

1 woman slave, Sarah, £18 0s 0d

1 woman slave, Pat, £6 0s 0d

1 boy slave, George, £7 0s 0d

1 girl slave, Martillo, £7 10s 0d

1 girl slave, Sarah, £7 0s 0d

1 girl slave, Leah, £1 10s 0d

1 girl slave, Abigail, £[...]

£175 10s 0d

1 cow, Gentle, and calf, £8 0s 0d

1 cow, Welcome, and calf, £8 0s 0d

1 cow, Lovely, and calf, £8 0s 0d

1 cow, Whiteface, and calf, £8 0s 0d

1 cow, Cherry, and calf, £7 10s 0d

1 cow, Brindle, and calf, £7 5s 0d

1 cow, Stately, and calf, £7 5s 0d

1 cow, Gifty, and calf, £7 5s 0d

Cattle carried over, £62 4s 0d

Carried over, £652 0s 0d

Interpretations

The freehold at Lemon Valley head reached £9 the acre, three times the £3 charged for leasehold in the same place, showing how secure title lifted the value of otherwise identical ground. Lemon Valley was one of the island's watered valleys running down to the sea, its head the upper cultivable land, and the high price marks it as good planting ground rather than rough pasture.

The estate spread across several named valleys, Lemon Valley, Half Moon, Swanley Valley and Lufkins's, with houses and land in each, marking the deceased as a considerable landholder whose property lay scattered through the island's cultivable pockets. Holding ground in many places spread both the risk and the yield across the varied soils and waters of a small island.

Fifteen slaves were listed by name and priced by working strength, the man Caesar highest at £25 and the men Martin and Anthony low at £3 and £8, the latter probably aged or infirm. The naming of each person, set beside the named cattle that follow, shows the estate accounting treating enslaved people and beasts alike as individual items of valued property.

The cows were each recorded by name, Gentle, Welcome, Lovely, Whiteface, Cherry, Brindle, Stately and Gifty, a naming that marks a settled breeding herd known individually to the household. Each valued with her calf at foot, they formed a working dairy and breeding stock rather than beasts held for slaughter.

118

110

Brought over £ 652

Cattle Brought over £ 62

1 Cow Small Coal & Calf

7

1 D[o] Star

6

1 D[o] Speckle Flank

7

1 D[o] Blackey & Calf

7 5

1 D[o] Merry Gold

6 5

1 Young Bull

6

1 Brindle & White Stear

4 10

1 Black D[o]

4 10

1 Red D[o]

3 10

1 light Brindle D[o]

3 10

1 Young Black D[o]

2 10

1 Stear

2

1 Brindle Heifer

4 10

1 Red & White D[o]

3

2 Brown D[o]

5

134 10

2 Hogs in the Stye

2

18 Pigs @ 6/

5 8

3 D[o] @ 2/

6

1 Sow & 4 Pigs

1 5

10 Young Hogs

6 5

5 Sows

4

1 Young Sow

12 6

1 D[o]

16

1 Sow

1

1 Boar

1

1 Young Barrow

6

1 Black & White Sow

1

1 Black Sow

17

24 15 6

1 Turkey Hen Setting

5

12 Grown Turkey @ 4/6

2 14

36 Young D[o] @ 2/

3 12

35 Grown Fowls 1/3

3 8 9

18 1/2 Doz half grown D[o]

4 11 10

42 Chickens

14 8

5 Young Ducks

3

15 9 4

Carried over £ 886 4 10

The valuation of Martin Harper's estate continued from the sums already carried over.

Brought over, £652 0s 0d

Cattle brought over, £62 0s 0d

1 cow, Small Coal, and calf, £7 0s 0d

1 cow, Star, £6 0s 0d

1 cow, Speckle Flank, £7 0s 0d

1 cow, Blackey, and calf, £7 5s 0d

1 cow, Merry Gold, £6 5s 0d

1 young bull, £6 0s 0d

1 brindle and white steer, £4 10s 0d

1 black steer, £4 10s 0d

1 red steer, £3 10s 0d

1 light brindle steer, £3 10s 0d

1 young black steer, £2 10s 0d

1 steer, £2 0s 0d

1 brindle heifer, £4 10s 0d

1 red and white heifer, £3 0s 0d

2 brown heifers, £5 0s 0d

£134 10s 0d

2 hogs in the sty, £2 0s 0d

18 pigs at 6s each, £5 8s 0d

3 pigs at 2s each, £0 6s 0d

1 sow and 4 pigs, £1 5s 0d

10 young hogs, £6 5s 0d

5 sows, £4 0s 0d

1 young sow, £0 12s 6d

1 young sow, £0 16s 0d

1 sow, £1 0s 0d

1 boar, £1 0s 0d

1 young barrow, £0 6s 0d

1 black and white sow, £1 0s 0d

1 black sow, £0 17s 0d

£24 15s 6d

1 turkey hen sitting, £0 5s 0d

12 grown turkeys at 4s 6d each, £2 14s 0d

36 young turkeys at 2s each, £3 12s 0d

35 grown fowls at 1s 3d each, £3 8s 9d

18½ dozen half-grown fowls, £4 11s 10d

42 chickens, £0 14s 8d

5 young ducks, £0 3s 0d

£15 9s 4d

Carried over, £826 4s 10d

Interpretations

The cattle were recorded almost wholly by name and colour, Small Coal, Star, Speckle Flank, Blackey and Merry Gold among the cows, the younger beasts marked by their colour as brindle, black, red or brown. This individual naming of a herd of some thirty head marks a settled breeding stock known beast by beast, the mark of a substantial grazier managing his cattle across the island's pastures.

The poultry was held in great number, twelve grown turkeys, thirty-six young, thirty-five fowls and quantities more, far beyond a household's own table. This scale of bird-keeping points to raising poultry for sale into the island's provisioning market, where fresh meat and eggs supplied both the settlement and the ships that called.

The steers and young bull among the cattle marked the estate's raising of beasts for beef and draught as well as the dairy, the male stock reared for slaughter or work while the named cows bred. A herd balanced between milk, meat and increase shows careful husbandry on a large scale.

The eighteen and a half dozen half-grown fowls, counted by the dozen, were birds being raised toward maturity, the largest single lot of poultry in the estate. Their number confirms a deliberate rearing operation feeding the demand of a small island dependent on locally raised provisions.

119

111

Brought over £ 826 4 10

38.000 Yams in the Cast @ 12/ [P] Thousand

£ 22 16

94.000 D[o] in D[o] @ 8/ [P] D[o]

37 12

12.000 New Planted Suckers @ 6/ [P] D[o]

3 12

11.500 Yams Swanley Valley @ 14/ [P] D[o]

8 1

46.000 New Planted Suckers D[o] @ 7/ [P] D[o]

12 12

84 13

1 Silver Snecker

4

1 D[o] Salver

1 12

6 Tea Spoons Tongs & Strainer in a Chagrine Case

1 1

7 Tea Spoons D[o] & D[o]

1

1 P[..] Silver Shoe & Knee Buckles

15

3 Oz Old Silver

15

1 P[..] Silver Spurs

6

9 9

1 Horse & Saddle Amounting to

15 10

5 Pickaxes, 1 Spade & 1 Shovel

15 6

2 Grubbing Axes

10

1 Hoe & 1 Heal Bar

3

1 Wheel Barrow

7 6

1 D[o] Unfinished

2 6

1 18 6

1 Broad Axe

3

1 Long Plain

1 Jack D[o]

1 Smoothing & 1 Sash Frame D[o]

7

1 Hand Saw

5

15

1 Large Yam Pot

5

1 Wood Bowl

3

9 Pot hangers

6

1 Small Crashed Yam Pot

5

1 Tea Kettle

7 6

1 Spit & Irons

7

1 Large Pott

5

2 D[o] D[o]

3

3 Pot Hangers

3

3 Water Cricks

4 6

4 2 3

Carried over £ 943 2 7

The valuation of Martin Harper's estate continued from the sums already carried over.

Brought over, £826 4s 10d

38,000 yams in the country at 12s per thousand, £22 16s 0d

94,000 yams in the country at 8s per thousand, £37 12s 0d

12,000 new-planted suckers in the country at 6s per thousand, £3 12s 0d

11,500 yams at Swanley Valley at 14s per thousand, £8 1s 0d

46,000 new-planted suckers in the country at 7s per thousand, £12 12s 0d

£84 13s 0d

1 silver sneaker, £0 4s 0d

1 silver sneaker, £1 12s 0d

6 teaspoons, tongs and strainer in a shagreen case, £1 1s 0d

7 teaspoons, tongs and strainer, £1 0s 0d

1 pair of silver shoe and knee buckles, £0 15s 0d

3 oz old silver, £0 15s 0d

1 pair of silver spurs, £0 6s 0d

£9 9s 0d

1 horse and saddle amounting to, £15 10s 0d

5 pickaxes, 1 spade and 1 shovel, £0 15s 6d

2 grubbing axes, £0 10s 0d

1 hoe and 1 heel bar, £0 3s 0d

1 wheelbarrow, £0 7s 6d

1 wheelbarrow, unfinished, £0 2s 6d

1 broad axe, £0 3s 0d

1 long plane, £0 [...]

1 jack plane, £0 7s 0d

1 smoothing and 1 sash-frame plane, £0 [...]

1 handsaw, £0 5s 0d

£1 18s 6d

1 large yam pot, £0 5s 0d

1 wood bowl, £0 3s 0d

9 pot hangers, £0 6s 0d

1 small cracked yam pot, £0 5s 0d

1 teakettle, £0 7s 6d

1 spit and irons, £0 7s 0d

1 large pot, £0 5s 0d

2 pots, £0 3s 0d

3 pot hangers, £0 3s 0d

3 water buckets, £0 4s 6d

£4 2s 3d

Carried over, £943 2s 7d

Interpretations

The yam crop at over 200,000 tubers across the country ground and Swanley Valley was the estate's great cash asset, valued together with the newly planted suckers at £84 13s 0d and graded by age and readiness. Suckers were the young offshoots set to raise the next crop, so the estate held both a standing harvest to sell and the seed stock for the season to come, the mark of a planter geared to the island's provisioning trade.

Shagreen was a rough-grained leather, often from shark or ray skin and dyed green, used to case fine articles such as the box holding the silver teaspoons here. A costly covering for a set of plate, it marks the deceased's better tableware and his means to own such a case.

A heel bar was an iron tool for levering and breaking ground, and the grubbing axes, spade, shovel and pickaxes were the implements of clearing and tilling the yam grounds that made up the estate's wealth. The unfinished wheelbarrow and the several planes point to woodworking carried on at home, a self-provisioning establishment making and mending its own gear.

A jack plane was a general-purpose bench plane for rough work, and a sash-frame plane a specialised tool for cutting the mouldings of window frames, the set marking skilled joinery done on the estate. Their presence with the saw and broad axe shows the household building and repairing its own woodwork rather than buying it in.

120

112

Brought over £ 943 2 7

1 Bed, Bedstead, Pillows, Bolster, Quilt & Curtains

£ 9

1 D[o] Bolster & 2 Quilts Pillows

3 5

1 D[o] under Bed Pillows Bolster Cotstead & Quilt

3 10

1 D[o] Bolster Pillows & Cotstead

3 3

1 D[o] under Bed, Bedstead, Bolster, Pillows & Blankett

5

1 D[o] D[o] D[o] D[o] D[o] Quilt & Curtains

6

5 Feather Pillows

12 6

1 Sallampore

15

3 C[o] Devotas Sheets

1 4

2 D[o] Bastees D[o]

18

2 D[o] Pillow Bears

5

4 Devotas Table Cloths

10

7 Napkins

3 6

1 Blankett

5

2 Gingham Window Curtains

12

1/2 C[o] Green Silk

1 10

1/2 C[o] White Damask

2

1 Wainscot Escrutore

3 3

1 Fir Chest

15

1 Small D[o]

10

1 D[o] Box

5

1 Portmanteau

10

1 P[..] Steelyards

5

1 Old Square Table

5

1 Cordial Case

10 6

1 Small Looking Glass

8

1 Warming Pan

10 6

1 Case & 9 Bottles

15

1 D[o] & 11 Pint D[o]

5

1 2 Gallon Kegg

4

1 Old Clock

1

1 D[o] Wainscot Table

1

1 Small round fir D[o]

7

House hold Furniture C[..] over £ 51 6

C[..] over £ 943 2 7

The valuation of Martin Harper's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £943 2s 7d

1 bed, bedstead, pillows, bolster, quilt and curtains, £9 0s 0d

1 bed, bolster, 2 pillows and quilt, £3 5s 0d

1 bed, underbed, pillows, bolster, cotstead and quilt, £3 10s 0d

1 bed, bolster, pillows and cotstead, £3 3s 0d

1 bed, underbed, bedstead, bolster, pillows and blanket, £3 0s 0d

1 bed, underbed, bedstead, bolster, pillows, quilt and curtains, £6 0s 0d

5 feather pillows, £0 12s 6d

1 palampore, £0 15s 0d

3 pairs of dowlas sheets, £1 4s 0d

2 pairs of baftas sheets, £0 18s 0d

2 pairs of pillowcases, £0 5s 0d

4 dowlas tablecloths, £0 10s 0d

7 napkins, £0 3s 6d

1 blanket, £0 5s 0d

2 gingham window curtains, £0 12s 0d

½ piece of green silk, £1 10s 0d

½ piece of white damask, £2 0s 0d

1 wainscot escritoire, £3 3s 0d

1 fir chest, £0 15s 0d

1 small fir chest, £0 10s 0d

1 fir box, £0 5s 0d

1 portmanteau, £0 10s 0d

1 pair of steelyards, £0 5s 0d

1 old square table, £0 5s 0d

1 cordial case, £0 10s 6d

1 small looking glass, £0 8s 0d

1 warming pan, £0 10s 6d

1 case with 9 bottles, £0 15s 0d

1 case with 11 pint bottles, £0 5s 0d

1 2-gallon keg, £0 4s 0d

1 old clock, £1 0s 0d

1 wainscot table, £1 0s 0d

1 small round fir table, £0 7s 0d

Household furniture carried over, £51 6s 0d

Carried over, £943 2s 7d

Interpretations

Dowlas was a coarse strong linen from Brittany and northern France, used for sheeting, tablecloths and common household cloth, while baftas was a plain Indian cotton of similar workaday use imported through the Company trade. The two named cloths, one European and one Eastern, show the household's linen drawn from both the western and eastern reaches of the island's supply.

A cordial case was a fitted box holding bottles of cordial waters or spirits, the flasks set in compartments for keeping and serving, a genteel article for a household that offered such drinks. Its listing with the cased bottles and keg marks the storing of liquor in some variety.

An old clock valued at £1 was among the more considerable single items and a mark of standing, a working timepiece being a costly imported possession that few households on the island owned. Its presence set this estate among the better-furnished of the settlement.

The six full beds with their furniture, one worth £9 complete, mark a large and comfortable house with many furnished chambers. The range from the fine curtained bed to the plainer cot beds shows the ranking of sleeping quarters through the establishment, from the best rooms to those of children or servants.

121

113

Brought over £ 943 2 7

House Furniture Brought over £ 51 6

1 Fir Dresser Cupboard

1

8 Old Chairs

1 4

1 D[o] Case with 15 five Pint Bottles

17 6

1 broken Lock, Fowling Piece

15

1 Fir Tea Table

7

3 Tea Pots, 3 half Pint Cups & Saucers & 2 Nogging Cups & Saucers

7

13 Wine Glasses

6 6

1 Glass Cruett Stand

7 6

3 Wine & Waiter Glasses

3

1 Decanter & 1 Cruett

3

36 China Plates

18

1 D[o] Dish

1

2 Glass Salts

2

3 Brass Candlesticks & 1 P[..] Snuffers

7 6

1 Brass Pestle & Mortar

10 6

1 Pewter Dish 7 Plates & 1 Bason

6

5 Earthen Jars

9

1 Quilted Carboy

7 6

1 Stone Jug

2

11 Knives & Forks

8

2 China Bowls

4 6

6 5 Pint Bottles

4 6

1 Fir Chest

13 6

1 Old Walnut Tea Chest

12

1 Case of Phlemes

1

2 Milk Tubs

3

1 Tin Cannester

1 6

1 D[o] Sauce Pan

6

1 Pewter Sugar Pot

1 6

1 Quilted 5 C[o] Bottle

7 6

1 Old Form

2 6

1 Washing Tub

7

1 P[..] Small Steelyards

5

1 Box Iron & Heaters

1 Large Looking glass

6

13 New Pewter Spoons

5

2 Pewter Chamber Potts

69 4

House Furniture C[..] over £ 1012 6 7

The valuation of Martin Harper's estate continued from the sums already carried over.

Brought over, £943 2s 7d

House furniture brought over, £51 6s 0d

1 fir dresser cupboard, £1 0s 0d

8 old chairs, £1 4s 0d

1 case with 15 five-pint bottles, £0 17s 6d

1 broken-lock fowling piece, £0 15s 0d

1 fir tea table, £0 7s 0d

3 teapots, 3 half-pint cups and saucers and 2 nogging cups and saucers, £0 7s 0d

13 wine glasses, £0 6s 6d

1 glass cruet stand, £0 7s 6d

3 wine and water glasses, £0 3s 0d

1 decanter and 1 cruet, £0 3s 0d

36 china plates, £0 18s 0d

1 china dish, £0 1s 0d

2 glass salts, £0 0s 2d

3 brass candlesticks and 1 pair of snuffers, £0 7s 6d

1 brass pestle and mortar, £0 10s 6d

1 pewter dish, 7 plates and 1 basin, £0 5s 0d

5 earthen jars, £0 9s 0d

1 quilted carboy, £0 7s 6d

1 stone jug, £0 2s 0d

11 knives and forks, £0 4s 6d

2 china bowls, £0 4s 6d

6 five-pint bottles, £0 13s 6d

1 fir chest, £0 12s 0d

1 old walnut tea chest, £0 1s 0d

1 case of phlegms, £0 3s 0d

2 milk tubs, £0 1s 6d

1 tin canister, £0 0s 6d

1 tin saucepan, £0 1s 6d

1 pewter sugar pot, £0 1s 6d

1 quilted five-gallon bottle, £0 7s 6d

1 old form, £0 2s 6d

1 washing tub, £0 7s 0d

1 pair of small steelyards, £0 5s 0d

1 box iron and heaters, £0 [...]

1 large looking glass, £0 [...]

19 new pewter spoons, £0 5s 0d

2 pewter chamber pots, £0 [...]

£6 9s 4d

House furniture carried over, £1,012 15s 7d

Interpretations

A case of phlegms was a set of fleams, the small bladed instruments used to open a vein for bloodletting, kept in their fitted case. Bloodletting was a common medical treatment of the age, and the presence of such a case suggests the deceased or his household practised it, whether on people or on the livestock the estate kept in number.

A nogging cup was a small drinking vessel holding a noggin, a quarter-pint measure, the pair here made of china and served with saucers among the tea ware. Such small cups marked the taking of spirits or tea in modest measure at table.

The quilted carboy and quilted five-gallon bottle were large glass vessels wrapped in padded quilting to guard them against breakage, a protection for costly glass that had to be shipped in and held liquids in bulk. Their careful casing shows the value of such large containers on the island.

A brass pestle and mortar, valued higher than most kitchen items at £0 10s 6d, was used for pounding spices, herbs and drugs, a tool of both cookery and home medicine. Its worth reflects the utility of a durable brass set in a household preparing its own seasonings and remedies.

122

114

House Furniture B[..] over £ 1012 6 7

A Parcel of Old Books

£ 1 10

1 Volume Baileys Dictionary

5

1 large Bible

1 5

1 old D[o] D[o]

1

2 Common Prayer Books

5

4 Volumes of Travels by different Authers in folio

1 12

5 17

20 Grown Sheep @ 16/ [...]

16

6 half Grown D[o] @ 12/ [...]

3 12

2 Lambs 8/ [...]

16

20 8

42 Grown Goats @ 8/ [...]

16 16

14 half Grown D[o] @ 6/ [...]

4 4

28 Kids 4/ [...]

5 12

26 12

The whole Inventory Amounting to £ 1065 13 7

Debts due to Sundrys from the Estate Viz[..]

To M[..] Tho[..] Greentree

£ 100

To M[..] John Inglis

3 6

To Gabriel Harpers Orp[..]

20 10 1

To Henry Harpers D[o]

25

To M[..] Rich[..] Bagley

To M[..] Eliz[..] Brown

22 13

To William Young

12 13

To John Alexander

12 4[...]

To Eliz[..] Draper

To M[..] Sam[..] Falconer

Signed

Tho[..] Greentree

Rich[..] Bagley

The valuation of Martin Harper's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

House furniture brought over, £1,012 16s 7d

a parcel of old boots, £1 10s 0d

1 volume, Bailey's Dictionary, £0 5s 0d

1 large bible, £1 5s 0d

1 old bible, £1 0s 0d

2 common prayer books, £0 5s 0d

4 volumes of travels by different authors, in folio, £1 12s 0d

£5 17s 0d

20 grown sheep at 16s each, £16 0s 0d

6 half-grown at 12s each, £3 12s 0d

2 lambs at 8s each, £0 16s 0d

£20 8s 0d

42 grown goats at 8s each, £16 16s 0d

14 half-grown at 6s each, £4 4s 0d

28 kids at 4s each, £5 12s 0d

£26 12s 0d

The whole inventory amounting to, £1,065 13s 7d

Debts due to sundries from the estate, viz:

To Thomas Greentree, £100 0s 0d

To John Inglis, £3 6s 0d

To Gabriel Harper's estate, £20 10s 1d

To Henry Harper's estate, £25 0s 0d

To Richard Bagley, £22 13s 0d

To Elizabeth Brown, £12 15s 0d

To William Young, £12 15s 0d

To John Alexander

To Elizabeth Draper

To Samuel Falconer

Signed Thomas Greentree

Richard Bagley

Interpretations

The whole estate came to £1,065 13s 7d, a great sum for the island and far beyond the modest holdings on the earlier leaves, marking the deceased as among the wealthiest settlers of the colony. The scale of the land, slaves, herds and yam grounds shows a leading planter whose property stood at the top rank of the island's landholders.

The four volumes of travels in folio, valued with the dictionary and bibles, were a considerable holding of books for the island, where few households owned more than a bible or two. Folio was the largest and costliest form of printed book, and such a collection marks a man of some learning and means, his library a mark of standing as much as of reading.

The debts from the estate ran to substantial sums owed to many named creditors, £100 to Thomas Greentree alone and further amounts to the estates of Gabriel and Henry Harper. Two of these debts were owed to the estates of deceased kinsmen, showing obligations outliving the men who held them and passing as assets to their heirs, the whole web of credit binding the leading families of the settlement together.

The forty-two grown goats and their young, held with a large flock of sheep, were part of the estate's great stock of small grazing beasts kept for meat, milk and hides. Goats throve on the island's rough hillsides where cattle could not graze, so a flock of this size drew value from ground unfit for the more valued cattle.

123

115

Inventory of the Estate of John Bagley, Dec[..] taken & Appraised by Mess[..] Rich[..]

Bagley Jos Worrall & John Desfountain the 30 September 1754

Houses & Land Viz[..]

Dwelling House & 36 Acres Lease Land

£ 180

1 House in James's Valley

100

Blacks Viz[..]

1 Man

24

1 D[o]

21

1 Woman

18

1 D[o]

8

1 Boy

5

Cattle Viz[..]

6 Cows & 5 Calves

48 10

1 Bull

6

1 Bullock

7

1 Heifer

5

3 Stears

9 15

Sheep Viz[..]

10 Grown

8 10

2 Lambs

15

Goats Viz[..]

12 Grown

4 16

6 h[..] D[o]

1 16

6 Kids

1 4

Hogs Viz[..]

11 Sows

9 1

14 Barrows

8 8

1 Boar

14

8 Piggs

1 12

Yams Viz[..]

52.448 @ 8/ [P] Thousand

20 19

27.580 4/ D[o]

5 10

40.690 5/ D[o]

10 3

25.700 7/4 D[o]

8 12

16.200 7/4 D[o]

9 15

34.200 6/ D[o]

10 15

Carried Over £ 534 1

An inventory of the estate of John Bagley, deceased, was taken and appraised by Richard Bagley, James Worrall and John Desfountain on 30 September 1751.

Houses and land, viz:

Dwelling house and 36 acres of leasehold land, £180 0s 0d

1 house in James Valley, £100 0s 0d

Blacks, viz:

1 man, £24 0s 0d

1 man, £21 0s 0d

1 woman, £18 0s 0d

1 woman, £8 0s 0d

1 boy, £5 0s 0d

Cattle, viz:

6 cows and 5 calves, £48 10s 0d

1 bull, £6 0s 0d

1 bullock, £7 0s 0d

1 heifer, £5 0s 0d

3 steers, £9 15s 0d

Sheep, viz:

10 grown, £8 10s 0d

2 lambs, £0 15s 0d

Goats, viz:

12 grown, £4 16s 0d

6 half-grown, £1 16s 0d

6 kids, £1 4s 0d

Hogs, viz:

11 sows, £9 1s 0d

14 barrows, £8 8s 0d

1 boar, £0 14s 0d

8 pigs, £1 12s 0d

Yams, viz:

52,448 at 8s per thousand, £20 19s 0d

27,580 at 4s per thousand, £5 10s 0d

40,690 at 5s per thousand, £10 3s 0d

25,700 at 7s per thousand, £8 12s 0d

16,200 at 7s 6d per thousand, £9 0s 0d

34,200 at 6s per thousand, £10 15s 0d

Carried over, £534 1s 0d

Interpretations

The house in James Valley was valued at £100, close to the dwelling house and its thirty-six acres together at £180, showing how dearly a town property was held against country land and buildings. James Valley was the settlement around the fort and harbour that formed the island's town, later Jamestown, so a house there commanded a high price for its place at the commercial heart of the colony.

The yam crop of nearly 197,000 tubers, graded into six lots by age and readiness and worth some £65 across the account, was the estate's largest class of movable goods after the livestock. This staggered planting shows a grower managing his ground to yield provisions across the season for the Company ships that called at the island, the crop being the settler's chief cash asset.

The fourteen barrows among the hogs, castrated boars fattened for meat, were held in number well beyond a household's own need and marked pork being raised for sale. With the eleven sows breeding, the estate ran an active pig operation feeding the island's demand for provisions.

The five slaves were priced by working strength, the men at £24 and £21 against a woman at £8 and a boy at £5, the low-valued woman probably ageing or infirm. Their listing as an aggregate class between the land and the cattle shows the estate accounting treating enslaved people as property valued alongside the beasts and ground.

124

116

House Furniture Viz[..] Brought Over £ 534 1

5 Feather Beds 6 Pillows 2 Quilts 2 Bedsteds

17

6 Flock D[o] 9 D[o] 2 D[o] 4 D[o] 2 Boulsters

6 15

5 Quilts

2 2

1 Feather Boulster

5

9 Pillows

16

4 Bedsteds

1 11

8 P[..] Sheets

3 2

12 Napkins

9

2 Pair Window Curtains

16 6

10 P[..] Pillow Cases

17 6

6 Tables

3 17 6

16 Chairs

3 2

5 Candle Sticks

13

36 China Plates & 4 Dishes

1 7

3 D[o] Mugs

2 6

1 D[o] Tea Pott

2 6

1 Cruett & Stand

4

2 China Salts

4

4 Glass Mugs

3 9

13 China Bowls

18 9

27 Cups & Saucers

12 6

1 Tea Board

3

4 Smoakers

1 9

3 Half Pint Cups

9

6 Earthen Tea Pots

15 6

1 Butter Dish

2

3 Brushes

1 6

12 Wine Glasses

6 6

14 Erthen Jars

10 6

1 Looching Glass

2 6

7 Chests

1 18 6

3 Cases

4 6

2 Chamber Pots

5 6

2 Pewter Basins

3 6

Carried over £ 584 9 6

The valuation of John Bagley's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

House furniture, viz, brought over, £534 1s 0d

5 feather beds, 6 pillows, 2 quilts and 2 bedsteads, £17 0s 0d

6 flock beds, 9 pillows, 2 quilts, 4 quilts and 2 bolsters, £6 15s 0d

5 quilts, £2 2s 0d

1 feather bolster, £0 5s 0d

9 pillows, £0 16s 0d

4 bedsteads, £1 11s 0d

8 pairs of sheets, £3 9s 0d

12 napkins, £0 9s 0d

2 pairs of window curtains, £0 16s 6d

10 pairs of pillowcases, £0 17s 6d

6 tables, £3 17s 6d

16 chairs, £3 2s 0d

5 candlesticks, £0 13s 0d

36 china plates and 4 dishes, £1 7s 0d

3 mugs, £0 2s 6d

1 teapot, £0 2s 6d

1 cruet and stand, £0 5s 0d

2 china salts, £0 0s 4d

4 glass mugs, £0 3s 9d

13 china bowls, £0 18s 9d

27 cups and saucers, £0 12s 6d

1 tea board, £0 3s 1d

4 sneakers, £0 1s 9d

3 half-pint cups, £0 0s 9d

6 earthen teapots, £0 15s 6d

1 butter dish, £0 0s 2d

3 brushes, £0 1s 6d

12 wine glasses, £0 6s 6d

14 earthen jars, £0 19s 6d

1 looking glass, £0 2s 6d

7 chests, £1 18s 6d

2 cases, £0 4s 6d

2 chamber pots, £0 5s 6d

2 pewter basins, £0 3s 6d

Carried over, £584 9s 6d

Interpretations

The household held both feather and flock beds in number, five of the better feather kind and six of the cheaper flock, marking a large house with many furnished sleeping places ranked by quality. The feather beds served the family and best chambers, the flock beds the meaner rooms of children or servants, the gradation showing the ordering of the establishment.

The abundance of tea and table ware, thirty-six china plates, twenty-seven cups and saucers, china bowls, teapots and wine glasses, marks a household equipped for formal dining and tea service on a considerable scale. This imported ceramic and glass, brought in on Company ships, shows both the deceased's means and the settled place of genteel dining in the island's leading households.

A butter dish among the tableware, valued at only tuppence yet listed as a distinct article, marks the same care for the niceties of the table seen in the cruet stand and napkins. Such small refinements point to a household that dined with some ceremony.

The four sneakers and three half-pint cups, small drinking vessels held with the tea ware, were the household's lesser drinking cups for spirits or tea taken in modest measure. Their listing among the china confirms the ordinary place of such vessels in the daily table of a comfortable island home.

