Sir John Priestman, 1st Baronet (22 March 1855 – 5 August 1941) was a British

shipbuilder Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other Watercraft, floating vessels. In modern times, it normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation th ...

and charitable benefactor.

Life

Priestman was born in

Bishop Auckland Bishop Auckland ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish at the confluence of the River Wear and the River Gaunless in County Durham, England. It is northwest of Darlington and southwest of Durham, England, Durham. M ...

County Durham County Durham, officially simply Durham, is a ceremonial county in North East England.UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. The county borders Northumberland and Tyne an ...

, the son of Robert Priestman (1824–1867), a baker, and Jane Smith (c.1830–1903). Aged 14, Priestman became an apprentice to John Blumer, a shipbuilder at

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...

, and later became chief draughtsman at W. Pickersgill & Sons. In 1882, he set up his own yard at Castletown. He married Naomi Huntly (1857–1908) in 1881 at Sunderland. Priestman was

gazetted A gazette is an official journal, a newspaper of record, or simply a newspaper. In English and French speaking countries, newspaper publishers have applied the name ''Gazette'' since the 17th century; today, numerous weekly and daily newspapers ...

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised Order of chivalry, orders of chivalry; it is a part of the Orders, decorations, and medals ...

for "public and political services in Sunderland" on 29 June 1923 and was knighted at

Buckingham Palace Buckingham Palace () is a royal official residence, residence in London, and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and r ...

George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until Death and state funeral of George V, his death in 1936. George w ...

on 25 July. He was further gazetted a

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

, of Monkwearmouth in the County of Durham, for "services to many social organisations in Durham" on 1 June 1934 and his

letters patent Letters patent (plurale tantum, plural form for singular and plural) are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch, President (government title), president or other head of state, generally granti ...

were issued on 30 June. Priestman died in 1941, aged 86. As he died without male heirs, his baronetcy became extinct.

Benefactor

Priestman donated £6000 to the building of St Andrew's Church, Roker (completed in 1907), which was built in memory to his mother. In 1931, he established the Sir John Priestman Trust, whose purposes included 'feeding of poor... in times of distress', the 'employment and payment of nurses for the sick and infirm' and the building, 'maintaining and furnishing (including provision of organs)' of 'churches and mission halls and schools'. In 1933 he donated £35,000 to the rebuilding of St Michael's Church, Sunderland, he paid for the building of St Wilfrid's Church, Halton, Leeds (built 1937–39) and in 1939 he financed £20,000About £3,500,000 in 2008 for the construction of the Priestman Building, originally a library for Sunderland Technical College and now part of the

University of Sunderland The University of Sunderland is a public research university located in Sunderland in the North East of England. Its predecessor, Sunderland Technical College, was established as a municipal training college in 1901. It gained university status ...

Notes and references

Sources

Grace's Guide: The Best of Engineering. 1750-1960s, ''John Priestman and Co''A walk through Bishopwearmouth Conservation AreaPurchasing Power of British Pounds from 1264 to Present
{{DEFAULTSORT:Priestman, John 1855 births 1941 deaths People educated at Ackworth School Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom British shipbuilders People from Sunderland Businesspeople from Tyne and Wear Knights Bachelor