E. W. Bedford (21 December 1892 – 1972) was a British-born

Ceylon Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

tea planter Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of '' Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of southwestern China and north ...

. Bedford was born on 21 December 1892 at

Forest Gate Forest Gate is a district in the London Borough of Newham, East London, England. It is located northeast of Charing Cross. The area's name relates to its position adjacent to Wanstead Flats, the southernmost part of Epping Forest. The town ...

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

(now in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

), England. He came to Ceylon to join the tea plantation at Kandaloya,

Dolosbage Dolosbage is a village in the Kandy District, Central Province, Sri Lanka. The Raxawa and Kabaragala rocks are the main landmarks of this area. Dolosbage has many tea estates started during the colonial era. It has a cold climate due to its elevat ...

, where he was Assistant Superintendent from 1917 until 1923. He was commissioned as an officer to the British Army

Indian Army Reserve Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

Bangalore Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...

from 15 January 1918 until 27 May 1918 at the War History Training School. He was later attached to the

3rd Sappers and Miners Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * 1⁄60 of a ''second'', or 1⁄3600 of a ''minute'' Places * 3rd Street (disambiguation) * Third Avenue (disambiguation) * High ...

Khyber Pass The Khyber Pass (خیبر درہ) is a mountain pass in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan, on the border with the Nangarhar Province of Afghanistan. It connects the town of Landi Kotal to the Valley of Peshawar at Jamrud by traversing pa ...

on 26 June 1919. After his time in the army, he returned to Kandaloya to continue his work as a planter. From 1920 to 1930 he was the owner and manager of Tebuwatte Estate; while he was there he also looked after Oonankande Estate in Dolosbage. After the 1930 sale of Tebuwatte, he managed Oonankanda, adding to it with the 1949 purchase of Gangawaraliya & Hyderabad Estates. He continued managing both estates until 1953. Bedford was also part of the World Amateur Ham Radio Association, and actively participated as an amateur radio operator. He was appointed

Justice of Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

and unofficial

Magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judici ...

for

Kegalle District Kegalle is a district in Sabaragamuwa Province, Sri Lanka. It is one of 25 districts of Sri Lanka, the second level administrative division of the country. The district is administered by a District Secretariat headed by a District Secretary (pre ...

in the 1950s. Bedford died in 1972, prior to his death he marked his own grave in Gangawaraliya Estate. After his death, Gangawaraliaya was transferred to his children.

Estates managed and owned by Bedford

References

Planters of British Ceylon 1892 births 1972 deaths People from Forest Gate British people in British Ceylon Amateur radio people {{SriLanka-bio-stub