KEARTON Family 2
Posted on November 12, 2006
Posted UnderFamily Pages |
FAMILIES OF ST. VINCENTKEARTON/KIRTON
From “A KIRTON FAMILY HISTORY”, by J. G. KIRTON
GEORGE KEARTON, junior, of St. Vincent (1722-1783)
We have already told some of the story of how George KEARTON, junior in 1764 purchased a moiety or half share of a plantation on the west coast of the island of St. Vincent in the West Indies. At the time this was probably quite a smart thing to do, at least in theory; there is no question but that many people made substantial fortunes from the sugar and rum trade centered in the Caribbean. George was aged about 42 when he set off on this adventure, and one wonders if he ever came to regret his decision. There is no doubt, however, that his move to St. Vincent, and subsequent events, long after George’s own death, continued to cause turmoil in the KEARTON/KIRTON family for generations to come, and were probably still doing so as late as 1902!
It is important to realize what was happening in the West Indies during the last half of the 18th Century. “Sugar was the source of this wealth. To this was added other crops, much smaller but highly valuable, such as indigo and coffee. The British West Indies accounted for about one-fifth of Britain’s foreign trade in 1789. This increased to one-third during the 1790s. By the late 1790s, the West Indies attracted four-fifths of all Britain’s overseas capital investments and provided over one-eighth of the government’s £315 million total net revenue to the Treasury through various direct taxes and duties. Considerable direct tax income, perhaps another eighth, was generated from the West Indian commercial and trade activity. These figures explain the tremendous numbers of naval and military forces deployed to protect these valuable Caribbean territories.”
(ref.: “British Forces in the West Indies 1793-1815″ by Rene Chartrand & Paul Chappel, Osprey Military, Men-at-Arms Series No 294, 1996, page 3)
It happens that George and his partner unfortunately selected the one island that had probably more potential for problems and turmoil than any other island in the whole of the Caribbean. This is because St. Vincent still had a resident population of the fierce Carib tribe, who had withstood any attempts at settlement until between the years 1722 and 1734, when the French finally did so. The island was then declared to be neutral by the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, however, in 1762 it was captured by a British military force under Gen. Robert MONCKTON, and was ceded to Britain in 1763. The Caribs (also known as Charaids) being forced into the northern and eastern parts of the island.
The island is part of the Windward chain, measuring some 20 miles north and south, and some 10 miles east to west, and covering some 140 square miles. The capital, Kingstown, lies in the south western tip of the island, and the inactive Soufriere volcano lies on the northern tip.
English settlement must have started right after 1763, because it is clear that the plantation that William LINDOW and George KEARTON had purchased in 1764-5 was already in operation, and was previously owned, presumably during the time when the island had still been under French control prior to 1748, in a partnership, under the names of three individuals: MASON, LaFARQUE and CANTALUPE.
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