Zachariah Pearson

Zachariah C. Pearson
Died 1891

Zachariah Pearson (died 1891) was an English shipowner, best known for the gift of land to Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, which was used to establish the City's first public park, later known as Pearson Park.

He was bankrupted in the 1860s due to loss of ships which were attempting trade with the Confederate states during the United States civil war.

Biography

Pearson became Sheriff of Kingston upon Hull for the year 1858,[1] and Chief Magistrate of the same town in 1859, and again in 1861,[2] he was Mayor in 1859 and 1862.[3] During his first term as Mayor he was instrumental in organising the construction of Hull's first purpose built town Hall. (opened 1862, to a design of Cuthbert Brodrick)[4]

In 1860 he gave a gift of 27 acres (11 ha) of the 37 acres (15 ha) of land he had acquired near Beverley Road to the Hull Board of Health, for the establishment of a public park (now named Pearson Park), keeping the remainder of the land for building development; and paid £300 for the construction of an access road.[5] In the early 1860s Pearson acquired several ships on credit from the Banking house of Overend and Gurney;[6][7] In 1862 Pearson attempted to use his ships to break the blockade of the Confederate states during the American civil war;[8] Pearson, a Wesleyan, was at variance with abolitionist views held by some of his non-conformist peers in his apparent support for the confederate cause; one motivation for this act was the need to obtain cotton for the Hull Flax and Cotton Mill, which employed 1500.[9]

Six of his ships were captured by the Federal forces, and a seventh was run aground and destroyed; this coupled with previous losses of two ships in the Baltic and another lost to fire in the Thames, London led to his bankruptcy - in 1862 was declared bankrupt with over £600,000 of debts and liabilities.[8] He resigned as Chief Magistrate and as Alderman of Hull in October 1862.[2]

Pearson did not recover financially from his 1862 bankruptcy. He died in Hull in 1891.[10]

It should be noted that he did in fact pay off all his debts in full.

References

  1. ↑ Sheahan 1864, p. 238.
  2. 1 2 Sheahan 1864, p. 234.
  3. ↑ Sheahan 1864, p. 483.
  4. ↑ Sheahan 1864, p. 483-485.
  5. ↑ Sheahan 1864, p. 560.
  6. ↑ Xenos 1869, pp. 136,140-157.
  7. ↑ Bennett 2008, p. 103.
  8. 1 2 Bennet 2008, p. 108.
  9. ↑ Barwick et al. 1989, pp. 12,14.
  10. ↑ Bennett 2008, p. 158.

Sources


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