Jacob Wheate

Posted by Tim Oakley on Thursday 14th of July 2016 17:28

The remains of Sir Jacob Wheate, discovered buried beneath St Peter’s Church, were recently examined by a bio-archaeologist.
Sir Jacob, the Captain of the HMS Ceberus, commonly known as the ‘Musket Ball Wreck’, died in Bermuda in 1783.

In 2008, his remains, along with those of Governor George Bruere, were discovered buried beneath the East End church with no memorial or record marking their final resting place.
The Bermuda National Trust, in conjunction with St Peter’s Church and Brent Fortenberry, who discovered the bodies, recently arranged for bio-archaeologist Ellen Chapman, from the College of William and Mary, to examine Sir Jacob’s remains, which were excavated earlier this year.

Ms Chapman, a doctoral student, spent three days examining the remains. Analysis is said to be ongoing, but initial research suggests that Sir Jacob was around 5ft 3in and was in good health for an older man, but showed signs of dental cavities and slight arthritis.
According to archival data, he died of yellow fever, which is not identifiable skeletally.