125

117

Brought Over £ 584 9 6

7 Pewter Dishes

16 6

3 D[o] Funels

3 6

1 Torn Jug

1 6

1 Sugar Pot

3

1 Silver Spoon

6

2 P[..] Stillards

10

9 Iron Pots

2 17 6

4 P[..] Pott Hangers

8

3 Spits

4

1 Dripping Pan

1 6

22 Knives & Forks

8

2 Cags

8

1 Flax Broom

1 9

1 Desk

3

1 Trunk

2 6

1 Chest with Drawers

1

1 Hand Escrutore

7

2 Case Bottles

2 6

1/2 Gall D[o]

2

22 Pewter Spoons

4 2

24 D[o] Plates

1 7

1 Fowling Piece

1 1

1 Bible

15

1 P[..] Shears

1

1 Gridiron

2 6

2 Frying Pans

5

1 Box Iron & Heaters

8

9 Tea Kettles

12

1 P[..] Tongs

3

1 Grindstone

10 6

1 Glass Salt

17

12 Silver Tea Spoons

£ 599 17 3

Signed

Richard Bagley

John Desfountain

The valuation of John Bagley's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £584 9s 6d

7 pewter dishes, £0 16s 6d

3 funnels, £0 3s 6d

1 horn jug, £0 1s 6d

1 sugar pot, £0 3s 0d

1 silver spoon, £0 6s 0d

2 pairs of steelyards, £0 10s 0d

9 iron pots, £2 17s 6d

4 pot hangers, £0 8s 0d

3 spits, £0 4s 0d

1 dripping pan, £0 1s 6d

22 knives and forks, £0 8s 0d

2 kegs, £0 8s 0d

1 hair broom, £0 1s 9d

1 desk, £0 3s 0d

1 trunk, £0 2s 6d

1 chest with drawers, £1 0s 0d

1 hand escritoire, £0 7s 0d

2 case bottles, £0 2s 6d

1 half-gallon pot, £0 2s 0d

22 pewter spoons, £0 4s 2d

24 pewter plates, £1 1s 0d

1 fowling piece, £1 1s 0d

1 bible, £0 15s 0d

4 skewers, £0 1s 0d

1 gridiron, £0 2s 6d

2 frying pans, £0 5s 0d

1 box iron and heaters, £0 8s 0d

9 teakettles, £0 12s 0d

1 pair of tongs, £0 3s 0d

1 grindstone, £0 10s 6d

1 glass salt, £0 17s 0d

12 silver teaspoons, £[...]

£599 17s 5d

Signed Richard Bagley

John Desfountain

Interpretations

A dripping pan sat beneath a joint roasting on the spit to catch the falling fat, which was saved for cooking or making tallow. With the spits, skewers and gridiron, it completes the gear of an open-fire kitchen where all roasting was done before the flame.

The silver spoons and teaspoons were the estate's store of precious metal in usable form, silver serving both as tableware and as a portable reserve of value. On an island short of coin, worked silver held worth that could be weighed and sold at need, so it counted for more than its use at table.

The twelve silver teaspoons together with the single large spoon marked the household's better tableware, the spoons the most valuable movable items after the beds and larger furniture. Their presence set this substantial estate apart from the plainer holdings furnished only with pewter.

Nine teakettles and nine iron pots held in one household point to cooking and heating water on a large scale, fitting an establishment of considerable size feeding many mouths. Such a stock of vessels marks a busy kitchen serving a large family, its slaves and the work of a great farm.

126

118

An Inventory of the Estate of John Twaits Deceased Taken and

appraised by Mess[..] Richard Bagley & Benjamin Mason this 8 Day of

April 1756

Land Viz[..]

9 Acres Free at £ 10 [P] Acre

£ 90

17 D[o] Lease 2/10 [P] D[o]

42 10

13 1/2 D[o] D[o] Cathop 2/10 [P] D[o]

33 15

4 D[o] D[o] 10/ [P] D[o]

64

4 D[o] D[o] Highams 1/ [P] D[o]

4

£ 233 5

Houses

1 Dwelling house & Kitchen

25

Blacks Viz[..]

1 Man Named Greenwich

£ 23

1 D[o] Ting

20

1 Woman Pegg

18

1 D[o] Doundo

10

1 Boy Frank

7

1 D[o] George

8

1 Girl Lucy

6

1 D[o] Patt a Lequesse

2

103

Cattle Viz[..]

1 Cow

6 10

1 D[o]

7

1 D[o]

6 10

1 D[o] & Calf

8

1 D[o] & D[o]

6 10

1 D[o]

6 10

1 D[o]

6 15

1 Bull

3 10

2 Steers at £ 2/ each

4

3 D[o] 3/10 D[o]

10 10

2 Heifers 3/10 D[o]

7

72 15

Carried over £ 433

An inventory of the estate of John Swaite, deceased, was taken and appraised by Richard Bagley and Benjamin Mason on 8 April 1756.

Land, viz:

9 acres freehold at £10 per acre, £90 0s 0d

17 acres leasehold at 2s 6d per acre, £42 10s 0d

13½ acres leasehold at Eastop's at 2s 6d per acre, £33 15s 0d

4 acres leasehold at 16s per acre, £64 0s 0d

4 acres leasehold at Higham's at 1s per acre, £4 0s 0d

£233 5s 0d

Houses:

1 dwelling house and kitchen, £25 0s 0d

Blacks, viz:

1 man named Greenwich, £23 0s 0d

1 man named Jing, £20 0s 0d

1 woman named Peg, £18 0s 0d

1 woman named Doundo, £10 0s 0d

1 boy named Frank, £7 0s 0d

1 boy named George, £8 0s 0d

1 girl named Lucy, £6 0s 0d

1 girl named Patt, a Lascar, £2 0s 0d

£103 0s 0d

Cattle, viz:

1 cow, £6 10s 0d

1 cow, £7 0s 0d

1 cow, £6 10s 0d

1 cow and calf, £8 0s 0d

1 cow and calf, £6 10s 0d

1 cow, £6 10s 0d

1 cow, £6 15s 0d

1 bull, £3 10s 0d

2 steers at £2 each, £4 0s 0d

3 steers at £3 10s each, £10 10s 0d

2 heifers at £3 10s each, £7 0s 0d

£72 15s 0d

Carried over, £433 0s 0d

Interpretations

The girl Patt was described as a Lascar, an East Indian sailor or servant, marking her origin in the Indian subcontinent rather than in Africa or Madagascar whence most of the island's slaves came. Her low valuation at £2, the least of the eight, probably reflects her youth, and her presence shows the varied origins of the enslaved brought to St Helena through the shipping routes of the East.

The four acres of leasehold valued at 16s the acre stood far above the other leased land at 2s 6d and 1s, the wide gap reflecting the quality and use of that particular plot rather than the tenure. This shows again how land value on the island turned on what a piece could be made to grow, the best planting ground fetching many times the price of rough acreage.

The freehold at £10 the acre was worth four times the best leasehold and far more than the poorer leased plots, marking the value that secure title added to good ground. That the estate held most of its land on lease from the Company, with only nine acres owned outright, was the common condition of the island's settlers.

The eight slaves were each named and priced by working strength, the men Greenwich and Jing highest at £23 and £20 against the children at a few pounds. Their listing by name and individual value, set before the named cattle, shows the estate accounting weighing each enslaved person as a distinct asset measured against their capacity for labour.

127

119

Brought over £ 433

1 Cow & Calf

£ 8

1 D[o] & D[o]

8

1 Heifer

2 15

1 Yearling

2

20 15

Hoggs Viz[..]

1 Sow

1 10

1 D[o]

1

2 D[o] @ 18/ each

1 16

2 Large Shoats @ 15/ each

1 10

2 Sows @ 18/ D[o]

1 16

1 Shoat

10

12 D[o] @ 7/ each

4 4

15 D[o] 5/ D[o]

3 15

1 Sow

18

16 19

Sheep Viz[..]

42 Sheep @ 15/ ea

31 10

6 Lambs 8/ ea

2 8

33 18

Goats Viz[..]

27 Grown

10 16

2 half D[o] @ 6/ ea

12

1 Kid

4

11 12

Horses Viz[..]

1 Mair

6 6

Poultry Viz[..]

39 Grown fowls @ 1/6

2 18 6

26 Chickens 1/3

6 8

4 Geese 5/

1

6 Grown Turkeys 5/

1 5

8 Small D[o] 2/

16

6 Grown Ducks 4/6

9

14 half Grown 1/9 D[o]

10 6

7 5 8

Carried over £ 529 15 8

The valuation of John Swaite's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £433 0s 0d

1 cow and calf, £8 0s 0d

1 cow and calf, £8 0s 0d

1 heifer, £2 15s 0d

1 yearling, £2 0s 0d

£20 15s 0d

Hogs, viz:

1 sow, £1 10s 0d

1 sow, £1 0s 0d

2 sows at 18s each, £1 16s 0d

2 large shoats at 15s each, £1 10s 0d

2 sows at 18s each, £1 16s 0d

1 shoat, £0 10s 0d

12 shoats at 7s each, £4 4s 0d

15 shoats at 5s each, £3 15s 0d

1 sow, £0 18s 0d

£16 19s 0d

Sheep, viz:

42 sheep at 15s each, £31 10s 0d

6 lambs at 8s each, £2 8s 0d

£33 18s 0d

Goats, viz:

27 grown, £10 16s 0d

2 half-grown at 6s each, £0 12s 0d

1 kid, £0 4s 0d

£11 12s 0d

Horses, viz:

1 mare, £6 6s 0d

Poultry, viz:

39 grown fowls at 1s 6d each, £2 18s 6d

26 chickens at 3d each, £0 6s 8d

4 geese at 5s each, £1 0s 0d

6 grown turkeys at 5s each, £1 10s 0d

8 small turkeys at 2s each, £0 16s 0d

6 grown ducks at 4s 6d each, £1 7s 0d

19 half-grown at 10d each, £0 15s 10d

£7 5s 8d

Carried over, £529 15s 8d

Interpretations

The forty-two sheep valued together at £31 10s 0d formed the estate's largest single lot of stock, a considerable flock kept for wool, meat and hides on the island's rough grazing. Sheep throve on the hillsides where cattle could not, so a flock of this size drew value from ground unfit for the more valued beasts.

The poultry ran to a wide variety, thirty-nine fowls, geese, turkeys, ducks and chickens, held in numbers beyond a household's own table and marking birds raised for sale. This range of poultry points to supplying the island's provisioning market, where fresh meat and eggs fed both the settlement and the ships that called.

Four geese among the poultry were an unusual holding, geese being kept for their meat, eggs and feathers, the down prized for bedding. Their presence adds to the varied stock of a well-provided farm making use of every kind of bird.

The single mare, valued at £6 6s 0d, was the estate's only horse and a working animal for riding or draught rather than a herd for breeding. On a small island a horse was a costly and useful possession, kept for the labour and travel of a substantial holding.

128

120

Brought over £ 529 15 8

Yams Viz[..]

6.500 New Planted @ 5/ [P] Thousand

£ 1 12 6

14.800 6 Months old 9/ [P] D[o]

6 13 8

10.700 old 18/ [P] D[o]

9 13 6

12.000 New planted 6/ [P] D[o]

3 12

17.000 4 Months old 8/ [P] D[o]

6 16

37.000 9 D[o] D[o] 10/ [P] D[o]

18 10

7.600 5 D[o] D[o] 9/ [P] D[o]

3 8

17.500 12 D[o] D[o] £ 1 2 [P] D[o]

19 5

69 9 8

Timber Viz[..]

35 Double Deals @ 4/2 ea

7 5 10

39 Joan Joyce 1/6

2 18 6

5 Door Cases 8/

2

8 Gudens 7/6

3

14 Window Cases 3/

2 2

17 6 4

House-hold Goods Viz[..]

1 Round Table old

10

1 Square D[o]

12

1 Tea Table

7 6

5 old Chairs

15

2 Foarms

4 6

1 Fir Chest

12

1 D[o]

16

1 D[o]

1

1 old Desk

1

1 Hand Escrutore

15

1 D[o] D[o]

12

1 Dresser

1

1 Fir Chest

14

1 Desk

2 10

1 old Backgammon Table

2

1 Tea Chest

12

12 2

Carried over £ 628 13 8

The valuation of John Swaite's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £529 15s 8d

Yams, viz:

6,500 new-planted at 5s per thousand, £1 12s 6d

14,800 6 months old at 9s per thousand, £6 12s 8d

10,700 old at 18s per thousand, £9 13s 6d

12,000 new-planted at 6s per thousand, £3 12s 0d

17,000 4 months old at 8s per thousand, £6 16s 0d

37,000 9 months old at 10s per thousand, £18 10s 0d

7,600 5 months old at 9s per thousand, £3 8s 0d

17,500 12 months old at £1 2s per thousand, £19 5s 0d

£69 9s 8d

Timber, viz:

35 double deals at 4s 2d each, £7 5s 10d

39 fir joists at 1s 6d each, £2 18s 6d

5 door cases at 8s each, £2 0s 0d

8 gudgeons at 7s 6d each, £3 0s 0d

14 window cases at 3s each, £2 2s 0d

£17 6s 4d

Household goods, viz:

1 round table, old, £0 10s 0d

1 square table, £0 12s 0d

1 tea table, £0 7s 6d

5 old chairs, £0 15s 0d

2 forms, £0 4s 6d

1 fir chest, £0 12s 0d

1 fir chest, £0 16s 0d

1 fir chest, £1 0s 0d

1 old desk, £1 0s 0d

1 hand escritoire, £0 15s 0d

1 hand escritoire, £0 12s 0d

1 dresser, £1 0s 0d

1 fir chest, £0 14s 0d

1 desk, £2 10s 0d

1 old backgammon table, £0 2s 0d

1 tea chest, £0 12s 0d

£12 2s 0d

Carried over, £628 13s 8d

Interpretations

The stock of building timber, thirty-five deals, thirty-nine fir joists, door cases, window cases and gudgeons, was held ready for building or repair, sawn wood being a valued commodity on an island with little native timber fit for construction. Deals were sawn softwood boards and joists the beams of a floor or roof, all shipped in and kept against the work of raising or mending a house.

A gudgeon in building was an iron pin or socket on which a gate, door or shutter turned, or a fitting joining timbers, the eight here part of the ironwork held with the sawn wood for construction. Their listing with the door and window cases marks a store of materials for fitting out a building.

The graded yam crop of over 122,000 tubers, in eight lots by age from newly planted to a full year old, was the estate's largest class of movable goods after the livestock, worth £69 9s 8d. This careful staggering of the crop by maturity shows a planter managing his ground to yield provisions across the season for the Company ships, the crop being the settler's chief cash asset.

The several desks and hand escritoires, held in unusual number for a household, point to the keeping of written accounts and papers, fitting a substantial planter who dealt in credit, land and produce. The old backgammon table among the furniture marks a household with leisure for games, a small touch of ease in a working establishment.

129

121

Brought over £ 628 13 8

1 Looking Glass

£ 1

1 Feather Bed 1 Quilt Boulster & 2 Pillows 1 Bed Stead

8

1 D[o] D[o] D[o] D[o] D[o] Curtains

8 5

1 D[o] D[o] D[o] D[o] D[o]

6 10

1 Wool Bed & Boulster 2 Feather Pillows

1 Blankett & 1 old Quilt & Bed Stead

2 10

1 Quilt

1 D[o]

1 10

26 5

1 D[o]

1 10

1 Sallampore

2

1 Sett of Bed Curtains

2

3 P[..] Long Cloth Sheets

2

6 P[..] Pillow Cases

18

4 P[..] D[o]

1

1 Dimety Table Cloth & 6 Napkins

1

3 D[o] D[o] Cloths

1 7

7 D[o] Napkins

1

2 Deesootees Table Cloths & 2 Side Boards

6

6 Ovenbrigs Towels

6

3 P[..] Devotas Sheets

1 10

4 P[..] D[o] D[o]

5

4 Bed Rack & Rod

10

5 China Dishes & 19 Plates

3 D[o] Bowls

6

4 Silver Spoons

2

Old Silver

3

8 Silver Tea Spoons Tongs & Strainer

1 5

1 Pewter Bason

4

1 D[o] Funnell

3

3 Brass Candle Sticks

10

1 P[..] D[o] Snuffers

6

1 Brass Morter & Pestle

15

22 11 6

Carried over £ 677 10 2

The valuation of John Swaite's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £628 13s 8d

1 looking glass, £1 0s 0d

1 feather bed, quilt, bolster, 2 pillows and bedstead, £8 0s 0d

1 feather bed, quilt, bolster, 2 pillows, bedstead and curtains, £8 5s 0d

1 feather bed, quilt, bolster, pillows, bedstead and curtains, £6 10s 0d

1 wool bed, bolster and 2 feather pillows, £2 10s 0d

1 blanket, old quilt and bedstead, £1 10s 0d

1 quilt, £1 10s 0d

1 quilt, £1 10s 0d

1 palampore, £2 0s 0d

1 set of bed curtains, £0 2s 0d

3 pairs of longcloth sheets, £2 0s 0d

6 pairs of pillowcases, £0 18s 0d

4 pairs of pillowcases, £0 1s 0d

1 dimity tablecloth and 6 napkins, £1 0s 0d

3 dimity tablecloths, £1 7s 0d

7 napkins, £1 0s 0d

2 dowlas tablecloths and 2 sideboards, £0 6s 0d

6 osnaburg towels, £0 6s 0d

3 pairs of dowlas sheets, £1 10s 0d

4 pairs of dowlas sheets, £0 5s 0d

1 bed rack and rod, £0 10s 0d

5 china dishes and 19 plates, £0 6s 0d

3 china bowls, £0 2s 0d

4 silver spoons, £0 5s 0d

old silver, £1 5s 0d

8 silver teaspoons, tongs and strainer, £0 4s 0d

1 pewter basin, £0 3s 0d

1 pewter funnel, £0 10s 0d

3 brass candlesticks, £0 6s 0d

1 pair of snuffers, £0 15s 0d

1 brass mortar and pestle, £0 [...]

£22 11s 6d

Carried over, £677 10s 2d

Interpretations

Osnaburg was a coarse unbleached linen first made in Osnabrück in Germany, a cheap hard-wearing cloth used for towels, working clothes and sacking. Its listing beside the finer dowlas and dimity marks the range of the household's linen from rough utility cloth to better table and bed napery.

The bed rack and rod were the fittings that carried the curtains around a bedstead, the rod holding the hangings that enclosed the bed against draught and gave privacy. Their separate listing shows the curtained bed as a piece assembled from frame, hangings and their ironwork.

The silver spoons, teaspoons and old silver together were the estate's store of precious metal in usable form, silver serving both as tableware and as a portable reserve of value. On an island short of coin, worked and scrap silver alike held worth that could be weighed and sold at need.

The three grades of bed, feather, wool and the plainer bedding, priced from £8 down to a couple of pounds, show the ranking of sleeping quarters through the house from the best chambers to the meaner rooms. The palampore, the painted Indian cotton bedcover, added a touch of imported finery to the better beds.

130

122

Brought over £ 677 10 2

1 Sundial

£ 6

1 P[..] Small Stillards

4

1 P[..] Tongs

6

1 Sett China Cups & Saucers

1 5

8 Cups & Saucers

3

7 Wine Glasses 4 Tumblers & 1 Decanter

11 6

1 China Tea Pot

3

1 Box Iron & Heaters

7 6

2 Lackquerd Tea Boards

10

1 Tea Table Cloth

5

1 Bandied

3

2 China Jars

9

5 Earthen D[o]

6 3

1 D[o] D[o] Large

5

1 Stone Jugg

2 6

18 Knives & Forks

15

1 Earthen Tea Pott

2

3 P[..] Pott Hangers

4 6

1 Small Tea Kettle

7

1 Small Pot

4

1 old D[o]

6

1 Small D[o]

8

1 Frying Pan

3

1 Spitt

2

1 Grill Iron

1 5

1 Pail & Pigin

5

a Parcel Plantation Tools

1

1 China Chamber Pot & 2 Pewter D[o]

3

2 China Salts

1

1 Large Bible

1

1 D[o] Small

2 6

a parcel of Books

1

1 Brine Tub

10

2 Pewter Dishes

2

1 Yam Pott

10

12 11 9

Owing to this Estate from John Bland

30 5 3

£ 720 7 2

The valuation of John Swaite's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £677 10s 2d

1 sundial, £0 6s 0d

1 pair of small steelyards, £0 4s 0d

1 pair of tongs, £0 6s 0d

1 set of china cups and saucers, £1 5s 0d

8 cups and saucers, £0 3s 0d

7 wine glasses, 4 tumblers and 1 decanter, £0 11s 6d

1 china teapot, £0 3s 0d

1 box iron and heaters, £0 7s 6d

2 lacquered tea boards, £0 10s 0d

1 tea tablecloth, £0 5s 0d

1 bandeau, £0 3s 0d

2 china jars, £0 0s 0d

5 earthen jars, £0 6s 3d

1 earthen jar, large, £0 5s 0d

1 stone jug, £0 2s 6d

18 knives and forks, £0 15s 0d

1 earthen teapot, £0 2s 0d

3 pairs of pot hangers, £0 4s 6d

1 small teakettle, £0 7s 0d

1 small pot, £0 4s 0d

1 old pot, £0 6s 0d

1 small pot, £0 8s 0d

1 frying pan, £0 3s 0d

1 spit, £0 2s 0d

1 gridiron, £0 1s 0d

1 pail and piggin, £0 5s 0d

a parcel of plantation tools, £1 0s 0d

1 china chamber pot and 2 pewter chamber pots, £0 3s 0d

2 china salts, £0 1s 0d

1 large bible, £1 0s 0d

1 small bible, £0 2s 6d

a parcel of books, £1 0s 0d

1 brine tub, £0 10s 0d

2 pewter dishes, £0 2s 0d

1 yam pot, £0 10s 0d

£12 11s 9d

Owing to this estate from John Bland, £30 5s 3d

£720 7s 2d

Interpretations

A bandeau was a band or fillet, probably a woman's headband or a strip of trimming, listed here among the household textiles. Its low value marks it as a small item of dress or ornament rather than a furnishing.

A sundial in the estate was the household's means of telling the time by the sun, a fixed dial read against a cast shadow, useful in a place and age where mechanical clocks were costly and few. Its presence marks a settler keeping the hours by the oldest method where a timepiece was beyond reach or unreliable.

The lacquered tea boards were trays finished in the hard glossy varnish imitating the lacquerwork of the East, made to carry the tea service and valued for their decorative finish. Their listing with the cups, saucers and teapots marks the settled ritual of tea-taking in the household.

The debt of £30 5s 3d owing to the estate from John Bland was a substantial sum, a piece of book credit forming part of the deceased's assets to be collected by his heirs. Such private debts between settlers ran through the island's cash-poor economy, where much trade was carried on account rather than in coin.

131

123

This Estate Indebted to Sundry Persons Viz[..]

To the Orphans of M[..] Griffith

£ 160

To Mark Hawkins

14

To M[..] Evans

10 19 6

To M[..] John Alexander

3

To M[..] Inglis

4 17

£ 192 16 6

Inventory of the Goods & Chattles of Jos[..] Worrall Dec[..] taken

and appraised by Mess[..] Thomas Colgrove and William Young this 21

Day of April 1756

Blacks Viz[..]

1 Man Named Antego

£ 18

1 Woman D[o] Betty

12

1 Girl D[o] Lucy

6

£ 36

Land Viz[..]

15 Acres Free ho[..] formerly Benj[..] Seales @ £ 8 [P] Acre

120

16 D[o] D[o] W[m] Seale's @ 7/ [P] D[o]

112

16 3/4 Acres Leasehold D[o] D[o] @ 2/ [P] D[o]

33 10

16 1/4 D[o] D[o] Benj[..] Seales @ £ 2 [P] D[o]

32 10

£ 298

Houses Viz[..]

1 House in the Country upon the Lands formerly W[m] Seales

30

1 D[o] in James Valley with the Back yard &c[..]

120

£ 150

Plantation Viz[..]

32.900 Yams & Suckers @ 16/ [P] 1000

26 6 4

12.700 D[o] 12/ D[o]

7 12 4

16.800 D[o] 9/ D[o]

7 11 2

18.300 D[o] 7/ D[o]

6 8 1

22.100 D[o] 6/ D[o]

6 12 7

8.200 D[o] 5/ D[o]

2 1

56 11 6

Carried over £ 540 11 6

The debts owed by John Swaite's estate were set out before a fresh inventory began.

This estate indebted to sundry persons, viz:

To the orphans of Griffith, £160 0s 0d

To Mark Hawkins, £14 0s 0d

To Evans, £10 19s 6d

To John Alexander, £3 0s 0d

To Inglis, £4 17s 0d

£192 16s 6d

An inventory of the goods and chattels of James Worrall, deceased, was taken and appraised by Thomas Colgrave and William Young on 21 April 1756.

Blacks, viz:

1 man named Antego, £18 0s 0d

1 woman named Betty, £12 0s 0d

1 girl named Lucy, £6 0s 0d

£36 0s 0d

Land, viz:

15 acres freehold formerly Benjamin Seale's at £8 per acre, £120 0s 0d

16 acres freehold formerly Benjamin Seale's at £7 per acre, £112 0s 0d

10¼ acres leasehold formerly Benjamin Seale's at £2 4s per acre, £33 10s 0d

16¼ acres leasehold formerly Benjamin Seale's at £2 per acre, £32 10s 0d

£298 0s 0d

Houses, viz:

1 house in the country upon the lands formerly William Seale's, £30 0s 0d

1 house in James Valley with the backyard, £120 0s 0d

£150 0s 0d

Plantation, viz:

32,900 yams and suckers at 16s per thousand, £26 6s 4d

12,700 yams at 12s per thousand, £7 12s 4d

16,800 yams at 9s per thousand, £7 11s 2d

18,300 yams at 7s per thousand, £6 8s 1d

22,100 yams at 6s per thousand, £6 12s 7d

8,200 yams at 5s per thousand, £2 1s 0d

£56 11s 6d

Carried over, £540 16s 6d

Interpretations

The single largest debt from the Swaite estate, £160 owed to the orphans of Griffith, was money the deceased had held belonging to fatherless children, probably their inheritance kept in trust. That a family stood as debtor for an orphan's portion points to the island court's oversight of the property of minors, the estate now bound to answer to that authority for the sum before it could be settled.

Much of the Worrall land and one house had formerly belonged to Benjamin and William Seale, the entries naming the previous owners of ground now passed to the new estate. This recording of former holders shows how land moved between the island's settler families by sale or inheritance, the Seale property having been broken up and acquired piece by piece.

The man Antego bore a name probably taken from Antigua in the West Indies, marking either his origin or the route by which he came to the island. The naming of slaves after places was common, and it hints at the wide reach of the shipping that carried enslaved people to St Helena.

The yam crop, graded into six lots by age and readiness and worth £56 11s 6d, was the estate's principal cash asset in the standing plantation. This staggered planting shows a grower managing his ground to yield provisions across the season for the Company ships that called at the island.

132

124

Brought over £ 540 11 6

Neat Cattle Viz[..]

9 Cows & 8 Calves

59 5

2 Heifers

6

65 5

Hogs Viz[..]

4 Sows

4

6 Barrows

2 14

10 Shoats

6 1 6

12 15 6

Poultry Viz[..]

8 Grown Turkeys

2

7 half D[o] D[o]

15

7 young D[o]

8 9

7 Grown Fowls

10 6

12 half D[o] D[o]

9

6 Chickens

1 6

4 9 9

1 Young Maw

8 10

1 D[o] Saddle Bridle &c[..]

1 5

A Parcel of old Books

2 10

a D[o] of D[o] Carpenters Tools

12

a D[o] of Plantation D[o]

17

2 Silver Tea Spoons

2 6

1 Sett of old Silver Buckles

16

Wareing Apparel

3 19

1 Sett of Fleams

1

£ 641 14 3

Household Goods Viz[..]

1 Feather Bed 1 D[o] Bolster 2 D[o] Pillows under Bed

and Bed Stead

5 5

1 Feather Bed 2 D[o] Pillows 1 Wool Bolster under Bed

& Bed Stead

1 10

1 Feather Bed 4 D[o] Pillows 1 Wool Bolster under

Bed & Bed Stead

2

Carried over £ 8 15

Carried over £ 641 14 3

The valuation of James Worrall's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £540 11s 6d

Neat cattle, viz:

9 cows and 8 calves, £59 5s 0d

2 heifers, £6 0s 0d

£65 5s 0d

Hogs, viz:

4 sows, £4 0s 0d

6 barrows, £2 14s 0d

10 shoats, £6 1s 6d

£12 15s 6d

Poultry, viz:

8 grown turkeys, £2 0s 0d

half-grown turkeys, £0 15s 0d

7 young turkeys, £0 8s 9d

7 grown fowls, £0 10s 6d

12 half-grown fowls, £0 9s 0d

6 chickens, £0 1s 6d

£4 9s 9d

1 young mare, £8 10s 0d

1 old saddle and bridle, £1 5s 0d

a parcel of old books, £2 10s 0d

a parcel of carpenter's tools, £0 12s 0d

a parcel of plantation tools, £0 17s 0d

2 silver teaspoons, £0 2s 6d

1 set of old silver buckles, £0 16s 0d

wearing apparel, £3 19s 0d

1 set of fleams, £0 1s 0d

£641 14s 3d

Household goods, viz:

1 feather bed, bolster, 2 pillows, underbed and bedstead, £5 5s 0d

1 feather bed, 2 pillows, wool bolster, underbed and bedstead, £1 10s 0d

1 feather bed, 4 pillows, wool bolster, underbed and bedstead, £2 0s 0d

Carried over, £8 15s 0d

Carried over, £641 14s 3d

Interpretations

A set of fleams was the small bladed instruments used to open a vein for bloodletting, kept together for the purpose. Bloodletting was a common medical treatment of the age on both people and livestock, and the presence of such a set suggests the deceased or his household practised it, perhaps on the cattle and horses the estate kept.

The parcel of carpenter's tools points to woodworking carried on at the estate, whether by the deceased or a household member, the gear for building and mending kept on the spot. On an island where little timber grew fit for use and craftsmen were few, a settler able to work wood himself held a real advantage.

An underbed was the lower mattress laid beneath the feather bed, giving a firm base under the soft upper layer, and the several beds so furnished mark the better sleeping places of the house. The gradation in their values, from over five pounds down to a couple, shows the ranking of chambers from the best to the plainer.

The two silver teaspoons and the set of old silver buckles were the estate's small store of precious metal, silver serving both for use and as a portable reserve of value. On an island short of coin, even worn buckles held worth that could be weighed and sold at need.

133

125

Brought over £ 641 14 3

Brought over £ 8 15

1 Large Fir Chest

1 10

1 old Chest with Draws

1

1 Long Table

7 6

1 Round D[o]

15

1 Fir Chest

8

2 Small Hatchets 1 Wood Ax & 1 Iron Trimmer

7 6

4 old Chairs

5

1 P[..] Brass Candlesticks

6

3 Pewter Dishes

6

14 D[o] Plates

8

1 D[o] Funnel

1 6

1 D[o] Bason

2

6 Knives & Forks

2

1 Morter & Pestle

10

5 Small Earthen Jars

4

2 Large D[o]

2

2 Glass Salts

1 6

1 Box Iron & Heaters

4

1 Box Iron

3 6

1 Earthen Jar & Cock

2

1 P[..] Large Stillards

2 6

1 D[o] Small D[o]

2 6

1 Frying Pan

3

3 Spitts

3

1 P[..] Hand Irons

5

1 Grilling Iron

2 6

1 P[..] Foaks

2

2 P[..] Pot hangers

2 6

2 P[..] D[o] Hooks

1

3 old Pots

6

1 Brass Ladle & Scummer

1 6

2 Pales 1 Tub & 1 Bowl

4

1 old Tea Kettle

2 6

1 Tea Table

4

Carried over £ 18 2 6

Carried over £ 641 14 3

The valuation of James Worrall's estate continued from the sums already carried over.

