Wilmot was the second son of Robert Wilmot (1669-1738), of Osmaston Hall, near Derby, and his wife Ursula, who was the daughter of Sir Samuel Marow, Bt, of Berkswell, Warwickshire [REF].
John Eardley Wilmot's grandson Sir John Eardley Eardley-Wilmot, 1st Baronet, (1783-1847), served as a member of parliament and as Lieutenant-Governor of Van Diemen's Land (or Tasmania), was created a baronet in 1821 and published An Abridgment of Blackstone's Commentaries (1822) [REF].