A. C. Shillingford
A. C. Shillingford | |
|---|---|
| Born | Albert Cavendish Shillingford 11 May 1882 |
| Died | 7 March 1938 Hatton Garden, Dominica |
| Occupation | Businessman |
Albert Cavendish Shillingford (11 May 1882 – 7 March 1938) was a Dominican businessman who is notable for being the leading businessman of colour of the colony.
Early life
[edit]Albert Cavendish "Gerald" Shillingford was born in Saint Joseph, Dominica, the son of Albert Charles Shillingford and Anne Marie Pinard of Newtown, Roseau. He attended the Dominica Grammar School.[1]
Career
[edit]After completing his training as a druggist at Roseau Hospital, Shillingford partnered with fellow student Sidney Green to establish Shillingford & Green, Druggists, in 1905. After five years, the partnership was dissolved, leading to the creation of their respective businesses—Shillingford founded The Phoenix, while Green established The Dominica Dispensary.
Shillingford later expanded his business ventures, drawing inspiration from his uncle, Thomas Howard Shillingford, who had successfully opened shops in villages along the west coast. He implemented a similar strategy in Roseau, the capital, founding A. C. Shillingford & Co. Limited. Over time, the company grew into a diversified enterprise encompassing the pharmacy, a grocery store, 3 dry goods stores, an insurance company, a hardware retail and wholesale business, apparel stores, and an auto import and dealership company. In addition to his commercial activities, he co-founded The Dominica Tribune newspaper, served as a trustee of the Dominica Grammar School, and was a member of the board of the Dominica Banana Association.
With the support of relatives, including cousin H. D. Shillingford, he expanded into agriculture, acquiring estates that produced limes, oranges, bananas, sugarcane, and other crops. In 1924, he established a lime processing factory in Newtown, followed by another in Soufrière. His operations later expanded to neighboring islands, where he constructed additional lime processing plants in Trinidad and Grenada. This expansion directly challenged the monopoly held by the British-owned L. Rose & Co., allowing local lime growers to secure better prices for their produce.
By the 1930s, the family led by "A. C. S." and "H. D. S." held significant influence in Dominican society, nearly controlling many aspects of the economy, from their vast land holdings, to their import, export, and agro-industry interests. Combined with their membership of the legislature this made them both directly and indirectly politically powerful. However, their dominance began to decline from the 1960s due to various political changes.[2][3][4][5][6][7]
Philosophy
[edit]Shillingford opposed British political dominance by supporting the Dominica Taxpayers Reform Association. He was a financial backer of the 1932 Dominica Conference, which was attended by regional political figures, including Captain Arthur Cipriani of Trinidad and Theophilus Marryshow of Grenada. The conference advocated for a federation of the British West Indian Territories, aligning with Shillingford’s vision of Dominican self-governance.
He was an early ally of attorney Cecil Rawle, a proponent of self-government, as well as planter, banker, and legislator J. B. Charles. He also allied with Pan-Africanist and Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) organizer J. R. Ralph Casimir, reflecting his broader commitment to political and economic reform in the region.
Shillingford was noted by the British colonial administration for his criticism of the treatment of West Indian soldiers who served in World War I. He protested their assignment to labor battalions under poor conditions, arguing that they had been unfairly treated despite their service to their "mother country" Britain.[2][3][4][5]
Personal life
[edit]The Shillingford family first arrived in Dominica from England in the 18th century. Initially a Newtown based white protestant family of blacksmiths; brothers Thomas, William, and their nephew Charles whose son Thomas (Shillingford's grandfather) married and had children with Felicité Dangleben who was of mixed ancestry making the families status become that of "colored". Over generations, the family became more racially diverse.[8]
Shillingford was married to Theresa Robinson and had children with both her and Roseau socialite Idiline Johnson.
On 7 March 1938, at the age of 56, Shillingford died in a drowning accident off the coast of Hatton Garden beach on Dominica’s east coast whilst bathing with his cousin Howell.[1][4][9]
References
[edit]- ^ a b Christian, Gabriel (11 August 2014). "A.C. Shillingford – A captain of Dominican industry". www.thedominican.net.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b Hlousek, Petr. "Rum by Macoucherie Estates / Shillingford Estates Ltd. - Dominica". Peter's Rum Labels. Retrieved 8 February 2025.
- ^ a b The West Indies and Caribbean Year Book. London: Thomas Skinner & Co. 1926 – via University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
- ^ a b c "The late A. C. Shillingford". The Dominica Tribune. 12 March 1938. p. 4.
- ^ a b Christian, Gabriel J. (6 September 2023). "Remembering the Dominica Dispensary, Early Medical Care & Roseau in the Old Days". The Sun. Retrieved 8 February 2025.
- ^ Connor, Wilbert (17 August 2009). "Astaphanism and Dominican politics". thedominican.net. Retrieved 8 February 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "A.C. Shillingford Co. Ltd". businessviewcaribbean.com. Retrieved 10 February 2025.
- ^ Andre, Irving W. (2014). The Extraordinary World of Albert Cavendish Shillingford. Pont Casse Press (published 1 October 2014). ISBN 0981292151.
- ^ "Albert Cavendish Shillingford". New Pittsburgh Courier. 9 April 1938. p. 15 – via newspapers.com.