Refine your search

The results of your search are listed below alongside the search terms you entered on the previous page. You can refine your search by amending any of the parameters in the form and resubmitting it.

Select all Deselect all Add selection to lightbox
Large Small
Thumbnails per page
Augustine Heard was born into a wealthy merchant family of Ipswich, Massachusetts. His father, John Heard (1744-1834), had made his fortune by trading with the West Indies, and his half-brother Daniel (1778-1801) also worked in foreign trade with the West Indies and China.<br/><br/> Educated at Phillips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire, Augustine did not graduate and instead, in 1803, began working for a prominent Boston, Massachusetts merchant, Ebenezer Francis. Two years later, Heard embarked as supercargo to Calcutta on one of Francis' ships. Climbing the ranks of trading companies, Heard was, by 1812, captain of his first ship, the brig Caravan. He pursued his naval career for 18 years, becoming a renowned navigator.<br/><br/> In 1830, at the age of 45, Heard settled in Canton, China, where we became partner in the American trading firm Samuel Russell & Co. In 1834, he returned to Boston for health reasons, and managed his business from there. He also developed close ties with his nephews, the sons of his brother George Washington Heard, and developed a business relationship with them. set up his own company, Augustine Heard & Co. in 1840 with Joseph Coolidge and John Murray Forbes, friends and partners who had remained in Canton. The firm became very successful, and rapidly grew to become the third largest American firm in China.
William Jardine (24 February 1784 – 27 February 1843) was a Scottish physician and merchant. He co-founded the Hong Kong conglomerate Jardine, Matheson and Company. From 1841 to 1843, he was Member of Parliament for Ashburton as a Whig.
Field Marshal Hugh Gough, 1st Viscount Gough KP, GCSI, KCB, PC (3 November 1779 – 2 March 1869), was a British Army officer. He was said to have commanded in more general actions than any other British officer of the 19th century except the Duke of Wellington.<br/><br/> Born at Woodstown House, County Limerick, he was the son of Lieut.-Colonel George Gough (1750–1836) of Woodstown House, Deputy-Governor of County Limerick, and his wife Letitia Bunbury, daughter of Thomas Bunbury of Lisnevagh House and Moyle, Co. Carlow. He was a member of an old Anglo-Irish family long settled in County Limerick since the early 17th century.<br/><br/> He served in South Africa, the West Indies, Surinam, the Peninsular War and India before being appointed commander-in-chief of the British forces in China during the First Opium War (1839-1842).<br/><br/> After the conclusion of the Treaty of Nanking in August 1842 the British forces were withdrawn, and before the close of the year Gough, who had been made a GCB in the previous year for his services in the capture of the Canton forts, was created a baronet on 23 December 1842. In August 1843 he was appointed commander-in-chief of the British forces in India.<br/><br/> Subsequently raised to the viscountcy as Viscount Gough, he went on to fight in the Crimea before retiring to Ireland. Mount Gough on Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong is named after him.
Sir James Nicolas Sutherland Matheson, 1st Baronet (17 October 1796 – 31 December 1878), born in Shiness, Lairg, Sutherland, Scotland, was the son of Captain Donald Matheson, a Scottish trader in India. He attended Edinburgh's Royal High School and the University of Edinburgh.<br/><br/> On 1 July 1832, Jardine, Matheson and Company, a partnership, between William Jardine, James Matheson as senior partners, and Hollingworth Magniac, Alexander Matheson, Jardine's nephew Andrew Johnstone, Matheson's nephew Hugh Matheson, John Abel Smith, and Henry Wright, as the first partners was formed in Canton, and took the Chinese name 'Ewo' (怡和 'Yee-Wo' literally Happy Harmony). The name was taken from the earlier Ewo Hong founded by Howqua which had an honest and upright reputation.<br/><br/> In 1834, Parliament ended the monopoly of the British East India Company on trade between Britain and China. Jardine, Matheson and Company took this opportunity to fill the vacuum left by the East India Company. With its first voyage carrying tea, the Jardine clipper ship 'Sarah' left for England. Jardine Matheson began its transformation from a major commercial agent of the East India Company into the largest British trading hong, or firm, in Asia from its base in Hong Kong.<br/><br/> Jardine wanted the opium trade to expand in China and despatched Matheson to England to lobby the Government to press the Qing government to further open up trade. Matheson's mission proved unsuccessful and he was rebuked by the then British Foreign Secretary The Duke of Wellington. In a report, he complained to Jardine over being insulted by an 'arrogant and stupid man'. Matheson returned to Asia in 1838 and the following year Jardine left for England to continue lobbying.<br/><br/> Jardine's lobbying efforts proved more effective than his partner's and he succeeded in persuading the new British Foreign Secretary Lord Palmerston to wage war on Qing China. The subsequent First Opium War led to the Treaty of Nanking which allowed Jardines to expand from Canton to Hong Kong and Mainland China.
