HEAD, Jeremiah
Jeremiah Head was born at St Mary-le-Tower parish, Ipswich on 24 January 1789, only child of John Head (7 September 1759-7 October 1813), an Ipswich grocer, and his wife Mary Seaman (c1764-9 April 1792), daughter of Robert Seaman. On the death of his father in 1813, Jeremiah carried on his grocer's business in Tavern Street, Ipswich. A Justice of the Peace for many years and Mayor of Ipswich 1858-1859 and one of the most respected and influential residents in the town, and an old and valued friend of the Ransome family. Jeremiah married at Ipswich on 12 May 1831, Mary Howard (1801-13 June 1882), daughter of Thomas Howard, and in 1851, a 62-year-old 'landed & funded proprietor', living at Hill House, Woodbridge Road, Ipswich with his 50 year old wife Mary, who was born in London, with their six children, John 19, Thomas Howard 18, Henry 16, Charles 12, Mary 11 and Albert 6, all born in Ipswich, and they retained four indoor servants. A member of the Ipswich Society of Professional & Amateur Artists from 1832, where he was tutored by Henry Davy. Jeremiah Head died at his home in Fonnereau Road, Ipswich on 24 February 1866, aged 77 and buried in Ipswich Cemetery on 1 March 1866. The eldest of his eight children was John Head (1832-1881) who, in 1864, became a partner in Ransomes and Sims, engineers of Ipswich.