Brought over, £641 14s 3d

Brought over, £8 15s 0d

1 large fir chest, £1 10s 0d

1 old chest with drawers, £1 0s 0d

1 long table, £0 7s 6d

1 round table, £0 15s 0d

1 fir chest, £0 8s 0d

2 small hatchets, 1 wood axe and 1 stone hammer, £0 7s 6d

4 old chairs, £0 5s 0d

1 pair of brass candlesticks, £0 6s 0d

3 pewter dishes, £0 6s 0d

14 pewter plates, £0 8s 0d

1 pewter funnel, £0 1s 6d

1 pewter basin, £0 2s 0d

6 knives and forks, £0 2s 0d

1 mortar and pestle, £0 10s 0d

5 small earthen jars, £0 4s 0d

1 large earthen jar, £0 2s 0d

2 glass salts, £0 1s 6d

1 box iron and heaters, £0 4s 0d

1 box iron, £0 3s 6d

1 earthen jar and cock, £0 2s 0d

1 pair of large steelyards, £0 2s 6d

1 pair of small steelyards, £0 2s 6d

1 frying pan, £0 3s 0d

3 spits, £0 3s 0d

1 pair of hand irons, £0 5s 0d

1 gridiron, £0 2s 6d

1 pair of pot hooks, £0 2s 0d

2 pairs of pot hangers, £0 2s 6d

2 pairs of pot hooks, £0 1s 0d

3 old pots, £0 6s 0d

1 brass ladle and skimmer, £0 1s 6d

2 pails, 1 tub and 1 bowl, £0 4s 0d

1 old teakettle, £0 2s 6d

1 tea table, £0 4s 0d

Carried over, £18 2s 6d

Carried over, £641 14s 3d

Interpretations

A stone hammer was a heavy hammer for dressing or breaking stone, listed with the wood axe and hatchets among the working tools, marking the household's own labour of building and clearing. On an island where stone was used for walls and foundations, such a tool served the constant work of construction and repair.

A brass ladle and skimmer were the kitchen implements for serving broth and lifting scum or fat from the boiling pot, the skimmer a flat perforated spoon and the ladle a deep one. Their listing with the spits, gridiron and pots completes the gear of an open-fire kitchen.

The two grades of steelyard, one large and one small, were portable balances weighing goods by a sliding counterpoise along a marked arm, the large for heavier loads and the small for lighter. A household holding both could weigh out provisions or produce across a range of quantities, fitting an estate that raised stock and crops for sale.

The plain kitchen and household gear here, pewter, iron pots, tools and earthenware, marks a working establishment furnished for use rather than display, in contrast to the silver, china and finer goods of the wealthier estates on these leaves. The fir chests and old chairs speak to a household of modest comfort geared to the labour of its land.

134

126

Brought over £ 641 14 3

Brought over £ 18 2 6

1 Fir Box

3

1 Small Desk

15

1 D[o] Trunk

5

1 D[o] Looking Glass

5

1 Horn Lanthorn

1 6

2 Rasors & Hone

5

2 Chamber Potts

3

1 Chintz Quilt

12

1 old D[o]

2 6

1 P[..] Devsetees Sheets

7

3 Devetie D[o]

6

3 P[..] Pillowbers

4

2 Table Cloths

5

2 Towels

6

1 Carpenters Rule

2 6

1 old Fir Box

2 6

22 2

Debts Due to the Estate Viz[..]

William Seale

3 15 2[...]

Edward Bagley

1 2

Daniel Hughes

1 2

Elisha Isaacks

1 3 7

Samuel Falconer

10 18 9[...]

John Hodge

4 7

18 5 7

Debts Due from the Estate Viz[..] £ 681 19 10

Joseph Whaley Orp[..]

1 11 10[...]

Thomas Watts

16

Joseph Mountain's Orp[..]

2 5[...]

John Inglis

6 4 6

James Corbett

47 9 10

Heirs of W[m] Worrall Dec[..]

16 18 9[...]

73 3 5[...]

Signed

Tho[..] Holgrave

W[m] Young

The valuation of James Worrall's estate continued from the sums already carried over, before the debts owed to and by the estate were set out.

Brought over, £641 14s 3d

Brought over, £18 2s 6d

1 fir box, £0 3s 0d

1 small desk, £0 15s 0d

1 small trunk, £0 5s 0d

1 looking glass, £0 5s 0d

1 horn lantern, £0 1s 6d

2 razors and hone, £0 5s 0d

2 chamber pots, £0 3s 0d

1 chintz quilt, £0 12s 0d

1 old chintz quilt, £0 2s 6d

1 pair of dowlas sheets, £0 7s 0d

3 pairs of dowlas sheets, £0 6s 0d

3 pairs of pillowcases, £0 4s 0d

2 tablecloths, £0 5s 0d

2 towels, £0 6s 0d

1 carpenter's rule, £0 2s 6d

1 old fir box, £0 2s 6d

£22 2s 0d

Debts due to the estate, viz:

William Seale, £3 15s 2d

Edward Bagley, £1 2s 0d

Daniel Hughes, £1 3s 0d

Elisha Isaacks, £1 3s 7d

Samuel Falconer, £10 18s 9d

John Hodge, £0 4s 7d

£18 3s 7d

Debts due from the estate, viz:

Joseph Whaley, orphan, £1 11s 10d

Thomas Watts, £0 16s 0d

Joseph Fountain's orphan, £0 2s 5d

John Inglis, £6 4s 6d

James Corbett, £47 9s 10d

Heirs of William Worrall, deceased, £16 18s 9d

£73 3s 5d

Signed Thomas Colgrave

William Young

Interpretations

Chintz was a printed and glazed Indian cotton, brightly patterned and imported through the Company trade, prized for bed furnishing and hangings. The two chintz quilts here, one old, mark the reach of Indian textiles into an ordinary island household as valued bedding.

The single largest debt from the estate, £47 9s 10d owed to James Corbett, dwarfed every other and formed the greater part of the whole liability. A sum of this size probably rested against the land or stood as a standing account, the kind of large private debt that bound a settler to a wealthier creditor and could force the sale of ground to clear it.

Two of the debts from the estate were owed to orphans, to Joseph Whaley and to Joseph Fountain's orphan, money the deceased had held belonging to fatherless children. This points again to the island court's oversight of the property of minors, the estate bound to answer for such sums before it could be settled among the heirs.

The debt to the heirs of William Worrall, deceased, shows an obligation outliving the man who first held it and passing as an asset to his heirs. The recurrence of the Worrall and Seale names through the debts, the land and the houses marks the close binding of a few settler families through property and credit alike.

135

127

An Inventory of the Estate and Effects of the late M[..] William Burnham

Deceased, taken and Appraised by Mess[..] William Young and John

Desfountain.

1 Feather Bed, 1 Wool Bed, 1 Wool Bolster & Furniture

4

1 D[o] 3 Pillows, Quilt, and 1 Bedstead

2 15

D[o] 1 Bedstead, 1 Boulster 1 Quilt & Pillows

2 10

1 Escrutore

2 10

1 old Oval Table

10

1 Long Table

10

1 Large Fir Chest

15

1 D[o]

5

1 D[o]

15

1 Small D[o]

12

1 Fir Box

8

1 D[o] Table

3

1 Case with 9 Bottles

5

1 old Violin

12

1 Carboy

10

1 Stone Jug

8

3 Large China Bowls

3

6 Small D[o]

6

4 China Smoakers

8

6 D[o] Soup plates

3

6 old China D[o]

4

12 Small Cups & Saucers

2 6

2 half pint Cups & 5 Saucers

4

2 Glass Salts

2

6 Wine Glasses

1 6

1 Small Looking Glass

3 6

1 P[..] Old Stillyards

1 3

2 Pint Tin Sauce Pans

1

2 Pewter Dishes

1 6

6 D[o] Plates

5

1 D[o] Small Bason

4

6 D[o] Spoons

1 6

1 D[o] Funnill

1 6

1 D[o] Pint & 1 Quarteren Pot

1

1 Small Copper Sauce Pan

2

1 Earthen Tea Kettle

1 6

1 D[o] Tea Pot

3

1 Copper Tea Kettle

9

Carried over £ 21 10 3

An inventory of the estate of William Burnham, deceased, was taken and appraised by William Young and John Desfountain.

1 feather bed, 1 wool bed, 1 wool bolster and furniture, £4 0s 0d

1 feather bed, 3 pillows, quilt and 1 bedstead, £2 15s 0d

1 feather bed, 1 bedstead, 1 bolster, quilt and 1 pillow, £2 10s 0d

1 escritoire, £2 10s 0d

1 old oval table, £0 10s 0d

1 long table, £0 15s 0d

1 large fir chest, £1 5s 0d

1 fir chest, £0 15s 0d

1 fir chest, £0 12s 0d

1 small fir chest, £0 6s 0d

1 fir box, £0 3s 0d

1 fir table, £0 5s 0d

1 case with 9 bottles, £0 12s 0d

1 old violin, £0 10s 0d

1 carboy, £0 8s 0d

1 stone jug, £0 3s 0d

3 large china bowls, £0 6s 0d

6 small china bowls, £0 8s 0d

7 china cups, £0 3s 0d

6 china soup plates, £0 4s 0d

6 old china plates, £0 2s 6d

12 small cups and saucers, £0 4s 0d

2 half-pint cups and 5 saucers, £0 2s 0d

2 glass salts, £0 1s 6d

6 wine glasses, £0 3s 6d

1 small looking glass, £0 1s 3d

1 pair of steelyards, £0 2s 0d

2 pint tin saucepans, £0 1s 6d

2 pewter dishes, £0 5s 0d

6 pewter plates, £0 4s 0d

1 pewter small basin, £0 1s 6d

6 pewter spoons, £0 1s 6d

1 pewter funnel, £0 1s 6d

1 pewter pint and 1 quartern pot, £0 2s 0d

1 small copper saucepan, £0 2s 0d

1 earthen teakettle, £0 1s 6d

1 teapot, £0 3s 0d

1 copper teakettle, £0 9s 0d

Carried over, £21 10s 3d

Interpretations

An old violin among the household goods was an unusual item on these leaves, a musical instrument marking some leisure and music-making in the house. Such an instrument, imported like most goods on the island, points to a settler who played for his own or his household's pleasure.

A quartern pot was a pewter measure holding a quarter of a pint, and with the pint pot it made up the graded vessels for drawing off drink by fixed quantity. Their presence marks a household that dispensed liquor by measure, whether for the family or for sale.

The seven china drinking cups listed among the tableware were small vessels for spirits or tea taken in modest measure, part of the household's imported ceramic. Their listing with the bowls, cups and saucers marks the settled place of tea and punch in the daily table of an island home.

The store of china and glass, three large bowls, soup plates, cups, saucers and wine glasses, marks a household equipped for dining and tea service beyond the plainest sort. This imported ware, brought in on Company ships, shows a settler of modest comfort keeping a table dressed for more than bare need.

136

128

Brought over £ 21 10 3

2 Brass Candlesticks

4 6

1 Brass Sconce

1

1 Glass Lamp

4

1 Parcel of old Books

4

3 Lamps

3

1 Brass Lock

1 3

1 D[o] Small

8 3

8 Knives & 8 Forks

5

1 Small Silver Spoon

1 6

6 pair of Sheets

8

3 Table Cloaths

8

2 Diaper Napkins

5

6 Towels

4

5 pair Pillowbeers

10

1 Set of Bed and 2 of Window Curtains

9

6 Sussex Handkerchiefs

6

3 Chequd D[o]

4 6

1 piece Stripe Gingham

8

2 Bed Rails

3

3 D[o]

7 6

3 D[o]

6

3 Washing Tubs

4 6

1 old Bedsted

3

1 Lanthorn

2

1 Iron Meat Pot

5

1 Gallon Pot

2 6

1 Iron Spit

2 6

1 Pail 1 Water Tubb

3

1 Pott Hanger

1 6

1 Frying Pan

1 6

2 Small Hoggs

18

6 Small Jarrs

2

5 old Chairs

7 6

2 fir Forms

3

2 D[o] Tobacco

3

At his House in Pleasant Valley

1 Cow by name Lovely & a Calf

6 10

1 D[o] Cherry & a Calf

7 10

1 D[o] Welcome & a D[o]

5

1 Large Red Heifer

2 10

1 Small Brindle D[o]

Carried over £ 63 14

The valuation of William Burnham's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £21 10s 3d

2 brass candlesticks, £0 4s 0d

1 brass funnel, £0 1s 6d

1 glass lamp, £0 1s 0d

1 parcel of old books, £1 0s 0d

3 lamps, £0 4s 0d

1 brass cock, £0 3s 0d

1 small brass cock, £0 1s 3d

8 knives and 8 forks, £0 5s 0d

1 small silver spoon, £0 1s 6d

6 pairs of sheets, £3 0s 0d

3 tablecloths, £0 8s 0d

2 diaper napkins, £0 5s 0d

6 towels, £0 4s 0d

5 pairs of pillowcases, £0 10s 0d

1 set of bed and 2 of window curtains, £2 0s 0d

6 silk handkerchiefs, £0 6s 0d

3 checked handkerchiefs, £0 4s 6d

1 piece of striped gingham, £0 8s 0d

2 bed rails, £0 3s 0d

3 rods, £0 7s 6d

3 washing tubs, £0 4s 6d

1 old bedstead, £0 3s 0d

1 lantern, £0 5s 0d

1 iron meat pot, £0 2s 6d

1 gallon pot, £0 2s 6d

1 iron spit, £0 3s 0d

1 pail and 1 water tub, £0 1s 0d

1 pot hanger, £0 1s 6d

1 frying pan, £0 18s 0d

2 small hogs, £0 2s 0d

6 small jars, £0 7s 6d

5 old chairs, £0 3s 0d

2 fir forms, £0 3s 0d

2 lb tobacco, £0 3s 0d

At his house in Pleasant Valley:

1 cow by name Lovely and a calf, £6 10s 0d

1 cow by name Cherry and a calf, £7 10s 0d

1 cow by name Welcome and a calf, £7 10s 0d

1 large red heifer, £5 0s 0d

1 small brindle heifer, £2 10s 0d

Carried over, £63 14s 0d

Interpretations

Diaper was a linen woven with a small repeating diamond or figured pattern, used for napkins and towels of better quality than plain cloth. The two diaper napkins here, listed with the finer table linen, mark the household's better napery against the coarser towels.

The estate held goods in two places, the main house and another at Pleasant Valley where the cattle were kept, the entry marking the deceased's property spread across the island. Pleasant Valley was one of the cultivable inland valleys, and holding stock there while living elsewhere shows a settler working ground beyond his own dwelling.

The cows were each recorded by name, Lovely, Cherry and Welcome, a naming that marks a settled breeding herd known individually to the household, each valued with her calf at foot. This personal naming of stock, common on the island, treated the beasts as known animals of a working dairy rather than anonymous heads.

The bed rails and rods were the fittings that carried the curtains around the bedsteads, the rods holding the hangings that enclosed each bed against draught. Their separate listing shows the curtained bed as a piece assembled from frame, hangings and their ironwork.

137

129

Brought over £ 63 14

1 Small red & White Heifer

1 10

2 Stears

4

19 Grown Goats at home at 8/

7 12

4 Young D[o] at D[o] at 4/

16

18 Grown D[o] at Stone [top] at 8/

4 16

Young D[o] at D[o] at 4/

3 Pewter Dishes

7

6 Pewter Plates

8

1 old Pewter Bason

1

1 D[o] Pewter Mugg

1 6

1 Long Tea Table

10 6

1 Small Table Gum wood Frame

5

2 old Chairs

2 6

1 old Long Form

1

1 old Fir Chest

1

1 old Fir Box

5

8 old knives and Forks

6

6 old Pewter Spoons

2 6

1 old pair of Iron Tongs

9

1 Small Box Iron & 2 Heaters

7

1 Large D[o] @ 2 D[o]

2 6

1 D[o] D[o] @ 2 D[o]

1 3

1 old Frying Pan

2

1 pair of Hand Irons

5

2 pair of Pott Hangers

3

3 pair of Pott Hooks

15

1 Large Iron Pott

7

1 Small D[o]

4

1 Smaller D[o]

1

1 Iron Spit

2 6

1 old Tea Kettle

6

1 old pair of Stillyards

10

1 Large Copper Kettle

2 6

1 old Hand Saw

1

1 old brass Candlestick

12

8 Earthen Jarrs

2 6

8 Small Cups and Saucers

8

2 Smoakers

2 5

4 Wine Glasses

2

5 China Bowls

4

1 Earthen Tea Pot

Carried over £ 90 16 10

The valuation of William Burnham's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £63 14s 0d

1 small red and white heifer, £1 15s 0d

2 steers, £4 0s 0d

19 grown goats at Frame at 8s each, £7 12s 0d

4 young goats at Frame at 4s each, £0 16s 0d

18 grown goats at Stone Top at 8s each, £7 4s 0d

young goats at Stone Top at 4s each, £4 16s 0d

3 pewter dishes, £0 7s 0d

6 pewter plates, £0 8s 0d

1 old pewter basin, £0 1s 6d

1 pewter mug, £0 1s 6d

1 long fir table, £0 6s 6d

1 small table with gum-wood frame, £0 5s 0d

2 old chairs, £0 2s 6d

1 old long form, £0 1s 0d

1 old fir chest, £0 1s 0d

1 old fir box, £0 1s 0d

8 old knives and forks, £0 5s 0d

6 old pewter spoons, £0 0s 6d

1 old pair of iron tongs, £0 2s 6d

1 small box iron and 2 heaters, £0 9s 0d

1 large box iron and 2 heaters, £0 7s 0d

1 old box iron and 2 heaters, £0 2s 6d

1 old frying pan, £0 1s 3d

1 pair of hand irons, £0 2s 0d

2 pairs of pot hangers, £0 5s 0d

3 pairs of pot hooks, £0 3s 0d

1 large iron pot, £0 15s 0d

1 small iron pot, £0 7s 0d

1 smaller iron pot, £0 4s 0d

1 iron spit, £0 1s 0d

1 old teakettle, £0 2s 6d

1 old pair of steelyards, £0 2s 6d

1 large copper kettle, £1 10s 0d

1 old handsaw, £0 2s 0d

1 old brass candlestick, £0 1s 6d

8 earthen jars, £0 12s 0d

8 small cups and saucers, £0 2s 6d

2 small cups, £0 2s 5d

4 wine glasses, £0 7s 0d

5 china bowls, £0 2s 0d

1 earthen teapot, £[...]

Carried over, £90 16s 10d

Interpretations

The goats were kept at two named places, Frame and Stone Top, the entries marking where the deceased's grazing beasts ranged across the island's high ground. Goats throve on the rough hillsides where cattle could not, so a flock split between two upland pastures drew value from ground unfit for the more valued stock.

Gum wood was timber from one of the island's native gumwood trees, a wood particular to St Helena and used here for a small table frame. Its listing marks the rare use of local timber, most wood on the island being shipped in, since the native trees yielded little fit for joinery.

The many box irons with their heaters, three sets in all, were the smoothing irons heated by a slug of hot metal slipped inside, used for pressing linen. Their number points to a household regularly dressing its stock of shirts, sheets and table linen, the heaters kept ready at the fire.

The plain iron, pewter and earthenware here, with the old chairs and fir chests, marks a working household furnished for use, in contrast to the silver and finer china of the wealthier estates. The small drinking cups among the tableware served spirits or tea taken in modest measure at a table dressed for need rather than display.

138

130

Brot over £ 90 16 10

1 Gallon Bottle Quilted

2

1 D[o] Tea Board

1

1 Large old Looking Glass

2

1 old Chest of Drawers

12

1 old large Fir Chest

6

1 old Small Wainscott Box

3

1 old Small red Chest

3

1 old Small Fir Chest

3

1 old Box

1

1 old Chest with Drawers

1 6

1 Large Red Sow

1

1 Brown D[o]

1

1 Brown D[o]

1 3

2 Spotted Boars

1

3 Shoats at 8/

2

3 D[o] at 6/

18

2 old Sambling Dishes

1

1 wooden Platter and Piggen

1 old Pewter Pott

1 6

1 D[o]

1 3

1 Feather Bed, 1 wood[..] D[o], 1 Boulster, 2 pillows, 1 Bedstead

curtains and Quilt

3

1 Feather Bed, 1 Strawd D[o], 1 Carpet, 1 old Quilt

Bolster & Boulted

2

5 Sussex Handkerchiefs

5

1 pair long Cloth Sheets, & 1 pair Pillowbeers

10

1 pair old Dustele Sheets

5

2 China Slates

6

21 Old Deals

2

1 Black Goat Skin

10

1 Long Cloth Towell

1 6

1 Dimity D[o]

1 6

1 Rattan Basket

1 6

1 Wicker Basket

1

1 old Table

5

1 Ebony Countess

1

1 Hour Glass

6

Parcel of old Books

1 1

1 Cloth Brush 2 Shoe Brushes

1 6

1 Pewter Salt

3

3 old Washing Tubbs

1 10

Plantation Tools

Carried over £ 121 16 7

The valuation of William Burnham's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £90 16s 10d

1 gallon bottle, quilted, £0 2s 0d

1 old tea board, £0 1s 0d

1 large old looking glass, £0 2s 0d

1 old chest of drawers, £0 12s 0d

1 old large fir chest, £0 6s 0d

1 old small wainscot box, £0 3s 0d

1 old small fir chest, £0 5s 0d

1 old small fir chest, £0 3s 0d

1 old box, £0 1s 6d

1 old chest with drawers, £0 1s 6d

1 large red sow, £1 0s 0d

1 brown sow, £1 0s 0d

1 brown sow, £0 18s 0d

2 spotted boars, £1 0s 0d

5 shoats at 8s each, £2 0s 0d

3 shoats at 6s each, £0 18s 0d

2 old tumbling dishes, £0 10s 0d

1 wooden platter and piggin, £0 1s 6d

1 old pewter pot, £0 1s 3d

1 feather bed, wool bed, bolster, 2 pillows, bedstead, curtains and quilt, £3 0s 0d

1 feather bed, bedstead, bolster, quilt and 2 pillows, £2 0s 0d

5 silk handkerchiefs, £0 5s 0d

1 pair of longcloth sheets and 1 pair of pillowcases, £0 10s 0d

1 pair of old dowlas sheets, £0 5s 0d

2 china plates, £0 0s 6d

21 deals, £0 6s 0d

1 black girl slave, £2 0s 0d

1 longcloth towel, £0 10s 0d

1 piece of dimity, £0 1s 6d

1 rattan basket, £0 1s 0d

1 wicker basket, £0 1s 0d

1 old table, £0 1s 0d

1 ebony escritoire, £0 5s 0d

1 hourglass, £0 1s 6d

1 parcel of old books, £0 1s 0d

1 clothes and 2 shoe brushes, £0 1s 6d

1 pewter salt, £0 1s 0d

3 old washing tubs, £0 3s 0d

plantation tools, £0 10s 0d

Carried over, £121 14s 7d

Interpretations

The black girl valued at £2 and set among the household goods was a slave listed as an item of property rather than in a separate class, the low figure marking her youth. Her placing among the furniture, unusual against the estates that grouped their slaves together, shows the same reduction of a person to a valued asset.

A tumbling dish was a bowl or dish with a rounded base that rocked when set down, of a form that would not sit flat, listed here among the household ware. Its unfamiliar name marks a particular kind of vessel now uncommon.

An hourglass measured a fixed span of time by sand running between two glass bulbs, the household's means of timing tasks or telling the passing hours where a clock was beyond reach. Its presence marks the keeping of time by the simplest method in a modest establishment.

An ebony escritoire, the small writing cabinet made of the dense black tropical wood, was a finer piece than the plain fir furniture around it, ebony being a costly imported timber. Its listing marks the keeping of papers and accounts in a household that dealt in credit and produce.

139

131

Brot over £ 121 14 7

1 Grindstone

4

33.690 Yams at 8/

13 9 6

14.436 D[o] at 7/

5 1

3.500 D[o] at 4/6

1 4 9

1 Dustele Table Cloth

3

1 Bombing D[o]

3

4 Ducks

6

11 Grown Fowls

16 6

13 Young D[o]

9 9

1 Dwelling House

15

19 Acres Free Land adjoining at 4/

76

9 Acres lease D[o] at 10/

4 10

10 Acres free Cabbidge Tree at 7/

70

4 Acres Lease D[o] at 17/6

5

1 New Stone Top lease at 7/

1

Cash left at his decease

12 12 9

Total £ 327 4 10

9 6

Clear Estate £ 317 18 10

1 Feather Bed, 1 Straw D[o], 1 Bedstead, 1 Blankett, 1 P[..] Dustele

Sheets left as a Legacy to John Burnham

1 15

The Small Brinded Heifer Legacy to Mary Burnham

2 10

The Goats and Hoggs at Stone Top to be delivered to Thomas

Burnham when at the Age of 16

4 16

Left by Legacy for Aking for Mary Burnham

1

Left by D[o] for Aking for Margaret Burnham

1

9 6

1756 August 30[..]

Signed

W[m] Young

John Desfountain

The valuation of William Burnham's estate continued from the sum already carried over, closing with the totals and the legacies set apart.

Brought over, £121 14s 7d

1 grindstone, £0 4s 0d

33,690 yams at 8s per thousand, £13 9s 6d

14,436 yams at 7s per thousand, £5 1s 0d

5,500 yams at 4s 6d per thousand, £1 4s 9d

1 dowlas tablecloth, £0 3s 0d

1 osnaburg tablecloth, £0 3s 0d

4 ducks, £0 6s 0d

11 grown fowls, £0 16s 6d

15 young fowls, £0 9s 9d

1 dwelling house, £15 0s 0d

19 acres of freehold land adjoining at £4 per acre, £76 0s 0d

9 acres of leasehold land at 10s per acre, £4 10s 0d

10 acres of freehold cabbage-tree land at £7 per acre, £70 0s 0d

4 acres of leasehold land at £1 5s per acre, £5 0s 0d

1 new Stone Top freehold at £1 per acre, £1 0s 0d

cash left at his decease, £12 12s 9d

Total, £337 4s 10d

Less, £9 6s 0d

Clear estate, £317 18s 10d

1 feather bed, wool bed, bedstead, blanket and 1 pair of pillows, given as a legacy to John Burnham, £1 15s 0d

The small brindle heifer, a legacy to Mary Burnham, £2 10s 0d

The goats and range at Stone Top to be delivered to Thomas Burnham when he reaches the age of 16, £4 16s 0d

Left by legacy as a ring for Mary Burnham, £1 0s 0d

Left by legacy as a ring for Margaret Burnham, £1 0s 0d

£9 6s 0d

1756 August 30

Signed William Young

John Desfountain

Interpretations

Cabbage-tree land was ground bearing the island's native cabbage trees, a group of endemic species peculiar to St Helena, and it was valued highest of all the deceased's land at £7 the acre. The name marks a particular kind of upland ground, the trees themselves being among the island's distinctive native flora, and the high price shows the worth of such planting ground.

The legacies were set apart from the estate and valued separately, beds, a heifer, goats and money for rings assigned to named kin. The goats at Stone Top were to be held until Thomas Burnham reached sixteen, a bequest kept in trust until the boy came of an age to receive it, showing the island court's oversight of a minor's inheritance.

Two of the legacies were sums left to buy mourning rings for Mary and Margaret Burnham, a common custom by which the dead provided for rings worn in their memory by kin or friends. This small bequest marks the settled practice of remembrance carried on even in a modest island household.

The whole estate came to a clear £317 18s 10d after the legacies, a middling holding resting chiefly on the land, houses and yam grounds. The cabbage-tree and adjoining freehold together made up the bulk of the value, marking a settler whose wealth lay in his ground rather than in stock or goods.

140

132

M[..] Isaac Leech's Sale

£ s d

John Leech One Feather Bed, 2 Pillows Flock, 2 Boulster

4

Sarj[..] Langhorne One Flock Bed

5

D[o] Harper One Lamp

1 10

Jn[..] Jacob Sen[..] One large pair Stillyards

9

M[..] Duffton One D[o] Small

5

M[..] Isabell One Dish

2 8

M[..] Hayes One Small Chest

12

Duffton One D[o] Box

2 10

Jn[..] Cotgrave One Gold Ring

10 7

Duffton One Frocking piece

8 6

Capt Gifsing One pair Shoes

6 2

Isleech Sen[..] One pair D[o]

5 1

Duffton One pair D[o]

2 1

Langhorne One Blue Coat

18 7 6

Gifsing One D[o]

6

Duffton One D[o]

5 7

Isleech Sen[..] 2 Pillow Cases

2 3

Jn[..] Hayes 7 pair Stockings

6

T Harper 8 Handkerchiefs and 1 Towell

2 4

D[o] 1 pair Mittens

1 7

Gifsing 3 Shirts

4 6

Langhorne 1 P[..] Gaiters

2 3

Duffton 3 Shirts 3 Stocks

4 7

Orr 1 Worsted Cap 1 Towell

1 4

Jn[..] Scale 3 Chegue Shirts

5 7

Lieu[..] Kennedy 1 White Silent Bottle 1 P[..] Scissors

4

S Jacobs 1 Case Bottle

1

Orr 1 P[..] Breeches

4 1

Langhorne 1 P[..] D[o]

2 7

Capt Clough 2 old Waistcoats

6

Serj[..] Jacobs 1 White Waistcoat & Lace

2 7

Langhorne Hooks and Lines

3 1

Jn[..] Leech Jun[..] Buckles Lumber &c[..]

2 5

& D[o] Some old Shoes

5 2

S Vaughn 2 old Hatts 2 old Wiggs

1 6

S Jacobs 1 old Sword

2 6

Jn[..] Leech Jun[..] 5[..] Pepper

1

One P[..] Spectacles

Carried over 13 3 7

A record of the sale of the goods of Isaac Leech, deceased, listing each buyer and the price paid.

