Muster Roll #15 – Hamilton Bounsell

Ink portrait of handsome moustachioed man
Hamilton Bounsell c.1780
Hamilton Bounsell was a Merryapple native, born in the latter half of the 18th century. A robust child unafraid of work, he took to his family’s butchery business at an early age.

His family had long worked in the trade, though his aunt had been a net-mender for the local fisherfolk. When she was young, she disappeared for several days and when she reappeared in the village, she claimed to possess no memory of what had occurred in her absence. Rumours and gossip about her spread like wildfire through the village, perhaps contributing to Hamilton’s own gossiping tendencies in later years. He talked about others to stop them from talking about him and his family.

He grew to be a round, red-faced man and was affectionately nicknamed “Ham” by his friends. He never liked it. He married a woman named Fanny and they had numerous children together, although several did not survive beyond their first year, an all-too common occurrence in that era.

He befriended the toymaker Duncan Hunger when Duncan first arrived on the island; a friendship which may have waxed and waned in intensity over the years, but one which both parties knew could always be relied upon in times of crisis.

In THE MOTH AND MOON, Hamilton will need to be Duncan's rock.

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