John Bowes ('J.B.') Morrell (1873–1963) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

and

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the stu ...

. He was twice

Lord Mayor of York The Lord Mayor of York is the chairman of City of York Council, first citizen and civic head of York. The appointment is made by the council each year in May, at the same time appointing a sheriff, the city's other civic head. York's lord mayor ...

, a leading figure in the local movement to establish a university in

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

, and founder of the

York Conservation Trust The York Conservation Trust is a trust that buys and restores significant historical buildings in York, England, and then makes them available to rent. It was originally an initiative of former Lord Mayor John Bowes Morrell, who started acquiring ...

. The J.B. Morrell Library at the

University of York , mottoeng = On the threshold of wisdom , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £8.0 million , budget = £403.6 million , chancellor = Heather Melville , vice_chancellor = Charlie Jeffery , students ...

is named after him.

Biography

John Morrell's father was William Wilberforce Morrell (1837–1904), a bank manager in York, and the author of 'The History of

Selby Selby is a market town and civil parish in the Selby District of North Yorkshire, England, south of York on the River Ouse, with a population at the 2011 census of 14,731. The town was historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire until ...

' which was illustrated by his sister Jemima. His mother, born Lydia Hutchinson (1832–1939) married the non-conformist Morrell, who was a Wesleyan Methodist, whilst it appears she was a

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belie ...

. Their religiosity seems to have been behind John's activism in Liberal Politics from a young age. In 1884 John attended

Bootham School Bootham School is an independent Quaker boarding school, on Bootham in the city of York in England. It accepts boys and girls ages 3–19, and had an enrolment of 605 pupils in 2016. It is one of seven Quaker schools in England. The school ...

, a Quaker establishment. It was at this school where he was to meet his future colleagues at the

Rowntree's Rowntree's is a British confectionery brand and former business based in York, England. Rowntree developed the Kit Kat (introduced in 1935), Aero (introduced in 1935), Fruit Pastilles (introduced in 1881), Smarties (introduced in 1937) brands, ...

family chocolate and confectionery company, Arnold Rowntree and

Seebohm Rowntree Benjamin Seebohm Rowntree, CH (7 July 1871 – 7 October 1954) was an English sociological researcher, social reformer and industrialist. He is known in particular for his three York studies of poverty conducted in 1899, 1935, and 1951. The fi ...

. Morrell joined Rowntree's Cocoa Works when he was 17, becoming Director at 24. He was Mayor of York in 1914 and again in 1950. John Morrell married Bertha Spence Watson (1877–1954) in the

Friends Meeting House A Friends meeting house is a meeting house of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), where meeting for worship is usually held. Typically, Friends meeting houses are simple and resemble local residential buildings. Steeples, spires, and ...

Newcastle-upon-Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is als ...

in 1902. Her mother's Family Chronicles explained that in ''"1877 ... our Darling little Bertha was given to us on the 18th of May. I recovered nicely, & the new baby, like all of her sisters in turn before her, was much made of, & considered the greatest treasure ..."'' He bought many newspapers, including the ''

Birmingham Gazette The ''Birmingham Gazette'', known for much of its existence as ''Aris's Birmingham Gazette'', was a newspaper that was published and circulated in Birmingham, England, from the eighteenth to the twentieth centuries. Founded as a weekly publicatio ...

'', ''Lincolnshire Chronicle'', and ''Westminster Press''.

Historian of York

He wrote several books about York. He was made an Honorary

Freeman of the City of York Freeman, free men, or variant, may refer to: * a member of the Third Estate in medieval society (commoners), see estates of the realm * Freeman, an apprentice who has been granted freedom of the company, was a rank within Livery companies * Free ...

, given honorary degrees and declined a knighthood. He was a Life Vice-President of the

Yorkshire Philosophical Society The Yorkshire Philosophical Society (YPS) is a charitable learned society (charity reg. 529709) which aims to promote the public understanding of the natural sciences, the social sciences, and the archaeology and history of York and Yorkshire. ...

and co-founder and first chairman of the

York Civic Trust York Civic Trust is a membership organisation and a registered charity based in York, UK. Its primary function is to "preserve, protect and advise on the historic fabric of York". It is based in Fairfax House. Foundation York Civic Trust was fo ...

York Conservation Trust

The

(YCT) was formed as Ings Property Company Limited in 1945 by JBM and his brother Cuthbert Morrell, who had both been buying medieval properties in York for many years, which they restored and rehabilitated, together with Dr Morrell’s son Mr William Bowes Morrell. In 1976 they bequeathed all the properties in the company to the current registered charity, York Conservation Trust Limited.

Legacy

A plaque to Morrell is on the exterior of 111

Walmgate Walmgate is a street in the city centre of York, in England. During the Middle Ages, Medieval period, the street was the site of a seafissh and cattle market. Walmgate Bar, was involved in the Siege of York in 1644, during the First English Civ ...

, also known as

Bowes Morrell House The Bowes Morrell House is a historic building on Walmgate in the city centre of York, in England. The house was one of four for which a licence was granted in 1396 to construct in the churchyard of St Peter-le-Willows. It may have been used as ...

. The library, built on the campus of the

was named after Morrell in 1966.

Select publications

*Morrell, J.B. 1928. ''How York Governs Itself: Civic Government as Illustrated by the County of the City of York''. *Morrell, J.B. and Watson, A.G. (eds) 1933. ''Whitehall at York. How York is governed by the ministers of the Crown''. *Morrell, J.B. 1944. ''York Monuments (The Arts and Crafts in York)''. *Morrell, J.B. 1947. ''The Biography of the Common Man of the City of York as recorded in his epitaph''. *Morrell, J.B 1949. ''Woodwork in York''. *Morrell, J.B 1955. ''“The City of Our Dreams”''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Morrell, John Bowes People associated with the University of York 1873 births 1963 deaths Lord Mayors of York Members of the Yorkshire Philosophical Society