John Drummond of Jamaica
John Drummond | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1744 Westmoreland Parish, Jamaica |
| Died | 1804 (aged 59–60) Westmoreland Parish, Jamaica |
| Other names | John Drummond of Jamaica |
| Occupation(s) | Plantation owner and surgeon |
John Drummond FRSE (1744–1804) was a British landowner, physician and surgeon associated strongly with Jamaican history. He appears to have had a liberal attitude toward the institute of marriage, with at least five families in Britain and Jamaica. Most documents refer to him simply as John Drummond of Jamaica.
A specific Private Act in the Laws of Jamaica (anno 34, George III) allowed several of his mulatto children "the same rights and privileges of English subjects born with white parents", a demonstration of how colour discrimination was entrenched into the laws of the 18th century.
Whilst easily viewed as a rogue, Dr John Drummond of Jamaica is one of the handful of doctors listed in 1793 as having made major contributions towards the construction of Robert Adam’s Old College in Edinburgh (at that time known as "New College").