John Leech: 1 feather bed, 2 pillows, flock, 2 bolsters, £4 0s 0d

Joseph Langhorne: 1 flock bed, £0 5s 0d

Gabriel Harper: 1 lamp, £0 1s 10d

John Leech senior: 1 large pair of steelyards, £0 9s 0d

William Desfountain: 1 small pair of steelyards, £0 5s 0d

Tetlow: 1 dish, £0 2s 8d

Hayes: 1 small chest, £0 12s 0d

Desfountain: 1 box, £0 2s 10d

Colgrave: 1 gold ring, £0 10s 7d

Desfountain: 1 fowling piece, £0 8s 6d

Captain Gifford: 1 pair of sheets, £0 6s 2d

John Leech senior: 1 pair of sheets, £0 3s 1d

Desfountain: 1 pair of sheets, £0 2s 1d

Langhorne: 1 blue coat, £0 18s 7d

Gifford: 1 blue coat, £0 6s 0d

Desfountain: 1 blue coat, £0 3s 7d

John Leech senior: 2 pillowcases, £0 2s 3d

Hayes: 7 pairs of stockings, £0 6s 0d

Harper: 8 handkerchiefs and 1 towel, £0 2s 4d

Harper: 1 pair of mittens, £0 1s 7d

Gifford: 3 shirts, £0 4s 6d

Langhorne: 1 pair of gaiters, £0 2s 3d

Desfountain: 3 shirts and 3 stocks, £0 4s 7d

Orr: 1 worsted cap and 1 towel, £0 1s 2d

Hayes: 3 calico shirts, £0 3s 7d

Lieutenant Kennedy: 1 white flint bottle and 1 pair of scissors, £0 0s 4d

Solomon Jacobs: 1 case bottle, £0 1s 0d

Orr: 1 pair of breeches, £0 4s 1d

Langhorne: 1 pair of breeches, £0 2s 2d

Captain Clough: 2 old waistcoats, £0 6s 0d

Solomon Jacobs: 1 white waistcoat and lace, £0 2s 7d

Langhorne: hooks and lines, £0 3s 1d

John Leech senior: buckles, lumber and other goods, £0 2s 5d

John Leech senior: some old shoes, £0 5s 2d

John Vaughan: old watts and old briggs, £0 1s 6d

Solomon Jacobs: 1 old sword, £0 2s 6d

John Leech senior: 30 lb pepper, £1 1s 6d

1 pair of spectacles, £0 1s 0d

Carried over, £13 3s 7d

Interpretations

This was a probate sale, the deceased's goods sold off piece by piece to named buyers rather than valued and kept, the record listing each purchaser and the price fetched. Such sales turned an estate into cash for settling debts and dividing among heirs, and the buyers here were the deceased's neighbours and kin, the goods passing round the settlement.

The thirty pounds of pepper sold to John Leech senior for £1 1s 6d was the single most valuable lot, a quantity of the imported spice held in the estate. Pepper was a costly Eastern commodity traded through the Company, and holding it in such weight marks either trade stock or a store laid up as a thing of value.

The recurrence of a few buyers, Desfountain, Langhorne, Gifford, Harper and the Leeches, shows the goods bought up within a close circle of the settlement's families. The ship's officers among them, Captain Gifford, Captain Clough and Lieutenant Kennedy, mark the mingling of the island's settlers with the sea officers whose vessels called at the port.

The sale of hooks and lines to Langhorne marks fishing gear passing to a buyer, the tackle for catching the fish that were a staple of the island's diet. Such gear was a practical possession where the sea supplied much of the fresh food.

141

133

Brot over £ 13 3 7

1 pair Pot Hangers

1

To his Salary

13 4 7

2 10

A Black Man Slave left as a Legacy to John the Son of the

Deceased Isaac Leech Valued at 15

15 14 7

15

The late M[..] Isaac Leech D[..]

To M[..] Elisha Isaacks for Yamms

10 6

To M[..] Eleanor Leech Washing

4 6

To Eliz[..] Leech to Ballance

6 7

To half a D[..] Shaving

1 6

To M[..] John Hayes Jun[..]

4 7 11

To his Funeral Charges

2 18

To John Leech for goods delivered

1 5 9

To the Churchwardens for Hog Money in 1752

2 10

To M[..] Richard Beale

5

To M[..] Rob[..] Gurling's Orphans

3 15 1

To M[..] Evans

11

To the drummer to beat at Auction

2 6

To the Marshall

7 6

To John Leech Sen[..] for Boarding a Girl

[...]

To 100 Lemons at his Funeral

2 6

Total £ 20 1 2

Account of things belonging to John Grigenor who

Deceased May 16[..] 1757

2 Shirts

1 P[..] Stockings

1 Waistcoat

1 P[..] Breeches

1 P[..] Drawers

1 Coat

1 P[..] Shackbuckles

a Bed and Rugg

Buck Skin[..] for a Board Coat

part of a p[..] Breeches

P[..] Knuckle Garters

2 p[..] old Shoes

The record of the sale of Isaac Leech's goods concluded, followed by the debts owed by his estate and a fresh account of another deceased man's effects.

Brought over, £13 3s 7d

1 pair of pot hangers, £0 1s 0d

his salary, £13 4s 7d

£2 10s 0d

A black man slave left as a legacy to John, the son of the deceased Isaac Leech, valued at £15, £15 14s 7d

£15 0s 0d

The debts owed by Isaac Leech's estate were set out.

To Elisha Isaacks for yams, £0 10s 6d

To Eleanor Leech for washing, £0 4s 6d

To Elizabeth Leech, to balance, £0 6s 7d

To half a year's shaving, £0 1s 6d

To John Hayes senior, £4 7s 11d

To his funeral charges, £2 18s 0d

To John Leech for goods delivered, £1 5s 9d

To the churchwardens for head money in 1752, £0 2s 10d

To Richard Beale, £0 5s 0d

To Robert Gurling's orphans, £3 15s 1d

To Evans, £0 11s 0d

To the drummer to beat at auction, £0 2s 6d

To the marshal, £0 7s 6d

To John Leech senior for boarding a girl, £0 2s 0d

To 100 lemons at his funeral, £0 2s 6d

Total, £20 1s 2d

An account of the goods belonging to John Grinyer, deceased, dated 4 May 1757.

2 shirts

1 pair of stockings

1 waistcoat

1 pair of breeches

1 pair of drawers

1 coat

1 pair of shoe buckles

a bed and rugs

black stock and pair of shoes cut

part of a pair of breeches

a pair of knee garters

2 pairs of old shoes

Interpretations

The head money paid to the churchwardens in 1752 was a poll charge levied on each head, whether of the household or its slaves, collected for the parish. This marks the reach of church and parish authority into the island's settlers, the estate answering for a due owed on the persons it held.

The drummer paid to beat at the auction called the settlement together to the sale, the drum being the means of public notice on the island where a beat summoned people to a gathering. This small charge shows how a probate sale was made known, the goods offered openly to the neighbourhood.

The black man left as a legacy to the deceased's son John was a slave bequeathed by will, valued at £15 and passing to a named heir as an item of inherited property. This shows again the movement of enslaved people between owners not only by sale but by inheritance, assigned to an heir as an ordinary bequest.

The hundred lemons bought for the funeral marks the provision of refreshment for the mourners, the fruit probably for drink served at the gathering. Funeral charges of this kind show the settled customs of burial carried on in the island community, the estate meeting the cost of a proper send-off.

142

134

Account of things belonging to Robert Barker deceased.

5 coloured Shirts

3 White D[o]

2 P[..] Gaytors

6 pair of Stockings

10 Stocks

3 Collers

1 Coloured Handkerchief

3 pair of Breeches

2 pair Shoes

1 pair Shoe Buckles

a Regimental Coat

a D[o] Hatt

3 Jacketts blue

1 Chest£ s d

In Cash 1 8[..]

Inventory of the Estate of Thomas Cathop Deceased

taken and Appraised by Mess[..] Francis Wrangham, Thomas

Greentree and Richard Beale, the 7[..] Day of September 1757

The Mansion House at

£ 60

14 Acres of Freehold Land at 10 [P] Acre

140

27 Acres of Leasehold Land adjoyning to the

Freehold @ 2 [P] Acre

54

10 1/2 Freehold bought by John Worrall at 10 [P] Acre

105

9 Acres Leasehold adjoyning to D[o] at 1 [P] Acre

9

358

Land

Cæsar a Man Slave

30

Bachus a Man Old

12

Jack

30

Betty a Woman Old

15

Ellen a Woman

18

105

Blacks

21000 New Planted @ 5/ [P] 1000

5 5

17,900 D[o] @ 8/ [P] 1000 in the Old Ground

5 19

9000 D[o] @ D[o] in the Gut

4 10

18 14

Yams & Suckers

Carried Over £ 481 14

An account of the goods belonging to Robert Baker, deceased.

5 coloured shirts

3 white shirts

2 pairs of gaiters

6 pairs of stockings

10 stocks

3 pillows

1 coloured handkerchief

3 pairs of breeches

2 pairs of shoes

1 pair of shoe buckles

a regimental coat

a regimental hat

3 jackets, blue

1 chest

in cash, £1 3s 0d

An inventory of the estate of Thomas Easthope, deceased, was taken and appraised by Francis Wrangham, Thomas Greentree and Richard Beale on 7 September 1759.

The mansion house at, £80 0s 0d

14 acres of freehold land at £10 per acre, £140 0s 0d

27 acres of leasehold land adjoining the freehold at £2 per acre, £54 0s 0d

10½ acres freehold bought of John Worrall at £10 per acre, £105 0s 0d

9 acres leasehold adjoining at £1 per acre, £9 0s 0d

£358 0s 0d

Caesar, a man slave, £30 0s 0d

Bacchus, a man, old, £12 0s 0d

Jack, £30 0s 0d

Betty, a woman, old, £15 0s 0d

Ellen, a woman, £18 0s 0d

£105 0s 0d

21,000 new-planted at 5s per thousand in the old ground, £5 5s 0d

17,900 at 10s per thousand in the old ground, £8 19s 0d

9,000 suckers in the gut, £4 10s 0d

£18 14s 0d

Carried over, £481 14s 0d

Interpretations

The regimental coat and hat among Baker's goods mark him as a soldier of the island garrison, the uniform of the Company's military force that held St Helena. The blue jackets and the regimental dress show a man in service, his few possessions those of a common soldier rather than a settler with land.

A gut on the island was a narrow ravine or watercourse running between the hills, and the suckers planted there were set in such a hollow, the young offshoots raising the next yam crop. This use of the island's clefts and gullies for planting shows ground won for cultivation wherever soil and water allowed.

The freehold at £10 the acre was worth five times the leasehold adjoining it at £2, the wide gap marking the value that secure title added to good ground. Ten and a half acres bought of John Worrall, another of the settlement's landholders, shows land passing between the island's families by sale, the estate built up piece by piece.

The men Caesar and Jack were each valued at £30, the highest on these leaves, while Bacchus, marked old, fetched only £12 and the woman Betty, also old, £15. Age plainly cut a slave's worth, the aged fetching a fraction of a prime worker, the appraisers pricing each by their remaining strength for labour.

143

135

Brought Over £ 481 14

Cattle

1 Cow Comely and Bull Calf D[o]

9

1 Cow Colly & Heifer Calf D[o]

9

1 Cow Brindle D[o]

5

1 Yellow Heifer D[o]

4

1 Cow Nobly & Bull Calf D[o]

9

1 Cow Damsel & Bull Calf D[o]

8 10

1 Cow Star D[o]

8

1 Young Black and White Bullock D[o]

5

1 Black Stear D[o]

4

1 Bull D[o]

5

69 10

Horses

1 Horse D[o]

15

1 Mare D[o]

8

23

Hogs

a Black Sow and Piggs D[o]

1 15

a White Sow and D[o] D[o]

1 10

a Sow D[o]

7 5

a Sow Shoat D[o]

15

a D[o] D[o]

10

5 15

Goats

1 Ewe Goat and two Kidds

16

Household Goods

1 Feather Bed Bolster and 2 Pillows Old D[o]

4

1 D[o] D[o] D[o] D[o] D[o]

4

1 D[o] Small

1 15

1 Cot sted Canvas Bottom

12

1 large Fir Chest

1

1 old Beauroe

1 15

1 Table and Frame Fir

12

1 D[o] Small

8

1 Round Table Old

8

1 Tea Table Old

5

1 Fir Chest Old

12 6

1 Lackerd Table Old

5

4 Rattaned Chairs Old

12

1 Sett of Sword Bed Curtains Old

7 6

Carried Over £ 16 12

Carried Over £ 580 15

The valuation of Thomas Easthope's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £481 14s 0d

Cattle:

1 cow, Comely, and bull calf, £9 0s 0d

1 cow, Colly, and heifer calf, £9 0s 0d

1 cow, Brindle, £8 0s 0d

1 yellow heifer, £4 0s 0d

1 cow, Stately, and bull calf, £4 0s 0d

1 cow, Damsel, and bull calf, £9 0s 0d

1 cow, Star, £8 10s 0d

1 young black and white bullock, £5 0s 0d

1 black steer, £4 0s 0d

1 bull, £5 0s 0d

£69 10s 0d

Horses:

1 horse, £15 0s 0d

1 mare, £8 0s 0d

£23 0s 0d

Hogs:

1 black sow and pigs, £1 15s 0d

1 white sow and pigs, £1 10s 0d

1 sow, £1 5s 0d

1 sow and shoat, £0 15s 0d

1 sow, £0 10s 0d

£5 15s 0d

Goats:

1 ewe goat and two kids, £0 16s 0d

Household goods:

1 feather bed, bolster and 2 pillows, old, £4 0s 0d

1 feather bed, bolster and 2 pillows, old, £4 0s 0d

1 small feather bed, bolster and pillows, £1 15s 0d

1 cot, steel canvas bottom, £0 12s 0d

1 large fir chest, £1 0s 0d

1 ebony bureau, £0 15s 0d

1 fir table and frame, £0 12s 0d

1 small fir table and frame, £0 8s 0d

1 old round table, £0 5s 0d

1 old tea table, £0 12s 6d

1 old fir chest, £0 5s 0d

1 old lacquered table, £0 10s 0d

4 old balanced chairs, £0 7s 6d

1 set of used bed curtains, old, £[...]

Carried over, £16 12s 0d

Carried over, £580 15s 0d

Interpretations

The cows were each recorded by name, Comely, Colly, Brindle, Stately, Damsel and Star, a naming that marks a settled breeding herd known individually to the household, most valued with a calf at foot. This personal naming of stock, common on the island, treated the beasts as known animals of a working dairy rather than anonymous heads.

A cot with a steel canvas bottom was a light bed slung on a frame with a taut canvas base stretched on a metal support, a firm and simple sleeping place distinct from the curtained feather beds. Its low value marks it as a plainer bed, probably for a child or servant.

An ebony bureau, the writing cabinet made of the dense black tropical wood, was a finer piece than the plain fir furniture around it, ebony being a costly imported timber. Its listing marks the keeping of papers and accounts in a household that dealt in credit and produce.

The single ewe goat with two kids was a modest holding against the flocks of the larger estates, a breeding nanny with her young rather than a grazing flock. Its presence marks a small provision of milk and meat kept alongside the more valued cattle.

144

136

Brought Over £ 580 15

Household Goods Brought Over £ 16 12

1 Old Frame

7

1 Box Iron and Heaters

6

1 Tea Kettle Old

3

1 Small D[o] Old

2 6

3 old Pewter Dishes & 3 Plates

7 6

1 Small Iron Pot

3

2 Brass Candlesticks Old

5

1 Glass Salt

6

1 large Iron Pot Old

4

1 D[o] D[o]

15

1 Small D[o] D[o]

5

3 Pair of Pot Hangers @ 1/6

4 6

2 Pair of Pot Hooks

3

1 Spit

2 6

1 Pair of Tongs

6

1 large Jarr

2

2 Old Bed Steads

8

1 Old Watering Pot

2 6

1 Small Fir Box

2 6

a Parcell of Old Books

10

a Parcell of Old Plantation Tools

9

a Small Looking Glass

10

a Large Chest Fir

1 5

a Small Iron Pot Old

3

24 15 6

£ 605 10 6

The valuation of Thomas Easthope's estate continued from the sums already carried over.

Brought over, £580 15s 0d

Household goods brought over, £16 12s 0d

1 old form, £0 1s 0d

1 box iron and heaters, £0 6s 0d

1 old teakettle, £0 3s 0d

1 small old teakettle, £0 2s 6d

3 old pewter dishes and 3 plates, £0 7s 6d

1 small iron pot, £0 3s 0d

2 old brass candlesticks, £0 5s 0d

1 glass salt, £0 0s 6d

1 large old iron pot, £1 0s 0d

1 large old iron pot, £0 15s 0d

1 small iron pot, £0 5s 0d

3 pairs of pot hangers at 1s 6d each, £0 4s 6d

2 pairs of pot hooks, £0 3s 0d

1 spit, £0 2s 6d

1 pair of tongs, £0 6s 0d

1 large jar, £0 2s 0d

2 old bedsteads, £0 8s 0d

1 old watering pot, £0 2s 6d

1 small fir box, £0 2s 6d

a parcel of old books, £0 10s 0d

a parcel of old plantation tools, £0 9s 0d

1 small looking glass, £0 10s 0d

1 large fir chest, £1 5s 0d

1 small old iron pot, £0 5s 0d

£24 15s 6d

£605 10s 6d

Interpretations

A watering pot was a vessel for watering plants or ground, the forerunner of the watering can, used to carry and pour water over the garden or seedlings. Its presence marks the tending of planted ground by hand, useful on an island where water had to be carried to the crops in dry spells.

The plain iron, pewter and old furniture here, with the parcels of old books and worn tools, marks the closing lots of a working household furnished for use rather than display. The many old iron pots and the fir chests speak to a settled establishment geared to the labour of its land, the goods valued for their utility.

The whole household stock came to £24 15s 6d, a modest sum against the estate's land, cattle and yam grounds, showing where the deceased's wealth truly lay. The plainness of the furniture, set against the considerable holding of ground and stock, marks a planter whose worth was in his acres rather than his rooms.

A spit, pot hangers, pot hooks and tongs together were the gear of an open-fire kitchen, the hangers and hooks suspending the pots over the flame at adjustable heights and the spit turning meat before it. These fittings completed a hearth where all cooking was done at the fire.

145

137

An Inventory of the Estate and Effects of John Twaits and

Mary Twaits Deceased, taken and Appraised by Mess[..] Richard Bagley

and Benjamin Mason this 21[..] Day of April 1758. Viz[..]

Lands Viz[..]

9 Acres of Freehold D[o] £ 10.10.0 [P] Acre

£ 94 10

17 D[o] Lease D[o] 2.10.[..] [P] Acre

42 10

13 1/2 D[o] D[o] D[o] 2.10.[..] [P] Acre

33 15

4 D[o] D[o] D[o] 16.[..].[..] [P] Acre

64

4 D[o] D[o] D[o] 1.[..].[..] [P] Acre

4

238 15

Houses Viz[..]

1 Dwelling House D[o] £ 20

20

1 D[o] not finished D[o] £ 35

35

55

Timber Viz[..]

16 Double Deals D[o] 4/6 ea

3 6 8

4 Fir Girders D[o] 5/ ea

1

2 Fir Door Cases D[o] 4/ ea

8

13 Single Deals D[o] 2/10 ea

1 16 10

8 Window Sashes D[o] 7/6 ea

3

29 Flooring Boards D[o] 1/5 ea

2 1

150 Squares of Glass 8 by 10 D[o] 1/3 ea

9 7 6

21

Sheep Viz[..]

29 Grown D[o] 15/ ea

21 15

4 Lambs D[o] 8/ ea

1 12

23 7

Black Cattle Viz[..]

1 Cow and Calf D[o] £ 8

8

1 D[o] & D[o] D[o] 8

8

1 D[o] & D[o] D[o] 8

8

1 D[o] & D[o] D[o] 7.10

7 10

1 D[o] & D[o] D[o] 8

8

1 D[o] & D[o] D[o] 6.10

6 10

1 D[o] D[o] 6.10

5 10

1 D[o] D[o] 6.10

6 10

1 Heifer D[o] 4.

4

1 Cow D[o] 6.

6

1 Heifer D[o] 3.10

3 10

1 D[o] D[o] 2.10

2 13

1 D[o] D[o] 2.15

2 15

1 Steer D[o] 4.

4

1 D[o] D[o] 3.10

3 10

1 Young Bull D[o] 4.5

4 5

36

Carried over £ 434 2

An inventory of the estate of John Swaite and Mary Swaite, deceased, was taken and appraised by Richard Bagley and Benjamin Mason on 21 April 1758.

Lands, viz:

9 acres of freehold at £10 10s per acre, £94 10s 0d

17 acres leasehold at £2 10s per acre, £42 10s 0d

13½ acres leasehold at £2 10s per acre, £33 15s 0d

4 acres leasehold at 16s per acre, £64 0s 0d

4 acres leasehold at £1 per acre, £4 0s 0d

£238 15s 0d

Houses, viz:

1 dwelling house at £20, £20 0s 0d

1 dwelling house, not finished, at £35, £35 0s 0d

£55 0s 0d

Timber, viz:

16 double deals at 4s 2d each, £3 6s 8d

4 fir girders at 5s each, £1 0s 0d

2 fir door cases at 4s each, £0 8s 0d

13 single deals at 2s 6d each, £1 16s 10d

8 window sashes at 7s 6d each, £3 0s 0d

29 flooring boards at 1s 6d each, £2 1s 0d

150 squares of glass, 8 by 10, at 1s 3d each, £9 7s 6d

£21 0s 0d

Sheep, viz:

29 grown at 15s each, £21 15s 0d

4 lambs at 8s each, £1 12s 0d

£23 7s 0d

Black cattle, viz:

1 cow and calf, £8 0s 0d

1 cow and calf, £8 0s 0d

1 cow and calf, £8 0s 0d

1 cow and calf, £7 10s 0d

1 cow and calf, £8 0s 0d

1 cow and calf, £6 10s 0d

1 cow, £5 10s 0d

1 cow, £6 10s 0d

1 cow, £4 0s 0d

1 heifer, £6 0s 0d

1 cow, £3 10s 0d

1 heifer, £2 10s 0d

1 heifer, £2 5s 0d

1 heifer, £4 0s 0d

1 steer, £3 10s 0d

1 young bull, £4 5s 0d

£36 0s 0d

Carried over, £434 2s 0d

Interpretations

The joint inventory of John and Mary Swaite, taken together as one estate, suggests husband and wife who died close in time, their property valued as a single holding rather than settled separately. This combining of two deceased persons' goods marks the passing of a whole household at once, its land, stock and building materials appraised as one.

The considerable stock of building materials, deals, girders, door cases, window sashes, flooring boards and a hundred and fifty squares of glass, was held for the unfinished house recorded among the buildings. The materials and the half-built dwelling together show a construction in hand at the deaths, the glass and sawn timber laid in ready to complete it.

The hundred and fifty squares of window glass, cut to a set size of eight by ten inches, were a costly imported commodity held for glazing the new house. Glass had to be shipped in and was valued accordingly, its quantity here marking a substantial building meant to be properly finished.

The freehold at £10 10s the acre was worth four times the leasehold, marking the value that secure title added to good ground. That the estate held most of its land on lease from the Company, with only nine acres owned outright, was the common condition of the island's settlers.

146

138

Brot over £ 434 2

Goats Viz[..]

27 Grown D[o] 8/ ea

10 16

8 Half Grown D[o] 4/ ea

1 12

12 8

Hogs Viz[..]

21 Shoats D[o] 6/ ea

6 6

2 Sows D[o] £ 1 ea

2

3 D[o] D[o] 17/ ea

2 11

1 D[o] and 3 Pigs D[o]

1 5

12 2

Yams Viz[..]

4.200 D[o] 5/ [P] 1000

1 1

12.100 D[o] 8/ [P] 1000

4 16 10

13.800 D[o] 15/ [P] 1000

10 9 8

44,100 D[o] 18/ [P] 1000

39 13 9

4.000 D[o] 5/ [P] 1000

1

16.200 D[o] 6/ [P] 1000

4 19 2

14.300 D[o] 7/ [P] 1000

5

67 5

Horses Viz[..]

1 Mare and Colt

10

Blacks Viz[..]

1 Man named Greenwich

20

1 D[o] named Fygg

15

1 Woman named Pegg

18

1 D[o] named Dorinda

19

1 Boy named Frank

8 10

1 D[o] named George

10

1 Girl named Lucy

7

1 D[o] named Patt (a Legacy)

3

100 10

Poultry Viz[..]

12 Grown Fowls D[o] 1/6 ea

18

24 half grown D[o] 9[..] ea

18

36 Chickens D[o] 3[..] ea

9

4 Grown Turkeys D[o] 5/ ea

1

13 Young D[o] D[o] 2/ ea

1 6

11 D[o] D[o] 2/6 ea

5 6

12 Grown Ducks D[o] 1/6 ea

18

4 Young D[o] D[o] 9[..] ea

3

8 Grown Geese D[o] 3/ ea

2

7 17 6

Car[..] over £ 643 19 11

The valuation of the Swaite estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £434 2s 0d

Goats, viz:

27 grown at 8s each, £10 16s 0d

8 half-grown at 4s each, £1 12s 0d

£12 8s 0d

Hogs, viz:

21 shoats at 6s each, £6 6s 0d

2 sows at £1 each, £2 0s 0d

3 sows at 14s each, £2 11s 0d

1 sow and 3 pigs, £1 5s 0d

£12 2s 0d

Yams, viz:

4,200 at 5s per thousand, £1 1s 0d

12,100 at 8s per thousand, £4 16s 10d

13,800 at 15s per thousand, £10 9s 8d

44,100 at 18s per thousand, £39 13s 9d

4,000 at 5s per thousand, £1 0s 0d

16,200 at 6s per thousand, £4 19s 2d

14,300 at 7s per thousand, £5 0s 0d

£67 5s 0d

Horses, viz:

1 mare and colt, £10 0s 0d

Blacks, viz:

1 man named Greenwich, £20 0s 0d

1 man named Jing, £15 0s 0d

1 woman named Peg, £18 0s 0d

1 woman named Dorinda, £19 0s 0d

1 boy named Frank, £8 10s 0d

1 boy named George, £10 0s 0d

1 girl named Lucy, £7 0s 0d

1 girl named Patt, a legacy, £3 0s 0d

£100 10s 0d

Poultry, viz:

12 grown fowls at 1s 6d each, £0 18s 0d

24 half-grown at 9d each, £0 18s 0d

36 chickens at 3d each, £0 9s 0d

4 grown turkeys at 5s each, £1 0s 0d

15 young turkeys at 2s each, £1 10s 0d

11 young turkeys at 6d each, £0 5s 6d

19 grown ducks at 4s 6d each, £0 18s 0d

4 young ducks at 9d each, £0 3s 0d

8 grown geese at 5s each, £2 0s 0d

£7 17s 6d

Carried over, £643 19s 11d

Interpretations

The eight slaves were each named and priced by working strength, the man Greenwich highest at £20 against the children at a few pounds, the same people recorded in the earlier Swaite inventory. The girl Patt was again marked a legacy, a slave already assigned to a named heir under a will and set apart from the general estate.

The yam crop of over 108,000 tubers, graded into seven lots by age and readiness and worth £67 5s 0d, was the estate's largest class of movable goods after the land. This staggered planting shows a grower managing the ground to yield provisions across the season for the Company ships that called at the island, the crop being the settler's chief cash asset.

Eight geese among the poultry were a considerable holding, kept for their meat, eggs and feathers, the down prized for bedding. Their number, with the many ducks, turkeys and fowls, marks birds raised well beyond a household's own table for sale into the island's provisioning market.

The mare and colt together, valued at £10, were the estate's only horses, a breeding pair rather than a working team. A horse was a costly and useful possession on a small island, kept for the labour and travel of a substantial holding and for raising the next beast.

147

139

Brot over £ 643 19 11

Household Goods Viz[..]

1 old Oval Table

8

1 D[o] Square D[o]

10

1 Tea Table

5

4 old Chairs

8

2 Formes

3

1 Large Fir Chest

15

1 D[o] D[o]

12

1 D[o] Small

10

1 old Desk

15

1 Hand Escrutore

15

1 D[o] D[o]

8

1 Dresser

1 Bureau

2 15

1 old Back Gammon Table

1

1 Tea Chest

1

1 Looking Glass

15

1 D[o] Small

8

1 Chest of Drawers

1

1 Feather Bed

2 D[o] Pillows

1 Quilt

8

1 Bedstead

1 Set of Curtains

1 Feather Bed

2 D[o] Pillows

6

1 Bolster

1 Bedstead

1 Feather Bed

3 10

2 D[o] Pillows

1 Bedstead

1 Wool Bed

1

D[o] Bolster

1 Mattress

1 5

1 Quilt

1 5

1 D[o]

15

1 D[o]

2

1 Blanket

1 Case with 12 Bottles

1 5

3 Long Cloth Sheets

15

3 pair of Descotees

2 6

3 pair of Pillowbears

2

1 Feather Pillow

1 P[..] of Pillowbears

Household Goods Car[..] over £ 38 19 6

Car[..] over £ 643 19 11

The valuation of the Swaite estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £643 19s 11d

Household goods, viz:

1 old oval table, £0 8s 0d

1 old square table, £0 10s 0d

1 tea table, £0 5s 0d

4 old chairs, £0 8s 0d

2 forms, £0 3s 0d

1 large fir chest, £0 15s 0d

1 fir chest, £0 12s 0d

1 small fir chest, £0 10s 0d

1 old desk, £0 15s 0d

1 hand escritoire, £0 15s 0d

1 hand escritoire, £0 8s 0d

1 dresser, £1 0s 0d

1 bureau, £2 15s 0d

1 old backgammon table, £1 0s 0d

1 fir chest, £1 1s 0d

1 looking glass, £0 5s 0d

1 small looking glass, £0 3s 0d

1 chest of drawers, £1 0s 0d

1 feather bed, 2 pillows, quilt, bedstead and set of curtains, £8 0s 0d

1 feather bed, 2 pillows, bolster and bedstead, £6 0s 0d

1 feather bed, 2 pillows and bedstead, £3 10s 0d

1 wool bed and bolster, £1 0s 0d

1 mattress, £1 5s 0d

1 quilt, £1 0s 0d

1 quilt, £0 15s 0d

1 quilt, £0 2s 0d

1 blanket, £0 5s 0d

1 case with 12 bottles, £0 10s 0d

3 longcloth sheets, £0 15s 0d

3 pairs of dowlas sheets, £0 2s 6d

5 pairs of pillowcases, £0 2s 0d

1 feather pillow, £[...]

1 pair of pillowcases, £[...]

Household goods carried over, £38 19s 6d

Carried over, £643 19s 11d

Interpretations

The several desks, hand escritoires and a bureau, held in unusual number for a household, point to the keeping of written accounts and papers, fitting a substantial planter who dealt in credit, land and produce. The old backgammon table among the furniture marks a household with leisure for games, a small touch of ease in a working establishment.

The three grades of bed, feather, wool and the plainer bedding, priced from £8 down to a pound, show the ranking of sleeping quarters through the house from the best curtained chambers to the meaner rooms. The gradation marks the ordering of the establishment, the finest bed for the family and the plain wool bed for a servant or child.

A dresser was a kitchen sideboard with shelves and drawers for holding and displaying plates and utensils, a standing piece of the working kitchen. Its listing among the furniture marks the practical storage of a household's everyday ware.

The case of twelve bottles was a fitted box protecting the glass, holding wine, spirits or other liquids, the container guarding costly glass that had to be shipped in. Such cased sets were valued for keeping and carrying drink where all such ware came from abroad.

