Sir John Henry Pelly, 1st Baronet, DL (31 March 1777 – 13 August 1852) 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 ...

businessman. During most of his career, he was an employee of the

Hudson's Bay Company The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; french: Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group. A fur trading business for much of its existence, HBC now owns and operates retail stores in Canada. The company's namesake business di ...

(HBC), serving as

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

of the HBC for three decades. He held other noteworthy offices, including

Governor of the Bank of England The governor of the Bank of England is the most senior position in the Bank of England. It is nominally a civil service post, but the appointment tends to be from within the bank, with the incumbent grooming their successor. The governor of the Ba ...

. The title of Baronet Pelly was created for him.

Early years

Pelly was born on 31 March 1777. His father was Captain Henry Hinde Pelly (1744–1818), Esq., of Upton who worked for the

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and South ...

, as did his father. Sally-Hitchen Blake (died 1824) was his mother. Pelly was a fourth generation sailor, and possibly served in the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

at a young age.

Career

Pelly became an Elder Brother of

Trinity House "Three In One" , formation = , founding_location = Deptford, London, England , status = Royal Charter corporation and registered charity , purpose = Maintenance of lighthouses, buoys and beacons , he ...

in 1823, and Deputy Master some years later. He was a Commissioner of the

Lord Lieutenant of the City of London The City of London is unique in that the post of lord-lieutenant is held in commission. The Lord Mayor of the City of London is the head of the Commission of Lieutenancy. Lieutenants All current members were appointed on December 24, 2021 by l ...

, and of the Loan Office of Public Works and Fisheries. He served as magistrate and was appointed a Deputy Lieutenant of

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and Grea ...

on 16 October 1810. In 1835 he was elected a

Fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the judges of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural knowledge, including mathemat ...

. From 1841-1842, he was Governor of the Bank of England. He was appointed a vice-president of the

Marine Society The Marine Society is a British charity, the world's first established for seafarers. In 1756, at the beginning of the Seven Years' War against France, Austria, and Saxony (and subsequently the Mughal Empire, Spain, Russia and Sweden) Britain ur ...

in 1847. Pelly was also a businessman. He owned timber plantations in

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...

. With Charles Boulton, and his father-in-law, Henry Boulton, Pelly was a partner in the company, Norway Merchants. With Jukes Coulson and Paul Malin, Pelly was a partner in the

ironmonger Ironmongery originally referred, first, to the manufacture of iron goods and, second, to the place of sale of such items for domestic rather than industrial use. In both contexts, the term has expanded to include items made of steel, aluminium ...

and iron merchants company, Jukes Coulson & Co.

Hudson's Bay Company

Pelly was a Director of the HBC before becoming its 17th Governor, serving in that capacity for three decades, from 1822 through 1852. Pelly was responsible for organizing several exploration parties, including some for

Peter Warren Dease Peter Warren Dease (January 1, 1788 – January 17, 1863) was a Canadian fur trader and Arctic explorer. Biography Early life Peter Warren Dease was born at Michilimackinac (now Mackinac Island) on January 1, 1788, the fourth son of Dr. J ...

and

Thomas Simpson Thomas Simpson FRS (20 August 1710 – 14 May 1761) was a British mathematician and inventor known for the eponymous Simpson's rule to approximate definite integrals. The attribution, as often in mathematics, can be debated: this rule had been ...

which assisted in the discovery of the

Northwest Passage The Northwest Passage (NWP) is the sea route between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways through the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. The eastern route along the Arc ...

. He was responsible for the 1849 colonization of

Vancouver Island Vancouver Island is an island in the northeastern Pacific Ocean and part of the Canadian province of British Columbia. The island is in length, in width at its widest point, and in total area, while are of land. The island is the largest by ...

. Pelly developed a business relationship with Sir George Simpson, Governor-in-Chief of

Rupert’s Land Rupert's Land (french: Terre de Rupert), or Prince Rupert's Land (french: Terre du Prince Rupert, link=no), was a territory in British North America which comprised the Hudson Bay drainage basin; this was further extended from Rupert's Land t ...

