James Arthur Messenger (26 February 1826 – 21 June 1901) was a British

sculler Sculling is the use of oars to propel a boat by moving them through the water on both sides of the craft, or moving one oar over the stern. A long, narrow boat with sliding seats, rigged with two oars per rower may be referred to as a scull, it ...

who was the world champion from 1854 to 1857. He served as the

Queen's Bargemaster The King's Bargemaster is a subordinate officer of the Royal Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. Until the mid-19th century, the Royal Family frequently used a royal barge for transport along the River Thames. The role of the King ...

from 1862 to 1901. He resided in

Teddington Teddington is an affluent suburb of London in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Historically an Civil parish#ancient parishes, ancient parish in the county of Middlesex and situated close to the border with Surrey, the district became ...

. In 1854 he became the Champion of the Thames which was effectively the

English Sculling Championship The English Sculling Championship developed out of informal competitions between working watermen on rivers such as the Thames and the River Tyne, Tyne. Various matches were made on a casual basis but in time these were more formalised. The first re ...

and the

World Sculling Championship The World Sculling Championship (1863–1957), evolved from the Championship of the Thames for professional scullers. Only the sport of boxing claims an older Championship of the World. It is notable that Jack Broughton, the "Father of Boxing", t ...

. The English title gained the world status in 1876, earlier winners were retrospectively given the world champion title. In 1862 he won the famed

Doggett's Coat and Badge Doggett's Coat and Badge is the prize and name for the oldest continuous rowing race in the world. Up to six apprentice watermen of the River Thames in England compete for this prestigious honour, which has been held every year since 1715. Th ...

, which claims to be the oldest sporting championship in the world. There is some confusion as to whether James Messenger who won the

in 1854 is the same person, recorded as John Messenger of ''Cherry Garden Stairs'', who won the Doggett's Coat and Badge in 1862.

Early races

At the Thames Regatta in July 1847 Messenger won the apprentice's coat and silver badge presented by Evan Morris. In the final he defeated Tom Cole, JG Cole, and S Williams. At the 1848 regatta, he and three others were beaten in a four-oar race by the Claspers (see

Harry Clasper Henry (Harry) Clasper (5 July 1812 – 12 July 1870) was a professional rower and boat builder from Tyneside in England. He was an innovative boat designer who pioneered the development of the racing shell and the use of outriggers. He is said ...

) for the Champion Prize. However, at the 1849 event he was successful in winning the final of the Scullers Prize and £50. The regatta was discontinued but at its replacement, the Thames Boat Races of 1850, he came third in the single sculls race which was a closely contested affair. On 23 August 1853 Messenger rowed against James Candish, who was the

Tyne Tyne may refer to: __NOTOC__ Geography *River Tyne, England *Port of Tyne, the commercial docks in and around the River Tyne in Tyne and Wear, England * River Tyne, Scotland *River Tyne, a tributary of the South Esk River, Tasmania, Australia Peopl ...

Champion, on the Thames river Putney to Mortlake course (the

Championship Course The Championship Course is a stretch of the River Thames between Mortlake and Putney in London, England. It is a well-established course for sport rowing, rowing races, particularly the The Boat Race, Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race. The course ...

) for a £100 a side. Messenger defeated Candish with great ease by about a boat length and he covered the distance in 24 minutes 26 seconds after having been stopped twice on the course. A return match was arranged and this was raced on the Tyne on 14 March 1854. Messenger had an easy victory crossing the line more than half a minute ahead.

First title race

The backers of Messenger were pleased with his performance and a challenge was made to

Tom Cole Thomas Jeffery Cole (born April 28, 1949) is the U.S. representative for , serving since 2003. He is a member of the Republican Party and serves as the chairman of the House Appropriations Committee. Before serving in the House of Representati ...

for the Championship of the Thames. The agreed stake was £200 a side and the race was run on 20 November 1854 on the usual

. The day was foggy and cold. Cole took the early lead and retained it to Crab Tree at which point Messenger began to gradually overhaul him. By Hammersmith Bridge, Messenger had obtained a good lead which he maintained with ease to the finish. The time was 24 minutes 45 seconds. His details at this time were given as height 5 ft 7.5 in (1.71 m), and weight 10 st 8 lb (67 kg).

Second title race

A vast crowd was on hand to watch the race between Messenger and Harry Kelley on 12 May 1857. Every public vantage point along the Putney and Fulham to Mortlake and Chiswick course was taken up by spectators. Messenger rowed in a boat of his own construction and was piloted by Thomas MacKinney who had in 1851 been contender for the title, losing to Robert Coombes. The race was started by mutual consent; a common method at the time. However, there was no "foxing" or "gamesmanship" by either party as was often the case and the men got away promptly and fairly. Just after the start Kelley was perceptibly in front but after a dozen or so strokes Messenger looked like he was recovering the lost ground. Eager shouts from the crowd encouraged him but the spurt did not last long and by Finch's he had begun to fall astern. At Rose Bank, Kelley was more than a length ahead and he increased his lead so that by Hammersmith Bridge, reached in nine minutes, he was four or five lengths ahead. By Barnes Railway Bridge the distance between the men had doubled and although both men were partially stopped by skiffs it made no difference to the result. Kelley crossed the line in 24 minutes 30 seconds. See also

Life after racing

James Messenger was a boatbuilder in Teddington. He built the ''Lady Alice'' for

H. M. Stanley Sir Henry Morton Stanley (born John Rowlands; 28 January 1841 – 10 May 1904) was a Welsh-American explorer, journalist, soldier, colonial administrator, author, and politician famous for his exploration of Central Africa and search for missi ...

's second African journey.''History Today'', October 1968, page 714. James' son, Charles A. Messenger was a professional single sculler in Sydney around 1881. A grandson, Herbert Henry, known as

Dally Messenger Herbert Henry "Dally" Messenger, (12 April 1883 – 24 November 1959) was an Australian rugby league and rugby union player. One of Australasia's first professional rugby footballers, he is recognised as one of the greatest-ever players in eit ...

, was a good cricketer, sailor, and a champion canoeist, but became best known as a rugby league footballer.

References

Sources

*“The Aquatic Oracle or Record of Rowing from 1835 to 1851” published 1852. * The New York Clipper 13 June 1857. * Professional World Rowing History https://web.archive.org/web/20110217091832/http://www.rowinghistory-aus.info/world-pro-sculling/index.php * Australian Biography http://www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A100475b.htm * Fascinating History of the original Messenger Boathouse at 27 Ferry Rd, Teddington http://www.teddsoc-wiki.org.uk/wiki/index.php?title=Ferry_Road_27,_%22The_Boathouse%22 {{DEFAULTSORT:Messenger, James 1820s births 1901 deaths Burials at Teddington Cemetery English male rowers Professional rowers People from Teddington Sportspeople from the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames Rowers from London 19th-century British sportsmen