148

140

Brot over £ 643 19 11

Household Goods brot over £ 38 19 6

1 Dimmity Table Cloth

8

1 Diaper Table D[o] & Table Napkins

1 8

2 Devotees Table D[o]

6

1 Bed Rail and Rod

10

9 Devotees Napkins

4 6

2 China Dishes

5

8 D[o] Plates

4

2 Silver Spoons

1

1 Set of Silver Tea Spoons

1 5

1 Pewter Bason

3

1 Feather Bed

2 D[o] Pillows

6

1 D[o] Bolster

1 Bedstead

1 Pewter Funnell

3

2 Brass Candlesticks

6

2 pair of Steel Snuffers

4

1 Brass Morter and Pestle

15

1 Sun Dial

6

1 pair of small Stillyards

4

1 pair of large D[o]

12

1 pair of Tongs

4

9 Cups & Saucers

2 3

8 D[o]

3

14 Saucers

6 Wine Glasses

3

2 Sets of Window Curtains

10

3 Sallampores

1 16

2 Tumblers

1

1 large China Tea Pot

3

1 Decanter

5

3 Small China Tea Potts

6

2 Box Irons

12

1 Bandied

2

8 Earthen Jarrs

7

1 Large D[o]

2 6

12 Knives and Forks

10

3 pair of Pot Hangers

4 6

1 Small Tea Kettle

6

1 Small Iron Pott

4

1 D[o]

8

1 old D[o]

Household Goods Car[..] over £ 59 14 3

Car[..] over £ 643 19 11

The valuation of the Swaite estate continued from the sums already carried over.

Brought over, £643 19s 11d

Household goods brought over, £38 19s 6d

1 dimity tablecloth, £0 3s 0d

1 diaper tablecloth and 7 table napkins, £1 3s 0d

2 dowlas tablecloths, £0 6s 0d

1 bed rail and rod, £0 10s 0d

9 dowlas napkins, £0 4s 6d

2 china dishes, £0 5s 0d

8 china plates, £0 4s 0d

2 silver spoons, £1 0s 0d

1 set of silver teaspoons, £0 5s 0d

1 pewter basin, £0 3s 0d

1 feather bed, 2 pillows, bolster and bedstead, £6 0s 0d

1 pewter funnel, £0 3s 0d

2 brass candlesticks, £0 6s 0d

2 pairs of steel snuffers, £0 4s 0d

1 brass mortar and pestle, £0 15s 0d

1 sundial, £0 6s 0d

1 pair of small steelyards, £0 4s 0d

1 pair of large steelyards, £0 12s 0d

1 pair of tongs, £0 [...]

9 cups and saucers, £0 2s 3d

8 saucers, £0 3s 0d

11 saucers, £0 [...]

6 wine glasses, £0 3s 0d

2 sets of window curtains, £0 10s 0d

3 palampores, £1 16s 0d

2 tumblers, £0 1s 0d

1 large china teapot, £0 3s 0d

1 decanter, £0 5s 0d

3 small china teapots, £0 6s 0d

2 box irons, £0 12s 0d

1 bandeau, £0 2s 0d

8 earthen jars, £0 7s 0d

1 large earthen jar, £0 2s 6d

12 knives and forks, £0 10s 0d

3 pairs of pot hangers, £0 4s 6d

1 small teakettle, £0 6s 0d

1 small iron pot, £0 4s 0d

1 small iron pot, £0 8s 0d

1 old iron pot, £[...]

Household goods carried over, £59 14s 3d

Carried over, £643 19s 11d

Interpretations

The three palampores, the painted Indian cotton bedcovers, valued together at £1 16s 0d, were among the household's finer furnishings, imported through the Company trade and prized as bed furniture. Their number marks a household able to dress its better beds with imported finery.

The silver spoons and teaspoons together were the estate's store of precious metal in usable form, silver serving both as tableware and as a portable reserve of value. On an island short of coin, worked silver held worth that could be weighed and sold at need, so it counted for more than its use at table.

A brass mortar and pestle, valued higher than most kitchen items at £0 15s 0d, was used for pounding spices, herbs and drugs, a tool of both cookery and home medicine. Its worth reflects the utility of a durable brass set in a household preparing its own seasonings and remedies.

The store of table linen and finer napery, dimity and diaper tablecloths with their napkins, marks a household that dined with some ceremony, the better cloth reserved for the table against the coarser dowlas. Such linen, shipped in and accumulated over time, was itself a mark of standing.

149

141

Brot over £ 643 19 11

Household Goods brot over £ 59 14 3

1 Large Iron Pott

6

2 Frying Pans

6

1 Spit

1 6

1 Tin Saucepan

1 6

1 Copper D[o]

6

2 Pails

6 Tubbs

15

1 Piggin

1 Cagg

2 China Chamber Potts

3

2 D[o] Salts

1

1 Large Bible

1

A Parcell of Books

Baileys Dictionary

8

1 Brine Tubb

7 6

1 Pewter Dish

2

1 Womans Work Basket

2 6

3 China Bowls

4 6

3 D[o] Jarrs

6

1 P[..] of old Sheers 1 Nasty Trowels

1 6

1 Gallon Bottle

1

1 Punch Ladle

6

1 Loaf

1 Ladder & 2 Shower Potts &c[..]

6

A Parcell of Plantation Tools

15

66 9 3

£ 710 9 2

The Estate D[..] by Sundry Accounts to Sundry

Persons Viz[..]

196 9 10

Signed

Rich[..] Bagley

Benj[..] Mason

The valuation of the Swaite estate continued from the sums already carried over, closing with the total and the debts owed by the estate.

Brought over, £643 19s 11d

Household goods brought over, £59 14s 3d

1 large iron pot, £0 6s 0d

2 frying pans, £0 6s 0d

1 spit, £0 1s 6d

1 tin saucepan, £0 1s 6d

1 copper saucepan, £0 6s 0d

2 pails, £0 [...]

6 tubs, 1 piggin and 1 keg, £0 15s 0d

2 china chamber pots, £0 3s 0d

2 china salts, £0 1s 0d

1 large bible, £1 0s 0d

a parcel of books, £1 0s 0d

Bailey's Dictionary, £0 8s 0d

1 brine tub, £0 7s 6d

1 pewter dish, £0 2s 0d

1 woman's work basket, £0 2s 6d

3 china bowls, £0 4s 6d

3 china jars, £0 6s 0d

1 pair of old shears and 1 pair of tweezers, £0 1s 6d

1 gallon bottle, £0 1s 0d

1 punch ladle, £0 6s 0d

1 lamp, £0 6s 0d

1 large and 2 flower pots, £0 6s 0d

a parcel of plantation tools, £0 15s 0d

£66 9s 3d

£710 9s 2d

The estate indebted by sundry accounts to sundry persons, viz, £196 9s 10d

Signed Richard Bagley

Benjamin Mason

Interpretations

A punch ladle was a long-handled spoon for serving punch from the bowl, the drink of spirits, water, sugar and spice mixed and shared at gatherings. Its presence marks the settled custom of punch-drinking in the island household, the ladle a small piece of the sociable table.

The woman's work basket held the materials of sewing and needlework, a domestic possession marking the household's own making and mending of clothes and linen. Such a basket was the ordinary gear of a settler's wife, kept for the constant repair of a family's cloth.

The large bible, the parcel of books and Bailey's Dictionary together were a considerable holding for the island, where few households owned more than a bible. The dictionary, one of the most common reference works of the age, marks a household of some learning, its books a mark of standing as much as of reading.

The whole estate came to £710 9s 2d against debts of £196 9s 10d, leaving a substantial clear value resting chiefly on the land, cattle, sheep and yam grounds. The plainness of much of the household gear, set against the considerable holding of ground and stock, marks a planter whose wealth lay in his acres rather than his rooms.

150

142

Inventory of the Estate of the late John Leech deceased taken and

appraised by Mess[..] Nathan Sample Richard Bagley Jun[..] and Charles Gifsing

April 10[..] 1758

Slaves

1 Man named George

15

1 Woman named Coos

20

1 Woman and Child

16 10

Household Furniture

2 Feather Beds Bolsters two Pillows Quilt Curtains Bedstead and

Bed Rail

7

1 Feather Bed, Bed Stead Bolster Quilt and two Pillows

2 10

1 Feather Bed D[o] Bed Stead Quilt and two Pillows

15

1 Flowerd Blanchett

13

1 Pair of Sheets

6

1 Pair of D[o]

10

1 Pair of D[o]

10

5 Pair of Pillow Cases

10

1 Old Carpet

1

6 Napkins

6

3 Old Table Cloths

3

2 Setts of Window Curtains old

5

1 Bureau

2 5

1 D[o]

1 Chest with drawers

1 10

1 Jappan Box

15

1 Small Box with drawers

6

1 D[o] D[o] old

3

1 Old Green Chest

1

1 Red fir Chest with drawer

6

1 Old Chest

18

1 Small Chest

8

1 Tea Table

7

2 Tea Boards

4

6 Cups and Saucers

3

2 Earthen Teapots

1 6

1 Toast Spoon Silver

5

1 Pewter Teapott

7 6

12 Sarge tooth Combs

2

1 Brass Bracket

2 6

£ 75 8

An inventory of the estate of John Leech, deceased, was taken and appraised by Nathan Sample, Orlando Bagley junior and Charles Gifford on 10 April 1750.

Slaves:

1 man named George, £15 0s 0d

1 woman named Coos, £20 0s 0d

1 woman and child, £16 10s 0d

Household furniture:

2 feather beds, bolster, 2 pillows, quilt, curtains, bedstead and bed rail, £9 0s 0d

1 feather bed, bedstead, bolster, quilt and 2 pillows, £2 10s 0d

1 old feather bed, bedstead, quilt and 2 pillows, £0 15s 0d

1 flowered blanket, £0 15s 0d

1 pair of sheets, £0 6s 0d

1 pair of sheets, £0 10s 0d

1 pair of sheets, £0 10s 0d

5 pairs of pillowcases, £0 10s 0d

1 old carpet, £0 1s 0d

6 napkins, £0 6s 0d

3 old tablecloths, £0 3s 0d

2 sets of window curtains, old, £0 5s 0d

1 bureau, £2 5s 0d

1 bureau, £1 10s 0d

1 chest with drawers, £1 10s 0d

1 japanned box, £0 15s 0d

1 small box with drawers, £0 6s 0d

1 small box with drawers, old, £0 1s 0d

1 old green chest, £0 6s 0d

1 red fir chest with drawers, £0 18s 0d

1 old chest, £0 8s 0d

1 small chest, £0 7s 0d

1 tea table, £0 4s 0d

2 tea boards, £0 3s 0d

6 cups and 6 saucers, £0 1s 6d

2 earthen teapots, £0 5s 0d

1 silver tablespoon, £0 7s 6d

1 pewter teapot, £0 2s 0d

12 large tooth combs, £0 6s 0d

1 glass tankard, £[...]

£73 8s 0d

Interpretations

A japanned box was finished in the hard glossy black or coloured varnish imitating the lacquerwork of the East, made to decorate and protect a small container. Its listing among the boxes and chests marks a piece valued for its ornamental finish as well as its use for keeping papers or trinkets.

The twelve large tooth combs held together were probably trade stock or a store of a common article, combs being an ordinary import shipped in for sale or use. Their number in one estate suggests goods held for the settlement rather than a single household's need.

The single silver tablespoon was the estate's small piece of precious metal in usable form, silver serving both as tableware and as a portable reserve of value. On an island short of coin, even one worked piece held worth that could be weighed and sold at need.

The two feather beds with their full furniture, worth £9 together, were the best sleeping places of the house, complete with curtains, bedstead and rail to enclose them against draught. The gradation down to the old feather bed at fifteen shillings shows the ranking of chambers from the finest to the plainest.

151

143

Brought over 73 8 6

A Remnant of Chelloes

9

half a Piece of Narrow Striped Silk

1

2 Small Looking Glasses

5

1 Book Bloome history of the Bible

10

1 Dictionary Perdons

4

a Parcel of Old Books

2

7 Volumes of Spectators

5

Wearing Apparel

1 Cloth Coat Breeches and Waistcoat Brown

16

3 Old Coats and Breeches

12

1 New Flannell Waistcoat

2 6

4 Old Waistcoats

4

6 White Shirts

1

6 Pair of Stockings

12

1 Tye Wigg

5

1 Bob D[o]

5

1 Box Iron & Heater

5

1 Matt

2 6

2 Chamber Potts

4

1 Armed Chair

5

Cash

5 12

1 Old Fir Table

2 6

1 Form

1 3

6 Wooden Chairs and 1 Leather bottom'd one

1 1

1 round Table

8

1 Small D[o]

2

1 Small D[o]

4

1 Steel Tobacco Box

1

1 Case and four Bottles

5

1 Old Tea Chest

5

1 Small Box

2 6

1 Corner Cubboard

8

3 pictures with Frames

8

2 Gallon Keggs

2

5 China plates and two Dishes

4 6

4 China bowls

1

1 China Mugg

1

1 half Score Glass and two Shoe Brushes

2 6

1 Gallon Jug

1

1 old Welch Coat

5

1 Pint Pott 1 half Gallon Pott a[..] two Grennells

Carried over 90 12 9

The valuation of John Leech's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £73 8s 6d

a remnant of chelloes, £0 9s 0d

half a piece of narrow striped silk, £1 0s 0d

2 small looking glasses, £0 5s 0d

1 Book Bloom's History of the Bible, £0 10s 0d

1 dictionary, Pardon's, £0 4s 0d

a parcel of old books, £0 2s 0d

7 volumes of the Spectator, £0 5s 0d

Wearing apparel:

1 cloth coat, breeches and waistcoat, brown, £0 16s 0d

3 old coats and breeches, £0 12s 0d

1 new flannel waistcoat, £0 2s 6d

4 old waistcoats, £0 4s 0d

6 white shirts, £1 0s 0d

6 pairs of stockings, £0 12s 0d

1 tie wig, £0 5s 0d

1 bob wig, £0 5s 0d

1 box iron and heater, £0 5s 0d

1 mat, £0 2s 6d

2 chamber pots, £0 4s 0d

1 armed chair, £0 5s 0d

cash, £5 12s 0d

1 old fir table, £0 2s 6d

1 form, £0 1s 3d

6 wooden chairs and 1 feather-bottom one, £1 1s 0d

1 round table, £0 8s 0d

1 small table, £0 2s 0d

1 small table, £0 4s 0d

1 steel tobacco box, £0 1s 0d

1 case and four bottles, £0 5s 0d

1 old fir chest, £0 2s 6d

1 small box, £0 2s 6d

1 corner cupboard, £0 3s 0d

3 pictures with frames, £0 2s 0d

2 gallon kegs, £0 2s 0d

5 china plates and two dishes, £0 4s 6d

4 china bowls, £0 4s 0d

1 china mug, £0 1s 0d

1 half-hourglass and two shoe brushes, £0 2s 6d

1 gallon jug, £0 3s 0d

1 old watch case, £0 5s 0d

1 pint pot, 1 half-gallon pot and two funnels, £[...]

Carried over, £90 12s 9d

Interpretations

The books here mark a household of some reading, Bloom's History of the Bible, Pardon's Dictionary and seven volumes of the Spectator, the periodical essays of Addison and Steele that were among the most widely read works of the age. Such a holding of printed matter was considerable for the island, where few settlers owned more than a bible, and it marks a man of some learning.

A tie wig was a wig gathered behind and tied with a ribbon, and a bob wig a shorter plainer one, the two marking the styles of headwear a man kept for dress and everyday. Wigs were an imported article of gentility, worn according to the fashion of the period.

A half-hourglass measured a fixed span of half an hour by sand running between two glass bulbs, the household's means of timing tasks or telling the passing time where a clock was beyond reach. Its presence marks the keeping of time by the simplest method in a modest establishment.

The old watch case listed without its works marks a watch broken up or its movement gone, the case alone retaining some value for its metal or workmanship. Its listing shows even a fragment of a timepiece counted worth recording in an estate where such things were costly.

152

144

Brought over £ 90 12 9

3 Tin Cannisters and a Chapen Dish

5

1 Table with a Draw

10

1 Long fir Table

6

3 Forms

6

1 large Chest

15

1 Drawer and Shelves

12

4 Pewter Dishes

10

1 Tin Pan

2

2 Old Pewter Basons

2 6

10 Pewter Plate

8

1 Pewter Porringer Vinegar Pott and Pepper Box

1 3

1 Tin Pott Copper Coffee pott and tea Kettle

1 3

5 Old Brass Candlesticks and Ladle

3 5

2 Old Brass Cocks

2

8 Knives and Eight Forks & 6 pewter Spoons

6 6

2 Silver Tea Spoons

2 6

1 Small Cleaver and two Knife Cases

1

4 Small Earthen Jarrs

4

3 large D[o] D[o] old

4

1 Copper Kettle

7 6

1 large Tea Kettle

7 6

1 Small D[o]

4

1 Brass Kettle

2 6

1 Iron Pott

10 6

7 Old Pott Iron

2 6

3 Pott Hangers and two pairs of Hooks

7 6

1 Grid Iron Trivet

2 6

1 Pair of Bellows

2 6

2 Old frying pand and a flesh fork

3

1 Old Cubboard

5

1 Sauce pan a pair of Scales and Some Weights

3

3 Old pails and Keggs

18

3 Washing Tubbs and a Cask

1 8

3 Clasp Cotts

6

1 Old round Table

5

1 Corner Cubboard

6

3 Small Flock beds

1

1 Hair Broom

12

3 Grown Ducks

2 6

3 half Grown one

4 6

3 Grown fowls

1 Sow

Carr over £ 103 8 9

The valuation of John Leech's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £90 12s 9d

3 tin canisters and a chafing dish, £0 5s 0d

1 table with a drawer, £0 10s 0d

1 long fir table, £0 5s 0d

3 forms, £0 6s 0d

1 large chest, £0 15s 0d

1 drawer and shelves, £0 12s 0d

4 pewter dishes, £0 10s 0d

1 tin pan, £0 2s 0d

2 old pewter basins, £0 2s 6d

10 pewter plates, £0 8s 0d

1 pewter porringer, vinegar pot and pepper box, £0 1s 3d

1 tin pot, copper coffee pot and teakettle, £0 3s 0d

5 old brass candlesticks and 2 ladles, £0 5s 0d

2 old brass cocks, £0 2s 6d

8 knives and 8 forks and 6 pewter spoons, £0 6s 6d

2 silver teaspoons, £0 2s 6d

1 small cleaver and two knife cases, £0 1s 0d

4 small earthen jars, £0 4s 0d

3 large earthen jars, old, £0 4s 0d

1 copper kettle, £0 7s 6d

1 large teakettle, £0 6s 0d

1 small teakettle, £0 4s 0d

1 brass kettle, £0 4s 0d

1 iron pot, £0 2s 6d

old pot iron, £0 10s 6d

3 pot hangers and two pairs of hooks, £0 2s 6d

1 gridiron, trivet, £0 7s 6d

1 pair of bellows, £0 2s 6d

2 old frying pans and a flesh fork, £0 2s 6d

1 old cotstead, £0 2s 6d

1 saucepan, a pair of scales and some weights, £0 1s 0d

3 old pails and kegs, £0 5s 0d

3 washing tubs and a cask, £0 5s 0d

3 large tubs, £0 10s 0d

1 old round table, £1 5s 0d

1 corner cupboard, £0 6s 0d

3 small flock beds, £0 5s 0d

1 hair broom, £0 1s 0d

3 grown ducks, £0 12s 0d

3 half-grown ducks, £0 2s 0d

3 grown fowls, £0 4s 6d

1 sow, £[...]

Carried over, £103 8s 9d

Interpretations

A porringer was a small shallow bowl with a handle for eating porridge, broth or other soft food, a common piece of table ware. Its listing with the vinegar pot and pepper box marks the everyday vessels of the household table.

A trivet was a three-legged iron stand set over or before the fire to hold a pot or kettle at a steady height, and a gridiron the grate for broiling meat over the flame. With the pot hangers, hooks, bellows and flesh fork, these complete the gear of an open-fire kitchen where all cooking was done at the hearth.

A flesh fork was a long-handled fork for lifting meat from the boiling pot or turning it at the fire, part of the hearth gear for handling hot food. Its listing with the frying pans marks the practical tools of a working kitchen.

The three small flock beds among the household goods were the plainest sleeping places, stuffed with coarse wool or cloth scraps rather than feathers and valued at a few shillings together. Their listing marks the meaner beds of children or servants against the feather beds of the family recorded earlier.

153

145

Brought over £ 103 8 9

3 Gold Rings

1 10

£ 104 18 9

Signed

Orlando Bagley

Nathan Sample

Charles Gifsing

Inventory of the goods and Chattles belonging to the Estate of M[..] John Yowton

Deceas'd taken and Appraised by Mess[..] Matthew Purling and Richard Bagley this 16

Day of November 1758

One Dwelling House

£ 80

Land Viz[..]

2 1/2 Acres of Freehold Land Peak hill Springs at £ 20 [P] Acre

50

10 Ditto Ditto Lundge at 8 Ditto

80

10 1/4 Ditto Ditto Phillips at 10 Ditto

102 10

10 Ditto Ditto Allsion Cabbadge Tree £ 4[..] [P]

140

11 Ditto Ditto Adjoining to Ditto £ 15 [P]

166

10 Ditto Ditto Coultons £ 15 [P]

150

27 Ditto Ditto Marches £ 12 [P]

324

3 1/4 Ditto Ditto Ditto £ 15 [P]

48 15

2 1/2 Ditto Ditto Hunts £ 9 [P]

22 10

7 Ditto Lease Ditto £ 12 [P]

85

1 Ditto Ditto Ditto £ 6 [P]

6

1123 15

Blacks Viz[..]

1 Man Slave Nam'd Dawson

26

1 D[o] D[o] Stephen

25

1 D[o] D[o] Will

25

1 D[o] D[o] Eneas

20

1 Boy D[o] Patna

15

1 D[o] D[o] George

12

1 Woman D[o] Peomy

15

1 D[o] D[o] Pat

20

1 Girl D[o] Moll

10

174

Black Cattle Viz[..]

13 Cows and 10 Calves

101

12 Young Cattle

52 15

1 Bull

6 10

160 5

Carried Over £ 1338

The valuation of John Leech's estate concluded with a final item and the appraisers' signatures, before a fresh inventory began.

Brought over, £103 8s 9d

3 gold rings, £1 10s 0d

£104 18s 9d

Signed Orlando Bagley

Nathan Sample

Charles Gifford

An inventory of the goods and chattels of John Newton, deceased, was taken and appraised by Matthew Purling and Richard Bagley on 16 November 1758.

One dwelling house, £80 0s 0d

Land, viz:

25 acres of freehold land at Peak Hill, formerly Junia's, at £2 per acre, £50 0s 0d

10 acres freehold, formerly Lundy's, at £4 per acre, £40 0s 0d

18 acres freehold, formerly Phillips's, at 10s per acre, £102 10s 0d

10 acres freehold, formerly Allason and Badger's, at 14s per acre, £140 0s 0d

11 acres freehold adjoining the Gut, formerly Ditto's, at 18s per acre, £165 0s 0d

10 acres freehold, formerly Coulson's, at 15s per acre, £150 0s 0d

27 acres freehold, formerly Meads's, at 19s per acre, £324 0s 0d

3½ acres freehold, Ditto, at 15s per acre, £48 15s 0d

2½ acres freehold, Hunt's, at £4 per acre, £22 10s 0d

1 acre leasehold, Ditto, at £3 per acre, £85 0s 0d

1 acre leasehold, Ditto, at 6s per acre, £1 0s 0d

£1,123 15s 0d

Blacks, viz:

1 man slave named Dawson, £26 0s 0d

1 man slave named Stephen, £25 0s 0d

1 man slave named Will, £25 0s 0d

1 man slave named Lucas, £20 0s 0d

1 boy slave named Patra, £15 0s 0d

1 boy slave named George, £12 0s 0d

1 woman slave named Naomy, £15 0s 0d

1 woman slave named Pal, £20 0s 0d

1 girl slave named Moll, £16 0s 0d

£174 0s 0d

Black cattle, viz:

13 cows and 10 calves, £101 0s 0d

12 young cattle, £32 15s 0d

1 bull, £6 10s 0d

£140 5s 0d

Carried over, £1,538 0s 0d

Interpretations

The land was recorded by naming the former owner of each parcel, Junia, Lundy, Phillips, Allason and Badger, Coulson, Meads and Hunt, the entries tracing how the ground had been built up from many separate holdings. This recording of previous owners shows how land moved between the island's settler families by sale and inheritance, a great estate assembled piece by piece from smaller plots.

The whole landholding came to £1,123 15s 0d across some 128 acres, a vast estate marking the deceased as among the largest landholders of the island. The scale of the ground, gathered from a dozen former owners, shows a settler who had steadily engrossed the holdings of his neighbours into one considerable property.

The nine slaves were each named and priced by working strength, the men Dawson, Stephen and Will above £24 against the children at a few pounds less. Their listing by name and individual value, set before the cattle, shows the estate accounting weighing each enslaved person as a distinct asset measured against their capacity for labour.

The rates set on the named parcels varied widely, some ground at £4 the acre and other land at only 10s, differences turning on the soil, water and use of each plot rather than its former owner. This spread shows how land value on the island followed productive capacity, the best planting ground fetching many times the price of rough acreage.

154

146

Brought Over £ 1338

Sheep Viz[..]

18 Grown at 15/ each

62 5

12 Lambs at 7/6 Ditto

4 10

36 15

Goats Viz[..]

60 Grown at 8/ each

23 12

36 Kids at 4/ Ditto

6

29 12

Hogs Viz[..]

2 Sows and 4 Pigs

2

11 Ditto at 15/ Each

8 5

6 Barrows at 15/ Each

3 15

1 Boar

1 5

7 Shoats at 9/ Each

3 8

5 Ditto Small at 6/ Each

1 10

1 Boaraw

1 5

21 8

Poultry Viz[..]

10 Geese Young and Old

1 12 6

8 Turkeys Young and Old

17 6

5 Grown Ducks

7 6

65 fowls Young and Old

2 16 6

5 18

Horses Viz[..]

1 Horse

12

1 Horse Colt

3

1 Mare

9

24

Two and third Part of a Boat &c[..]

8 10

Plate Viz[..]

1 Silver Tankerd W[..] 30 [...] at 6/4 [P] Ounce

9 15

1 Ditto Teapot W[..] 16.15

4 12 1

1 Ditto Mugg W[..] 8.5

2 5 4

2 Ditto Porringers W[..] 14.16 at 6/6 Ditto

4 1 1

1 Ditto Cups W[..] 3.15

1 4 7

16 Ditto Table Spoons W[..] 24.10 at 6/6 Ditto

7 9 9

9 Ditto Tea spoons & Tongs and Strainer W[..] 14.16 at 7/6

1 13 9

1 Ring for Keys

1

30 14 7

Carried Over £ 1489 7 7

The valuation of John Newton's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £1,538 0s 0d

Sheep, viz:

43 grown at 15s each, £32 5s 0d

12 lambs at 7s 6d each, £4 10s 0d

£36 15s 0d

Goats, viz:

59 grown at 8s each, £23 12s 0d

36 kids at 4s each, £6 0s 0d

£29 12s 0d

Hogs, viz:

2 sows and 4 pigs, £2 0s 0d

11 sows at 15s each, £8 5s 0d

5 barrows at 15s each, £3 15s 0d

1 boar, £1 5s 0d

7 shoats at 9s each, £3 3s 0d

5 small shoats at 6s each, £1 10s 0d

1 barrow, £1 5s 0d

£21 3s 0d

Poultry, viz:

10 geese, young and old, £1 12s 6d

5 turkeys, young and old, £0 17s 6d

5 grown ducks, £0 7s 6d

65 fowls, young and old, £2 16s 6d

£5 13s 0d

Horses, viz:

1 horse, £12 0s 0d

1 horse colt, £3 0s 0d

1 mare, £9 0s 0d

£24 0s 0d

One-third part of a boat and oars, £3 10s 0d

Plate, viz:

1 silver tankard, weight 30 oz, at 6s 6d per oz, £9 15s 0d

1 silver teapot, weight 16 oz 15 dwt, at 5s 6d per oz, £4 12s 1d

1 silver mug, weight 8 oz 3 dwt, £2 5s 4d

2 silver porringers, weight 14 oz 15 dwt, at 5s 6d, £4 1s 1d

1 silver cup, weight 3 oz 15 dwt, £1 0s 7d

15 silver tablespoons, weight 24 oz 10 dwt, at 5s 6d, £7 5s 9d

9 silver teaspoons, tongs and strainer, weight 4 oz 10 dwt, at 7s 6d, £1 13s 9d

1 ring for keys, £1 0s 0d

£30 14s 7d

Carried over, £1,650 7s 7d

Interpretations

The considerable holding of silver plate, valued by weight to the pennyweight, marks the deceased as a man of substantial wealth, the tankard, teapot, mug, porringers, cup and spoons together worth over £30. Silver served both as tableware and as a portable reserve of value, and on an island short of coin such a store held worth that could be weighed and sold, so its careful weighing shows the metal counted as bullion as much as plate.

The one-third part of a boat and oars was a share in a fishing or ferrying vessel held jointly with others, the boat owned in fractions between several settlers. Such shared ownership spread the cost and use of a boat, valuable on an island where the sea supplied much of the fresh food and where craft carried goods and people along the coast.

A silver tankard weighing thirty ounces was the single most valuable piece of plate at £9 15s 0d, a large drinking vessel that was both a costly possession and a mark of standing. Its weight and worth set the deceased among the wealthier settlers of the island.

The forty-three sheep and fifty-nine goats together made a large stock of grazing beasts kept for wool, meat, milk and hides on the island's rough upland. Goats throve on the steep hillsides where cattle could not graze, so a flock of this size drew value from ground unfit for the more valued cattle.

155

147

Brought Over £ 1489 7 7

Wearing Apparel Viz[..]

1 Homes Mans Coat

16

13 Broad Cloth Coat Breaches

3

1 Serge Coat New

2

1 Ditto Ditto old

10

1 Ditto Ditt Ditto

7 6

3 Pair Broad Breaches

1 10

1 Green Silk Waistcoat

15

1 Camblet Ditto

7 6

1 Cloth Ditto

3

13 Blue Camblet Ditto old

4

4 Black Silk Ditto old

1

7 Pair of Draws

2 15

11 Callico Shirts

18 6

4 Neck Cloths

2 6

6 Caps

1

1 P[..] Neck Cloths

10

2 P[..] of Cotton Stockings New

7

1 Ditto Ditto fine

18

8 Ditto Ditto old

1

1 Hat

6

6 Silk Handkerchiefs

1 1

2 Wigs

12

3 P[..] of Blankets

1

2 P[..] Wrought shoe Buckles silver

1 5

1 Pair of Silver Shoe Buckles plain

1 5

1 Ditto Ditto Ditto Ditto and Knee wrought

1

1 Ditto Ditto Ditto Ditto Plain old

5

2 Ditto Ditto Ditto Ditto old

3 6

1 Stock Buckle

7 6

4 Pairs Bristol stone Buttons and 1 P[..] Studs

1

1 Ditto Cloves Boots

10

1 Ditto Bombay Ditto

3

2 Ditto Neat spurs

4 8

4 Ditto Mens pumps

28 15

Household Goods Viz[..]