, and an HBC employee. They were partners in the London firm, Pelly, Simpson & Co., and the Norwegian firm, Pelly & Co.

Personal life

He married Emma Boulton (1786–1856) of

Leatherhead Leatherhead is a town in the Mole Valley District of Surrey, England, about south of Central London. The settlement grew up beside a ford on the River Mole, from which its name is thought to derive. During the late Anglo-Saxon period, Leathe ...

, Surrey in 1807. She was the daughter of Henry Boulton of Thorncroft, governor of the Corporation of Working Mines and Metals in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

. They had ten children. HIs eight sons were: Sir John Henry (who succeeded as baronet), Raymond, Charles, Albert, Richard-Wilson, Edmund, Octavius, and Percy-Leonard. His two daughters were Juliana-Sally and Emma-Eugenia. Sir

Lewis Pelly Lieutenant General Sir Lewis Pelly, (14 November 1825 – 22 April 1892) was a British East India Company officer, and then an imperial army and political officer. At the end of his life, he was a Conservative Member of Parliament for Hackney ...

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...

and an

officer, was his nephew. Upon the recommendation of

Lord Melbourne William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne, (15 March 177924 November 1848), in some sources called Henry William Lamb, was a British Whig politician who served as Home Secretary (1830–1834) and Prime Minister (1834 and 1835–1841). His first pre ...

, he was created Baronet Pelly, of Upton in the county of Essex in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom on 6 July 1840. He had residences at Warnham Court near Horsham, Sussex, and Upton House,

West Ham West Ham is an area in East London, located east of Charing Cross in the west of the modern London Borough of Newham. The area, which lies immediately to the north of the River Thames and east of the River Lea, was originally an ancient ...

. Pelly died at his home, Upton House, in 1852.

Honours

Several landforms were named in his honour. In the Northwest Territories, these included Pelly Island and Pelly Lake. In Nunavut, there is Mount Pelly,

Pelly Bay Pelly Bay is an Arctic waterway in Kitikmeot Region, Nunavut, Canada. It is located in the Gulf of Boothia. To the east, it is bounded by the Simpson Peninsula. Helen Island lies in the bay. Pelly Bay is named after Sir John Pelly, governor of th ...

, and Pelly Point. In Saskatchewan, the HBC post,

Fort Pelly Fort Pelly was a Hudson's Bay Company fur trading post located in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The fort was named after Sir John Pelly, governor of the Hudson's Bay Company. The current village of Pelly, Saskatchewan, takes its name f ...

bears his name, as well as the unincorporated town of Pelly. In the

Yukon Yukon (; ; formerly called Yukon Territory and also referred to as the Yukon) is the smallest and westernmost of Canada's three territories. It also is the second-least populated province or territory in Canada, with a population of 43,964 as ...

, Pelly Banks,

Pelly Crossing Pelly Crossing is a community in Yukon, Canada. It lies where the Klondike Highway crosses the Pelly River. It is the home of the Selkirk First Nation, and home to the Northern Tutchone culture. Cultural displays and artifacts are housed in a ...

, Pelly Formation, Pelly Lakes,

Pelly Mountains The Pelly Mountains are a mountain range in the Yukon, Canada. It has an area of and is a subrange of the Yukon Ranges which in turn form part of the Pacific Coast Ranges. Sub-ranges * Big Salmon Range * Glenlyon Range *Saint Cyr Range See als ...

, and the Pelly River bear his name.

References

External links

Photo, Upton House
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pelly, John Henry, 1st Baronet 1777 births 1852 deaths People from West Ham Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom Governors of the Hudson's Bay Company Deputy Lieutenants of Essex Governors of the Bank of England Deputy Governors of the Bank of England Fellows of the Royal Society Members of Trinity House