George Webbe of Westbury upon Trym

Absentee slave-owner of Nevis. With his brother Josiah Webbe (q.v.), he inherited property and enslaved people on Nevis from their father, also named George Webbe, as tenants-in-common. After Josiah Webbe's death, the two men's nephew - then known as George Webbe junior (q.v. under George Webbe senior of Nevis), to whom Josiah Webbe had left his half of the estates - forced a division of the property, with Stoney Hill being split into two (and the named enslaved people being divided 79 to George Webbe of Westbury upon Trym and 88 to George Webbe junior) in 1779), and with George Webbe of Westbury upon Trym taking New River and George Webbe junior taking Deodand in 1781.

1. Will of George Webbe of Westbury upon Trym proved 30/06/1790. In the will he left £1000 each to his daughters Elizabeth Tobin and Frances Parson and annuities of £100 p.a. each, and £30 p.a. to his sister Frances Lowman of Bristol. He provided £40 p.a for Elizabeth Pavey, then living with him aged about 14 years old, the reputed daughter of his late son Joseph. He left his estates and enslaved people on Nevis and his personalty to his son George Webbe.

Articles of Agreement dated 05/09/1781 between George Webbe senior of Stratford Wiltshire and George Webbe junior of Stoney Hill in Nevis recorded the division of estates on Nevis between the two men [who were uncle and nephew], after George Webbe junior had inherited under the will of his uncle Josiah Webbe (who with his brother George Webbe senior of Stratford had inherited as tenants in common under the will of their father, also George Webbe). At the instigation of the younger man, the two men had previously split the Stoney Hill estate. Under the new indenture of 1781, George Webbe senior took the New River estate (243 acres) and George Webbe junior the Deodand estate (194 acres), with an adjustment of £500 to reflect the higher value of the New River estate. It has not been possible to date to map these estates with complete confidence onto the estates named Stoney Hill and New River in later sources, but by inference the portion of Stoney Hill that went to George Webbe junior was that combined with Deodand that was mortgaged to James Wildman in the early 1800s. Common Records 1783-1785, British Library, EAP794/1/1/19, https://eap.bl.uk/archive-file/EAP794-1-1-19 pp. 1-12.

1. PROB 11/1193/233; date of birth by email from Jonathan Spencer Jones 23/08/2018.

We are grateful to Jonathan Spencer Jones for his assistance with compiling this entry.