John Gurney (10 November 1749 – 28 October 1809) 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 ...

banker A bank is a financial institution that accepts Deposit account, deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital m ...

and member of the

Gurney family A stretcher, gurney, litter, or pram is an apparatus used for moving patients who require medical care. A basic type (cot or litter) must be carried by two or more people. A wheeled stretcher (known as a gurney, trolley, bed or cart) is often ...

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...

. Besides his role as a partner in

Gurney's bank Gurney's bank was a family-run bank founded by members of the Gurney family in 1770 and headquartered in Norwich, England. It merged into Barclays Bank in 1896. History The bank was founded in 1770 by John and Henry Gurney, sons of John Gurney ( ...

he is notable as the father of the

social reform A reform movement or reformism is a type of social movement that aims to bring a social or also a political system closer to the community's ideal. A reform movement is distinguished from more radical social movements such as revolutionary move ...

ers

Elizabeth Fry Elizabeth Fry (née Gurney; 21 May 1780 – 12 October 1845), sometimes referred to as Betsy Fry, was an English prison reformer, social reformer, philanthropist and Quaker. Fry was a major driving force behind new legislation to improve the tr ...

and

Joseph John Gurney Joseph John Gurney (2 August 1788 – 4 January 1847) was a banker in Norwich, England and a member of the Gurney family of that city. He became an evangelical minister of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), whose views and actions led, ...

, the writer Louisa Hoare and the banker Samuel Gurney.

Biography

John Gurney was born in 1749 into an influential

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 ...

family that had established

in 1770. At the turn of the 19th century, the family business was led by Bartlett Gurney (1756–1802). When he died childless in 1802, members from another branch of the family succeeded him and John and his brother Richard (1742–1811) became partners in the bank in 1803. Earlham Hall, Law School of theUniversity of East Anglia

Earlham Hall, Law School of theUniversity of East Anglia

John Gurney lived at

Earlham Hall Earlham Hall is a country house in Norfolk, England. It is located just to the west of the city of Norwich, on Earlham Road, on the outskirts of the village of Earlham. For generations it was the home of the Gurney family. The Gurneys were known ...

in Norwich. On 26 May 1775 at Tottenham, London, he married Catherine Bell (1755–1794), daughter of Daniel Bell and Catherine Barclay, a member of the Barclay family, who were among the founders of

Barclays Bank Barclays () is a British multinational universal bank, headquartered in London, England. Barclays operates as two divisions, Barclays UK and Barclays International, supported by a service company, Barclays Execution Services. Barclays traces ...

. Catherine's sister was

Priscilla Wakefield Priscilla Wakefield, ''nee'' Priscilla Bell (31 January 1751 – 12 September 1832) was an English Quaker philanthropist. Her writings cover feminist economics and scientific subjects and include children's non-fiction.Ann B. Shteir, "Wakefield ...

, a writer on

feminist economics Feminist economics is the critical study of economics and economies, with a focus on gender-aware and inclusive economic inquiry and policy analysis. Feminist economic researchers include academics, activists, policy theorists, and practition ...

and children's literature. John Gurney and his wife had 13 children, including the bankers Samuel Gurney and

Daniel Gurney Daniel Gurney (1791–1880), was an English banker and antiquary from the Gurney family of Norwich. Life Gurney was born at Earlham Hall, near Norwich, on 9 March 1791, as the youngest son of John Gurney (1749–1809) of Earlham, Norfolk, and b ...

, the

ers

and

, while Hannah married Sir Thomas Buxton. Another daughter was Louisa Hoare, the writer on education. When John Gurney's wife died in 1794, Elizabeth as became partly responsible for the care and training of her younger siblings. In the 19th century, the Gurney family was known for its wealth: In

Gilbert and Sullivan Gilbert and Sullivan was a Victorian era, Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the dramatist W. S. Gilbert (1836–1911) and the composer Arthur Sullivan (1842–1900), who jointly created fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which ...

's 1875

comic opera Comic opera, sometimes known as light opera, is a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending and often including spoken dialogue. Forms of comic opera first developed in late 17th-century Italy. By the 1730s, a ne ...

Trial by Jury A jury trial, or trial by jury, is a legal proceeding in which a jury makes a decision or findings of fact. It is distinguished from a bench trial in which a judge or panel of judges makes all decisions. Jury trials are used in a significant ...

", a character describes his accumulation of wealth until ''at length I became as rich as the Gurneys''. On John Gurney's death in 1809, his son Samuel Gurney assumed the control of Gurney's Bank in Norwich. About the same time, he also took over control of the London billbroking business of ''Richardson, Overend & Company'', whose title was subsequently changed to ''

Overend, Gurney and Company Overend, Gurney & Company was a London wholesale discount bank, known as "the bankers' bank", which collapsed in 1866 owing about £11 million, equivalent to £ million in . The collapse of the institution triggered a banking panic. History Ear ...

''. It went on to become the world's largest discounting house.

Descendants

John Gurney and his wife Catherine Bell had 13 children, of whom several died young. The surviving children include # Elizabeth Gurney (1780–1845) ∞ 1800 Joseph Fry (1777–1861), and had issue # Hannah Gurney (1783–1872) ∞

Sir Thomas Buxton, 1st Baronet Sir Thomas Fowell Buxton, 1st Baronet (1 April 1786Olwyn Mary Blouet, "Buxton, Sir Thomas Fowell, first baronet (1786–1845)", ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004; online ed., May 201accessed 25 April 20 ...

(1786–1845), and had issue # Louisa Gurney (1784–1836) ∞ 1806 Samuel Hoare (1783–1847), and had issue # Samuel Gurney (1786–1856) ∞ 1808 Elizabeth Shepphard († 1855) and had issue #

(1788–1847) ∞ (I) 1817 Jane Birkbeck (1789–1822) and ∞ (II) 1827 Mary Fowler (1802–1835) and ∞ (III) 1841 Eliza Paul Kirkbride (1801–1881) and had issue #

(1791–1880) ∞ 1822 Lady Harriet Jemima Hay (1803–1837), daughter of

William Hay, 17th Earl of Erroll William Hay, 17th Earl of Erroll (12 March 1772 – 26 January 1819), known as Lord Hay until 1778, was a Scottish peer. Early life Erroll was the son of James Hay, 15th Earl of Erroll and his second wife, Isabella Carr, the eldest daughter and ...

, and had issue

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gurney, John 1749 births 1809 deaths English bankers English philanthropists English Quakers People from Norwich (district)

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...

18th-century philanthropists