Beniamin Westcombe

Beniamin Westcombe

Beniamin Westcombe
Person	Beniamin Westcombe
Title
First name	Beniamin
Middle name(s)
Last name	Westcombe
Suffix
Spouse of
Widow of
Occupation	Merchant
Secondary shorebased occupation
Mariner occupation
Associated with ship(s)
Training	Not apprentice
Is apprentice of
Was apprentice of
Had apprentice(s)
Citizen	Unknown
Literacy	Signature
Has opening text	Beniamin Westcombe
Has signoff text	Beniamin Whetcombe
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
Res parish	Saint Margaret Lothbury
Res town	London
Res county
Res province
Res country	England
Birth year	1611
Marriage year
Death year
Probate date
First deposition age	40
Primary sources
Act book start page(s)
Personal answer start page(s)
Allegation start page(s)
Interrogatories page(s)
Deposition start page(s)	HCA 13/65 f.105v 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)	Oct 15 1651
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	N/A
Silver Ship litigation in 1650s
Role in Silver Ship litigation	None

Biographical synthesis

Beniamin Westcombe (b.ca.1611; d.?). Merchant.

Resident in parish of Saint Margaret Lothbury in 1651.

A Thomas Westcombe, leatherseller, was resident in Saint Margaret Lothbury in the late 1620s and the 1630s. There is a record of a marriage licence granted to Thomas Westcombe in 1626, recording him as a leatherseller of London. He also appears as "Thomas Westcombe, 2 houses" with a rental of £24 in the list of inhabitants of London in the parish of Saint Margaret Lothbury in 1638.

Evidence from High Court of Admiralty

Forty year old Beniamin Westcombe deposed on October 15th 1651 in the High Court of Admiralty. He was examined on an allegation on behalf of the claimers in "The clayme of Walter Tucker Richard Harris and William N[o]ttell aforesaid for theire goods in the ship the Brower.

The case concerned the ship the Brower, which had been taken for freight in Amsterdam to ship goods to Barnstable in Devon. Westcombe stated that he had received a letter from the claimers telling him that they had freighted the ship in Amsterdam and requesting him to procure insurance for the goods at the rate of four percent. Westcombe stated he did procure a policy of assurance, which he had drawn up at the Assurance Office in London, but he could not get it underwritten at the rate he had been requested to do. Westcombe took no further action, and then heard that the ship had been taken by pirates and ransomed, the ransom being paid by bills of exchange drawn upon Miles Jackson, the claimers factor in Amsterdam. Westcombe had also received a letter from Miles Jackson, and had both letters with him at the time of his deposition. Westcombe stated that he had known the claimers for ten years.

It is unclear whether Beniamin Westcombe is related to three other deponents mentioned in the High Court of Admiralty in the 1650s - Martin Wescombe, a twenty-eight year old London merchant, who deposed on January 13th 1654, and Gregory and William Westcombe, London merchants, aged thirty-five and thirty respectively, who both deposed on April 13th 1658.

Comment on sources

"Marriage licences granted by the Bishop of London. 1626. April 29 Thomas Westcombe, of St Margaret's, Lothbury, London, Leatherseller, & Elizabeth French, of St Michael ad Bladum, sd City, Spinster, dau. of William French, of same; at St Faith's, London"