| Administrative History | John Gregory was the fourth son of Reverend William Gregory and Catherine Sayer. He enjoyed a successful, yet sometimes troubled, career in the British Colonial government serving as Assistant Paymaster General in Malta from 1815 to 1816; Deputy Paymaster General in Gibraltar from 1816 to 1821; Commissioner of the Enquiry into the Financial Condition of the Eastern Colonies from 1822 to 1831; Colonial Treasurer in Van Diemen's Land from 1833 - 1840, and Governor of the Bahama Islands from 1848 to 1853.
Despite an early friendship, Gregory's service in Van Diemen's land was cut short by a dispute with the colony's Lieutenant-General, Sir John Franklyn. Following his dismissal Gregory was without secure employment for the following eight years, until his appointment as Governor of Bahama, in which role he appears to have been well-liked and took a keen interest in the islands' education, health and the economy.
He married Harriet Elizabeth Jean in 1834 with whom he had five children: Henrietta Catherine Gregory; Louisa Arthur Gregory; John Philip Gregory (1839 - 1869), barrister; William Villeneuve Gregory, Major R.A.; and Philip Spencer Gregory, barrister. |