William Stothert

Scottish landowner with inherited wealth.

1. Born c. 1791 and baptised 12/11/1791 at Cargen, Kirkcudbrightshire, his parents were James Stothert and Margaret Stothert née Cockburn. “A native of Edinburgh, Scotland, James Stothert [q.v., d. 1800, William’s father] acquired sizeable estates during the 1760s, when he resided in St. James Parish, Jamaica. Returning home in the 1770s, he entrusted the day to day management of his plantations to a succession of resident managers, and for the remainder of his life, enjoyed a steady income as absentee landlord from rents and the production of sugar.”

2. William Stothert, Captain of the 3rd Royal Footguards and Brigate Major to the 2nd Brigade of Guards, was reported seriously injured (since dead) at the Battle of Waterloo (1815). This William Stothert published an account of the Peninsular War in 1812. It is not clear if this was a different William Stothert or if his death was erroneously reported. On the death certificate of William Stothert of Cargen, widower of Rebecca Monteith and Jemima Deborah Deans, his occupation was given as “Formerly Captain in the Coldstream Guards.” William Stothert of the 3rd Footguards wrote an early account of the Peninsular War, published in 1812.

3. William Stothert married Rebecca Monteith 06/11/1815 in Edinburgh. “1 January [1817] At Edinburgh, the lady of William Stothert, Esq. of Cargen, a son and heir.” “3 May [1821] The lady of William Stothert, Esq. of Cargen, of a daughter.” Only one child from this marriage found living with William in the later censuses: William Stothert, age 19, living with William Stothert, age 49, at 7 Randolph Crescent, Edinburgh, in the census of 1841.

4. He remarried in Edinburgh, 01/01/1827, to Jemima Deborah Deans. They had at least 5 children, all born in Midlothian, identified in the census of 1841 living with William Stothert at 7 Randolph Crescent, Edinburgh: Robert age 13, Isabella age 12, Eliza age 10, Thomas age 9, Richard age 7. Another daughter, Henrietta, age 27, was living with William Stothert at Limefield House, West Calder, Midlothian, in the census of 1851, where William’s occupation was “Landed Proprietor and JP”.

5. William Stothert of Dundee Estate and Archibald Stirling of Hampden Estate put up half the money to build Hampden Chapel in Trelawny, Jamaica, 1824-1828 under the auspices of the Scottish Missionary Society. A visitor in the household of William Stothert at Limefield House in 1851 was Alexander McNight, age 24, “Preacher of the Gospel in the Free Church”.

6. In the census of 1861, he was living at Cargen Lodge, Edinburgh (as distinct from Cargen in Kirkcudbright, the family seat and his place of birth), with 3 of his children and 3 female servants.

7. Death of William Strachan [=Stothert?] of Cargen at 5 Whitehouse Terrace, Edinburgh, 23/05/1863.

T71/874 Trelawney claim no. 550 (Dundee Castle). T71/1608 letter dated 04/08/1835 from Wm Stothert, Cargen, Dumfries, Scotland : 'As proprietor of the Estate of Dundee in Jamaica may I beg to be informed at your conveneince when I may be likely to receive my share of the compensation money, and hoping as I do to apply for it personally, what credentials I must produce to prove my identity.'

1. Birth of William Stothert, www.familysearch.org batch no. C11882-4. James Stothert papers, 1784-1807, at the William Clements Library, University of Michigan, summary information available at quod.lib.umich.edu/c/clementsmss/umich-wcl-M-1650sto?view=text.

2. Christopher Kelly, A Full and Circumstantial Account of the Memorable Battle of Waterloo (London, Thomas Kelly, 1817), p. 104. Death of William Stothert of Cargen, General Register Office for Scotland, Deaths 1863 685/5 307. William Stothart, Narrative of the Principal Events of the Campaigns of 1809, 1810, & 1811 in Spain and Portugal: Interspersed with Remarks On Local Scenery and Manners. In a Series of Letters (Charleston, South Carolina, BiblioBazaar, republished 2010).

3. Marriage of William Stothert and Rebecca Monteith: General Register Office for Scotland OPR 685/1 540 170 FR 2611. Scott, Sir Walter, The Edinburgh Annual Register (Edinburgh, Archibald Constable & Co., 1821), Vol. 10, p. 298. Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine, Vol. 8 p. 707. 1841 census online.

4. Marriage of William Stothert and Jemima Deborah Deans: General Register Office for Scotland OPR 685/2 410 206 FR 762. 1841 and 1851 censuses online. Only one of these children is found on www.familysearch.org: the birth of Eliza Begg Stothert at Troqueer 02/08/1830 batch no. C11882-5.

5. James Gardner, A History of the Discovery of Jamaica… pp. 345-346. 1851 census online.

6. 1861 census online.

7. General Register Office for Scotland Deaths 1863 685/5 307.