John Hesketh: Biography
We know about John Hesketh from the excellent book 'Our Men in Brazil, The Hesketh Brothers Abroad' by Ian Sargen, published by Scotforth Books, 2009.
John Hesketh was the son of Robert Hesketh (1719-1793) and his wife Catherine Holding. He had an elder sister (Margaret), a younger sister (Sarah), and two brothers, James and Edward.
John’s father Robert Hesketh was a wine merchant in Liverpool.
In about 1770, John went out to Porto, Portugal, to work as a wine exporter. He very quickly started exporting large quantities of port wine to the British Isles. One of his most regular customers was his father in Liverpool. Originally working on his own, John eventually became part of Offley, Campion, and Hesketh & Co.
In 1786, John married Louisa Ann Beete, and they had nine children.
In 1807 Napoleon's armies invaded Portugal and as a result John brought his family back to England. He lived in retirement in Liverpool until his death just short of his 65th. birthday in 1815.