John Saul Howson (5 May 1816 – 1885),

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

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, was born at Giggleswick-on-Craven,

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...

Early and private life

Howson's father was head-master of

Giggleswick School Giggleswick School is a public school (English independent day and boarding school) in Giggleswick, near Settle, North Yorkshire, England. Early school In 1499, Giggleswick School was founded on half an acre of land leased by the Prior an ...

. His nephew George William Saul Howson (1860–1919) was a reforming headmaster of Gresham's School, Holt, Norfolk, between 1900 and his death. After attending the school, he went to

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge or Oxford. ...

. Graduating BA in 1837 and MA in 1840, he became private tutor at Cambridge to the

Marquess of Sligo Marquess of Sligo is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1800 for John Browne, 3rd Earl of Altamont. The Marquess holds the subsidiary titles of Baron Mount Eagle, of Westport in the County of Mayo (created 10 September 1760), ...

and the

Marquess of Lorne A marquess (; french: marquis ), es, marqués, pt, marquês. is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman wi ...

Career

In 1845 Howson, having taken orders, accepted the post of senior classical master at the

Liverpool College Liverpool College is a school in Mossley Hill, Liverpool, England. It was one of the thirteen founding members of the Headmasters' Conference (HMC). History Liverpool College was the first of many public schools founded in the Victorian ...

under his friend W. J. Conybeare, whom he succeeded as principal in 1849. This post he held until 1865, and it was largely due to his influence that a similar college for girls was established at

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...

. On 2 June 1865, Howson was appointed as Honorary Chaplain of the

1st Lancashire Rifle Volunteer Corps First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and reco ...

. In 1866 he left

to become vicar of the

Parish Church of St Peter and St Paul, Wisbech The Parish Church of St Peter and St Paul or St Peter's Church, Wisbech, is an Anglican church in the market town and Port of Wisbech, the Isle of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England. It is an active parish church in the Diocese of Ely. The church wa ...

, and in 1867 he was appointed dean of

Chester Cathedral Chester Cathedral is a Church of England cathedral and the mother church of the Diocese of Chester. It is located in the city of Chester, Cheshire, England. The cathedral, formerly the abbey church of a Benedictine monastery dedicated to Saint ...

, where he gave himself vigorously to the work of restoring the crumbling fabric, collecting nearly £100,000 in five years for this purpose His restoration created a great debate and led in part to formation of the

Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings The Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB) (also known as Anti-Scrape) is an amenity society founded by William Morris, Philip Webb, and others in 1877 to oppose the destructive 'restoration' of ancient buildings occurring in ...

. His sympathies were with the evangelical party, and he stoutly opposed the "Eastward position," but he was by no means narrow. He did much to reintroduce the ministry of women as

deaconesses The ministry of a deaconess is, in modern times, a usually non-ordained ministry for women in some Protestant, Oriental Orthodox, and Eastern Orthodox churches to provide pastoral care, especially for other women, and which may carry a limited l ...

. The building of the King's School for boys, and the Queen's School for girls (both in Chester), was due in a great measure to the active interest which he took in educational matters. Howson's chief literary production was ''The Life and Epistles of St Paul'' (1852) in which he collaborated with Conybeare.

Family

He married the daughter of John Cropper, who survived him by only a few days. He died at Bournemouth on 15 December 1885 and was buried in the cloister garth of Chester. Howson was the father of

George Howson George William Saul Howson MA (8 August 1860 – 7 January 1919) was an English schoolmaster and writer, notable as the reforming headmaster of Gresham's School from 1900 to 1919. Early life Howson was one of the four sons of William Howson of ...

(1854–1943) who was

Archdeacon of Warrington The archdeacons in the Diocese of Liverpool are senior ecclesiastical officers in the Church of England in a highly irregular area surrounding the city of Liverpool. They are the archdeacons of Liverpool, of St Helens and Warrington, of Knows ...

from 1916 to 1933, and then

Archdeacon of Liverpool The archdeacons in the Diocese of Liverpool are senior ecclesiastical officers in the Church of England in a highly irregular area surrounding the city of Liverpool. They are the archdeacons of Liverpool, of St Helens and Warrington, of Knows ...

from 1933 to 1934; another son James Howson (1856–1934) was Archdeacon of Craven from 1928 to 1934. His grandson

was the founder and chairman of the

Royal British Legion The Royal British Legion (RBL), formerly the British Legion, is a British charity providing financial, social and emotional support to members and veterans of the British Armed Forces, their families and dependants, as well as all others in ...

Poppy Factory The Poppy Factory is a factory in Richmond, London, England, where remembrance wreaths are made. It was founded in 1922 to offer employment opportunities to wounded soldiers returning from the First World War, creating remembrance poppies and ...

References

External links

Bibliographic directory
from Project Canterbury * {{DEFAULTSORT:Howson, John Saul 1816 births 1885 deaths Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge People educated at Giggleswick School Deans of Chester Burials at Chester Cathedral Historic Society of Lancashire and Cheshire 19th-century Anglican priests 19th-century Anglican theologians