|
Burrish
Crisp |
Born: 1762 and died 26 April 1811 and is burried in the Park
Street Cemetary in Calcutta (Kolkata), West Bengal, India.
Son
of: James
Crisp and Elizabeth Crisp (nee Marsh,
1735-1785).
Brother
of:
Elizabeth Maria
Shee (nee Crisp, 1764-1838) who married Sir George Shee (1754-1825).
Burrish
does not appear to have married but
he did have some illegitimate children
1. John Henry Crisp
born 27 August 1789 and baptised July 1974. Became a captain in
the Madras Army.
2. Elizabeth Margaret Crisp (1792?-1865) who married
John Fombelle (17??-1849) in Calcutta, 10 April 1809. She is buried in the
English Cemetary in Forence having died aged 73, 8 January 1865.
Burrish Crisp: An Overview
We know of Burrish from the following sources:
1. An
excellent book 'The Ordeal of Elizabeth Marsh' by Prof Linda Colley, 2007.
2. Entries copied from the Bible of Rev George
Augustus Eliott Marsh.
3. Family letters from the Betty
Harrison archive.
4. His grave in the old English
Cemetry, Park Street, Kolkata.
Burrish had a rather haphazard upbringing and settled in India. He became a merchant and minor judicial official in Dhaka. He appears to have had good linguistic skills and was a founding member of the Asiatic Society, the leading European intellectual club in Calcutta.
The inscription on his tomb in Calcutta reads
as follows:
Sacred to the Memory of Burrish Crisp
Esquire. A Senior Marchant in the Service of the East India Company and
First Member of the Board of Revenue who departed this life on the 26th day of
April 1811, Aged 47 Years. He arrived in this Country when a Child and was
therefore deprived of the Advantages of an Education in Europe. But by the
tender Cares of an excellent Mother (whose remains are interred near this spot)
and by the Powers of his own Mind he attained the highest Offices under the
Government, which he filled with Zeal, Ability and Honour. Whilst his
private Life was eminently distinguished by Benevolence, Piety and very social
Virtue.
Tomb of Burrish Crisp in the old English Cemetry, Park Street, Kolkata, India.
The person in the picture is the
author JJ Heath-Caldwell. Elizabeth Crisp (mother of Burrish) is buried to
the left but her tomb is no longer
present.
If you have any information to add to what is listed please contact me on jj@jjhc.info
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