Sir James Nicolas Sutherland Matheson, 1st Baronet (17 October 1796 – 31 December 1878), born in Shiness, Lairg, Sutherland, Scotland, was the son of Captain Donald Matheson, a Scottish trader in India. He attended Edinburgh's Royal High School and the University of Edinburgh.<br/><br/> On 1 July 1832, Jardine, Matheson and Company, a partnership, between William Jardine, James Matheson as senior partners, and Hollingworth Magniac, Alexander Matheson, Jardine's nephew Andrew Johnstone, Matheson's nephew Hugh Matheson, John Abel Smith, and Henry Wright, as the first partners was formed in Canton, and took the Chinese name 'Ewo' (怡和 'Yee-Wo' literally Happy Harmony). The name was taken from the earlier Ewo Hong founded by Howqua which had an honest and upright reputation.<br/><br/> In 1834, Parliament ended the monopoly of the British East India Company on trade between Britain and China. Jardine, Matheson and Company took this opportunity to fill the vacuum left by the East India Company. With its first voyage carrying tea, the Jardine clipper ship 'Sarah' left for England. Jardine Matheson began its transformation from a major commercial agent of the East India Company into the largest British trading hong, or firm, in Asia from its base in Hong Kong.<br/><br/> Jardine wanted the opium trade to expand in China and despatched Matheson to England to lobby the Government to press the Qing government to further open up trade. Matheson's mission proved unsuccessful and he was rebuked by the then British Foreign Secretary The Duke of Wellington. In a report, he complained to Jardine over being insulted by an 'arrogant and stupid man'. Matheson returned to Asia in 1838 and the following year Jardine left for England to continue lobbying.<br/><br/> Jardine's lobbying efforts proved more effective than his partner's and he succeeded in persuading the new British Foreign Secretary Lord Palmerston to wage war on Qing China. The subsequent First Opium War led to the Treaty of Nanking which allowed Jardines to expand from Canton to Hong Kong and Mainland China.
Field Marshal Hugh Gough, 1st Viscount Gough KP, GCSI, KCB, PC (3 November 1779 – 2 March 1869), was a British Army officer. He was said to have commanded in more general actions than any other British officer of the 19th century except the Duke of Wellington.<br/><br/> Born at Woodstown House, County Limerick, he was the son of Lieut.-Colonel George Gough (1750–1836) of Woodstown House, Deputy-Governor of County Limerick, and his wife Letitia Bunbury, daughter of Thomas Bunbury of Lisnevagh House and Moyle, Co. Carlow. He was a member of an old Anglo-Irish family long settled in County Limerick since the early 17th century.<br/><br/> He served in South Africa, the West Indies, Surinam, the Peninsular War and India before being appointed commander-in-chief of the British forces in China during the First Opium War (1839-1842).<br/><br/> After the conclusion of the Treaty of Nanking in August 1842 the British forces were withdrawn, and before the close of the year Gough, who had been made a GCB in the previous year for his services in the capture of the Canton forts, was created a baronet on 23 December 1842. In August 1843 he was appointed commander-in-chief of the British forces in India.<br/><br/> Subsequently raised to the viscountcy as Viscount Gough, he went on to fight in the Crimea before retiring to Ireland. Mount Gough on Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong is named after him.
