Quick Facts
Biography
William Mellish (c. 1763–1834) was an English business man who was involved in supplying the British Navy particularly during the American War of Independence. He also owned or part-owned a number of whaling ships. For much of his career he was in business with his brother Peter Mellish. Their father Peter Mellish sr had been a butcher in Shadwell, and they bid to supply the navy with beef under a competitive tendering procedure. Thus, for example, in 1794 they won the contract to supply 3,000 head of oxen for sea stores.
His inheritance
His estate was worth about £3m when he died. He had two heirs his daughters Elizabeth and Margaret Lauretta, who both married improvident aristocrats: Elizabeth married Lord Edward Thynne in 1830 and Margaret Richard Butler, 2nd Earl of Glengall in 1834. In 1847 Elizabeth unsuccessfully attempted to gain a greater share of their father's estate with a court case. The trustees of the estate also felt concern over the profligacy of the Earl of Glengall, who went bankrupt in 1849, a status he retained until his death in 1858. The trustees were able to sell much of the family estates in Ireland in 1853 through the Encumbered Estates' Court, with much of the land being subsequently bought back.