1 Feath[..] Bed 2 Pillows Matt[..] Blanket Chints Quilt

1 10

2 Bolsters and Bedstead

1 Feath[..] Bed 1 Matt[..] Quilt 1 Blanket 1 Feath[..] Bolst[..]

6

1 Wool Bolster 2 Feath[..] Pillows and &c[..]

Household Goods Carr[..] Over £ 12 10

Carried Over £ 1718 7

The valuation of John Newton's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £1,650 7s 7d

Wearing apparel, viz:

1 fine man's coat, £[...]

1 broadcloth coat and breeches, £0 10s 0d

1 serge coat, new, £[...]

1 serge coat, old, £0 2s 0d

1 serge coat, old, £0 10s 0d

3 pairs of worsted breeches, £0 7s 6d

1 green silk waistcoat, £1 10s 0d

1 red camlet waistcoat, £0 15s 0d

1 cloth waistcoat, £[...]

1 blue camlet waistcoat, old, £0 7s 6d

1 black silk waistcoat, old, £0 3s 0d

1 pair of drawers, £0 1s 0d

11 calico shirts, £2 10s 0d

9 neckcloths, £0 10s 6d

2 stocks, £0 2s 0d

2 caps, £0 2s 6d

1 pair of neckcloths, £1 1s 0d

2 pairs of cotton stockings, new, £0 10s 0d

1 pair of stockings, fine, £0 4s 0d

8 pairs of stockings, old, £0 16s 0d

1 hat, £[...]

6 silk handkerchiefs, £0 6s 0d

2 wigs, £1 1s 0d

3 pairs of nankeen, £0 12s 0d

2 pairs of wrought silver shoe buckles, £1 0s 0d

1 pair of silver shoe buckles, plain, £1 0s 0d

1 pair of silver shoe and knee buckles, wrought, £1 0s 0d

1 pair of silver shoe and knee buckles, plain, old, £0 6s 0d

2 pairs of silver shoe and knee buckles, old, £0 6s 0d

1 stock buckle, £0 7s 0d

4 pairs of Bristol stone buttons and 1 pair of studs, £0 10s 0d

1 pair of European boots, £[...]

1 pair of Bombay boots, £0 5s 0d

1 pair of metal spurs, £0 8s 0d

4 pairs of men's pumps, £[...]

£28 15s 0d

Household goods, viz:

1 feather bed, 2 pillows, mattress, 2 blankets, sheets and quilt, £6 10s 0d

2 bolsters and bedstead, £[...]

1 feather bed, mattress, quilt, blanket and 1 feather bolster, £6 0s 0d

1 wool bolster, 2 feather pillows and quilt, £[...]

Household goods carried over, £12 10s 0d

Carried over, £1,718 0s 7d

Interpretations

Bristol stone was a clear rock crystal or paste cut and polished to imitate diamonds, made at Bristol and used for cheap ornamental buttons and studs. The four pairs of buttons and the studs marked a touch of display in dress at modest cost, the glittering stone standing in for costly gems.

The Bombay boots and European boots listed side by side marked footwear from two ends of the trade, one pair made in the Indian port and the other in Europe, both reaching the island through Company shipping. This pairing shows the wide reach of the routes that clothed a settler, goods drawn from east and west alike.

The abundance of silver shoe and knee buckles, six pairs in all besides the stock buckle, marked a man who dressed with some display, precious metal worn as personal ornament on shoes and breeches. This finery, with the silk waistcoats and camlet, confirms a settler of standing conscious of appearance.

The green silk waistcoat, valued highest of the garments at £1 10s 0d, was a piece of fine dress against the plainer serge and worsted, silk being a costly imported cloth. Its worth marks the better clothing of a wealthy man kept for show among the workaday wear.

156

148

Brought Over £ 1718 7

Household Goods Brought Over £ 12 10

1 Feather Bed Matt[..] Quilt 1 Feather Pillow Wool

Pillow 2 Wool Bolster and &c[..]

5 10

1 Feather Bed 1 Bolster 2 Pillows 1 old Quilt & Wool

and Bedstead

5

2 small Wast[..]

10

1 Rich Quilt

15

1 Chintz Ditto

7 6

1 Ditto Ditto old

2 6

1 Sett of Bed & Window Curtains

1 15

1 Ditto Ditto Ditto Ditto

1 7

1 Ditto Ditto Ditto Ditto old

7 6

2 P[..] Dorsecles Sheets

12

2 Ditto Long Cloth

8

1 Ditto Dorsecles Ditto small

4

1 Ditto Ditto &c[..]

7

2 Ditto D[o] &c[..]

6

2 Holland Table Cloths

1

1 Ditto Ditto Ditto

8

1 Long &c[..] Ditto Ditto

4 6

1 Dorsecles Ditto Ditto

2

8 Table Cloths old

2

4 Side Boards Cloths

4

6 Holland Napkins

6

6 Ditto Ditto &c[..]

1 6

12 Ditto Ditto old

4

4 D[o] Pillowbers

6

4 Ditto Ditto coarse

2

1 Plain Chest

2 10

1 Fir Box

10

1 Mahogany Box

5

2 Trunks

5

1 Chamber Table

5

1 Chamber Glass

6

1 small Fir Box

3

1 Ditto Teak Chest

10 6

2 Boxes old

2 6

1 Fir Chest old

5

1 small Wainscot Beauereau

1 10

1 old hand Escritoire

2 6

1 Ditto Chamber Table

2 10

1 Close Stool Wig chair

1 10

2 Nurses Chairs

5

Household Goods Carr[..] Over £ 69 8

Carried Over £ 1718 7

The valuation of John Newton's estate continued from the sums already carried over.

Brought over, £1,718 0s 7d

Household goods brought over, £12 10s 0d

1 feather bed, mattress, quilt, feather pillow, wool pillow, wool bolster and cot, £5 10s 0d

1 feather bed, bolster, 2 pillows, quilt, curtains and bedstead, £5 0s 0d

2 small mattresses, £0 10s 0d

1 chintz quilt, £0 15s 0d

1 chintz quilt, £0 7s 6d

1 chintz quilt, old, £0 2s 6d

1 set of bed and window curtains, £1 15s 0d

1 set of bed and window curtains, £1 1s 0d

1 set of bed and window curtains, £0 7s 6d

2 pairs of dowlas sheets, £0 12s 0d

2 pairs of longcloth sheets, £0 5s 0d

1 pair of dowlas sheets, small, £0 4s 0d

1 pair of dowlas sheets, old, £0 7s 0d

2 pairs of dowlas sheets, £0 5s 0d

2 holland tablecloths, £1 0s 0d

1 holland tablecloth, £0 8s 0d

1 longcloth tablecloth, £0 4s 0d

1 dowlas tablecloth, £0 2s 6d

5 tablecloths, old, £0 2s 0d

4 sideboard cloths, £0 4s 0d

6 holland napkins, £0 6s 0d

6 holland napkins, old, £0 1s 6d

12 napkins, old, £0 4s 0d

4 pairs of pillowcases, £0 6s 0d

4 pairs of pillowcases, coarse, £0 2s 0d

1 painted chest, £2 10s 0d

1 fir box, £0 10s 0d

1 monkey-wood box, £0 5s 0d

2 trunks, £0 5s 0d

1 chamber table, £0 5s 0d

1 chamber glass, £0 6s 0d

1 small fir box, £0 3s 0d

1 fir chest, £0 10s 0d

2 boxes, old, £0 2s 6d

1 fir chest, old, £0 5s 0d

1 small wainscot bureau, £1 10s 0d

1 old hand escritoire, £0 2s 6d

1 chamber table, £0 2s 6d

1 close-stool chair, ebony, a pair, £1 10s 0d

2 nursery chairs, £0 5s 0d

Household goods carried over, £40 8s 0d

Carried over, £1,718 0s 7d

Interpretations

Holland was a fine plain linen first made in the Low Countries, prized for good table linen and sheeting above the coarser dowlas and osnaburg. The holland tablecloths and napkins here mark the household's best napery, the finer cloth reserved for the table against the everyday dowlas.

Monkey wood was timber from a tropical tree, probably named for the monkeys that fed on its fruit or for the wood's mottled grain, used here for a small box. Its listing marks the use of an exotic imported timber for a decorative container in a wealthy household.

The nursery chairs and the child's furniture point to young children in the household, small seats made for their use. Their presence marks a family with infants, the nursery furnished with pieces sized for the very young.

An ebony close-stool chair was a commode of the dense black tropical wood, a seat enclosing a chamber pot finished in a costly imported timber. Ebony lifted an ordinary article of indoor sanitation into a piece of some richness, marking the wealth of a household that furnished even such things in fine wood.

157

149

Brought Over £ 1718 7

Household Goods Brought Over £ 41 8

1 Comb Tray

1

1 Chamber Glass

3

1 Hair Sieve

1 6

1 Case & 6 Pint Bottles

3

1 D[o] & Panel &c[..]

7 6

2 Large Bibles and one small

1 5

2 Sermon Books

10

1 Common Prayer Books

5

8 Volumes of Spectators

15

A Parcel of old Books

7 6

14 Pewter Chamber Potts

6

1 large Wainscott Table

1 10

1 Ditto Ditto Ditto

5

1 Walnut Beauereau old

2

11 Chairs old

2 4

1 Tea Table

10

1 old Tea Box

1

8 Plates

8

1 Long Table & frame

10

1 small Tea Table

4

1 old Wooden Chairs

6

1 Square Tea Board

1

1 China Ditto Ditto

2

1 Mahogany Waiters

12 6

6 Candlesticks and 1 P[..] Snuffers

8

3 Pewter Dishes and 18 Plates old

12

2 Ditto Basons

3

2 Tin Puddingy Pans

5

1 Salamangue Teapot

1 6

2 Tin Saucepans

1

6 Tea Kettles

2 6

1 P[..] Bellows

6

2 Ditto Tongs

2 Box Irons & Heaters

10

18 Meat Dishes and Soup Dishes & 2 Salet Dishes China

1 10 6

17 Soup Plates China

1

40 Meat Plates Ditto

2 6

1 Guglet & Basson

10

8 China Bowls

7 6

2 Ditto Muggs

2 6

18 Ditto Butter Cups

1 6

4 Tuchers

4 China Salts

Household Goods Carried Over £ 61 10 6

Carried Over £ 1718 7

The valuation of John Newton's estate continued from the sums already carried over.

Brought over, £1,718 0s 7d

Household goods brought over, £41 8s 0d

1 comb tray, £0 1s 0d

1 chamber glass, £0 3s 0d

1 hair sieve, £0 1s 6d

1 case and 6 pint bottles, £0 5s 0d

1 case and 6 quart bottles, £0 7s 6d

2 large bibles and one small, £1 5s 0d

2 sermon books, £0 10s 0d

2 common prayer books, £0 5s 0d

8 volumes of the Spectator, £0 15s 0d

a parcel of old books, £0 7s 6d

2 pewter chamber pots, £0 6s 0d

1 large wainscot table, £1 10s 0d

1 large wainscot table, £0 5s 0d

1 walnut bureau, old, £2 0s 0d

11 chairs, old, £2 4s 0d

1 tea table, £0 10s 0d

1 old tea board, £0 1s 0d

6 plates, £0 3s 0d

1 long table and frame, £0 10s 0d

1 small fir table, £0 4s 0d

1 old wooden chair, £0 6s 0d

1 square tea board, £0 1s 0d

1 china tea board, £0 2s 0d

1 mahogany waiter, £0 12s 6d

2 candlesticks and 1 pair of snuffers, £0 8s 0d

3 pewter dishes and 13 plates, old, £0 12s 0d

5 pewter basins, £0 3s 0d

5 tin puddings and pans, £0 5s 0d

1 tin teapot, £0 1s 0d

2 tin saucepans, £0 1s 6d

2 teakettles, £1 0s 0d

1 pair of bellows, £0 2s 6d

2 pairs of tongs, £0 6s 0d

2 box irons and heaters, £0 10s 0d

18 meat dishes, one soup dish and 2 salad dishes, china, £1 10s 6d

17 soup plates, china, £1 0s 0d

10 meat plates, china, £0 2s 6d

1 guglet and basin, £0 10s 0d

6 china bowls, £0 7s 6d

2 china mugs, £0 2s 0d

2 china butter cups, £0 1s 6d

1 tureen, £0 1s 6d

4 china salts, £[...]

Household goods carried over, £61 10s 0d

Carried over, £1,718 0s 7d

Interpretations

The large holding of matching china, eighteen meat dishes, seventeen soup plates, meat plates, bowls, mugs and a tureen, marks a household equipped for formal dining on a grand scale, a proper dinner service of imported ware. This quantity of matched ceramic, brought in on Company ships, shows both the deceased's wealth and the settled place of ceremonious dining in the island's leading households.

A guglet was a porous earthenware or china vessel for cooling water by slow evaporation through its walls, a form brought from India where it kept drinking water cool in warm weather. Its listing with the china basins marks an imported comfort suited to the island's warmer days.

The books here mark a household of real reading, two large bibles, sermon books, prayer books, eight volumes of the Spectator and a parcel more. Such a collection was considerable for the island, where few settlers owned beyond a bible, and it marks a man of learning and standing whose library set him apart.

A mahogany waiter was a small tray of the fine dark tropical hardwood for carrying and serving, mahogany being a costly imported timber prized for good furniture. Its listing among the tea ware marks the genteel service of a wealthy table dressed with imported wood and china alike.

158

150

Brought Over £ 1718 7

Household Goods Brought Over £ 61 10 6

8 half Pint Cups and Saucers & 8 Muggs Cups & Saucers

9

and Sugar Cups

1 China Teapot some Earthen Teapot &c[..] China Candlestick

2 6

8 China Jarrs

10 6

A Broken sett of Tea China

15

Stand & 3 Glass Cruetts

15

14 Wine Glasses

8

1 Glass Salt

1 6

12 Bone Handle Knives & Forks

7 6

12 horn Handle Knives & Forks

7

4 Carboys

1 10

1 Case with six Gallon Bottles

1

1 Ditto 18 Pint Bottles

15

2 Clasp Cots

1

2 large Iron Potts

10

2 Frying Pans

3

1 Small Iron Pot

7

1 Ditto Ditto Ditto

4

2 Gallon Ditto Ditto

3

1 D[o] Ditto Ditto

3

1 large Dripping Pan

4

2 Spits

2 6

17 Earthen Jarrs

17

3 Pails & Piggins &c[..]

10

A Pestle & Mortar

2 6

1 Iron Towel Stand & 1 pair of Shears

2

18 Pair Steelyards

8

1 Pewter Funnel

1 6

1 Smoking Piece

2 10

1 Earthen Milk Pans, Jarr and one Crock

6

2 Pot Hangers

3

1 Backgammon Table

2

1 Grind Stone

2 6

3 Iron horse Box & Brush

6

76 8 6

Sundrys Viz[..]

A Parcel of Plantation Tools

7

A Parcel of Shoe Makers Ditto

12

1 Saddle Bridle &c[..]

10

1 Ditto Ditto &c[..]

3

2 Cupboards &c[..] & 8 Trunks Leather

85 14 2

100.500 Yams and Suckers

Carried Over £ 1882 8 1

The valuation of John Newton's estate continued from the sums already carried over.

Brought over, £1,718 0s 7d

Household goods brought over, £61 10s 0d

8 half-pint cups and saucers, 8 mugs, cups and saucers and 6 china cups, £1 0s 0d

1 china teapot, 1 earthen teapot and 1 china candlestick, £0 2s 6d

6 china jars, £0 10s 6d

a broken set of tea china, £0 15s 0d

1 stand and 3 glass cruets, £0 3s 0d

14 wine glasses, £0 8s 0d

1 glass salt, £0 1s 6d

12 bone-handle knives and forks, £0 7s 6d

12 horn-handle knives and forks, £0 6s 0d

4 carboys, £1 10s 0d

1 case with six gallon bottles, £1 0s 0d

1 case with 15 five-pint bottles, £0 15s 0d

2 clasp pots, £1 0s 0d

2 large iron pots, £0 15s 0d

2 frying pans, £0 3s 0d

1 small iron pot, £0 7s 0d

1 small iron pot, £0 4s 0d

2 gallon iron pots, £0 4s 0d

1 iron pot, £0 1s 0d

1 large dripping pan, £0 4s 0d

2 spits, £0 2s 6d

17 earthen jars, £0 7s 0d

2 pails, 2 piggins and 1 bowl, £0 10s 0d

1 pestle and mortar, £0 2s 6d

1 iron trivet and 1 pair of tongs, £0 6s 0d

1 pair of steelyards, £0 6s 0d

1 pewter funnel, £0 1s 6d

1 fowling piece, £2 10s 0d

1 patch milk pan, one iron pot and one cock, £0 6s 0d

6 pot hangers, £0 3s 0d

1 backgammon table, £0 2s 6d

1 grindstone, £0 2s 6d

1 monkey-wood box and 1 basket, £0 6s 0d

£76 8s 0d

Sundries, viz:

a parcel of plantation tools, £1 0s 0d

a parcel of shoemaker's tools, £0 7s 0d

1 saddle, bridle and other tack, £0 12s 0d

1 saddle, bridle and other tack, £0 10s 0d

2 cruppers, one saddle, fittings and one leather, £0 3s 0d

104,300 yams and suckers, £55 14s 2d

Carried over, £1,832 6s 1d

Interpretations

The yam crop of over 104,000 tubers and suckers, valued at £55 14s 2d, was the estate's largest single class of movable goods after the plate and china, the standing harvest and its seed stock together. This great planting shows a grower geared to the island's provisioning trade, the crop being the settler's chief cash asset in supplying the Company ships that called.

The parcel of shoemaker's tools points to leatherworking carried on at the estate, the cruppers and leather among the tack showing harness and footwear made and mended on the spot. On an island where craftsmen were few, a household able to work leather held a real advantage in keeping its own gear.

The four carboys and the cased bottles, the large glass vessels for storing liquids in bulk, point to the keeping of wine, spirits or other liquids in quantity. Such large glassware had to be shipped in and was valued accordingly, its quantity here fitting the store of a wealthy household.

A crupper was a leather strap from the saddle passing under the horse's tail to keep the saddle from sliding forward, part of the harness listed with the saddles and bridles. Their presence completes the tack of a household that kept horses for riding and draught across the estate.

159

151

Brought Over £ 1882 8 1

Cash

99 2 7

Debts due to the Estate

8 18 10

1935 6 6

The Estate Indebted to Sundry Persons

283 15 2

Clear Estate amounting to £ 1651 11 4

Purling

Rich[..] Bagley

Inventory of the Effects of the late William Duffton deceas'd

taken and appraised by John Legg and Daniel Fawkes 26[..] June 1760

Viz[..]

A Dwelling House in James's Valley valued at

£ 60

a Broom

1

a Water Casks

2 6

an Old Pail

6

an Old Table

6

a Jarr

1 6

a Bolster Tea Pot

1 6

a Small Feather Bed

10

One Lamp

1 6

3 Small Shelves

6

A Salver

6

A Large Iron Pot

7 6

a Small D[o] & Hooks

2

a Grid Iron and Trivett

3

1 Pot Hangers with Hooks

1 6

an Old Foldind of Table

3

2 Wash Tubbs

2

and old Pail

6

a Large Jarr

1

a Pewter Feather Bed

£ 63 2

Carried over

The valuation of John Newton's estate concluded with the cash, debts and final total, before a fresh inventory began.

Brought over, £1,832 6s 1d

Cash, £99 2s 7d

Debts due to the estate, £6 18s 10d

£1,938 6s 6d

The estate indebted to sundry persons, £283 15s 2d

Clear estate amounting to, £1,651 11s 4d

Signed Purling

Richard Bagley

An inventory of the estate of William Desfountain, deceased, was taken and appraised by John Legg and Daniel Faukes on 26 June 1760.

A dwelling house in James Valley, valued at, £60 0s 0d

a broom, £0 1s 0d

a water cask, £0 2s 6d

an old pail, £0 0s 6d

an old table, £0 0s 6d

a jar, £0 0s 4d

a bolster and teapot, £0 0s 6d

a small feather bed, £0 10s 0d

1 lamp, £0 0s 6d

3 small shelves, £0 1s 6d

a salver, £0 0s 6d

a large iron pot, £0 7s 6d

a small iron pot and hooks, £0 2s 0d

a gridiron and trivet, £0 3s 0d

1 pot hanger with hooks, £0 1s 6d

an old fir table, £0 3s 0d

2 wash tubs, £0 2s 0d

1 old pail, £0 0s 6d

a large jar, £0 1s 0d

1 large feather bed, £[...]

Carried over, £63 2s 0d

Interpretations

A salver was a flat tray or plate on which drinks, food or a letter were presented, here a plain example of little value in a modest estate. Its listing among the household goods marks a small piece of the serving ware of a working household.

The great gap between this small estate and the vast Newton holding on the same leaves marks the wide range of wealth among the island's settlers. Where Newton left a clear £1,651 in land, plate and stock, Desfountain's goods ran to a few pounds of plain household gear, the dwelling house his one substantial asset.

The house in James Valley was the deceased's chief property at £60, set at the commercial heart of the island's town settlement. James Valley was the port and town, later Jamestown, so even a modest house there held real value for its place in the trading centre of the colony.

The plain iron pots, wash tubs, pails and jars mark a working household furnished only for bare need, the goods of a settler of little means. The single small feather bed and the few kitchen vessels show an establishment far removed from the silver and china of the wealthier estates recorded nearby.

160

152

Brought over £ 63 2

an Old Wool Bed

5

an Old Bedstead

5

2 Sheets and an Old Carpet

1

2 Cloaths Trays

1 2

2 Forms & Table

1

a Tray

6

An Iron Ladle

1

an Iron Crow

1

a Bread box

2 6

an Old Oval Table

1

a Square Table

1 6

D[o]

2 6

an Old Tea Kettle

1 6

An Old Marbre[..] Pestle

1 6

a Lanthorn

1 6

4 Old Candlesticks

2

a Spit

1

2 Hand Vices

2 6

a Two Foot Rule

6

2 Tin Pudding Pans

2 6

a Box with Files &c[..]

2 6

an Old Box Iron

2 6

a Stone Jugg

6

a Chest

5

a Large D[o]

15

a Silver Skewer

4 6

1 P[..] Silver Shoe & knee Buckles

7 6

4 Books

2 6

10 Caps

1

2 Neck Cloths

1

1 P[..] Worsted Hose

10

a Black Coat Waistcoat & Breeches

7 6

2 White Coats

1 6

an Old Brown Holland Frock

1 3

3 D[o] Waistcoats

6

2 D[o] Pillow Cases & 1 Towell

Carried over £ 68 10

The valuation of William Desfountain's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £63 2s 0d

an old wool bed, £0 5s 0d

an old bedstead, £0 5s 0d

2 sheets and an old carpet, £0 1s 0d

2 clothes trays, £0 2s 0d

2 forms and 1 case, £0 1s 0d

a tray, £0 0s 6d

an iron ladle, £0 1s 0d

an iron crow, £0 1s 0d

a broad axe, £0 2s 6d

an old deal table, £0 1s 0d

a square table, £0 1s 6d

a square table, £0 2s 6d

an old teakettle, £0 1s 6d

an old mortar and pestle, £0 1s 6d

a lantern, £0 1s 6d

1 old candlestick, £0 2s 0d

a spit, £0 1s 0d

2 hand vices, £0 2s 6d

a two-foot rule, £0 0s 6d

2 tin pudding pans, £0 2s 6d

1 box with files and other tools, £0 2s 6d

an old box iron, £0 2s 6d

a stone jug, £0 0s 6d

a chest, £0 5s 0d

a large chest, £0 15s 0d

a silver skewer, £0 4s 6d

1 pair of silver shoe and knee buckles, £0 7s 6d

4 books, £0 2s 6d

10 caps, £0 1s 0d

2 neckcloths, £0 1s 0d

1 pair of worsted hose, £0 1s 0d

a black coat, waistcoat and breeches, £0 10s 0d

2 white coats, £0 7s 6d

an old brown holland frock, £0 1s 6d

3 waistcoats, £0 1s 3d

2 pillowcases and 1 towel, £0 0s 6d

Carried over, £66 0s 10d

Interpretations

An iron crow was a crowbar, a stout iron lever for prising and shifting heavy loads, and with the broad axe, hand vices, files and two-foot rule it marks the working tools of a man who laboured with his hands. The presence of vices and files points to metalwork or fine craft carried on, perhaps the deceased's trade.

A hand vice was a small clamping tool held in the hand to grip work while filing or shaping it, used in fine metal or woodwork. The two of them with the box of files suggest the deceased worked at a craft needing such gear, whether smithing, joinery or the like.

The single silver skewer and the pair of silver buckles were the estate's small store of precious metal, silver serving both for use and as a portable reserve of value. On an island short of coin, even these few worked pieces held worth that could be weighed and sold at need.

A holland frock was a loose working coat or smock of the plain Dutch linen, worn as an outer garment for labour, the old brown one here marking the everyday wear of a working man. Its listing with the plain coats and waistcoats shows a modest wardrobe geared to work rather than display.

161

153

Brought Over £ 68 10

5 Nankeen Feather Pillows

5

a Quart Decanter Broke

6

a pair Glass Salts a Beer Glass & 2 Wine Ditto

5

an Ink Box

6

a Dutch Looking Glass

5

a Large broken China Bowls

6

8 Dishes and 5 Pewter Plates

10

9 China Plates Crackd

2 8

a Sow

1 10

a Silver Watch broke & of no Service

7 6

a Case with 6 Lancetts

2 6

a Case with three Razors

1 6

a Hat

1 6

a Box of Old Lumber

1 6

an Old Bed Pant

2

an Old Dresser & Shelves

10

a pair of Old Scales

2 6

an Old Bedstead

2 6

a Corner Cupboard

1 6

£ 72 18 6

An Inventory of the Estate of Richard Harper Deceased taken

& appraised this 21[..] January 1760 by Mess[..] Daniel Fowler & Isaac Sturey

1 Mansion House Situated in Chappel Valley

£ 110

1 Man Slave Nam'd Peter

16

1 Woman D[o] D[o] Mirtella

25

1 large Square Table

15

1 Small D[o] D[o]

1 6

1 large D[o] D[o] new

1 5

1 Tea Table

6

Carried over £ 153 13 6

The valuation of William Desfountain's estate concluded with a final run of goods, before a fresh inventory began.

Brought over, £66 0s 10d

5 nankeen feather pillows, £[...]

a quart decanter, broken, £0 5s 0d

a pair of glass salts, a beer glass and 2 wine glasses, £0 1s 6d

an old box, £0 5s 0d

a quilt and looking glass, £0 3s 6d

a large broken china bowl, £0 5s 0d

3 dishes and 5 pewter plates, £0 6s 0d

8 china plates, cracked, £0 10s 0d

a saw, £0 2s 8d

a silver watch, broken and of no service, £1 10s 0d

a case with 6 lancets, £0 7s 6d

a case with three razors, £0 2s 6d

a mat, £0 1s 0d

a box of old lumber, £0 1s 6d

an old bed pan, £0 2s 0d

an old dresser and shelves, £0 10s 0d

a pair of old scales, £0 2s 6d

an old bedstead, £0 2s 6d

a corner cupboard, £0 1s 6d

£72 18s 6d

An inventory of the estate of Richard Harper, deceased, was taken and appraised by Daniel Faukes and George Young on 21 January 1760.

1 mansion house situated in Chapel Valley, £110 0s 0d

1 man slave named Peter, £16 0s 0d

1 woman slave named Mirtilla, £25 0s 0d

1 large square table, £0 15s 0d

1 small square table, £0 1s 6d

1 large square table, new, £0 15s 0d

1 tea table, £0 6s 0d

Carried over, £153 13s 6d

Interpretations

A lancet was a small sharp two-edged blade used to open a vein for bloodletting or to lance a swelling, and the case of six here, with the razors, points to the deceased practising surgery or bloodletting. Bloodletting was a common medical treatment of the age, and such a set of instruments marks a man who may have served as a barber-surgeon or let blood for the settlement.

The woman Mirtilla was valued at £25, higher than the man Peter at £16, an unusual ordering that probably reflects her age and working strength against his being older or less able. This shows the appraisers pricing each slave by their capacity for labour rather than by sex alone, a prime woman outvaluing a failing man.

Chapel Valley was the settlement around the island's fort and church that formed the town, later Jamestown, so a mansion house there stood at the commercial heart of the colony and commanded the high price of £110. Its value as the estate's chief asset marks the worth of town property in the trading centre of the island.

The broken silver watch, valued at £1 10s 0d though of no further use, retained its worth for the silver of its case and works. On an island short of coin, even a ruined timepiece held value in its precious metal, weighed and sold for what the material would fetch.

162

154

Brought over £ 153 13 6

1 large Tea Table

10

1 Small D[o]

5

1 Oval Table old

10

7 Forms

1 1

1 Chair

9

6 new Pewter Plates

9

10 old D[o] D[o]

9

8 China D[o]

2 6

3 Pewter Dishes

6

8 old Knives & Forks

5

3 Pewter Spoons

6

5 Candlesticks Brass

15

3 Salt

1 3

10 Drinking Glass

5

1 Quart, 4 Pint, 1 Half Pint Pot, 1 Funnel

4

2 Puding Pans

6

4 Brass Sconces

9

3 Bowls & 5 Sneakers

6

2 Brown Earthen Tea Pots

6

1 Old Lamp

3

1 Iron D[o]

18

Sows & 8 Bottles

5

1 Water Kegg

3

1 Pickle Tub

2 6

1 new Pail

1

2 Small Tubs

10

1 Tea Kettle

3

1 old Sauce Pan

2

1 Gallon Stone Bottle

15

1 small red fir Chest

5

1 old Chest with Drawers

2

1 Bureau

2

1 large face Bottle

2 6

1 Ink Stand Pewter

12

1 Box Iron & Heaters

Carried over £ 167 3

The valuation of Richard Harper's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £153 13s 6d

1 large tea table, £0 10s 0d

1 small tea table, £0 5s 0d

1 oval table, £0 10s 0d

7 forms, £1 1s 0d

1 chair, £0 9s 0d

6 new pewter plates, £0 9s 0d

10 old pewter plates, £0 9s 0d

8 china plates, £0 3s 6d

3 pewter dishes, £0 6s 0d

8 old knives and forks, £0 5s 0d

3 pewter spoons, £0 0s 6d

5 brass candlesticks, £0 15s 0d

3 salts, £0 0s 9d

18 drinking glasses, £0 0s 3d

1 quart, 1 pint, 1 half-pint pot and 1 funnel, £0 5s 0d

2 pudding pans, £0 4s 0d

4 brass sconces, £0 6s 0d

3 bowls and 5 small cups, £0 9s 0d

2 brown earthen teapots, £0 1s 6d

1 old lamp, £0 0s 6d

1 iron lamp, £0 3s 0d

1 case and 8 bottles, £0 18s 0d

1 water keg, £0 6s 0d

1 pickle tub, £0 3s 0d

1 new pail, £0 2s 6d

2 small tubs, £0 1s 0d

1 teakettle, £0 10s 0d

1 old saucepan, £0 3s 0d

1 gallon stone bottle, £0 2s 0d

1 small red fir chest, £0 15s 0d

1 old chest with drawers, £0 5s 0d

1 bureau, £2 0s 0d

1 large case bottle, £0 2s 0d

1 pewter inkstand, £0 2s 6d

1 box iron and heaters, £0 12s 0d

Carried over, £167 0s 3d

Interpretations

A sconce was a wall-mounted bracket holding a candle, often backed with a polished plate or mirror to throw the light forward, the four brass ones here lighting the walls of the house. Their listing with the candlesticks marks the fixed lighting of a comfortable establishment.

