Transcript

of

John Hayman Whiteway [Obituary]

by

Rev. W. Harpley, M.A.

Trans. Devon. Assoc., 1888, Vol XX, p.37.

Prepared by Michael Steer

The obituary was read at the Association’s July 1888 Exeter meeting. Mr Whiteway was member of an old family for many years associated with the Mid-Devon clay cutting industry. Since the mid eighteenth century the Ball Clay industry has, and continues to be, a major source of employment for Newton Abbot and the general Kingsteignton area. Ball clay is quite rare and the deposits found in Devon are of worldwide importance. Today most of the land at Chudleigh Knighton, Kingsteignton, and Stover used for the extraction of ball clay is owned by the Belgian company, SCR Sibelco SA, Two to three hundred years ago the seams of clay were owned by the country’s gentry. In Newton Abbot the Courtney family, Earls of Devon, had large estates rich with ball clay. The Dukes of Somerset and the Templer family had similar tracts of land at Stover while the Clifford family of Ugbrook and the Bishop of Salisbury owned much of the mineral laden land at Kingsteignton. These rich landowners granted leases to the clay merchants to work and win the valuable mineral reserves. In return the landowners received a rent. The Watts family were ultimately granted a lease by the Bishop of Salisbury for the valuable deposits at Kingsteignton. Initially, this was worked in partnership with the Whiteway family. That partnership ended after five years in 1861 when Watts joined forces with Blake and Bearne to form Watts Blake and Bearne. The article, from a copy of a rare and much sought-after journal can be downloaded from the Internet Archive. Google has sponsored the digitisation of books from several libraries. These books, on which copyright has expired, are available for free educational and research use, both as individual books and as full collections to aid researchers.

John Hayman Whiteway, born in 1809, was the eldest son of the late Mr. Samuel Whiteway, of Oakford, in the parish of Kingsteignton, Devon. After completing his education at Teignmouth, he was articled to Mr. Tozer at that town, and was admitted a Solicitor in Trinity Term, 1830.

He practised in London until 1847, when, on the death of his younger brother Samuel, he removed to Devonshire to superintend the extensive Kingsteignton clay property that had belonged to his father and his brother, in addition to his own. He first resided at Fishwick, near Kingsteignton, and removed in 1870 to Brookfield, West Teignmouth, where he resided until his decease.

He married in 1836 Miss Frederica Gimbert Wilkinson, who survives him.

On 28th April, 1863, Mr. Whiteway read a paper upon "The Bovey Clay;" and on 4th July, 1865, a paper on "The Pinetum at Watcombe, near Torquay," before the Teign Naturalists’ Field Club, of which Society he was one of the early members. As chairman he took an active part in the proceedings of the Teignmouth Harbour Commissioners, the Teignmouth and Shaldon Bridge Committee, the Conservators of the Fisheries in the River Teign, Turnpike Trusts, also as Commissioner for Taxes, and other associations connected with local matters. He joined this Association in 1871. He died at Brookfield on August 29th, 1887, and was buried at Kingsteignton on 3rd of September.