Ezra Weston II
| Ezra Weston II | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born |
November 30, 1772 Duxbury, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Died | August 15, 1842 (aged 69) Duxbury, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Occupation | Shipbuilder and merchant |
| Spouse(s) | Jerusha Bradford Weston |
| Parent(s) | Ezra Weston I Salumith Wadsworth |
Ezra Weston II (November 30, 1772 – August 15, 1842), also known as King Caesar, was a prominent shipbuilder and merchant who operated a large maritime industry based in Duxbury and Boston, Massachusetts. His father, Ezra Weston I, began small scale shipbuilding operations in Duxbury in 1763 and eventually came to be known as "King Caesar" for his success in business. Ezra Weston II, his only son, inherited the nickname when Ezra I died in 1822.
Weston initially served as a clerk in his father's firm and was made a partner in 1798. When his father died, Ezra Weston II became sole owner of the firm and continued to increase its scope of shipbuilding and international trade. In 1841, Weston launched his largest vessel, the Ship Hope, at the time the largest merchant vessel in New England. U.S. Senator Daniel Webster, during a speech in Saratoga, New York, made the claim that Weston was, "the largest ship owner, probably, in the United States." In the same year, an agent of the insurance firm Lloyd's of London made the same assertion. Although these claims are difficult to support, evidence shows that the Weston firm was the largest mercantile operation on the South Shore of Massachusetts in the early 19th century and one of the largest in New England.
From 1809 to his death in 1842, Weston resided in a Federal mansion known as the King Caesar House, which still stands and is operated as a museum by the Duxbury Rural and Historical Society.
Weston was the son of Ezra Weston I and Salumith Wadworth Weston. His father began building small vessels on the shore of Powder Point in Duxbury in 1764 and the modest firm, "E. Weston," soon came to encompass merchant trade. Ezra Weston II began working for his father in the 1790s in a clerical capacity, mostly in the counting rooms on his father's Duxbury wharf but also on voyages as supercargo, maintaining records of trading activities abroad. By that time, "E. Weston" was a rapidly expanding maritime operation focused mainly on the Grand Banks fishery and also operated vessels engaged transatlantic trade. Ezra Weston II became a partner in 1798 and the firm was renamed "E. Weston & Son."
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