William Henry Low (1795 – March 22, 1834) was an American entrepreneur, businessman and trader from Salem, Massachusetts, who was one of the American pioneers of the Old China Trade.<br/><br/> In 1828, having settled in Canton (Guangzhou), China, Low was admitted as a partner of the Russell & Co. trading company, as a replacement chosen by founding partner Philip Ammidon. Senior partner of the firm, he retired in 1833 after having recruited his nephew, Abiel Abbot Low. He died in the Cape of Good Hope the following year while returning home in the company of his wife, Abigail Low, and niece, the diarist Harriet Low
Born in Beckenham, Kent, Auckland was the second son of William Eden, 1st Baron Auckland, and Eleanor, daughter of Sir Gilbert Elliot, 3rd Baronet. His sister was the traveller and author Emily Eden, who would visit India for long periods and write about her experiences. He was educated at Eton, and Christ Church, Oxford, and was called to the Bar, Lincoln's Inn, in 1809. He became heir apparent to the barony after his elder brother William Eden drowned in the Thames in 1810.<br/><br/> Auckland was returned to Parliament for Woodstock in 1810 (succeeding his elder brother, William), a seat he held until 1812, and again between 1813 and 1814. The latter year he succeeded his father in the barony and took his seat in the House of Lords, supporting the reform party. In 1830 he became President of the Board of Trade and Master of the Mint under Lord Grey.<br/><br/> He was First Lord of the Admiralty under Grey and then Lord Melbourne in 1834 and again under Melbourne in 1835. He gave a commission to William Hobson to sail for the East Indies, which Hobson ultimately rewarded in the naming of his new town Auckland, New Zealand in 1840. The town of Eden, New South Wales and Auckland County, New South Wales were also named after him.<br/><br/> In 1836 Lord Auckland was appointed Governor-General of India. His private secretary was John Russell Colvin, who rose to be lieutenant-governor of the North-West Provinces and named his son after him. As a legislator he dedicated himself especially to the improvement of native schools and the expansion of the commercial industry of India. He held this position at the time of British India's participation in the First Opium War (1839-1842).
Admiral Sir William Hutcheon Hall, KCB, FRS (c. 1797 – 25 June 1878), was a British officer in the Royal Navy. He served in the First Anglo-Chinese War and Crimean War. In China, he commanded the iron steamship Nemesis of the East India Company.<br/><br/> In November 1839, Hall obtained command of Nemesis of the British East India Company in China, where he served in the First Anglo-Chinese War (1839–43). The ship's first engagement was against Chinese forts and a fleet of junks in the Second Battle of Chuenpee on 7 January 1841. He was Mentioned in Despatches for his part in the battle. He was also present at the Battle of First Bar on 27 February.<br/><br/> In commemoration of his service, he was commonly known in the navy as 'Nemesis Hall'. William Dallas Bernard, an Oxford graduate who studied life and customs in China, used Hall's notes to write an account of the war in the 'Narrative of the Voyages and Services of the Nemesis from 1840 to 1843' (1844).
Elias Hasket Derby (August 16, 1739 — September 8, 1799) was among the wealthiest and most celebrated of post-Revolutionary merchants in Salem, Massachusetts, and owner of the Grand Turk, the first New England vessel to trade directly with China.<br/><br/> Derby is often referred to as 'King Derby' or as America's first millionaire. However, it is improbable that Elias Hasket Derby was known as King Derby during his lifetime. Nathaniel Hawthorne bestowed the title on him in 'The Scarlet Letter' (p. 4). As for being America's first millionaire, Derby was but one of a number of highly successful Massachusetts merchants of the period.