A pickle tub held food preserved in brine or vinegar, the vessel for keeping vegetables or meat against want, a necessary store on an island where fresh provision could not always be had. Its presence marks the household's own preserving to see it through lean spells.

The pewter inkstand marks the keeping of written accounts and letters, the stand holding ink for a household that dealt in credit, land and produce. With the bureau, it points to a settler who kept his papers in order.

The graded pewter measures, a quart, pint and half-pint pot, made up the vessels for drawing off drink by fixed quantity, marking a household that dispensed liquor by measure whether for the family or for sale. The five small drinking cups among the bowls served spirits or tea taken in modest measure at the table.

163

155

Brought over £ 167 3

1 looking Glass

8

1 small brer[..] box

15

1 small fir Chest

5

1 large Earthen Jarr

2 6

1 large & 5 small Spoons Silver

1 4

2 P[..] Silver Shoe Buckles

1 6

1 P[..] Sleeve Buttons

2 6

1 feather Bed, 1 Bolster, 2 Pillows, 1 Quilt, Sett of

Curtains, Bedstead & Rail

6

1 Cott, 1 Bed & Sallampore

1

1 P[..] Gingham

1 1

1 Bedstead 1 Bed 2 Pillows, 1 Quilt 1 Bolster

3 5

3 Sheets, 5 Pillowcases old

1

4 Table Cloaths & 5 Towels old

10

1 Sett Window Curtains old

5

1 Chamber Pot Pewter

2

2 Books of common Prayer, 1 of Meditations

4

4 Iron Pots

1 4

1 Hanging Shelf

2 6

2 Wash Tubs

4

4 Pothangers & 2 Trivets

10

1 Frying Pan, 1 Spitt, 1 P[..] Pot Hooks

5

3 old Casks

2 6

1 Wood Ax

1 3

Cash

1 11 3

1 Gold Ring

10

10 P[..] Silver Buckles

7 6

The Estate amounts to 189 15 6

The Estate indebted to Sundry Persons viz[..]

To Cap[..] John Clark

19 4 2

To Tho[..] Harper Jun[..]

16 11 3

To M[..] W[..] Hall

8

To Rob[..] Ballard

2 2

To M[..] Rob[..] Barclay

7 4[..]

53 11 5

Clear Estate amounting to £ 136 2 1

Signed

Daniel Fowler

Geo[..] Young

The valuation of Richard Harper's estate concluded with the household goods, cash and plate, followed by the debts owed by the estate and the final total.

Brought over, £167 0s 3d

1 looking glass, £0 8s 0d

1 small escritoire, £0 8s 0d

1 small fir chest, £0 15s 0d

1 large earthen jar, £0 5s 0d

1 large and 5 small silver spoons, £1 4s 0d

2 pairs of silver shoe buckles, £0 11s 6d

1 pair of silver sleeve buttons, £0 2s 6d

1 feather bed, 1 bolster, 2 pillows, 1 quilt, set of curtains, bedstead and rail, £6 0s 0d

1 bed and 1 palampore, £1 0s 0d

1 pair of gingham, £1 1s 0d

1 bedstead, 1 bed, 2 pillows, 1 quilt and 1 bolster, £3 5s 0d

5 sheets and 5 pillowcases, old, £1 0s 0d

4 tablecloths and 3 towels, old, £0 10s 0d

1 set of window curtains, old, £0 5s 0d

1 pewter chamber pot, £0 3s 0d

2 books, common prayer and one of meditations, £0 4s 0d

4 iron pots, £1 4s 0d

1 hanging shelf, £0 3s 6d

2 wash tubs, £0 4s 0d

4 pot hangers and 2 pairs of hooks, £0 10s 0d

1 frying pan, 1 spit and 1 pair of pot hooks, £0 7s 0d

3 old casks, £0 5s 0d

1 wood axe, £0 2s 6d

cash, £1 11s 3d

1 gold ring, £0 16s 0d

1 pair of silver buckles, £0 7s 6d

The estate amounts to, £189 13s 6d

The estate indebted to sundry persons, viz:

To Captain John Clark, £19 4s 2d

To Thomas Harper senior, £16 11s 3d

To George Hall, £8 0s 0d

To Robert Duke, £2 2s 0d

To Robert Barclay, £7 14s 0d

£53 11s 5d

Clear estate amounting to, £136 2s 1d

Signed Daniel Faukes

George Young

Interpretations

A hanging shelf was a set of shelves suspended from the wall or ceiling rather than standing on the floor, used to keep goods off the ground in a small house. Its listing marks the practical storage of a modest establishment.

The silver spoons, buckles and sleeve buttons together were the estate's store of precious metal in usable form, silver serving both for use and as a portable reserve of value. On an island short of coin, such worked pieces held worth that could be weighed and sold at need.

The single largest debt from the estate, £19 4s 2d owed to Captain John Clark, was owed to a ship's officer whose vessel called at the island. Such debts to sea captains show the settlers' dealings with the officers of the Company ships, credit running between the shore and the sea.

The estate stood at a clear £136 2s 1d after debts, a middling holding resting chiefly on the mansion house in Chapel Valley and the two slaves. The plainness of the household gear, set against the value of the town house, marks a settler whose wealth lay in his property rather than his rooms.

164

156

Inventory of the Estate & Effects of Tho[..] Cotgrave Dec[..] taken &

Appraised by Mess[..] R[..] Bagley & John Desfountain this 16 day Aug[..] 1760

House & Lands Viz[..]

Dwelling House & 30 1/2 Acres Leasehold Land £ 171

17 1/2 Acres Freehold Land

262 10

3 D[o] D[o]

48

30 D[o] Leasehold Land

135

27 1/2 D[o]

128 15

13 D[o]

91

1 1/2 D[o]

15

1 D[o]

6

1 D[o]

9

861 5

Blacks Viz[..]

1 Man

20

1 Woman

16

1 Boy

18

54

Cattle Viz[..]

11 Cows & 9 Calves

86

7 Yearlings

24 5

5 Heifers

21 15

1 Bull

6

138

Horse Bridle & Saddle

6

Sheep & Goats Viz[..]

3 Grown Sheep

7 4

9 Half Grown D[o]

5 8

4 Lambs

1 12

25 Grown Goats

9 12

14 Half D[o]

4 4

15 Kids

3

31

Carried over £ 1090 5

An inventory of the estate of Thomas Colgrave, deceased, was taken and appraised by Richard Bagley and John Desfountain on 16 August 1760.

House and lands, viz:

Dwelling house and 30½ acres of leasehold land, £171 0s 0d

17½ acres of freehold land, £262 10s 0d

3 acres of freehold land, £48 0s 0d

30 acres of leasehold land, £135 0s 0d

27½ acres of leasehold land, £123 15s 0d

13 acres of leasehold land, £91 0s 0d

1½ acres of leasehold land, £15 0s 0d

1 acre of leasehold land, £6 0s 0d

1 acre of leasehold land, £9 0s 0d

£861 5s 0d

Blacks, viz:

1 man, £20 0s 0d

1 woman, £16 0s 0d

1 boy, £18 0s 0d

£54 0s 0d

Cattle, viz:

11 cows and 9 calves, £86 0s 0d

7 yearlings, £24 5s 0d

5 heifers, £21 15s 0d

1 bull, £6 0s 0d

£138 0s 0d

1 horse, bridle and saddle, £6 0s 0d

Sheep and goats, viz:

8 grown sheep, £7 4s 0d

9 half-grown sheep, £5 8s 0d

4 lambs, £1 12s 0d

25 grown goats, £9 12s 0d

14 half-grown goats, £4 4s 0d

15 kids, £3 0s 0d

£31 0s 0d

Carried over, £1,090 5s 0d

Interpretations

The freehold land was valued at up to £15 the acre against the leasehold at around £4 to £5, the wide gap marking the value that secure title added to good ground. That the estate held most of its land on lease from the Company, with only twenty and a half acres owned outright, was the common condition of the island's settlers, though this holding of over 120 acres marks a considerable landholder.

The whole landholding came to £861 5s 0d across some 124 acres, a great estate marking the deceased as among the larger landholders of the island. The scale of the ground, mostly leased from the Company but valued high for its quality, shows a settler of substantial property whose wealth lay chiefly in his acres.

The three slaves were priced by working strength, the man at £20 and the boy at £18 against the woman at £16, their listing as a small group between the land and the cattle showing the estate accounting treating enslaved people as property valued alongside the beasts and ground.

The mixed flock of sheep and goats, kept together and totalled at £31, drew value from the island's rough upland where the two kinds of grazing beast throve on ground unfit for cattle. Goats in particular could feed on the steepest hillsides, so a flock of this size made use of land that would otherwise yield nothing.

165

157

Brought over £ 1090 5

Hogs Viz[..]

2 Sows

£ 2 5

13 Pigs

3 18

8 Shoats

4

1 Boar

1

11 3

Poultry Viz[..]

10 Turkeys

2 10

58 Grown Fowls & Chickens

3 9 6

5 19 6

Yams 147.600 & Suckers

86 5 1

Household Goods &c[..] Viz[..]

3 Feather Beds & Furniture

13 10

4 Wool D[o] D[o]

3 11

2 Sallampores

1

2 Quilts

12

4 P[..] Sheets

8

4 Pillow Cases

2

2 Table Cloaths

4 6

2 Napkins

2

3 P[..] Window Curtains

14

1 Carboy

9 2

1 Jugg

1

1 Gallon Bottle

2

1 Tin Cannister

2

1 Guglet

3

1 Tea Board

1 12

3 Chests

1 6

1 Trunk

2

2 dozen Metal Buttons

1 6

14 Jars

3 8

1 Pewter Bason

5

1 Looking Glass

Household Goods Car[..] over £ 24 12 8

Carried over £ 1193 12 7

The valuation of Thomas Colgrave's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £1,090 5s 0d

Hogs, viz:

2 sows, £2 5s 0d

13 pigs, £3 18s 0d

8 shoats, £4 0s 0d

1 boar, £1 0s 0d

£11 3s 0d

Poultry, viz:

16 turkeys, £2 10s 0d

58 grown fowls and chickens, £3 9s 6d

£5 19s 6d

Yams, 147,600, and suckers, £86 5s 0d

Household goods, etc, viz:

3 feather beds and furniture, £13 10s 0d

4 wool beds and furniture, £3 11s 0d

2 palampores, £1 0s 0d

2 quilts, £0 12s 0d

4 pairs of sheets, £0 8s 0d

4 pillowcases, £0 4s 6d

2 tablecloths, £0 2s 0d

2 napkins, £0 4s 0d

3 pairs of window curtains, £0 14s 0d

1 carboy, £0 9s 0d

1 keg, £0 2s 0d

1 gallon bottle, £0 2s 0d

1 tin canister, £0 2s 0d

1 guglet, £0 3s 0d

1 tea board, £0 12s 0d

3 chests, £0 16s 0d

1 trunk, £0 2s 0d

2 dozen metal buttons, £0 1s 6d

14 jars, £0 3s 8d

1 pewter basin, £0 5s 0d

1 looking glass, £[...]

Household goods carried over, £24 12s 8d

Carried over, £1,193 12s 7d

Interpretations

The yam crop of 147,600 tubers and suckers, valued at £86 5s 0d, was the estate's largest single class of movable goods, the standing harvest and its seed stock together forming the settler's chief cash asset. This great planting shows a grower geared to the island's provisioning trade, supplying the Company ships that called for the yams that were the staple provision.

The three feather beds with their furniture, worth £13 10s 0d together, were the best sleeping places of a large house with several furnished chambers. The gradation down to the four plainer wool beds shows the ranking of quarters through the establishment, the finest beds for the family and the wool beds for children or servants.

A guglet was a porous earthenware or china vessel for cooling water by slow evaporation through its walls, a form brought from India where it kept drinking water cool in warm weather. Its listing marks an imported comfort suited to the island's warmer days.

The two palampores, the painted Indian cotton bedcovers, were among the household's finer furnishings, imported through the Company trade and prized as bed furniture. Their presence marks a household able to dress its better beds with imported finery.

166

158

Brought over £ 1193 12 7

Household Goods Brought over £ 24 12 8

2 Blankets

8

a Parcel of Books

9

3 Pewter Dishes & 2 Plates

12 6

1 China Dish & 10 Plates

7

1 Pewter Muggy

1

2 Pewter Salts

1

6 D[o] Spoons

1 6

3 Silver Spoons & Strainer

16

1 dozen Knives & 2 dozen Forks

10

1 Box Iron & Heaters

6

1 Set of Fleams

1

2 Shoe Knives

11

2 Rasors Hone & Strap

8

1 Horn Lanthorn

2

3 Candlesticks & Snuffers

10

4 Tubs 2 Pails & 1 Piggen

14

5 Tables & 6 Chairs

2 3

1 Frying Pan 5 Iron Potts & 2 Spits

1 11 6

4 Pothangers & P[..] Pot Hooks

13

1 P[..] Steelyards

5

1 Fir Form

1

1 Clasp Cott

4

a Parcel of Carpenters Tools

15

3 Hatchets & Pickax

10

7 China Bowls

12

1 Tea Kettle & 2 Earthen Teapot

11

1 Hanging Cupboard

2 6

Cash

37 11 7

Debts due from Sundrys from the Estate

138 5 5

32 15 6

Debts due to Sundrys from the Estate

1402 5 1

128 16 2

Clear Estate £ 1273 8 11

Signed

Rich[..] Bagley

The valuation of Thomas Colgrave's estate concluded with the household goods, cash and debts, closing with the final total.

Brought over, £1,193 12s 7d

Household goods brought over, £24 12s 8d

2 blankets, £0 8s 0d

a parcel of books, £0 12s 0d

3 pewter dishes and 9 plates, £0 12s 6d

1 china dish and 10 plates, £0 7s 0d

1 pewter mug, £0 1s 0d

2 pewter salts, £0 1s 0d

6 pewter spoons, £0 1s 6d

3 silver spoons and strainer, £0 16s 0d

1 dozen knives and 2 dozen forks, £0 10s 0d

1 box iron and heater, £0 6s 0d

1 set of fleams, £0 1s 0d

2 shoe knives, £0 0s 11d

2 razors, hone and strap, £0 8s 0d

1 horn lantern, £0 2s 0d

3 candlesticks and snuffers, £0 10s 0d

7 tubs, 2 pails and a piggin, £0 14s 0d

5 tables and 6 chairs, £2 3s 0d

1 frying pan, 5 iron pots and 2 spits, £1 11s 6d

4 pot hangers and 3 pairs of pot hooks, £0 13s 0d

1 pair of steelyards, £0 5s 0d

1 fir form, £0 1s 0d

1 clasp pot, £0 4s 0d

a parcel of carpenter's tools, £0 15s 0d

3 hatchets and pickaxe, £0 10s 0d

7 china bowls, £0 12s 0d

1 teakettle and 2 earthen teapots, £0 11s 0d

1 hanging cupboard, £0 2s 6d

cash, £37 11s 7d

The estate amounts to, £138 5s 5d

Debts due to the estate from sundries, £32 15s 6d

£1,402 5s 1d

Debts due from the estate to sundries, £128 16s 2d

Clear estate, £1,273 8s 11d

Signed Richard Bagley

Interpretations

The set of fleams and the shoe knives point to two crafts carried on at the estate, bloodletting on beast or man and leatherworking for footwear, the household making and mending its own gear. On an island where craftsmen were few, such self-provisioning held a real advantage.

The great cash sum of £37 11s 7d held in the estate was substantial for the island, where coin was often scarce and much trade ran on book credit. That the deceased held so much ready money marks him as a man of means, able to keep specie by him rather than tying all his wealth in land, stock and goods.

The whole estate came to a clear £1,273 8s 11d, a great sum resting chiefly on the vast landholding and the yam grounds, marking the deceased among the wealthiest settlers of the island. The plainness of much of the household gear, set against the value of the land, shows a planter whose worth lay in his acres rather than his rooms.

The parcel of carpenter's tools with the hatchets and pickaxe marks woodworking and ground-clearing carried on at the estate, the gear for building, mending and bringing land into tillage. Their presence fits a great planter whose wealth lay in his cultivated acres, needing constant labour to keep the ground in yield.

167

159

Inventory of the Effects of M[..] Sam[..] Desfountain Dec[..] taken &

appraised by Mess[..] Elisha Isaacks, & Orlando Bagley Jun[..] this 18

Day of August 1760 Viz[..]

One Black Man Slave Named Surrey

£ 20

One Woman D[o] D[o] Pegg

20

15.140 old Yams @ 11/ [P] 1000

8 6 4[...]

12.250 young D[o] @ 8/9 D[o]

3 19 7[...]

4.650 old D[o] @ 11/ D[o]

2 9 9[...]

10.880 young D[o] @ 7/6 D[o]

4

6.500 new Planted @ 2/6 D[o]

16 3

12 Grown Goats

4 16

5 Kids

1

2 China Jars

12

2 Earthen Jars

2

a parcel of Carpenters Tools

7 6

a parcel of Shoemakers &c[..]

6 6

a parcel of Plantation D[o]

12

1 Lanthorn

1 6

1 Soup Dish 1 Meat Dish & 2 Soup Plates

2 6

1 China Mug & 3 Butt Plates

1

1 China Guglet

1 6

2 Glass Sweets

6

1 Steel Bar

5

1 Yam Pott

8

1 Oak Table round

1 5

1 Fowling Piece

12 6

1 Wood Morter

2 6

1 Small Iron Pott

1 3

1 Pail

5

1 Pothanger 2 P[..] Hooks & 1 Sweit

2 6

2 old Chairs

1 5

1 large Fir Chest

2 6

1 P[..] Leather Spatterdashes

1 6

1 old Form

1

1 Sadle Saddle & Furniture

Carried over £ 72 19 2

An inventory of the estate of Samuel Desfountain, deceased, was taken and appraised by Elisha Isaacks and Orlando Bagley junior on 18 August 1760.

One black man slave named Lucey, £20 0s 0d

One woman named Peggy, £20 0s 0d

13,140 old yams at 11s per thousand, £8 6s 4d

12,250 young yams at 6s 8d per thousand, £3 19s 7d

4,650 yams at 10s 11d per thousand, £2 9s 8d

10,880 young yams at 7s 6d per thousand, £4 1s 8d

6,500 new-planted at 2s 6d per thousand, £0 16s 3d

12 grown goats, £4 16s 0d

5 kids, £1 0s 0d

2 china jars, £0 12s 0d

2 earthen jars, £0 2s 0d

a parcel of carpenter's tools, £0 7s 6d

a parcel of shoemaker's tools, £0 16s 6d

a parcel of plantation tools, £0 12s 0d

1 lantern, £0 1s 6d

1 soup dish, 1 meat dish and 2 soup plates, £0 2s 6d

1 china mug and 3 old plates, £0 1s 0d

1 china guglet, £0 1s 6d

2 glass cruets, £0 0s 6d

1 steel bar, £0 5s 0d

1 yam pot, £0 8s 0d

1 oak round table, £1 5s 0d

1 fowling piece, £0 12s 0d

1 wood mortar, £0 1s 6d

1 small iron pot, £0 3s 0d

1 pail, £0 5s 0d

1 pot hanger, 2 pairs of hooks and 1 trivet, £0 2s 5d

2 old chairs, £0 15s 0d

1 large fir chest, £0 2s 6d

1 pair of leather spatterdashes, £0 1s 6d

1 old form, £1 0s 0d

1 bridle, saddle and furniture, £[...]

Carried over, £72 19s 2d

Interpretations

Spatterdashes were long cloth or leather gaiters buttoned over the lower leg to keep mud and wet off the stockings when riding or walking, the leather pair here marking practical outdoor dress for the island's rough tracks. With the saddle and bridle, they fit a household that kept a horse for travel and work.

The parcel of shoemaker's tools points to leatherworking carried on at the estate, footwear and leather goods made and mended on the spot rather than bought in. On an island where craftsmen were few, a household able to work leather held a real advantage in keeping its own gear.

A wood mortar was a hollowed wooden bowl for pounding grain, yams or other food with a pestle, a plainer vessel than the brass or stone mortars of wealthier houses. Its presence marks the everyday preparation of food in a working household.

The yam crop of over 47,000 tubers, graded into five lots by age and readiness, was the estate's largest class of movable goods, the standing harvest and its seed stock together forming the settler's chief cash asset. This staggered planting shows a grower managing his ground to yield provisions across the season for the Company ships that called at the island.

168

160

Brot over £ 72 19 2[...]

3 Gates

3

1 Small Tub & 1 Hogg

3

1 old Bedstead

5

1 Mare

3

1 Set Shoe Knee & Neck Buckles Silver

1 2 6

1 Camblet Coat Blue 1 P[..] Blue Worked Stock & Breeches

1 5

1 Green Worsted Stock & Waistcoat 1 Plain Hatt

3

1 Brown Cloth Coat

1 5

1 Blue Serge D[o]

18

1 Red Coat Laped with Blue

1 5

1 P[..] Scarlet Worsted Stock & Breeches

1 1

1 Silver Laced Hatt

1 5

2 P[..] Breeches 1 P[..] Gingham 1 P[..] Worsted & 1 Gingham Waistcoat

6

1 Dimity Waistcoat

10

1 P[..] Worsted Spatterdashes

2 6

6 plaid Stocks

9

2 fine White Shirts

1

4 midling D[o]

18

3 Coarse D[o]

9

5 Callico D[o]

1 2

4 Stocks

1

1 P[..] Leather Gloves

1 3

1 Gingham Waistcoat painted

1 6

2 Dimity Tablecloths

10

1 Diaper D[o]

10

1 P[..] Long Cloth Sheets

1 5

1 P[..] Holland D[o]

1 10

1 P[..] small long Cloth D[o]

8

1 Single Sheet & 1 old Table Cloth

2 6

4 Coarse Cloth Towels

4

1 Diaper & 1 Dungaree Towels

4

3 Small Gingham Shirts

9

1 P[..] fine Buckers Sheets

1

3 P[..] fine Chints

3 15

The valuation of Samuel Desfountain's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £72 19s 2d

3 gates, £0 3s 0d

1 small tub and 1 keg, £0 3s 0d

1 old bedstead, £0 5s 0d

1 mare, £3 0s 0d

1 set of shoe, knee and neck buckles, silver, £1 2s 6d

1 blue camlet coat, 1 pair of blue worsted stockings and breeches, £[...]

1 green worsted stock and waistcoat and 1 plain hat, £3 5s 0d

1 brown cloth coat, £1 5s 0d

1 blue serge coat, £0 18s 0d

1 red coat lapelled with blue, £1 5s 0d

1 pair of scarlet worsted stockings and breeches, £1 1s 0d

1 silver-laced hat, £1 5s 0d

2 pairs of breeches, 1 pair of gingham, 1 pair of worsted and 1 gingham waistcoat, £0 6s 0d

1 dimity waistcoat, £0 10s 0d

1 pair of worsted spatterdashes, £0 2s 6d

6 plaited stocks, £0 1s 0d

2 fine white shirts, £0 9s 0d

4 middling shirts, £0 18s 0d

3 coarse shirts, £0 12s 0d

5 calico shirts, £0 12s 0d

4 stocks, £0 1s 0d

1 pair of leather gloves, £0 1s 3d

1 gingham waistcoat, painted, £0 1s 6d

2 dimity tablecloths, £0 10s 0d

1 diaper tablecloth, £0 10s 0d

1 pair of longcloth sheets, £1 5s 0d

1 pair of holland sheets, £1 10s 0d

1 pair of small longcloth sheets, £0 8s 0d

1 single sheet and 1 old tablecloth, £0 2s 6d

4 canvas cloth towels, £0 4s 0d

1 diaper and 1 dowlas towel, £0 4s 0d

3 small gingham shirts, £0 9s 0d

1 pair of fine baftas sheets, £0 1s 0d

3 fine shirts, £0 15s 0d

Carried over, £[...]

Interpretations

The red coat lapelled with blue and the silver-laced hat mark the deceased's connection to the island garrison, the faced coat and braided hat being the dress of the Company's military force. With the scarlet stockings and breeches, these show a man in service, his better clothing that of a soldier or officer.

Camlet was a mixed weave of wool with silk or hair, an imported dress cloth used here for a coat, marking the range of the deceased's wardrobe from workday serge to better wear. The blue camlet coat was a garment of some quality against the plainer clothing.

The store of table and bed linen distinguished sharply by grade, holland and longcloth for the better sheets and towels against the coarser dowlas, canvas and baftas. This ranking of cloth by fineness shows a household holding both fine and common linen, the better reserved for the table and best beds.

The many shirts graded fine, middling and coarse, held in quantity, mark a well-stocked wardrobe with cloth for every use from dress to labour. Calico and gingham among them were imported cottons, the varied shirts showing a settler of some means kept in good body linen.

169

161

Brought over £ 104 2 3[...]

5 Cloth Pillowbears

6 3

1 Stripd Ticken Feather Bed 1 Bolster & 2 Pillows

4

1 Ticken Feather Bed & 2 Nankeen Pillows

3

1 Painted Bedstead

15

1 Set Curtains with a Rail

1 10

1 Sett Chintz Window Curtains

10 6

1 Ticken Wool Bed

1

1 Fiddle with a Bow

1

a parcel of Fiddle Strings

6

1 Hand Desk with a Brass Lock &c[..]

10

1 Horse Whip 1 P[..] Spring Spurs with Leather

6

1 P[..] Quick Silver Salt Sellars

6

1 P[..] Plated Shoe Buckles

2 6

1 Glass Salt Sellar

6

2 Wine Glasses 1 Tumbler & 2 Cruets

3

4 P[..] Brass Candlesticks

8

1 Small Coffee Pot & a Tin Slice

1 6

2 Teapots 1 China & 1 Earthen

3

1 old Pewter Bason

2 6

2 large Table Spoons 3 Tea Spoons & 1 Strainer Silver

1

1 old Silver Laced Hatt

5

1 Square Tea Table

10

1 Small Trunk

8

1 old fir Chest

8

1 large Leather Trunk

10

1/2 [P..] Dimity

7 5

2 Blue Gingham Waistcoats

12

1 P[..] Seersuckers

15

1 P[..] red Silk Latchets

1

5 P[..] Nankeen

1

4 Remnants Cloth

2 6

1 Coarse White Shirt

5

2 1/2 P[..] brown thin Cloth for Linings

10

1 large painted Chest

2

1 Crupper & 2 Straps

Carried over £ 125 12 2[...]

The valuation of Samuel Desfountain's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £104 2s 3d

5 cloth pillowcases, £0 6s 3d

1 striped ticking feather bed, 1 bolster and 2 pillows, £4 0s 0d

1 ticking feather bed and 2 nankeen pillows, £3 0s 0d

1 painted bedstead, £0 15s 0d

1 set of curtains with a rail, £1 10s 0d

1 set of chintz window curtains, £0 10s 6d

1 ticking wool bed, £1 0s 0d

1 fiddle with a bow, £1 0s 0d

a parcel of fiddle strings, £0 0s 6d

1 hand desk with a brass lock and key, £0 10s 0d

1 horse whip, 1 pair of spring spurs with leather, £0 6s 0d

1 pair of queen's silver salt cellars, £0 0s 6d

1 pair of plated shoe buckles, £0 2s 6d

1 glass salt cellar, £0 0s 6d

2 wine glasses, 1 tumbler and 2 cruets, £0 3s 0d

4 pairs of brass candlesticks, £0 8s 0d

1 small coffee pot and a tin slice, £0 1s 6d

2 teapots, 1 china and 1 earthen, £0 3s 0d

1 old pewter basin, £0 2s 6d

2 large tablespoons, 3 teaspoons and 1 strainer, silver, £1 0s 0d

1 old silver-laced hat, £0 5s 0d

1 square tea table, £0 10s 0d

1 small trunk, £0 8s 0d

1 old fir chest, £0 3s 0d

1 large leather trunk, £0 10s 0d

1 piece of dimity, £0 7s 0d

2 blue gingham waistcoats, £0 12s 0d

1 pair of scarlet suckers, £0 15s 0d

1 pair of red silk latchets, £1 0s 0d

5 pairs of nankeen, £1 0s 0d

4 remnants of cloth, £0 2s 6d

1 coarse white shirt, £0 5s 0d

2 pieces of brown thin cloth for lining, £0 10s 0d

1 large painted chest, £0 2s 0d

1 crupper and 2 straps, £[...]

Carried over, £125 12s 2d

Interpretations

The fiddle and its bow, with a parcel of spare strings, mark music-making in the household, an unusual and cheering item on these leaves. Such an instrument, imported like most goods, points to a settler who played for his own or his household's pleasure, the spare strings showing regular use.

Queen's silver was a base silver alloy or plated ware imitating true silver at lower cost, the salt cellars so named being cheaper than solid plate. Their low value marks them as an imitation rather than the real metal, a genteel show at modest expense.

Spring spurs were riding spurs fitted with a sprung mechanism, worn strapped to the boot, and with the horse whip and the crupper they mark the tack of a household that kept a horse for riding. Their presence completes the gear of a settler equipped for travel on the island's tracks.

Latchets were the straps or laces fastening a shoe across the instep, the red silk pair here a fine and showy fitting for dress footwear. Their value marks a touch of display in the deceased's dress, silk latchets being a costly ornament against plain leather ties.

170

162

Brought over £ 125 12 2[...]

1 old Form

2

28 [lb] Dyd Flax

1 11

2 Earthen Jars

2 6

1 P[..] Pumps

5

1 Looking Glass

10

1 Red Great Coat

6

1 Prayer Book

3

a Parcel of old Books

2 6

14 Candles @ 1/6 [P]

1 1

1 Cheese W[..] 16

16

1 P[..] Steelyards

6

1 Brine Tub & 1 Small Tub

2 6

1 Case with 2 Rasors & a Strap

2

4 [lb] Tamarine

2

7 Pewter Spoons

1 3

12 Knives & 12 Forks

5

1 large Black Wood Table

10

1 Small D[o] & Glass

1

1 Hair Broom

2 6

1 Case with 12 Bottles

1

2 Pewter Dishes

3

1 China D[o]

2

3 Tin Pudg Pans

6

2 Soup Plates

1

1 Brass Saucepan

1

1 Pestle Morter

2 6

1 Brass Ladle

1 6

1 Small Tub & a Pail

3

1 Pewter Dripg Pan & Stand

2

1 large Iron Pot

8

1 small D[o]

4

1 large Tin Kettle

2 6

1 Tea Kettle

1 Lamp

7 3

1 Quart Pewter Measure

6

1 fry[..] Pan 1 Spit & 2 P[..] Pothooks

5 6

1 P[..] Tongs

2

Carried over £ 136 6 2[...]

