George Ferguson (Lt Governor of Tobago)
| George Ferguson | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1748 Pitfour, Aberdeenshire, Scotland |
| Died | 29 December 1820 |
| Nationality | Scottish |
| Occupation | Lieutenant Governor of Tobago |
| Known for | 4th Laird of Pitfour |
George Ferguson (1748 – 29 December 1820) was the fourth Laird of Pitfour, a large estate in the Buchan area of Aberdeenshire, Scotland which became known as The Blenheim of the North.
He lived much of his life in Tobago and became lieutenant governor in 1779. He surrendered the island to the French after a battle in 1781. Accusations were made by the commander of the British Fleet that the island was surrendered too easily but Ferguson was cleared of any blame at a subsequent enquiry. He is usually referred to as the "Governor" to help differentiate between the generations, as men of the next generations were also named George Ferguson.
Ferguson was only Laird of Pitfour for about three months before his sizeable estate, including the plantations in the Caribbean, passed to his illegitimate son.
Ferguson was born at Pitfour in the Buchan area of Aberdeenshire in the north east of Scotland in 1748. His father was James Ferguson who had been raised to the bench in 1764 becoming Lord Pitfour. His mother was Anne Murray (1708–1793) who was a sister of Patrick Murray, 5th Lord Elibank and James Murray a British army officer who became Governor of Quebec. He had two older brothers, the eldest James (1736–1820) who became a politician and was the third Laird of Pitfour; and Patrick (1744–1780) who invented the Ferguson rifle, which was a breech-loading flintlock weapon. He also had three sisters, named Ann, Elizabeth and Jane.
Ferguson was not healthy as a child and his sister wrote this description of him: "George, who is going on fourteen, has been tender, has more genious than application with a heart as warm and honest as you could wish". His older brother Patrick referred to him as "little man monster".
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