Mystery Man Leaves £220,000 To 'Namesake' Towns

A man has left about £220,000 in his will to towns across the world which share his Douglas surname.

Solicitors acting on behalf of Eric Gordon Douglas, from Edinburgh, have sent a cheque for £10,887.73 to Douglas Borough Council on the Isle of Man as part of the bequest.

But the council for the island's capital has appealed for more information on Mr Douglas in order to recognise his donation.

Council leader David Christian said: "There was around £220,000 left to 20 places across the globe that shared his surname.

"If we can get more information then that would be excellent. We literally know nothing about the gentleman apart from his name and that we were told by his lawyers that he was from Edinburgh.

"It is very unusual and it would be nice to recognise him. The donation was revealed to councillors at a Policy and Resource Committee meeting last month.

Councillor David Ashford, who also sits on the committee, said: "We are hoping to do something to recognise the gentleman. We went back to his lawyers and checked it was meant for us. I was surprised. We do get bequests but it's rare for someone who has not got an association with the area to leave something."

Anyone with information about Mr Douglas is asked to contact us. We do have an Eric Gordon Douglas in the Douglas Archives. Is it the same man?