George Bird (coffee planter)

Last updated

George Samuel Bird (1792 - 1 March 1857) was a British Army officer, [1] and the first coffee planter in Ceylon. [2]

Contents

Biography

George Samuel Bird was born in 1792 in Goytre, Monmouthshire, Wales, the thirteenth child of Brevet Major Henry Bird (1748 - 1800) and Elizabeth née Hicks (1762 - 1842).

Bird joined Monmouth's East local militia on 12 February 1813. [3] [4]

The first coffee estate in Ceylon was opened near Gampola in 1824, by Bird, who accompanied his older brother, Lieutenant Colonel Henry Bird, [5] of the 16th Regiment (1780-1829) to Ceylon in 1823, for the purpose of engaging in such agricultural undertaking as inducements in the island should appear to offer; and the attention of the brothers (Col. Bird being at that time Commandant of Kandy), was directed to the cultivation of coffee; and the valley of Gampola was selected as an eligible locality wherein to carry out their intended speculations. Sir James Campbell, the then Lieutenant Governor, gave encouragement to the proposed undertaking by promising a loan and a grant of land for the purpose, which was afterwards confirmed by Sir Edward Barnes (Governor of Ceylon), and thus commenced that cultivation on the site of two ancient Kandian palaces (Singapetia and Weyanpwatte). [6] The mode of cultivation adopted, and the enormous protective duties then in favour of the British West Indies, rendered this, and two other coffee estates at Ganga Orowa and Matale that soon followed the one at Gampola, equally unprofitable. Col. Bird's death of cholera on 3 April 1829 so paralysed the operations at Gampola that George Bird was induced to abandon the property in 1833 and relocate to Kundasale, where together with Ackland Boyd and Company, they established a coffee plantation. Due to but the financial difficulties he was compelled again to abandon the plantation. He subsequently planted a third estate, with Mr Tindall at Imbulpitiya, in Oudabulatgaiunia [7] however owing to age and infirmities had to abandon the venture and retire. Bird returned to his former residence at Kondasally, from where exhausted by a long protracted illness, he moved to the house of his nephew in Kandy. Bird also had investments in arrack renting and was the proprietor of the Udapalata tavern in 1825. [8]

Personal life

Bird married Charlotte Hook in 1828. They had nine children, [9] with Charlotte dying during childbirth in 1842. Bird died of chronic diarrhoea in Kandy on 1 March 1857. [10] Bird's nephew, Henry Byrde, Jr. reverted the spelling of the surname to an earlier version of the family name. [5]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indian Tamils of Sri Lanka</span> Tamil people of Indian origin in Sri Lanka

Indian Tamils of Sri Lanka are Tamil people of Indian origin in Sri Lanka. They are also known as Malayaga Tamilar, Hill Country Tamils, Up-Country Tamils or simply Indian Tamils. They predominantly descend from workers sent from Southern India to Sri Lanka in the 19th and 20th centuries to work in coffee, tea and rubber plantations. Some also migrated on their own as merchants and as other service providers. These Tamil speakers mostly live in the central highlands, also known as the Malayakam or Hill Country, yet others are also found in major urban areas and in the Northern Province. A majority of Hill Country Tamils are predominantly descendants from the lower working castes of South India. Although they are all termed as Tamils today, some have Telugu and Malayalee origins as well as diverse South Indian caste origins. They are instrumental in the plantation sector economy of Sri Lanka. In general, socio-economically their standard of living is below that of the national average and they are described as one of the poorest and most neglected groups in Sri Lanka. In 1964 a large percentage were repatriated to India, but left a considerable number as stateless people. By the 1990s most of these had been given Sri Lankan citizenship. Most are Hindus with a minority of Christians and Muslims amongst them. There are also a small minority followers of Buddhism among them. Politically they are supportive of trade union-based political parties that have supported most of the ruling coalitions since the 1980s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sri Lankan independence movement</span> 20th-century movement for the independence of Sri Lanka (British Ceylon) from the British Empire

