The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1892-12-02
IN GREAT LUCK.
A Fortune in England That
Came to America.
CLEBBORN'S BIG WINDFALL
How a Poor Pi,iladelpfiian Unexpect-
eddy Became Possessed of
Snug Competency.

Although in the last eighty years there mas
been many stories of wealth coming TO Phil
adeiphia by inheritance from abroad none
are more strange in detail or better auther-
ucated than that of the Cebborn family,
who, IN 1923. lived in the vicinity of Fifth
and South streets. At one time Dennis
Clebborn, says the Philadelphia Times. his
wife and two daughters occupied one
story house that stood on the north side of
South street, few doors below Fifth
They were very poor. the father weaving
rag carpets and the girls and mother cutting
and sewing the rags.
One day the family were visited by mes
senger from Mr.. Peters. then British Consul
at this port. Dennis Clebborn called on him
in Union street, and there met a lawyer from
Liverpool, who after much questioning, in
formed the poor carpet-weaver that he was,
beyond any reasonable doubt, the inheritor
OF at least e1G0,000, ard this eventually
came to him through the following cireum-
stances:
In 1745 Cheshire baronet named Shaw.
dying, made will leaving his estate 10 a
brother, disinheriting his only son, because
he had joined tie army of Prince Charles
Edward, then invading England. He seems
to have had no other motive than mere
malice in leaving the land after tine death
OF his brother to no less than FIVE different
families, and they being exhausted, then
the remainder was to he in his son and his
descendants in fee. OF course it looked as
| IL the sons chance of reaching the mo0n
| was quite as good as that of ever coming
into possession of his fathers estate.
| lie was killed in battle. leaving wife and
| daughter. The latter married man named
| Clebborn, t0ligate keeper in Cheshire.
| His only son and child married and came to
America about 1900 and died in poverty,
leaving son, Dennis, who was at one time
the hostler at the Plough Tavern, on Second
| street, and he 1t was that inherited the for
| tune and it came about in this way: b. a
| series of unparalleled accidents aud msior-
| tunes no less than sixty-ene of those en-
| titled to the life estate of old ShaW's land
| were removed by death, nearly all premG-
turely, and the last family. named Ran
| some. seven in number, were lost in the
wreck IN the kents East Indiaman In 1925
| In the meantime the estate had gone to rack
| and ruin, as none of the life tenants had
any interest in its permanent welfare.
| There was a large tract of swampy, SANDY
land on the River Mersey. opposite the eitv
| OF Liverpool, now the site of Birkenhead IL
| Lalrd's shipyards.
| In 1924 the elder Laird wanted to buy
| some of this land, until then worthless, and
| found that he could get no title, and this
| started the lawyers on the hunt for heirs
| but 1t was three years before they got on
| the right track. At one time they were
nearly the victim of bogus Clebborn in
q
| Nash. and he was just on the point of re-
| ceiving 10000 for the deed of certain lands
| when Cebborn's wife interfered and ex-
| posed the scheme. Nash was tried and
! transported for his share in the game.
/ Mrs. Peters. the wife of the British Con-
! sui, was notable specimen of an English
matr0n. She was the first one to begin. to
| learn girls trades and labored long and un-
| selfishly To accomplish this Object. but her
| labors were maTred by heI manner as she
| was verisable Mrs. Pardiggle and would
| brook no opposition. Both OF the Ciebborn
| girls, although quite uneducated. were
| smart and full of fun, and they tired CT
| Mrs. Peters patronage and her directions
| how they should dress and behave. That
| lady gave very select party to meet the
| young heiresses. The company was as
| sembled, when. TO the horror of the hostess,
| In marched Alice and Polly ClebborB
| dressed like two erazy-quilts-haJs two feet
| high, gowns in req, yellow and green stripes
| and a bewildering. assortment OF fans.
| feathers and huge curls on either side of the
! face. The heightened society was par
| alyzed, but Mrs. Peters let the girls alone
| after that.
1t is a Southwark tradition that Alice
| Clebborn, who afterward became Lady
| Stewart. was courted by a young man
named Wise, but his mother ended the mat
| ter by declaring that no rag-weaver's
| daughter should ever enter her family.
Her father was very fair business man
| and Invested some of his new fortune In
pennsylvania coal lands. and through
frames Gowen these eventually came into
| the possession OF the Reaiing Railroad
| The Clebborus sold them in 1851 for a large
| sum. BY the building of the docks at BIZ
kenhead their land became enormously
| valuable, and as the Clebborn name led
with Dennis in 1873 the fortune has gone 10
| the Stewart and HaZewo0d families