West Indies Immigrants from England
Alan...@aol.com
I have come to the conclusion that I must look for Jonathan and Augustus
WILKIN on another island other that in Montserrat! Could someone please tell
me what islands in the West Indies the majority of British immigrants arrived
and probably stayed....at least initially. I am referring to any time in the
1800's although it would be interesting to know of earlier times. I suspect
that Jamaica would have been one of the islands. As far as we know the first
British WILKIN gentleman to be found in Montserrat (William Wilkin(s))
married Sarah Evilina TUCKER who was born in Antigua. Their children were
all born in Montserrat. However, it is possible that William was married in
Antigua or first went to that island where he met his future wife. The fact
is that I am still not sure if Augustus was related to this Wilkin family in
Montserrat...despite the fact that he is listed as 'informant' on the birth
certificate of Jonathan (born in Montserrat) with Mary Jeffers being the West
Indies mother. Mary was probably an estate worker on one of the Wilkin
plantations in Montserrat so this was an illegitimate birth we understand.
Lots of Wilkin family members in Montserrat (who I have been in touch with)
but still no Augustus or Jonathan known of from searches done thus far. So,
perhaps Augustus was related but was a resident of another island but, as he
possibly had family connections in Montserrat, he fathered a child, Jonathan,
there in 1870.
I know that I should get in touch with Patricia Jackson and get into her site
but I have a feeling from what I have seen in the free index thus far that
most Wilkin surnames relate to those from Ireland. I do not think that
Augustus was from Ireland so I have hesitated in pursing Patrica's site for
this reason.
Forgive me if I seem to be sending out too many messages about Augustus and
Jonathan but I can't help but think that there is still information to be
found by continuing to pursue my search for them on this list.
Thank you for your patience and for any more information that anyone could
give me about these ancestors!
Regards,
Alannah
Honrado, Cheryl
Check the Trinidad Tobago site. When I spoke with Norman Darway he told me
to talk to Norman Jeffers, also try talking with Mr.Esmond King from the
same area. My understanding is that Darway, Jeffers, and King all knew each
other, they all resided on Angeline St.. James Port of Spain. If you need
the link to the Trinidad Tobago site let me know. You may also want to read
about the steel pan origins.
I don't know if this will help or not but I found on a Barbados site.
Josiah Augustus DOB: 3 Dec 1852, he was the illegitimate son of Grace
Warrington, she lived in in St.Johns and the Father was Darway.
I may have written Warrington wrong could be Wilkins :o) ***Smile*** we see
what I did with Killinger.
Cheryl
Chris Codrington
Antigua was the administrative center of the leeward islands for over two
hundred years. Many planters and merchants located on the other leewards
traveled back and forth to Antigua and often maintained houses or
plantations there, so it is entirely possible that Augustus is waiting for
you there somewhere!
However, unless you have very hard information he was Not irish, don't cut
out the possibility of a anglo-irish connection via Jamaica. His family
could easily have had irish connections, or roots admittedly distant, but
family networks were important to business and a man's career possibilities
so even the most tenuous connections may prove informative overall. Remember
that aside from being England's favorite whipping boys for a very long time,
the Irish supplied most of the salt beef which came into the West
Indies.....
By 1870 the economy of the West Indies was a shambles. The sugar economy of
the past was Gone. A great many sons of landed brit planters or merchants
were shifting around using extended family and commercial "networks" to
explore opportunities in the emerging american economy gradually being
driven by the post-civil war mainland US expansion and by related commercial
development in the carib basin(railroads, bananas, coffee etc)there were
Barbadian planter's sons trained as engineers going to Brazil and Guyana,
mining engineers to Colorado or Banff and railroads being built everwhere!
In other words the old patterns had changed markedly and so keep a wide net
when trying to imagine his movements or the motivations for them. Not much
help I'm afraid,
Cod
C.M. Codrington("american version # 1952)
Editor: Carib GenWeb "Historic Antigua and Barbuda" web-site
Member: Barbados Museum Historical Society,
Museum of Antigua and Barbuda Historical and Archaeological Society.
-----Original Message-----
From: Alan...@aol.com [mailto:Alan...@aol.com]
Sent: Friday, May 18, 2001 9:00 PM
To: CARIB...@rootsweb.com
Subject: West Indies Immigrants from England
Alan...@aol.com
Thank you for another most interesting reply message.....you truly are a
wealth of information and I am so grateful for the information that you send
to me and others!
You are quite right about not disregarding a possible Irish connection. It
is interesting that you mentioned Banff as a place where certain people may
have emigrated to. Jonathan used to talk about the Rocky Mountains to his
grandson so perhaps he visited a relative who moved to that part of Canada
from the Caribbean. It is all helpful information of which I am most
grateful for.
Regards,
Alannah