The Sri Lankan independence movement was a peaceful political movement which was aimed at achieving independence and self-rule for the country of Sri Lanka, then British Ceylon, from the British Empire. The switch of powers was generally known as peaceful transfer of power from the British administration to Ceylon representatives, a phrase that implies considerable continuity with a colonial era that lasted 400 years. It was initiated around the turn of the 20th century and led mostly by the educated middle class. It succeeded when, on 4 February 1948, Ceylon was granted independence as the Dominion of Ceylon. Dominion status within the British Commonwealth was retained for the next 24 years until 22 May 1972 when it became a republic and was renamed the Republic of Sri Lanka.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matale rebellion</span> 1848 rebellion in British Ceylon

The Matale rebellion, also known as the Rebellion of 1848, took place in Matale city, Ceylon against the British colonial government under Governor George Byng, 7th Viscount Torrington. It marked a transition from the classic feudal form of anti-colonial revolt to modern independence struggles. It was fundamentally a peasant revolt.

Cricket was introduced to Sri Lanka in the first quarter of the 19th century, following colonisation of the island by the British. The earliest known match was recorded in 1832 and the earliest first-class one in 1926. The national team has played Test cricket from 1982. The national team has achieved international success by winning the 1996 Cricket World Cup and the 2014 ICC World Twenty20. Cricket is played nationwide with Test venues in Colombo, Galle, Kandy and Moratuwa. The country's most notable players include Aravinda de Silva, Arjuna Ranatunga, Rangana Herath, Sanath Jayasuriya, Mahela Jayawardene, Muttiah Muralitharan, Kumar Sangakkara and Chaminda Vaas. Administration and governance are performed by Sri Lanka Cricket, which was founded in July 1922 as the Ceylon Cricket Association (CCA). The main domestic competition is the Premier Trophy which attained first-class status in 1988.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pussellawa</span> Place in Central Province, Sri Lanka

Pussellawa Sinhala: පුස්සැල්ලාව. Tamil: புசல்லாவ, is a l town in Kandy District, Sri Lanka. It is located along the A5 road between Gampola and Nuwara Eliya.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Nietner</span>

John Nietner born Johannes Werner Theodor Nietner was a Prussian-born naturalist chiefly interested in botany and entomology. Born in Potsdam, he became a naturalized British citizen and owned a coffee plantation in Ceylon. During his stay in Ceylon from 1851 to 1874 he collected and described numerous insect species from the island. He also sent specimens for study by experts in Europe and many species such as Cethosia nietneri were named after him by others. Interested in insect pests, he wrote a booklet on the pests of coffee in 1861.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Ceylon</span> British Crown colony (1796–1948); now Sri Lanka

British Ceylon, officially British Settlements and Territories in the Island of Ceylon with its Dependencies from 1802 to 1833, then the Island of Ceylon and its Territories and Dependencies from 1833 to 1931 and finally the Island of Ceylon and its Dependencies from 1931 to 1948, was the British Crown colony of present-day Sri Lanka between 1796 and 4 February 1948. Initially, the area it covered did not include the Kingdom of Kandy, which was a protectorate, but from 1817 to 1948 the British possessions included the whole island of Ceylon, now the nation of Sri Lanka.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James Taylor (tea planter)</span> Scottish tea planter (1835–1892)

James Taylor was a Scottish tea planter who introduced tea to British Ceylon. He arrived to British Ceylon in 1852 and settled down in Loolecondera estate in Delthota. Here he worked with Scottish merchant Thomas Lipton to develop the tea industry in British Ceylon. He continued to live in British Ceylon until his death.