The valuation of Samuel Desfountain's estate continued from the sum already carried over.

Brought over, £125 12s 2d

1 old form, £0 2s 0d

28 lb dowlas at 8d per lb, £1 11s 0d

2 earthen jars, £0 2s 6d

1 pair of pumps, £0 5s 0d

1 looking glass, £0 10s 0d

1 red greatcoat, £0 6s 0d

1 prayer book, £0 3s 0d

a parcel of old books, £0 2s 6d

14 candles at 1s per lb, £1 1s 0d

1 cheese, weight 16 lb, £0 16s 0d

1 pair of steelyards, £0 6s 0d

1 brine tub and 1 small tub, £0 2s 6d

1 case with 2 razors and a strap, £0 2s 0d

1 lb tamarinds, £0 2s 0d

7 pewter spoons, £0 1s 3d

12 knives and 12 forks, £0 5s 0d

1 large black-wood table, £0 10s 0d

1 small looking glass, £0 1s 0d

1 hair broom, £0 2s 6d

1 case with 12 bottles, £1 0s 0d

2 pewter dishes, £0 3s 0d

1 china dish, £0 2s 0d

3 tin pudding pans, £0 6s 0d

2 soup plates, £0 1s 0d

1 brass saucepan, £0 1s 0d

1 pestle and mortar, £0 2s 6d

1 brass ladle, £0 1s 6d

1 small tub and a pail, £0 3s 0d

1 pewter dripping pan and stand, £0 2s 0d

1 large iron pot, £0 8s 0d

1 small iron pot, £0 4s 0d

1 large tin kettle, £0 2s 6d

1 teakettle, £0 7s 0d

1 lamp, £0 1s 3d

1 quart pewter measure, £0 0s 6d

1 frying pan, 1 spit and 2 pairs of pot hooks, £0 5s 6d

1 pair of tongs, £0 2s 0d

Carried over, £136 6s 2d

Interpretations

Tamarind was the sour brown pulp of an Indian and African tree pod, used to flavour food and drink and valued as a preventive against scurvy on long voyages. Its keeping in the estate shows the household holding an imported foodstuff prized both for cooking and for health at sea.

Black wood was a dense dark tropical timber, probably ebony or a like wood, used here for a large table, marking a finer piece than the plain fir furniture around it. Such imported hardwood lifted a table above the common deal ware.

The candles counted by weight and the sixteen-pound cheese were the household's stores of light and food, laid in against need on an island where such things were shipped in or made at home rather than readily bought. Their listing shows a settler provisioning his house from a store rather than the market.

A greatcoat was a heavy outer coat worn against cold and wet, the red one here probably a garment of the garrison marking the deceased's military connection. With the silver-laced hat and faced coats recorded earlier, it points to a man in the Company's service.

171

163

Brought over £ 136 6 2[...]

1 P[..] Pothangers

3

3 Box Irons & Heaters

7 6

4 Single Bowls

2 6

4 D[o]

1

1 Tin Funnel

1

4 empty Hogsheads

12

5 Wash Tubs

5

1 large Copper Wash'g Kettle

3 5

2 Pewter Chamber Potts

2

1 Broad Ax

1 6

1 Pewter Shaving Bason

4

1 Iron Swivel for a rope

1 6

2 Small Quilts

10

3 Blankets

12

11 Grown Fowls

16 6

6 Chickens

4 6

Sundry Persons Indebted to the Estate

16 16 9[...]

£ 160 16 6

Signed

Elisha Isaacks

Orlando Bagley Jun[..]

Samuel Desfountain Dec[..] Indebted to Sundry Persons £ 174 13 4[...]

The valuation of Samuel Desfountain's estate concluded with the last household goods, the debts due to it, and the debts it owed.

Brought over, £136 6s 2d

1 pair of pot hangers, £0 3s 0d

3 box irons and heaters, £0 3s 0d

4 single bowls, £0 1s 6d

4 single bowls, £0 2s 6d

1 tin funnel, £0 1s 0d

4 empty hogsheads, £0 12s 0d

5 wash tubs, £0 5s 0d

1 large copper stewpan and skillet, £0 3s 5d

2 pewter chamber pots, £0 2s 0d

1 broad axe, £0 1s 6d

1 pewter shaving basin, £0 4s 0d

1 iron swivel for a shop, £0 1s 6d

2 small quilts, £0 10s 0d

3 blankets, £0 12s 0d

11 grown fowls, £0 16s 6d

6 chickens, £0 4s 6d

Sundry persons indebted to the estate, £16 16s 9d

£160 16s 6d

Signed Elisha Isaacks

Orlando Bagley junior

Samuel Desfountain, deceased, indebted to sundry persons, £174 13s 4d

Interpretations

A skillet was a long-handled cooking pot standing on legs to sit over the fire or coals, and the copper one with its stewpan marked cooking beyond the plain boiling pot, copper giving a gentle even heat. Such vessels, imported and costly, mark a household able to prepare more varied fare than the meanest sort.

A pewter shaving basin was a dish shaped with a notch to fit against the throat while a man was shaved, part of the gear of personal grooming. Its listing with the razors recorded earlier marks the household's own barbering, whether by the deceased or another.

The estate closed with debts of £174 13s 4d exceeding what was owed to it and the value of many of its goods, marking a settler more encumbered than his holdings could easily meet. The weight of debt against a modest estate shows a man living on credit, his obligations outrunning his means.

The iron swivel for a shop points to the deceased keeping a shop or workshop, the swivel being a fitting for a counter, gate or mounted tool. With the parcels of carpenter's and shoemaker's tools recorded earlier, it marks a man who worked at a trade and perhaps sold goods to the settlement.

172

164

An Inventory of the Estate of Cap[..] Will[m] Kennedy Deceased Taken and Appraised

by John Desfountain, Richard Bagley

And Benjamin Mason the 6[..] of November

1760 Viz[..]

Blacks Viz[..]

1 Man Named Cæsar

£ 15

1 Woman D[o] Patt

1 Woman D[o] Massey

18

1 Boy D[o] Michael

8

1 Girl D[o] Betty

9

50

Goats Viz[..]

4 Ewe Goats

1 12

2 Kids

8

2

Hogs Viz[..]

2 Sows

2 2

4 Pigs

1

3 12

Horses

1 Mare

4

1 Filley

3

7

Poultry Viz[..]

8 Fowls

12

12 Ducks

1 1

1 18

Household Goods

1 Feather Bed Bolster 2 Pillows and Quilt

5

1 D[o] D[o] D[o] 2 D[o] and D[o]

3

1 Small Feather Bed

1 5

1 Black Wood Bedsted

3

1 Feather Bed Bolster & 2 Pillows

4

1 Small Nankeen Bed & Wool Bed & Bolster

3

1 Cotton Bed

1 10

3 Coatsteds

1 4

Hosdold Goods Carried Over 21 19

Carried over 63 15

An inventory of the estate of Captain William Kennedy, deceased, was taken and appraised by John Desfountain, Richard Bagley and Benjamin Mason on 6 November 1760.

Blacks, viz:

1 man named Coos, £15 0s 0d

1 woman named Pall, £8 0s 0d

1 woman named Massey, £18 0s 0d

1 boy named Michael, £8 0s 0d

1 girl named Betty, £9 0s 0d

£50 0s 0d

Goats, viz:

4 ewe goats, £1 12s 0d

2 kids, £0 8s 0d

£2 0s 0d

Hogs, viz:

2 sows, £2 2s 0d

4 pigs, £1 0s 0d

£3 12s 0d

Horses:

1 mare, £4 0s 0d

1 filly, £3 0s 0d

£7 0s 0d

Poultry, viz:

8 fowls, £0 12s 0d

14 ducks, £1 1s 0d

£1 18s 0d

Household goods:

1 feather bed, bolster, 2 pillows and quilt, £5 0s 0d

1 feather bed, bolster, 2 pillows and quilt, £3 0s 0d

1 small feather bed, £1 5s 0d

1 black-wood bedstead, £3 0s 0d

1 feather bed, bolster and 2 pillows, £4 0s 0d

1 small nankeen bed, wool bed and bolster, £3 0s 0d

1 cotton bed, £1 10s 0d

3 cotsteads, £1 4s 0d

Household goods carried over, £21 19s 0d

Carried over, £63 15s 0d

Interpretations

The five slaves were each named and priced by working strength, the woman Massey highest at £18 above the man Coos at £15, an ordering that probably reflects his age against her vigour. This shows the appraisers weighing each person's capacity for labour rather than sex alone, a prime woman outvaluing a failing man.

A black-wood bedstead, valued at £3, was made of a dense dark tropical timber such as ebony, a finer frame than the plain fir bedsteads of ordinary houses. Such imported hardwood lifted a bed above the common sort, marking a piece of some richness.

A cotton bed was a mattress stuffed with cotton or silk cotton, a lighter and cooler filling than feathers, suited to the island's warmer days. Its listing among the beds shows the household mixing imported and local materials in its bedding.

The estate belonged to a ship's captain, William Kennedy, whose vessel called at the island, and his holding of slaves, stock and household goods marks a sea officer with property on shore. Such captains often kept establishments at the settlements they served, their wealth spread between ship and land.

173

165

Brought over £ 63 15 16

Household Goods Brought over £ 21 19

1 Small Mattrass Blankets & Quilt

1 5

1 Sett of Green Gauze Curtains

1 10

1 Sett of Bed Chintz D[o]

12

1 Sett of White D[o] D[o]

1

1 Sett of Blue D[o] D[o]

18

1 Sett of Best Silk Window Curtains

8

4 Carpetts

1

9 Pair of Long Cloth Sheets @ 7/ P[..] Pair

3 3

1 Diaper Table Cloth

15

5 Table Cloths

1 5

18 Napkins

18

15 Pillow bears

15

1 Corrall

1 1

1 Case 2 Razors &c[..] Straps

7 6

1 Small Bible

1 6

4 Free masons Jewels

1

1 Fir Chest

8

2 Fir Boxes

10

1 Large Round Table

2 5

1 Small Square D[o]

2 10

1 Tea Table

15

1 Tea Box with Cannisters

10

6 Chests with Leather Bottoms

2 14

1 Elbow Chair

10

6 Large Pictures

2 8

6 Small D[o]

1 10

1 Smoking Piece

1 10

1 P[..] of Pistols

10

2 Spitts Botts

3

2 Breast Plates

12

1 large Tin Chest

15

1 Small D[o] & D[o]

10

1 Blue D[o] D[o]

12

1 large Case & Bottles

3

Household Goods Car[..] over £ 59 10

Carried over £ 63 15

The valuation of Captain William Kennedy's estate continued from the sums already carried over.

Brought over, £63 15s 0d

Household goods brought over, £21 19s 0d

1 small mattress, blanket and quilt, £1 5s 0d

1 set of green gauze curtains, £1 10s 0d

1 set of bed chintz curtains, £0 12s 0d

1 set of white curtains, £1 0s 0d

1 set of blue curtains, £0 18s 0d

1 set of bed and silk window curtains, £0 8s 0d

4 carpets, £1 0s 0d

9 pairs of longcloth sheets at 7s per pair, £3 3s 0d

1 diaper tablecloth, £0 15s 0d

5 tablecloths, £1 5s 0d

18 napkins, £0 18s 0d

15 pillowcases, £0 15s 0d

1 coral, £1 1s 0d

1 case, 3 razors and a strap, £0 7s 6d

1 small bible, £0 1s 6d

4 freemason's jewels, £0 8s 0d

1 fir chest, £0 10s 0d

2 fir boxes, £0 10s 0d

1 large round table, £2 5s 0d

1 small square table, £2 10s 0d

1 tea table, £0 15s 0d

1 tea box with canisters, £0 10s 0d

6 chests with leather bottoms, £2 14s 0d

1 elbow chair, £0 10s 0d

6 large pictures, £2 8s 0d

6 small pictures, £1 10s 0d

1 fowling piece, £1 10s 0d

1 pair of pistols, £0 3s 0d

2 spit pots, £0 12s 0d

2 breast plates, £0 15s 0d

1 large fir chest, £0 10s 0d

1 small fir chest, £0 12s 0d

1 blue chest, £3 0s 0d

1 large case and bottles, £[...]

Household goods carried over, £59 10s 0d

Carried over, £63 15s 0d

Interpretations

The four freemason's jewels mark the deceased as a member of a masonic lodge, the jewels being the emblems worn by officers of the order at their meetings. Their presence shows freemasonry reaching the island through the sea officers and settlers who carried the fraternity with them, a network of fellowship spanning the trading world.

A child's coral was a teething toy of polished coral mounted in silver, given to infants to rub against sore gums and worn as a charm against harm. Valued here at £1 1s 0d, it marks a costly nursery possession and the belief in coral's protective power, pointing to a young child in the household.

The pair of pistols and the breast plates mark the deceased's arms as a ship's captain, the breast plates being the metal gorgets or armour worn as a badge of military or naval rank. With the fowling piece and swords, they show a man well furnished with weapons of both service and defence.

The twelve pictures, six large and six small, were a considerable holding of framed pictures for the island, ornaments furnishing the walls of a comfortable house. Framed pictures were an imported luxury, and such a number marks a captain of some wealth conscious of dressing his rooms.

174

166

Brought Over £ 63 16

Household Goods Brought over £ 59 10

1 Small D[o]

1

1 D[o]

1

3 Tea Kettles

1 1

1 Camp D[o]

6

4 Box Irons

1 10

1 Brass Mortar & Pestle

7

4 Sett of Candle Sticks & 4 Pair of Snuffers

1 10

1 large Spying Glass

15

1 Horse whip & side Saddle

3 10

8 Wooden Chairs

2

6 Silver Tea Spoons Tongs & Strainer

1 10

6 Silver Salt Spoons

12

1 Silver Watch

5

4 Lacoured Bottle boards

6

3 Second Silvers

5

2 Japand D[o]

4

1 Sett of Bristol Stone Buckels

3 10

1 Sett of Wrought Silver D[o]

1

1 D[o] D[o] with a Neck Buckle&c[..]

1 3

1 Sett of Gold Waistcoat Buttons

3 5

16 More Stone Buttons with Silver Shanks

15

1 Pair of Gold Stone Buttons

1 8

1 large Gold Ring

1

2 Small D[o] D[o]

18

1 Sword Knot

10

1 Snuff Box & 1 Silver D[o]

5

6 Dozen of Gilt buttons

9

1 Large Sett of Chinese Ware

1 10

1 Short D[o] D[o]

16

32 China Meat Plate @ 4 [...] [...]

17 1

15 Soup Plates @ 3 each

6 3

6 Meat Dishes @ 1/2 Each

10

6 Sallad D[o] at 1 each

6

Household Goods Car[..] over £ 101 13 7

Carried over £ 63 15

The valuation of Captain William Kennedy's estate continued from the sums already carried over.

Brought over, £63 15s 0d

Household goods brought over, £59 10s 0d

1 small case and bottles, £1 0s 0d

1 case and bottles, £1 0s 0d

3 teakettles, £1 1s 0d

1 camp kettle, £0 6s 0d

2 box irons, £0 10s 0d

1 brass mortar and pestle, £0 7s 0d

4 pairs of candlesticks and 4 pairs of snuffers, £1 10s 0d

1 large spyglass, £0 15s 0d

1 stone whip and side saddle, £3 10s 0d

8 wooden chairs, £2 0s 0d

6 silver teaspoons, tongs and box, £1 10s 0d

6 silver salt spoons, £0 12s 0d

1 silver watch, £5 0s 0d

4 lacquered bottle boards, £0 6s 0d

3 seated salvers, £0 5s 0d

2 japanned salvers, £0 4s 0d

1 set of Bristol stone buckles, £3 10s 0d

1 set of wrought silver buckles, £1 0s 0d

1 set of wrought silver buckles with a shoe buckle, £1 3s 0d

1 set of gilt waistcoat buttons, £3 5s 0d

15 metal stone buttons with silver shanks, £0 13s 0d

1 pair of gold sleeve buttons, £1 8s 0d

1 large gold ring, £1 0s 0d

2 small gold rings, £0 15s 0d

1 sword knot, £0 10s 0d

1 snuffbox and 1 tweezers, £0 5s 0d

6 dozen gilt buttons, £0 9s 0d

1 large set of chinaware, £4 10s 0d

1 short set, £0 16s 0d

52 china meat plates at 4d each, £0 17s 4d

15 soup plates at 5d each, £0 6s 3d

5 meat dishes at 9d each, £0 3s 9d

6 salad dishes at 1s each, £0 6s 0d

Household goods carried over, £101 13s 7d

Carried over, £63 15s 0d

Interpretations

The spyglass marks the deceased as a ship's captain, the small telescope being an instrument of the sea for spotting land, ships or hazards. Its presence among his goods speaks to his calling on the water, a tool of his trade kept ashore.

A sword knot was a tasselled loop of ribbon or leather fastened to a sword hilt, both an ornament and a means of securing the blade to the wrist, worn as a mark of an officer's rank. With the swords and pistols recorded earlier, it confirms the deceased's military or naval standing.

The large set of chinaware, valued at £4 10s 0d with dozens of matching plates and dishes, was a proper dinner service marking a household equipped for formal dining on a grand scale. Such matched imported ceramic, brought in on the Company ships, shows the wealth and standing of a sea captain who kept a genteel table on shore.

A camp kettle was a portable cooking pot for use in the field or on campaign, an item fitting a man of military service. Its presence among the kitchen gear points again to the deceased's calling, the vessel carried for cooking away from a settled hearth.

175

167

Brought over £ 63 15

Household Goods Brought over £ 101 13 7

3 Soup Dishes

1

3 China Guglets & Basons

15

6 China Jars

18

10 D[o] Bowls

1 5

2 Dozen Snakers

8

3 Earthen Teapotts

1 6

12 Slop'd Cups Saucers & Tea pott

9 6

12 Champer[..] Spitts

1 15

1 large Black Lacquerd Trunk

1

1 Small D[o] D[o] D[o]

1

1 Black fir'd Box with a Draw

4 10

1 Beauroe

2 10

1 Iron Chest

5

1 Beaureau

16 6

12 Flowerd wine Glasses & Wine & Water d[o] Decanters

14 Wine Glasses

1 2

6 fine Mason D[o]

8

4 Plain Decanters

1 6

2 Grass Tumblers

3

2 Black Frocks

13 6

6 Cannesters of Tea

1 4

3 Chamber Glasses

12

1 Lockwd Tea table

11 10

12 Silver Table Spoons & 1 Soup D[o]

15

1 Silver French Ladle

5

1 Tea Table

2 6

1 Pair of Silver Spurs & D[o] Cased

5

2 Silver headed Canes

2 6

1 Pewter Bason

4 10

1 Sett of Carpenters Tools

5

9 Knives & Forks

146 [...] 1

Household Goods Carried over £ 63 15

The valuation of Captain William Kennedy's estate continued from the sums already carried over.

Brought over, £63 15s 0d

Household goods brought over, £101 13s 7d

5 soup dishes, £1 0s 0d

3 china guglets and basins, £0 15s 0d

6 china jars, £0 18s 0d

10 china bowls, £1 5s 0d

2 dozen saucers, £0 8s 0d

5 earthen teapots, £0 1s 6d

12 tablespoon cups, saucers and 6 teapots, £0 9s 0d

12 chamber pots, £0 6s 0d

1 large black lacquered stand, £1 15s 0d

1 small black lacquered stand, £1 0s 0d

1 black-wood box with a drawer, £1 0s 0d

1 bureau, £4 10s 0d

1 desk case, £2 10s 0d

1 bureau, £5 0s 0d

12 flowered wine glasses, 2 wine and water glasses and 2 decanters, £0 16s 6d

14 wine glasses, £0 7s 0d

6 freemason's wine glasses, £0 2s 0d

4 plain decanters, £0 8s 0d

2 glass tumblers, £0 1s 6d

2 black frocks, £0 3s 6d

6 canisters of tea, £0 13s 6d

3 chamber glasses, £0 4s 0d

1 lacquered tea table, £0 12s 0d

12 silver tablespoons and 1 soup spoon, £11 0s 0d

1 silver punch ladle, £0 15s 0d

1 fir table, £0 5s 0d

1 pair of silver spurs and 1 pair cased, £0 12s 6d

2 silver-headed canes, £0 2s 6d

1 pewter basin, £4 10s 0d

1 set of carpenter's tools, £0 5s 0d

9 knives and forks, £[...]

Household goods carried over, £146 8s 1d

Carried over, £63 15s 0d

Interpretations

The twelve silver tablespoons and soup spoon, valued together at £11, were the estate's chief store of precious metal, the single most valuable lot of household goods. Silver served both as tableware and as a portable reserve of value, and on an island short of coin such a store held worth that could be weighed and sold, so its careful listing shows the metal counted as bullion as much as plate.

The two silver-headed canes were walking sticks capped with silver, both useful supports and marks of gentility carried by a man of standing. Their silver mounts lifted them above plain sticks, fitting a sea captain conscious of his rank and appearance.

The six freemason's wine glasses, glasses marked or engraved for use at masonic gatherings, join the four freemason's jewels recorded earlier as tokens of the deceased's membership of a lodge. Their presence marks the fellowship of freemasonry carried across the trading world by the sea officers who kept its practices at the ports they served.

The great abundance of drinking glass and china, wine glasses, decanters, tumblers, dozens of plates and dishes, marks a household equipped for entertaining on a grand scale. This imported ware, brought in on the Company ships, shows a wealthy captain who kept a table dressed for company and the sociable drinking of wine and punch.

176

168

Brought over £ 63 15

Household Goods Brought over £ 146 8 1

2 Tinn Kennells

2

1 Saw

1 6

1 Serge Iron Pott

1 5

2 Small D[o] &c[..]

1

1 Fish Kettle

12

1 Old Small Iron Pott

2

1 Grillo Iron Spit and Frying Pan

11 6

1 D[o] of Pott Hooks and Hangers

7

1 Pail and Two Tubs

10

2 Clasp Cotts

5

1 Cagg

6

2 Pair of Glass Salt Sellars

1 3

1 P[..] China

8

A Parcel of Books

1 15

1 large Close Chair

1

3 Carboys

1 6

5 Earthen Jars

2 6

1 Curry Comb and Brush

2 6

1 Old Saddle

1 5

3 Flutes and 1 Baggammon Table

164 10 4

Wearing Apparrel Viz[..]

1 Duffled Coat

2 5

1 Silver Laced Wescoat

3 12

1 Gold Laced D[o]

2 5

1 Silver Laced D[o]

1 15

1 Blue Serge Coat and D[o] Duffled Wescoat

1 5

2 Scar[..] Cloth Wescoats plain

15

4 Striped Silk Latches Wescoats

1 4

1 Yellow Silk Wescoats

10

1 Chintch Banyan

2 10

1 Striped D[o]

12

2 P[..] of White Silk Hose

1 1

Wearg[..] Apparrell Carried over 17 14

Carried over £ 228 6 4

The valuation of Captain William Kennedy's estate continued from the sums already carried over.

Brought over, £63 15s 0d

Household goods brought over, £146 8s 1d

2 tin funnels, £0 2s 0d

1 sieve, £0 1s 6d

1 large iron pot, £0 5s 0d

2 small iron pots, £0 1s 0d

1 fish kettle, £0 12s 0d

1 old small iron pot, £0 2s 0d

1 gridiron, iron spit and frying pan, £0 11s 0d

1 pair of pot hooks and hangers, £0 6s 6d

1 pail and two tubs, £0 10s 0d

2 clasp pots, £0 10s 0d

1 keg, £0 5s 0d

2 pairs of glass salt cellars, £0 6s 0d

1 pair of china salt cellars, £0 1s 3d

a parcel of old books, £0 8s 0d

1 large close-stool chair, £0 15s 0d

5 carboys, £0 1s 0d

5 earthen jars, £0 6s 0d

1 curry comb and brush, £0 2s 6d

1 old saddle, £0 2s 6d

3 flutes and 1 backgammon table, £0 15s 0d

£164 10s 4d

Wearing apparel, viz:

1 duffel coat, £2 5s 0d

1 silver-laced waistcoat, £3 12s 0d

1 gold-laced hat, £2 5s 0d

1 silver-laced hat, £1 15s 0d

1 blue serge coat and duffel waistcoat, £1 5s 0d

2 scarlet cloth waistcoats, plain, £0 15s 0d

4 striped silk latchet waistcoats, £1 4s 0d

1 yellow silk waistcoat, £0 10s 0d

1 chintz banyan, £2 10s 0d

1 striped banyan, £0 12s 0d

2 pairs of white silk hose, £1 1s 0d

Wearing apparel carried over, £17 11s 0d

Carried over, £228 5s 4d

Interpretations

A banyan was a loose informal gown or robe worn at home, of Indian origin and often made of chintz or figured cloth, the chintz one here a comfortable garment of some richness. Its listing marks the settled fashion for such Eastern-style dress among the settlers and sea officers, worn for ease indoors.

The three flutes mark music-making in the household, wind instruments played for the deceased's own or his household's pleasure, joining the many signs of a well-appointed and cultivated establishment. Such instruments, imported like most goods, point to a captain of some refinement and leisure.

The silver-laced and gold-laced hats and waistcoats, with the duffel coat and scarlet waistcoats, mark the dress of a ship's captain of some standing, the braided finery befitting his rank. Duffel was a coarse heavy woollen cloth for outer wear, the coat serving against cold and wet at sea.

A close-stool chair was a commode enclosing a chamber pot for indoor use, and the large one here, with the twelve chamber pots recorded earlier, marks a well-provided household attentive to indoor sanitation. Such a quantity of chamber ware fits a large establishment with many rooms and occupants.

177

169

Brought over £ 228 5 4

Wearing Apparrel Brought over £ 17 14

1 P[..] Black Silk Hosf[..]

5

2 P[..] of Cotton D[o]

13

12 D[o] of China Cotton D[o]

1 4

3 White Gingham Wescoats

9

3 Dimity D[o]

18

2 Dozen and half of Ruffled Shirts

18

9 Stocks

11 3

1 Blue Serge Coat & 1 Scarlet Lacd Wescoat

1 5

1 Gold Laced Hatt

1 5

1 D[o] D[o] D[o] Scollops

10

1 Silver D[o] D[o]

12

1 Plain Hatt

15

1 Silver Mounted Sword and Belt

5

8 Yards 1/2 of Scarlet Broad Cloth

8

3 Yards of Salon

10

2 D[o] of Scarlet Worsted for Breeches

16

1 Scarlet Gold Laced Coat

3

1 Black Blue Cloth Coat and Breeches Gold Laced Wescoat

6 10

1 Scarlet Cloth Coat

3

1 Scarlet Cloth D[o] and Gold Wescoat

3

1 Scarlet Cloth D[o] & Camblet Wescoat Silver Laced

2

2 P[..] of Black Silk Breeches

15

2 Pair of Scarlet Serge Breeches

1 1

1 D[o] of D[o] Worsted D[o]

7 6

1 Blue Serge Coat & Breeches

1 4[...]

1 Pair of Boots

6

3 Pair of Shoes

8

2 Clothes Brushes

3

80 14 9

To the third Part of a house Valled at 100

33 6 8

84 2 3[...]

30 1 11

Debts Due to the Estate

303 5 8

72 2 6[...]

The Estate in D[..] to Sundrys

283 3 2[...]

Signed

John Desfountain

Rich[..] Bagley

Geo[..] Mason

The valuation of Captain William Kennedy's estate concluded with the wearing apparel, a share in a house, cash and the debts owed to and by the estate.

Brought over, £228 5s 4d

Wearing apparel brought over, £17 11s 0d

1 pair of black silk hose, £0 5s 0d

2 pairs of cotton hose, £0 13s 0d

12 pairs of china cotton hose, £1 4s 0d

3 white gingham waistcoats, £0 9s 0d

3 dimity waistcoats, £0 18s 0d

2 dozen and a half of ruffled shirts, £18 0s 0d

9 stocks, £0 11s 3d

1 blue serge coat and scarlet-laced waistcoat, £1 5s 0d

1 gold-laced hat, £1 5s 0d

1 gold-laced hat, scalloped, £0 10s 0d

1 silver-laced hat, £0 12s 0d

1 plain hat, £0 15s 0d

1 silver-mounted sword and belt, £3 0s 0d

2 yards of scarlet broadcloth, £0 8s 0d

3 yards of satin, £0 10s 0d

2 yards of scarlet worsted for breeches, £0 16s 0d

1 scarlet gold-laced coat, £3 0s 0d

1 black, blue cloth coat and breeches and gold-laced waistcoat, £6 10s 0d

1 scarlet cloth coat, £3 0s 0d

1 scarlet cloth coat and gold waistcoat, £3 0s 0d

1 scarlet cloth coat and camlet waistcoat, silver-laced, £2 0s 0d

1 pair of black silk breeches, £0 15s 0d

2 pairs of scarlet serge breeches, £1 1s 0d

2 pairs of worsted breeches, £0 7s 6d

1 blue serge coat and breeches, £0 10s 0d

1 pair of boots, £0 6s 0d

3 pairs of shoes, £0 8s 0d

2 clothes brushes, £0 3s 0d

£80 11s 9d

£33 6s 8d

To the third part of a house valued at £100, £34 3s 0d

cash, £30 11s 0d

Debts due to the estate, £302 6s 8d

The estate indebted to sundries, £29 2s 6d

£283 3s 2d

Signed John Desfountain

Richard Bagley

Benjamin Mason

Interpretations

The many scarlet and gold-laced coats, with the silver-mounted sword, mark the deceased as a naval or military officer of some rank, scarlet and gold being the colours and trimmings of the Company's service dress. The number of such fine garments, several coats with matching laced waistcoats, shows a man who dressed to his station and kept a wardrobe far beyond ordinary wear.

The two and a half dozen ruffled shirts, valued together at £18, were a great store of fine body linen, the ruffles marking them as dress shirts for a gentleman. This quantity of costly shirting, the single most valuable lot of apparel, confirms a wealthy officer who kept himself in fine linen.

The third part of a house valued at £100 was a share held jointly with others, the deceased owning a fraction of a property rather than the whole. Such shared ownership of buildings was common on the island, spreading the cost and use of a house between several parties.

The debts due to the estate of £302 6s 8d far exceeded what it owed, marking the deceased as a considerable creditor whose money was owed by many across the trading world. Such large sums owing to a ship's captain show his dealings in credit spread between the island, other ports and the vessels he served.

178

170

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179

171

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180

172

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181

173

Book cover

182

174

EAP 1364 St Helena

Document Name and Date: Inventories of Estates of deceased Persons 1744-1760

Dimensions (height x width x depth) (cm): (H) 48.5cm x (W) 31cm x (D) 3.5cm

No. written pages: 172

No. blank pages: 1

Spire and cover: Very good Condition

Inside pages: Good Condition Recently rebound. Pages are numbered by scribe at top of pages. Also numbered in pencil on every other page. (Bottom of pages.)

Additional comments: Foxing present.

Time taken to photograph (hours): 2 hours