James Eversfield was an English landowner who served as High Sheriff of Sussex.

Life

Baptised on 1 November 1795 in the church of St Laurence in

Catsfield Catsfield is a village and civil parish in the Rother District, Rother district of East Sussex, England. It is located six miles (9.7 km) north of Bexhill-on-Sea, Bexhill, and three miles (5 km) southwest of Battle, East Sussex, Battle ...

, he was the younger son of William Markwick, who later changed his name to Eversfield, and his wife Mary. On 15 June 1815 in the church of St James, Piccadilly he married Mary Crew (1795–1872), daughter of Robert Hawgood Crew, Secretary to the

Board of Ordnance The Board of Ordnance was a British government body. Established in the Tudor period, it had its headquarters in the Tower of London. Its primary responsibilities were 'to act as custodian of the lands, depots and forts required for the defence ...

, and his wife Mary Sophia Foreman, daughter of John Foreman. In 1818 his elder brother died, making him heir to the family's extensive landholdings, which included the manor and mansion of

as well as lands in

Pevensey Pevensey ( ) is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Wealden District, Wealden district of East Sussex, England. The main village is located north-east of Eastbourne, one mile (1.6 km) inland from Pevensey Bay. The ...

, Ninfield, Mountfield,

Battle A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force co ...

and Bexhill. He served as

High Sheriff of Sussex The office of Sheriff of Sussex was established before the Norman Conquest. The Office of sheriff remained first in precedence in the counties until the reign of Edward VII when an Order in Council in 1908 gave the Lord-Lieutenant the prime office ...

in 1822. Following the death of his mother in 1823, he sold the Catsfield property and moved to Denne Park outside

Horsham Horsham () is a market town on the upper reaches of the River Arun on the fringe of the Weald in West Sussex, England. The town is south south-west of London, north-west of Brighton and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Nearby to ...

. In 1825 he was one of the six proprietors of the

Baybridge Canal The Baybridge Canal was a short canal built entirely within the parish of West Grinstead in the English county of Sussex. It opened in 1826, and closed in 1875. History The River Adur is formed when the Western Adur and the Eastern Adur join n ...

West Grinstead West Grinstead () is a village and civil parish in the Horsham District of West Sussex, England. It lies just off the B2135 road four miles (6.3 km) northwest from Henfield. It is within the ancient division of the Rape of Bramber. The ...

. Aged only 30 when he died, his will was proved on 13 Nov 1826. He and Mary had three children: *Ann Isabella Mary Eversfield (1816–1904), who in 1837 married Charles Goodwin Bethune (1810–1864), who later changed his last name to Eversfield. They had sixteen children, including the cricketer Henry Beauclerk Bethune. *Sophia Eversfield (1819–1901), who in 1845 married

Henry Paget, 3rd Marquess of Anglesey Henry William George Paget, 3rd Marquess of Anglesey (9 December 1821 – 30 January 1880), styled Lord Paget until 1854 and Earl of Uxbridge between 1854 and 1869, was a British peer and Liberal politician. Background Anglesey was the only so ...

, but had no children. *Charles Gilbert Eversfield (1822–1886), who in 1848 married Isabella Pigott (1820–1902). Having no children, they adopted Lucy Barbara Vaughan (1837-1905), his mother's stepdaughter by her third marriage, and she in 1871 married Edward Maximilian Bethune (1842-1912), the eldest surviving son of her adoptive father's elder sister. His widow Mary in 1827 married Henry Tredcroft (1788-1844), becoming the mother of Edward Tredcroft, and, widowed a second time, in 1847 married the Reverend John James Vaughan (1809-1881), son of Sir John Vaughan.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eversfield, James 1795 births 1826 deaths English landowners High sheriffs of Sussex People from Catsfield People from Horsham District 19th-century English businesspeople