Zachary Hume Edwards

1782 - 1812

Claimant or beneficiary

Biography

Deceased party to the Chancery suit of Alexander Grant v Z. H. Edwards, into which was paid the compensation for Nonsuch and Unity in St Mary Jamaica.

  1. Son of Bryan Edwards, the MP and historian of Jamaica, and Martha, daughter of Thomas Phipps of Westbury. Bryan Edwards died in 1800. 'His only son, Zachary Hume Edwards, inherited his vast wealth, but died on board the "Montague" packet on his passage from Jamaica to England in 1812.'

  2. Zachary Hume Edwards married Selina Innes in Millbrook, Hampshire, 22/08/1801. Selina was the daughter of William Innes and Selina nee Chambers (q.v.). They reportedly had five children, all baptised in Wiltshire - William Bryan (1803), Zachary Bailey (1805-), Lavinia (1806), Elizabeth (1807) and Mary (1809) - although in his will his sons appear in sequence as Zachary and Bryan. Z.H. Edwards Esq. appears as a subscriber under Wiltshire in e.g. Racing Calendar 1807. Zachary Hume Edwards appears to have been imprisoned for debt in 1804 when one of the plaintiffs was William Innes, possibly his father-in-law.

  3. Will of Zachary Hume Edwards of Westbury Leigh Wiltshire [made in 1810] proved 04/02/1815. Under the will he entailed his estates [and enslaved people] in St Mary Jamaica to his son Zachary Edwards and his heirs, in default of whom to his son Bryan Edwards and his heirs, in default of whom to his daughter Lavinia and her heirs, then to his daughter Eliza and her heirs and then to his daughter Mary and her heirs. He secured £5000 each on the estates for his younger children not in life-possession of the real estate itself. In a codicil of 08/12/1811 he acknowledged that the estates would not support these [which he described as £5000 to the sons and £4000 to the daughters] and reduced them to £2000 each, and revoked the legacies of £2000 each to his two executors Thomas Fitzgerald and George Robinson. In a note headed 'Jamaica Gibralter [sic] estate 3rd August 1812' he said he had not mentioned his wife Selina because she was well provided for under their marriage settlement , with an annuity of £1000 p.a.


Sources

T71/ St Mary Nos. 165 and 439.

  1. Frank Cundall, Studies in Jamaica History (London, Sampson, Low, Marston and Company for the Institute of Jamaica, 1900), p. 63.

  2. Familysearch batch nos. I02020-3, C13568-9 and C00658-4; Email from Jennifer Harrison, 06/11/2013; Racing Calendar (1807) Subscribers p. xxvi; Ancestry.com, London, England, King's Bench and Fleet Prison Discharge Books and Prisoner Lists, 1734-1862 for Zachary Hume Edwards [database online].

  3. PROB 11/1565/84.

We are grateful to Jennifer Harrison for her assistance in compiling this entry.


Further Information

Absentee?
British/Irish
Name in compensation records
Z. H. Edwards
Spouse
Selina Innes
Children
William Bryan (1803-), Zachary Bailey (1805-), Lavinia (1806-), Elizabeth (1807-), Mary (1809-)

Associated Claims (2)

£4,938 17s 4d
Beneficiary deceased
£19 10s 10d
Claimants in List E or Chancery cases

Associated Estates (4)

The dates listed below have different categories as denoted by the letters in the brackets following each date. Here is a key to explain those letter codes:

  • SD - Association Start Date
  • SY - Association Start Year
  • EA - Earliest Known Association
  • ED - Association End Date
  • EY - Association End Year
  • LA - Latest Known Association
1817 [EA] - 1820 [LA] → Previous owner
1815 [EA] - 1820 [LA] → Previous owner
1807 [EA] - 1807 [LA] → Trust beneficiary
1810 [EA] - 1811 [LA] → Owner

Relationships (5)

Brother-in-law → Sister-in-law
Son → Father
Nephew → Uncle
Son-in-law → Mother-in-law
Son-in-law → Father-in-law

Addresses (1)

Westbury Leigh, Wiltshire, Wessex, England