The M. J. Gopalan Trophy was an annual first-class cricket competition played between Ceylon and Madras between 1952–53 and 2007–08.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Henry de Soysa</span> Ceylonese entrepreneur and philanthropist

Charles Henry de Soysa Dharmagunawardana Vipula Jayasuriya Karunaratna Disanayaka popularly known as Charles Henry de Soysa, JP was a Ceylonese entrepreneur and philanthropist. He was a pioneering planter, industrialist and was the wealthiest Ceylonese of the 19th century. He was instrumental in the establishment of the first Ceylonese bank, the Moratuwa carpenters guild, the Ceylon Agricultural and National Associations. He is widely regarded as the greatest philanthropist of the island for contributions which includes the De Soysa Maternity Hospital, the Prince and Princess of Wales Colleges, the Model Farm Experimental Station and many other institutions and acts of charity, establishing infant-maternal healthcare and secular education for girls in the country. He would have been the island's first Knight Bachelor, but having died prior, his widow was given the rare honor of the use of the style and dignity of wife of the Knight Bachelor and was known as Catherine, Lady de Soysa.

The 1915 Sinhalese-Muslim riots was a widespread and prolonged ethnic riot in the island of Ceylon between Sinhalese Buddhists and the Ceylon Moors. The riots were eventually suppressed by the British colonial authorities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeronis de Soysa</span> Ceylonese entrepreneur and philanthropist

Gate Mudaliyar Jeronis de Soysa was a pioneering Ceylonese entrepreneur and philanthropist. He was a pioneer coffee planter and an industrialist who became the wealthiest Ceylonese of the 19th century by establishing the largest native commercial enterprise of the era. He was instrumental in the establishment of the first Ceylonese bank and is often referred to as a father of private enterprise in British Ceylon. He was the first Mudaliyar to be elevated in recognition of his philanthropy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bibliography of Sri Lanka</span>

This is a bibliography of works on Sri Lanka.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coffee production in Sri Lanka</span>

Coffee production in Sri Lanka peaked in 1870, with over 111,400 hectares being cultivated. The Dutch had experimented with coffee cultivation in the 18th century, but it was not successful until the British began large scale commercial production following the Colebrooke–Cameron Commission reforms of 1833. By 1860, the country was amongst the major coffee-producing nations in the world. Although coffee production remains a source of revenue, it is no longer a main economic sector. In 2014, the country ranked 43rd of largest coffee producers in the world.

Norman Rowsell was an Englishman who was one of the first tea planters in British Ceylon. He was also a well known sportsman and became the first Ceylon Labour Commissioner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Wall (botanist)</span>

George Wall was a merchant, coffee planter, politician, amateur astronomer, botanist and humanitarian in Ceylon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kandy Garden Club</span> Sports club in Kandy, Sri Lanka

The Kandy Garden Club is a social and sports club in Kandy, Sri Lanka, which was established in 1878 for the exclusive use by British coffee planters to play tennis. It is one of the oldest operating sports clubs in the country and the second oldest in Kandy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Spearman Armstrong</span> Irish-born pioneer of tea and cinchona in Ceylon

Charles Spearman Armstrong (1847–1924) was an Irish-born pioneer of tea and cinchona in British Ceylon, where he arrived in 1863.

Scots Kirk or Presbyterian Church, Kandy, is Presbyterian church, located at 127 D. S. Senanayake Street, Kandy.

Dr William Gregory van Dort was a Ceylonese Burgher physician and politician.

References

  1. Perera 1999, p. 18.
  2. Ferguson & Ferguson 1878, p. 4.
  3. Davis 1813, p. 261.
  4. "The Royal Military Chronicle: British Officers Monthly Register and Mentor". London: W. Green & T. Chaplin. May 1813: 261.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  5. 1 2 Moldrich 1989, p. 3.
  6. Chapter 10, Arrival of Indian Tamils, Sri Lankan Tamil Struggle by T. Sabaratnam (Ilankai Tamil Sangam) Retrieved 26 April 2016
  7. Ferguson & Ferguson 1878, pp. 4–5.
  8. 'Nobodies to Somebodies - The Rise of the Colonial Bourgeoisie in Sri Lanka', Kumari Jayawardena, p.48 (Social Scientists' Association and Sanjiva Books). ISBN   955-9102-26-5
  9. "DEATH OF THE OLDEST EUROPEAN COFFEE PLANTER IN CEYLON". Colombo Observer. March 1857.
  10. Ferguson & Ferguson 1878, p. 5.

Bibliography