John Prestman
| John Prestman | |
|---|---|
| Person | John Prestman |
| Title | |
| First name | John |
| Middle name(s) | |
| Last name | Prestman |
| Suffix | |
| Spouse of | |
| Widow of | |
| Occupation | Mariner |
| Secondary shorebased occupation | |
| Mariner occupation | Master |
| Associated with ship(s) | |
| Training | Not apprentice |
| Is apprentice of | |
| Was apprentice of | |
| Had apprentice(s) | |
| Citizen | Unknown |
| Literacy | Signature |
| Has opening text | John Prestman |
| Has signoff text | John Prestman |
| Signoff image | (Invalid transcription image) |
| Language skills | English language |
| Has interpreter | |
| Birth street | |
| Birth parish | |
| Birth town | |
| Birth county | |
| Birth province | |
| Birth country | |
| Res street | Wapping |
| Res parish | |
| Res town | |
| Res county | Middlesex |
| Res province | |
| Res country | England |
| Birth year | 1617 |
| Marriage year | |
| Death year | |
| Probate date | |
| First deposition age | 38 |
| Primary sources | |
| Act book start page(s) | |
| Personal answer start page(s) | |
| Allegation start page(s) | |
| Interrogatories page(s) | |
| Deposition start page(s) | HCA 13/70 f.61v Annotate |
| Chancery start page(s) | |
| Letter start page(s) | |
| Miscellaneous start page(s) | |
| Act book date(s) | |
| Personal answer date(s) | |
| Allegation date(s) | |
| Interrogatories date(s) | |
| Deposition date(s) | Feb 14 1655 |
| How complete is this biography? | |
| Has infobox completed | Yes |
| Has synthesis completed | No |
| Has HCA evidence completed | No |
| Has source comment completed | No |
| Ship classification | |
| Type of ship | Merchant ship |
| Silver Ship litigation in 1650s | |
| Role in Silver Ship litigation | None |
Biographical synthesis
John Prestman (b. ca. 1617; d. ?). Mariner.
Master of ships for the past sixteen years ("Hee hath used sea faring for all the fore said time, and hath bin a master of shipps and used the southerne voyages for theise sixteen yeares last past"[1]
Resident in 1655 in Wapping.
Evidence from High Court of Admiralty
Thirty-eight year old John Prestman deposed on February 14th 1655 in the High Court of Admiralty. He was examined on a libel in the case of "Pope Burges and Houghton against Orton".
John Prestman was asked to comment solely on practises regarding the pay and conditions of chirurgeons aboard merchant ships.
Prestman observed "as touching the custome of the chyrurgeons not being bound to applie any medicaments or physic to any of the shipps company for sicknesse or hurt happened unto them after the shipps retourne to Gravesend unlesse they pay for the same themselves. hee saith hee cannot speake knowingly thereof, but beleeveth that there is such a custome here practised".[2]
The pay of chirurgeons was handled differently from that of other mariners. Prestman was clear that "Chirurgeons lawfully may and usually doe leave the shipps after and upon their retourne to Gravesend, by the foresaid custome, and are not bound to continue any longer aboard, being from that time out of pay, but the rest of the company of any ship or shipps are obliged to continue aboard until the shipps coming to an anchor and her being moored, if the master soe require them, and until the said master dismisse them, and until that time they are in pay".[3]
An earlier deposition in the High Court of Admiralty on July 17th 1651 by Alexander Robinson, master's mate of the ship the Garland of London, identifies John Prestman as master of that ship. Robinson was examined on interrogatories "On the behalfe of George Clarke}
of London merchant concerneing a losse in the shipp Garland of London. The ship sailed from London bound for Dublin in Ireland in June 1651.[4] However, the ship was surprised off the Isle of Wight by a Jersey man of war ad carried to Jersey.[5]
