Francis Stepney Gulston (September 1845 – 1917) was an English

rower Rowing, sometimes called crew in the United States, is the sport of racing boats using oars. It differs from paddling sports in that rowing oars are attached to the boat using oarlocks, while paddles are not connected to the boat. Rowing is di ...

who at

Henley Royal Regatta Henley Royal Regatta (or Henley Regatta, its original name pre-dating Royal patronage) is a rowing event held annually on the River Thames by the town of Henley-on-Thames, England. It was established on 26 March 1839. It differs from the thre ...

won the

Grand Challenge Cup The Grand Challenge Cup is a rowing competition for men's eights. It is the oldest and best-known event at the annual Henley Royal Regatta on the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in England. It is open to male crews from all eligible rowing cl ...

five times, the

Stewards' Challenge Cup The Stewards' Challenge Cup is a rowing event for men's coxless fours at the annual Henley Royal Regatta on the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in England. It is open to male crews from all eligible rowing clubs. Two or more clubs may combine t ...

ten times, and the

Silver Goblets The Silver Goblets & Nickalls' Challenge Cup is a rowing event for men's coxless pairs at the annual Henley Royal Regatta on the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in England. It is open to male crews from all eligible rowing club A rowing club ...

five times. Gulston was born at Llandilofawr, the son of Alan James Gulston of Woodland Castle, Swansea and of Llandilo, Carmarthenshire. His father was a landowner and was

High Sheriff of Carmarthenshire This is a list of High Sheriffs of Carmarthenshire. Carmarthenshire was originally created by the Statute of Rhuddlan in 1284. It became an administrative county in 1889 with a county council following the Local Government Act 1888. Under the Loca ...

in 1860. Gulston was educated at the Royal Naval School, and entered

Magdalene College, Cambridge Magdalene College ( ) is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1428 as a Benedictine hostel, in time coming to be known as Buckingham College, before being refounded in 1542 as the College of St Mary ...

in 1863. It is said he went to Cambridge mainly and merely to row, and was recalled as taking up residence at the college with a pilot jacket on, a bottle of gin in one pocket and a bottle of bitters in the other. The authorities would hardly let him take part in a college crew, and would not consider him for the

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

eight because they thought his style was too professional.Martin Cobbett ''Wayfaring Notions'' 1906 p 132
/ref> He became a civil engineer and was in business in London in 1866. Accounts exist of his social life in London and Wales Gulston was a member of the Oscillators Club of

Surbiton Surbiton is a suburban neighbourhood in South West London, within the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames (RBK). It is next to the River Thames, southwest of Charing Cross. Surbiton was in the historic county of Surrey and since 1965 it has ...

and then joined

London Rowing Club London Rowing Club (LRC, or colloquially, 'London') is the second-oldest of the non-academic active rowing clubs on the Thames in London, United Kingdom. It was founded in 1856 by members of the long-disbanded Argonauts Club wishing to compete at ...

heralding ten years of success with Gulston in their crews. LRC won the Grand Challenge Cup at

in 1868 and the Stewards Challenge Cup in 1868, 1869 and 1871. Also in 1871, Gulston won the

partnering

Albert de Lande Long Albert De Lande Long (13 September 1844 – 23 February 1917) was an English iron founder and manufacturer who co-founded the company Dorman Long. Before doing so he was a highly successful adult amateur rower. Biography Long was born at Ipswi ...

. He was captain of London Rowing Club in 1872 when they won the Grand and Stewards and he won Silver Goblets with Long again. LRC won Stewards every year until 1878. Meanwhile, Gulston and Long were runners up in Silver Goblets in 1873 to

Clement Courtenay Knollys Sir Clement Courtenay Knollys (1849 – 16 December 1905) was a British rower and colonial administrator and governor. Knollys was the son of Rev. Erskine Knollys and his wife Caroline Augusta North. His father was rector at Quedgeley, Gloucester ...

and A Trower and won in 1874. They were disqualified in the final of Silver Goblets in 1875 but Gulston won with S le B Smith in 1876. In August 1876 Guslon, together with R H Labat, A Trower and J Rowell went to

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

on the steam ship Wyoming to take part in the town's centennial regatta. Gulston took part in the single scull and in the double scull with Labat. Prior to the event the rowers went for a swim in the Harlem giving scope for the local newspapers to describe their physiques. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' wrote of Gulston "very much larger than the others His face is full with heavy whiskers and he is in all respects a thorough English oarsman. His shoulders and back are immense while he is not the least lacking in full development of arms and legs." In 1877 LRC won the Grand as well as Stewards and in 1879 Gulston had his fifth win in Silver Goblets, this time partnering R H Labat. In 1878 and 1879, Gulston as captain of LRC was involved in meetings to set up the

Amateur Rowing Association British Rowing, formerly the Amateur Rowing Association (ARA), is the national governing body for the sport of rowing (both indoor and on-water rowing). It is responsible for the training and selection of individual rowers and crews representin ...

In 1881 Gulston was living in

Putney Putney () is a district of southwest London, England, in the London Borough of Wandsworth, southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. History Putney is an ancient paris ...

with his wife and year old son.British Census 1881 RG11 0662/38 P 21 Gulston was later living at

Salcombe Salcombe is a popular resort town in the South Hams district of Devon, south west England. The town is close to the mouth of the Kingsbridge Estuary, mostly built on the steep west side of the estuary. It lies within the South Devon Area of ...

, Devon where he died at the age of 71. He was recalled as "that finest – I make no exception – gentleman oarsman". Gulston married Emma Elizabeth Davis at Putney in 1880. His brother Alan Stepney Gulston was an artist and author.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gulston, Francis 1845 births 1917 deaths Alumni of Magdalene College, Cambridge British male rowers