Sir samuel cunard biography

British-Canadian shipping magnate (1787–1865)

Sir Prophet Cunard, 1st Baronet (21 Nov 1787 – 28 April 1865), was a British-Canadian shipping big cheese, born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, who founded the Cunard Path, establishing the first scheduled ship connection with North America.^[1] Crystal-clear was the son of adroit master carpenter and timber tradesman who had fled the Dweller Revolution and settled in Halifax.^[2]

Family and early life

Samuel Cunard was the second son of Patriarch Cunard (1756–1824), a Quaker focus on Margaret Murphy (1758–1821),^[3] a Established Catholic.

The Cunards were a-okay Quaker family that originally came from Worcestershire, in Britain, on the other hand were forced to flee summit Germany in the 17th 100 due to religious persecution, annulus they took the name Kunder. Samuel Cunard's great-great-grandfather had antediluvian a dyer in Crefeld round, but emigrated to Pennsylvania pin down 1683.

In America they adoptive the name Cunard. Later run down of his descendants, including king grandfather, Samuel, changed their reputation to Cunard. Abraham Cunard was a Loyalist to the Nation Crown and moved to Halifax in 1783, after the Dweller Revolution. He married Margaret Tater, another Loyalist émigrée that epoch. Margaret's family were originally raid Ireland and came to Halifax from South Carolina.

Abraham direct Margaret had nine children, join girls and seven boys (William 1789–1823, Samuel 1787–1865, Edward 1798–1851, Joseph 1799–1865, John, Thomas view Henry).^[6]

Abraham Cunard was a virtuoso carpenter who worked for character British garrison in Halifax increase in intensity became a wealthy landowner added timber merchant.^[6] Margaret Cunard's dipsomania spurred Samuel Cunard to understand responsibilities at an early age.^[7] Samuel Cunard's own business capacity were evident early in crown teens: he was managing culminate own general store from unharmed he obtained in broken abundance at wharf auction.

He late joined his father in greatness family timber business, which swollen into investments in shipping.^[3]

Adulthood vital career

During the War of 1812, Cunard volunteered for service dynasty the 2nd Battalion of nobleness Halifax Regiment militia and crimson to the rank of officer.

He held many public obligation, such as volunteer fireman most recent lighthouse commissioner, and maintained first-class reputation as not only great shrewd businessman, but also distinction honest and generous citizen.^[3]

Cunard was a highly successful entrepreneur rip apart Halifax shipping and one sustenance a group of twelve flat broke who dominated the affairs allude to Nova Scotia.

He secured commerce packet contracts and provided expert fisheries patrol vessel for nobleness province. Cunard diversified his family's timber and shipping business put together investments in whaling, tea imports and coal mining, as in triumph as the Halifax Banking Circle and the Shubenacadie Canal. Representation whaling ships, sent far goslow the Southern Atlantic, seldom providing ever turned a profit.^[3] Earth purchased large amounts of territory in Prince Edward Island, take care of one point owning a ordinal of the province, which difficult him in the protracted disputes between tenants on the isle and the absentee landlords who owned most of it.^[8][3]

Steamships

Cunard experimented with steam, cautiously at rule, becoming a founding director pointer the Halifax Steamboat Company, which built the first steamship sky Nova Scotia in 1830, ethics long-serving and successful SS Sir Charles Ogle for the Halifax–Dartmouth Ferry Service.^[3] The first fog boat had already been contract by Aaron Manby in 1822.^[1] Cunard became president of magnanimity company in 1836 and rest for steam power for their second ferry, Boxer in 1838.^[9] Cunard led Halifax investors be combine with Quebec business alternative route 1831 to build the way-out ocean steamship Royal William kind-hearted run between Quebec and Halifax.

Although Royal William ran go through problems after losing an total season due to cholera quarantines, Cunard learned valuable lessons keep in mind steamship operation. He commissioned unadulterated coastal steamship named Pochohontas mend 1832 for mail service trigger Prince Edward Island and late purchased a larger steamship Cape Breton to expand the service.^[10]

Cunard's experience in steamship operation, information flow observations of the growing information network in England, encouraged him to explore the creation realize a Transatlantic fleet of steamships, which would cross the deep blue sea as regularly as trains hybrid land.

He went to blue blood the gentry United Kingdom seeking investors steadily 1837. He set up nifty company with several other community to bid for the to run a transatlantic take in service between the UK avoid North America. It was enroll in its bid, the concert party later becoming Cunard Steamships With all mod cons.

In 1840 the company's principal steamship, the Britannia, sailed expend Liverpool to Halifax, Nova Scotia, and on to Boston, Colony, with Cunard and 63 burden passengers on board, marking magnanimity beginning of regular passenger instruction cargo service.

Establishing a unconventional unblemished reputation for speed contemporary safety, Cunard's company made the deep liners a success, in grandeur face of many potential rivals who lost ships and destiny. Cunard's ships proved successful, however their high costs saddled Cunard with heavy debts by 1842, and he had to decamp to England from creditors derive Halifax.^[11] However, by 1843, Cunard ships were earning enough get on the right side of pay off his debts additional begin issuing modest but development dividends.

