John Grant of Withcall and Oxcombe

Born ca. 1735, and died at Oxcombe on 4 March 1799 aged 64. Buried at Oxcombe. Seems to have lived at Well, near Alford, until about 1777, and then moved to Withcall. One of his servants was transported from there in 1784. He made a fortune as a warrener at Withcall; his memorial in Oxcombe church reads:

Sacred to the memory of John Grant Esq. late of this place, who departed this life on the 6th day of March Anno Domini 1799 in the 64th year of his age. He was a good husband, tender father, and sincere friend. By industry and good judgement Acquired by the farming business One hundred thousand pounds Which never was done in this County before his time. As a tribute to his many good qualities, his family places this monument.

The lines in red were obliterated by one of his descendants, who thought them vulgar, though there were apparently still there in 1880 aQuoted in the Bucks Herald, 12 June 1880 . He was apparently not shy about money:

I have heard Mr Grant say, when he looked at the farm at Withcall, he could see money lie like stones- it was there for shoveling up. bTreatise on the Breeding and Management of Live Stock, Richard Parkinson, Cadell and Davies, London, 1810, p.306-7.

On 12 May 1789 he purchased the Manor of Oxcombe from Bennet Rothes Langton for £12,500. He took over a £8000 mortgage at 3% interest and paid the remainder to Sir Charles Gould. In 1790 Grant and Gould drew up a covenant demanding that Langton produce the title deeds. In 1792, Grant bought land at Scamblesby from Arthur Workliffe, and in 1793 he bought land at Scamblesby from Bennet Langton. Around this time he also bought land in Benniworth, Hannah cum Hagnaby, Trusthorpe, Louth, Sutton in the Marsh and Belchford. He also owned a group of five ‘back-to-back’ cottages in Walkergate, Louth.cMuch of the information on this page is taken from The Oxcombe estate: a general survey and history, by Patricia Paige

In his will of 1796dLAO LCC Wills 1799/i/97 he divided his estates into five equal parts, one for each of his sons. This had the effect of giving each a farm; John at Wyham, Thomas at Withcall, William at Oxcombe, Benjamin at Scamblesby and Richard at Belchford. These farms were mostly rented rather than owned, apart from Oxcombe – this was divided between the children, with William as a tenant of his brothers. His wife Ann was left £400 and his daughter Ann £3000, plus a further £1000 upon marrying (but only with the consent of her brothers John and Thomas.) She never married, but was given this money in 1813 anyway.

Married at Brinkhill, 23 May 1759, to Ann Wright. He was described as ‘of Well’, she was of Brinkhill, and the Banns were read at Well on May 6th, 13th and 20th, 1759. She was born ca. 1733 and died 1819. Buried at Oxcombe, where there is a memorial tablet; recorded as 86 years old in the register. An Ann Wright was baptised at Brinkhill 16 April 1733.

On Wednesday the 27th inst at Louth, in her 90th year, Mrs. Grant, widow of John Grant, Esq. late of Oxcomb, and grandmother of John Grant, Esq. of Wyham, whose death we announced a few weeks ago.eStamford Mercury, 29 January 1819

Issue five sons and a daughter:

  1. The second John Grant.
  2. Thomas Grant. Baptised 14 June 1764 at Well, and died 10 August 1810 aged 46; buried at Oxcombe, where there is a memorial tablet. His fifth share in the Oxcombe estate was left to his brother William. At some point before his death he was ‘suddenly deprived of his reason’:
    Here coolly rests release’d from all his earthly woes / Lull’d by the hand of death, to sweet and calm repose; / The sad remains of one whose once unsullied mind, / Alike knew how to feel, be generous, just and kind. / Till dire disease at length, with awful terror came, / And rudely shook the tablet, of his mental frame: / He only sleeps awhile, to wait that joyful hour, / When reason shall resume, her more then wonted pow’r; / Then shall he rise refresh’d, with those supremely blest, / And soar to blissful realms of joy, a kindly welcome guest.fHis memorial tablet at Oxcombe

    Seems to have taken over the farm at Withcall when his father moved to Oxcombe in 1789:

    At Partney fair, meeting with Mr Grant of Withgul, and discoursing with him upon warrens, he informed me that a common stock in winter was 3 couple per acre, and the produce 5 or 6 couple killed; that killing, carrying, &c. might amount to something more than 1s an acre; the sort silver sprig, which will not do well in other counties, where they have been tried. He has now 1000 acres of warren.gGeneral View of the Agriculture of the County of Lincoln, Arthur Young, 1799, p384-385.
  3. Ann Grant. Baptised 18 November 1766 at Well, and died unmarried 5 October 1846 aged 80; buried at Oxcombe, where there is a memorial tablet.
  4. William Grant. Baptised 9 May 1771 at Well, and died, aged 46, 2 July 1817; buried at Oxcombe, where there is a memorial tablet. Under the terms of his Father’s will, he was declared the tenant of Oxcombe, renting it from his four brothers on a 21 year lease at £480 per half year, and when he died it was left to his brother Benjamin, his aged mother having renounced her share.
  5. Benjamin Grant of Scamblesby Grove. Baptised 16 May 1773 at Well, and died 26 June 1844; buried at Oxcombe. His will.
  6. Richard Grant. Baptised at Withcall 13 July 1777 and died 4 November 1845; buried at Wyham. In the 1807 poll book he is listed as residing at Wyham, though owning freehold at Sutton in the Marsh; in 1841 he held freehold at Belchford, but resided at Louth.
    At Louth, on the 4th inst, Rd. Grant, Esq., in his 69th year. He was bitten in the hand dog about a month ago: the place was cauterised, but healing foully (an erysipelas action having supervened), the only chance of saving life was by amputating the arm near the shoulder: the operation was performed in two minutes by Mr. Trought and Mr. Dymoke, surgeons, and borne with great fortitude by the sufferer, but he died on the following day.hStamford Mercury, 7 November 1845

    Married at Roughton, 6 Dec 1819, to Helen Maddison. She was born at Theddlethorpe ca. 1789, and subsequently married Richard Fridlington. Died at Louth 5 Jan 1861 and buried at Wyham.

References   [ + ]

a. ↑ Quoted in the Bucks Herald, 12 June 1880
b. ↑ Treatise on the Breeding and Management of Live Stock, Richard Parkinson, Cadell and Davies, London, 1810, p.306-7.
c. ↑ Much of the information on this page is taken from The Oxcombe estate: a general survey and history, by Patricia Paige
d. ↑ LAO LCC Wills 1799/i/97
e. ↑ Stamford Mercury, 29 January 1819
f. ↑ His memorial tablet at Oxcombe
g. ↑ General View of the Agriculture of the County of Lincoln, Arthur Young, 1799, p384-385.
h. ↑ Stamford Mercury, 7 November 1845