UCL

Sir James Modyford

Profile & Legacies Summary

1618 - 1673

Biography

  1. Born in Exeter, son of John Modyford, alderman and mayor of Exeter, and Maria nee Walker. Apprenticed to a Levant merchant, spent time in Constantinople. Married Elizabeth Stanning, daughter and heiress of Sir Nicholas Stanning of Maristow, Devon. Knighted in 1660 and given a government position in Ireland. Emigrated to Jamaica in the mid- to late-1660s where his brother Sir Thomas Modyford (1620-1679) was governor. Acquired estates in Jamaica and acted as attorney for several London merchants. Died in Port Royal in January 1673. As well as three elder daughters (Mary, Elizabeth and Grace), Sir James had a posthumous son, Thomas, who died in 1678, leaving his three daughters as co-heiresses to his "considerable estate both real and personal".

Sources

  1. J. K. Laughton, revised by Nuala Zahedieh, 'Modyford, Sir James, baronet (1618-1673)', ODNB Online (2008); Vere Langford Oliver, Caribbeana being miscellaneous papers relating to the history, genealogy, topography, and antiquities of the British West Indies (6 vols., London, Mitchell, Hughes and Clarke, 1910-1919) vol. 3 pp. 241-242.

Further Information

Spouse
Elizabeth Stanning
Children
Mary. Elizabeth, Grace, Thomas

Relationships (4)

Sir James Modyford
Father → Daughter
Grace Drake then Heywood (née Modyford)
Details
Sir James Modyford
Father-in-law → Son-in-law
Edward Drake
Details
Sir James Modyford
Father-in-law → Son-in-law
Peter Heywood
Details
Sir James Modyford
Grandfather → Grandson
James Heywood
Details