Jamaica Westmoreland 291 (Three Mile River)

Parliamentary Papers p. 303.

T71/871: claim by Margaretta Crawford, of Scotland, as guardian of her son. Counterclaim by Matilda Erskine, otherwise Graham, as an annuitant, dated 17th December 1811, for £5000. The counterclaim was admitted by Margaretta Crawford.

T71/189 p. 59: enslaved persons were registered in 1832 by Wm. Glen, as attorney to John Graham Crawfuird, of 3 Mile River Estate.

T71/1209: shows Matilda Erskine, otherwise Graham, of Gartur, in Scotland, a widow. Matilda Erskine/Graham was the widow of John Graham, of Gartur; Miss Margaret Graham was the daughter of Capt. John Graham (deceased), of the 42nd Regiment, and the heir at law of the said John Graham, of Gartur. John Graham, of Gartur, had post-nuptially settled £500 per annum on his wife. [His will shows in fact that he had left her an annuity of £800 p.a.]

The details of who inherited Three Mile River after the death of John Graham in 1818 are not clear. In 1821, a letter from James Colqhoun Grant (mentioned in the will of John Graham as his attorney in Jamaica) to Archibald Crawfuird of 24 Forth Street, Edinburgh, outlined the financial situation in the estate, adding, 'We are very sensible that in the present distressed times Miss Graham must have derived very little if any advantage from her succession.' Archibald Crawfuird was a Writer to the Signet (Scottish solicitor) who was listed at 24 Forth Street, Edinburgh from 1817-1820 and 20 Picardy Place, Edinburgh, 1821-1823. In the Jamaica Almanac for 1824 the proprietor was listed as Margaret Graham. This is probably the Miss Margaret Graham, daughter of Captain John Graham of the 42nd Regiment and heir-at-law of John Graham of Gartur, mentioned in the compensation records. However, the initial claimant for compensation in 1834 was Margaretta Crawford (q.v.), as guardian to her son. In 1832, the enslaved people on Three Mile River were registered by William Glen, attorney to James Graham Crawfuird. James Graham Crawfuird of Gartur, youngest son of Archibald Crawfuird, Writer to the Signet, died at Three Mile River, Jamaica, 09/05/1840. This James Graham Crawfuird may be the son of Archibald Crawfuird, W.S., who died at Edinburgh, 16/05/1824, who according to an unsourced online family tree was married to his cousin Margaret Crawfurd. [Sources: http://jamaicanfamilysearch.com/Samples2/Hanletter.htm [accessed 30/07/2012]. Post Office Directories 1817/18, 1819/20, 1821/22 and 1822/23. General Register Office for Scotland CC21/6/100. Jamaica Almanac (1824). T71/1209 counterclaim of Matilda Erskine otherwise Graham. David Dobson, Scots in the West Indies 1707-1857 (2 Vols., Baltimore, Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1998/2006) Vol. 2, p. 22. General Register Office for Scotland OPR Deaths 685/1 990 402. http://www.electricscotland.com/history/nation/crawford.htm [accessed 30/07/2012].]

We are grateful for the assistance of Hamish Johnston in compiling this entry.