Career
Willem Jacob was the third child of Sebastiaan van de Graaf, Major of Cavalry in the Army of the United Provinces, and Geertruid van Vinceler. At the age of 18, Van de Graaf left on the ship Blijdorp for Ceylon, where he became a merchant in Galle. They had five children.
In 1766 he became "head of the Mahabadde" in Colombo, the civil servant in charge of the economically important cinnamon cultivation.
He was appointed Governor of Ceylon on 7 February 1785 until he was requested in 1793 to become first Counsillor and Director-General of the Dutch Settlement in India (in Suratte). On 15 July 1794 he was succeeded as governor by his father-in-law, Johan van Angelbeek.
He retired to the estate De Liesbosch south of the city Utrecht, where he died in 1804.
