William Dunbar (explorer)
| William Dunbar | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born | 1750 Duffus, Scotland |
| Died | 1810 Natchez, Mississippi |
| Education | King's College, Aberdeen |
| Occupation | Planter, explorer |
| Children | Archibald, Robert, Alexander, one girl |
| Parent(s) |
Sir Archibald Dunbar, 4th baronet of Northfield and Duffus Helen Dunbar |
William Dunbar (1750–1810) was a Scots American merchant, plantation owner, naturalist, astronomer and explorer.
William Dunbar was born in Duffus House, Duffus Parish near Elgin, Scotland. His family's roots can be traced back to at least the tenth century. His father, Sir Archibald Dunbar, 4th baronet of Northfield and Duffus, married his cousin Helen Dunbar, with whom he had at least one girl and three boys: Archibald, Robert and Alexander. Helen died in 1748 and in 1750 Anne Bayne became Archibald’s second wife. They had three children: William, Thomas and Peggy. William’s father thought him a sissy and worried about his health, because he was quiet and serious-minded, unlike his half-brothers, who hunted, fished, and drank. Archibald did not recognise William’s brilliance.
William entered King’s College in Aberdeen in the autumn of 1763, and graduated with a Master of Arts degree on March 30, 1767. After his return to Elgin, William continued his study and research in the natural sciences. The deaths in 1762 of his two eldest half-brothers, Archibald and Robert, brought William from fourth to second in line to inherit the family estates, but William’s father Archibald died in 1769, leaving him only about 500 pounds. His remaining half-brother, Alexander, as the oldest surviving male, inherited the full rights to all of the estates – he became Sir Alexander Dunbar, 5th baronet of Northfield and Duffus. William probably could have expected assistance from his father in making his way in Britain, but not from a half-brother with whom he had never really been close.
In the spring of 1771, William Dunbar sailed from London to Philadelphia to try his luck in America. He initially became a merchant in Philadelphia, transporting goods he brought with him from London in an effort to enter the Indian trade. In 1773 he formed a partnership with John Ross, another Scottish merchant from Philadelphia, in the British province of West Florida. He then went to Pensacola and obtained a grant of land near Baton Rouge, which was at the time called Fort New Richmond, from the British governor. In 1784 he established, together with Ross, a plantation near Natchez, Mississippi called "The Forest", where he cultivated indigo and cotton. After Ross' death in 1800, he bought out his interest from Ross' heirs. In 1785 he married Dinah Clark from Whitehaven, England, with whom he had nine children. By 1803 Dunbar owned some 4,000 acres (16 km2) – he also owned "The Grange" and other lots within Natchez given him for his service to the Spanish Government as surveyor. In 1807 he wrote Charleston merchants, Thomas Tunno and John Price, to purchase a shipload of African slaves excepting those from 'the Iboa nation' and those 'nearer the coast, such as Bornon, Houssa, Zanfara, Zegzeg, Kapina, Tombotoo, all or near the river Niger'. William Dunbar died in The Forest on October 16, 1810.
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