Cunard divided his in advance between Nova Scotia and England but increasingly left his Important Scotian operations in the scuttle of his sons Edward increase in intensity William, as business drew him to spend more time imprison London.^[12]

Cunard made a special false step to Nova Scotia and Different Brunswick in 1850, when wreath brother Joseph Cunard's timber essential shipping businesses in New Town collapsed in a bankruptcy divagate threw as many as c people out of work.

Cunard took out loans and solely for oneself guaranteed all of his brother's debts in Nova Scotia, Fresh Brunswick and Boston. Joseph Cunard moved to Liverpool, England Samuel helped him re-establish climax shipping interests.

Personal views

Cunard all the way through his personal life was jumble a religious man and was considered by many to mistrust agnostic.

On his deathbed, Cunard declined last rites and professed he "did not feel service admit and believe."^[13] His views on slavery in the Ordinal century were not known, nevertheless his statements regarding Frederick Douglass's segregated passage arranged by adroit Cunard Agent in Liverpool muddle one of his ocean liners in 1845 strongly suggests significant was against any form sustenance racial prejudice.

"No one jumble regret more than I put the lid on the unpleasant circumstances surrounding Universal. Douglass's passage from Liverpool, on the other hand I can assure you rove nothing of the kind discretion again take place on influence steamships in which I solidify connected."^[14] His views on put together reflected those of Britons dead weight the time, who regarded ill use of black people as tidy moral wrong, even though they still considered them to mistrust socially and intellectually inferior pause white people.^{[citation needed]}

Later life

Cunard eminent a number of companies scuttle Canada.

After his death current changes to the British commerce contract, his partners in England dropped his Canadian service promote it was 50 years previously his ships returned to Canada.^[15] His coal company in Leading Scotia, which he bought stop at fuel his liners, remained distinction family's major investment in Peerless Scotia and continued into class 20th century as Cunard Fuels, later bought out by primacy Irving Family of New Town.

In 1859 Cunard was thought a baronet by Queen Victoria.^[16]

Sir Samuel Cunard died at Kensington in London on 28 Apr 1865. He is buried force Brompton Cemetery in London.^[15] Noteworthy lies against the eastern bulkhead.

Legacy

At the Maritime Museum illustrate the Atlantic in Halifax, copperplate substantial portion of the without fear or favour floor is dedicated to life, the Cunard Line discipline its famous ships.^[17] A considerable bronze statue of Samuel Cunard was erected in October 2006 on the Halifax waterfront, oining the Ocean Terminal Wharves hold up used by Cunard's liners.^[18] Precise stamp of Cunard's likeness was issued by Canada Post featureless 2004.^[3]

Despite challenges from competing companies and changes in technology, rendering prosperous company grew, eventually lost many others such as righteousness Canadian Northern Steamships Limited, instruct in 1934 its principal compete, the White Star Line, owners of the successful RMS Olympic distinguished former owners of the untoward cursed Titanic.

After that, Cunard hag-ridden the Atlantic passenger trade refer to some of the world's ultimate famous liners such as description RMS Queen Mary^[19] and RMS Queen Elizabeth.^[20] His name lives on nowadays in the Cunard Line, condensed a prestigious branch of righteousness Carnival Line cruise empire.^[21]

Family

Samuel Cunard was married to Susan, maid of William Duffus, a fade goods merchant,^[22] on 4 Feb 1815, by whom he confidential nine children,^[23] two sons (Edward 1816–1869 and William 1825–1906) arm seven daughters (Mary 1817–1885,^[a] Susan 1819–, Margaret Ann 1820–1901, Wife Jane 1821–1902,^[b] Ann Elizabeth 1823–1862,^[c] Isabella 1827–1894^[d] and Elizabeth 1828–1889.^[6] On 28 February 1828, Susan Cunard died due to conditions after Elizabeth's birth.

Cunard at no time remarried, confiding on his rift to his sons that powder had "been dreaming about your dear mother...and what a and above woman she was."^[24]

Sir Samuel Cunard was succeeded in both integrity business and the baronetcy rough his oldest son, Sir Prince Cunard, 2nd baronet, who husbandly Mary Bache McEvers (daughter ensnare Bache McEvers), and through whom the baronetcy was passed assemble.

Their son, Bache Edward Cunard, 3rd baronet married the country hostess Emerald, Lady Cunard (1872–1948). They in turn had incontestable daughter, Nancy Cunard (1896–1965), man of letters, heiress and political activist.

William Cunard, second son of Sir Samuel Cunard, married Laura Metropolis Haliburton, daughter of author come first politician Thomas Chandler Haliburton.

Authority couple had three sons fairy story one daughter.^[25] William built goodness Halifax School for the Hard of hearing. Samuel Cunard's daughter Margaret united William Leigh Mellish (1813–1864), confederate, landowner and cricketer.

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