Abiel Abbot Low (February 7, 1811 – January 7, 1893) was an American entrepreneur, businessman, trader and philanthropist who gained most of his fortune from the China trade, importing teas, porcelains, and silk, and building and operating a fleet of reputable clipper ships.<br/><br/> In 1833, Low sailed to Canton (now Guangzhou), China, and started working as a clerk for the mercantile house of Russell & Company, the largest American firm in China and also the leading American opium trading and smuggling enterprise into China, founded by Samuel Russell, and of which Low's uncle, William Henry Low, had been head for some years. In 1837, after four years of learning the intricacies of trading in China, Low became a partner in the firm.<br/><br/> In 1840, he launched his own business in a joint venture with Wu Bingjian, also known as Howqua, a mentor for young Americans in China, and a very important Hong merchant, head of the Canton Cohong and one of the richest men in China. The company, A. A. Low & Brother named for both him and his brother, Josiah Orne Low, rapidly became one of the leading China and Japan silks and teas trading company.<br/><br/> Having made his fortune in China working with Russell & Co, the largest US opium smuggling enterprise into China at the time of the Opium Wars, and shortly after the launch of his business, Low returned to New York. There, he set up his New York headquarters on Fletcher Street, in a building shared with his father's business. In 1849–1850, Low erected the A. A. Low building at 167–171 John Street, now part of the historic South Street Seaport historic area. The firm was situated at its Burling Slip building from 1850 to after the turn of the century.<br/><br/> Low launched his own fleet of clippers, among which were the Houqua, the first streamlined ship, named after his Chinese business partner who had died in 1843, and the Samuel Russell, named after the founder of the mercantile company in which Low had worked as a clerk. Two other of Low's clippers, the Contest and the Jacob Bell, were subsequently destroyed by Confederate privateers during the Civil War.<br/><br/> He is also known for his philanthropy activities. In 1858, he became president of the Brooklyn Female Academy, later the Packer Collegiate Institute, and remained on the Packer board until his death in 1893. He was known to give bonuses to teachers and anonymous scholarships to deserving students. He also contributed to the development of the Brooklyn Library, the City hospital and many other cultural, educational, social and religious enterprises.
Robert Bennet Ford (1804–1889) was born in Jamaica Plain, near Boston, Massachusetts, the son of Ralph Bennet Forbes and wife Margaret Perkins, of the Perkins family, and brother of John Murray Forbes. As a member of the Forbes family of Boston, much of his wealth was derived from the opium and China Trade and he played a prominent role in the outbreak of the Opium War.<br/><br/> On October 19, 1817, then aged thirteen years, he shipped before the mast in the Canton Packet and made his first voyage to China. About 1832 he made his last voyage to China and in 1840 became head of Russell & Company, the largest American commercial house in China. He was at one time American vice consul at Canton (now Guangzhou).<br/><br/> Captain Forbes owned or was involved in the construction of approximately seventy vessels. His first ship was the Lintin, a 390-ton bark built by Sprague and James in Medford, Mass., in 1830.
A peer of Scotland, Lord Napier was an elected Scottish representative in the House of Lords from 1824 to 1832.<br/><br/> In December 1833, upon the ending of British East India Company's monopoly on trade in the Far East, Lord Napier was appointed by Lord Palmerston, the foreign secretary and a family friend of Napier, the first Chief Superintendent of Trade at Canton (now Guangzhou), in China. He arrived at Macau on 15 July 1834, and Canton ten days later, with the mission of expanding British trade into inner China. Lacking the necessary diplomatic and commercial experience, he was not successful in achieving the objective.<br/><br/> Having failed to secure a meeting with the Viceroy of Canton, amid a litany of breaches of protocol, misunderstandings approaching complete communication breakdown and stubbornness on both sides, Napier's frustration in failing to break an intractable trade deadlock led to his favoring a military solution. He sent the frigates Andromache and Imogene to Whampoa in plain breach of Imperial Viceroy Loo's edict, with fatalities resulting on both sides in the skirmish of cannon fire as they breached the defences at the Bocca Tigris.<br/><br/> After a prolonged stalemate, Lord Napier was forced, sapped by typhus, to retire to Macau in September 1834, where he died of the fever on 11 October. He was buried in Macau but later exhumed for reburial at his beloved Ettrick in Scotland. Napier was first to suggest establishment of a British presence on Hong Kong, then the site of a few small villages.