Samuel Cunningham (1768 - 1796)

Born 1768 in Crookedstone, Killead, County Antrim, Ireland

Died 18 Oct 1796 at about age 28 in Caribbean Sea

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Biography

Samuel was born in 1768.

Samuel represented his family's Belfast-based linen business in the West Indies. In 1796, He was in St. Vincent planning a trip home to Ireland. He was only 28 years old; but he had a premonition that he was going to die enroute. So, he wrote his will. Sure enough, Samuel was in a battle at sea when a French privateer attacked the ship he was on - the Portland Packet, which was under the British flag. Samuel fought bravely with the seamen (according to the survivors) to fend off the attack and save the cargo; but he and the captain were shot and killed.^[1] Samuel is buried on the island of Montserrat in the Caribbean Sea. ^[2] The ship eventually made its way back to Ireland.

In 1797, Samuel's brother William was in St. Vincent, British West Indies, awaiting the arrival of their brother John from Ireland. William wrote a letter home to their uncle James Barber and included a copy of Sam's Will. Sam left generous bequests for each of his parents, all his siblings, the poor of Killead parish, and other named individuals. ^[3]

He was celebrated for his generosity to the poor on an imposing memorial at Killead Presbyterian Church, 50 Killead Manse, Clady, County Antrim, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom, with a death date of 18 October 1796.

Research Notes

• Sam's Will is transcribed to a database dedicated to "Documenting Ireland: Parliament, People, and Migration". However, there is no source citation given for the original hand-written letter and Will.

Sources

1. ↑ 1797 Newspaper Article: "Newspapers.com", database with images
   The Observer (London, Greater London, England) 15 Jan 1797, page 3
   Newspapers Clip: 121298793 (accessed 20 March 2023)
2. ↑ Memorial: "Billion Graves", database with images
   Killead Presbyterian Church, 50 Killead Manse, Clady, County Antrim, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom
   BillionGraves memorial (accessed 20 March 2023)
   Memorial page for Samuel Cunningham (d 18 October 1796); Transcribed by marktustin, April 28, 2015; Photographed by Scott Lorimer, April 13, 2015.
3. ↑ Letter to Uncle: "Irish Emigration Database", IED, on the "Documenting Ireland: Parliament, People, and Migration" (DIPPAM) web site. [1]. Letter from Will Cunningham, St. Vincent [British West Indies], 9 June 1797, to his uncle James Barber, County Antrim, Ireland; Includes copy of Will's brother Samuel Cunningham's Will written before his death at sea. It includes names of siblings and other relations. Transcribed by PaulaTracey.