Philip Shears. Origin: Unknown

Philip Shears was granted 120 acres of land in Lower Deadman’s Cay, Long Island, on 27 March 1789; this grant parcel was bounded by the land of Robert Pritchard, William Cash, and James Gray, and by vacant land. This is depicted on the Tatnall Map, but on the Lands & Surveys Map, this land belonged in part to Joseph Hardy (50 acres) and others.

According to his grant, Shears was exempt from paying quit rent on the land for 10 years, which suggests he was a Loyalist, even though the name was found in several early Bahamian documents.

The spelling of his surname on the grant is “Shears,” though in the 1740 Census, there is a name spelled “Seares.”

References: 1740 Census, JR, Grant