Daniel Henry Rucker

Profile & Legacies Summary

1757 - 1848

Biography

London West India and Hamburg merchant (in the latter case trading in wool), partner with Henry John Rucker (q.v.) and John Anthony Rucker in D. H. Rucker & Co., extensive mortgagees of 'slave-property' in several British colonies, especially the Ceded & Neutral Islands. The firm failed in 1831, and the assignees Joseph Edlman and John William Borradaile (each of whom q.v.) were awarded compensation or claimed unsuccessfully in that capacity for awards in Tobago, Antigua and St Vincent, in most of which the Ruckers had been mortgagees. Daniel Henry Rucker himself also appears as an unsuccessful claimant in two different capacities.

In 1806 Daniel Henry Rucker of West Hill Wandsworth was named as one of three potential sheriffs of Surrey.
In 1841 Daniel Henry Rucker born F[oreign parts] aged 85 was living in Farnham Surrey, where he was buried 16/03/1848 aged 91.

Sources

He was the nephew and main heir of John Anthony Rucker of West Hill (q.v.).

London Gazette 15974 11/11/1806 p. 1478.
1841 census online; Ancestry.com, Surrey, England, Burials 1813-1957 [database online]

Further Information

Absentee?

British/Irish

Occupation

West India merchant

Associated Claims (9)

Associated Estates (9)

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] - 1825 [LA] → Not known

Adelphi Estate [ St Vincent ]

The enslaved people on Adelphi were registered to D.H. Rucker in the 1817, 1822 and 1825 Slave Registers, as owner in the case of 1817 and 'in the possession of' in 1822. However, by 1828 and certainly at the time of slave compensation the estate was again in the hands of the descendants of Charles Grant, notwithstanding the fact that Rucker had bought in the equity of redemption of Charles Grant in 1810. The key to this sequence might be an earlier deed of 31/03/1800, which appears to show Daniel Henry Rucker as having become mortgagee of Charles Grant c.1794 for £16,000 of the enslaved people rather than the estate. There is possibly some entwining of the Adelphi and Wallibo estates in LBS' reading of the deeds.

Mortgage Holder

Betsey's Hope [ Tobago | St Paul ]

1823 [EA] - 1829 [LA] → Joint owner

Chambord [ Grenada | St Patrick ]

Mortgage Holder

Goldsborough [ Tobago ]

Shown in the will of James Gordon of Tobago as holding a mortgage of £9900 over the Goldsborough estate.

1823 [EA] - 1829 [LA] → Not known

Mornefendue [ Grenada | St Patrick ]

1826 [EA] - 1826 [LA] → Mortgagee-in-Possession

Nootens Zuyl [ British Guiana | Demerara ]

1818 [EA] - 1830 [LA] → Mortgage Holder

Petit Bordelle and Sharpe's Estates [ St Vincent ]

1817 [EA] - 1829 [LA] → Joint owner

Plain [ Grenada | St Patrick ]

1810 [EA] - 1810 [LA] → Buyer

Wallibo Estate [ St Vincent ]

Daniel Henry Rucker bought the estate in 1810 subject to mortgages of £10,000 originally from John Collins of Berners Street and £3400 from Thomas Etherington.

Legacies Summary

Commercial (2)

Name partner

D H Rucker
West India merchant

Details

Name partner

Gordon & Rucker
West India merchant

Details

Physical (1)

Country house

Melrose House [Built]

Details

description →

Built by John Anthony Rucker, who left it together with his West Indian property - including enslaved people - to his nephew Daniel Henry Rucker. The estate was further developed with Repton by D. H....