Following on from my previous post about the Lawns in Dalton in Furness, is the story of James Gunson Lawn b 4 January 1868 , the only surviving son of John Webster and Eleanor née Gunson Lawn.
James Gunson Lawn was by all accounts a brilliant young man, but he had his share of sadness in his private life which is glossed over in biographies of his professional life. His first wife, Mary Searle, who he married in 1892, was a young school teacher and daughter of an Iron Miner. Together they had four children before Mary died aged about 35, not long after their youngest was born¹:
Marjorie, b 1893, in Whitehall, Cumberland
‘Jack’ John Gunson b 1894, Wandsworth, Surrey
‘Laurie’ Laurence b 1898 in Kimberley, South Africa, and
Brian Gunson b 1905 in Johannesburg, South Africa.
During this time (1899-1902) there was a lot of conflict in South Africa; and James was under siege from the Boers in Kimberley. In letters to his parents, now held by Bristol University he gives an account of conditions, including diet and weapons used. He sent his family to Stellenbosch to avoid the fighting during the Second Boer War.
James Gunson Lawn’s career has been documented in the Database of Southern African Science. The following is an excerpt from their website:
James G. Lawn, mining engineer, educationist and company director, was the son of John Webster Lawn, a mine manager, and his wife Eleanor. After completing his schooling he worked under his father in the iron ore mines of northern England for six years before entering the Royal School of Mines, London, in 1888. Here he distinguished himself by winning the Tyndall Prize for physics and a Royal scholarship (1889), the Murchison prize for geology (1890), the Mining prize of the Department of Science and Art, and the Dela Beche mining medal (1891). Upon completing his studies he became a mine surveyor at the mines of the Barrow Hematite Steel Company in Barrow-in-Furness, Lancashire, in 1891. The next year he was appointed lecturer in mining by the Cumberland county council, and in 1893 became lecturer in mine surveying at the Royal School of Mines. He was an associate member of the Institution of Civil Engineers, and a Fellow of the Geological Society of London.
In May 1896 Lawn came to South Africa as the country’s first professor of mining, to establish the Kimberley branch of the South African School of Mines. It opened in August that year, supervised by a local committee under Gardner F. Williams*, general manager of De Beers. At the age of 28 Lawn became its principal and sole teacher until John Orr* arrived the next year. The institution provided theoretical and practical training to students who had passed the two-year mining course at the South African College’s School of Mines in Cape Town. After a year’s training students proceeded to Johannesburg for their fourth and final year before graduating with a diploma in mining engineering. In July 1897 Lawn took his first five students to Johannesburg, where he was elected an honorary member of the South African Association of Engineers and Architects. In January the next year he addressed a special general meeting of the association in Johannesburg on “A South African School of Mines”, explaining the functioning of the institution and requesting support for the training programme in Johannesburg, which had not yet been developed. His address aroused much interest and was published in the association’s Proceedings (Vol. 4, pp. 112-134). Training at the Kimberley School of Mines was suspended late in 1899 owing to the outbreak of the Anglo-Boer War (1899-1902), and after the war, in 1903, the training was transferred to the Transvaal Technical Institute in Johannesburg.
Lawn resigned from his post in 1902 to join the Johannesburg Consolidated Investment Company (JCI) as an assistant consulting engineer from the beginning of 1903 to the end of 1906. He returned to Britain in 1907 when he was appointed head of the Mining Department at the Camborne School of Mines in Cornwall, but came back to South Africa in July 1909 as principal and professor of mining at the Johannesburg branch of the Transvaal University College. This institution became the South African School of Mines and Technology in 1910, and later developed into the University of the Witwatersrand. Meanwhile Lawn resigned his post in August 1910 to rejoin JCI as consulting engineer. In 1913 he was a member of the Miners’ Phthysis Prevention Committee and wrote its Interim report… (Cape Town, 1913). During World War I (1914-1918), in May 1915, he was released from his duties for service in the explosives department of the British Ministry of Munitions, for which he was honoured as a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1920. Returning to JCI towards the end of 1919 he became its consulting engineer and joint managing director. From July 1924 to his retirement in February 1947 he represented the company in England as a director and consulting engineer, residing in Shamley Green, Surrey. He then returned to South Africa and settled at Eshowe, KwaZulu-Natal, where he took up plant collecting. Some 2000 specimens collected by him went to the Natal Herbarium.
Lawn played an active role in scientific and educational matters during his career. Shortly after his first arrival in South Africa he published Mine accounts and mining book-keeping (London, 1897), a manual for students and mine managers. The seventh edition of this useful work appeared in 1911. He was an examiner in chemical technology, metallurgy, engineering, mine descriptions and economics of mining for the mining examinations of the University of the Cape of Good Hope at various times during 1897-1906, and served on the university’s council from 1897 to 1903. From 1900 to 1907 he was a member of the South African Philosophical Society. In 1902 he became a foundation member of the South African Association for the Advancement of Science and served on its council from 1902 to 1905. In 1903 he became a member of the Geological Society of South Africa, serving as its president in 1923. From 1911 to 1949 he was a member of the Witwatersrand Council of Education. In 1912 he represented the mining industry on South Africa’s first National Advisory Council on Technical Education. When the University of the Witwatersrand was established in 1922 he served on its first council, and in 1933 the university awarded him an honorary Doctor of Science degree in Engineering for his contributions to mining and mining education. He was president of the (British) Institution of Mining and Metallurgy in 1930-1931, and an associate of the Royal School of Mines.
Reference: Compiled by C. Plug, S2A3 biographical Database of Southern Africa Science;click here to see the page.
James married for the second time to Mary Beatrice Good around July – September 1908 in Bromley, Kent. Mary, born in 1874 in Stamford Hill, London, was the daughter of a Rope Manufacturer. In 1881, Mary, age seven is living with her father, siblings and an aunt, her father was widowed. By the time of the next census, Mary aged about 17, had left home. She is possibly the Mary Good recorded en route to Natal in 1902, so perhaps met the Lawn family in South Africa.
Majorie, Jack, Brian and Laurie with possibly Mary née Good², James Gunson’s second wife c1911. Photograph taken in Cornwall. [HLR]
The daughter of James Gunson and Mary née Good, Genifer Coniston Lawn was born 7 Sept 1912 in Johannesburg. Mary died a couple of weeks later on 24 September from complications following the birth. A note I have remarks “As her mother died when she was born she was sent back to England aged six weeks to live with an aunt until her father remarried six years later”
This next photograph appears to be taken several years after the one above, yet still does not include the youngest daughter Genifer. The photograph was taken in Dalton in Furness.[HLR]
James married his third wife, Grace Thomas in Nottingham in 1918. Grace, born in 14 Dec 1872, was 45, and there were no children of this marriage. They were living at 52 Temple Fortune Hill, Hendon, Barnett, London the following year.
James, Grace and daughter Genifer lived in Surrey for some time; in the 1939 register they can be found at Long Acre, Shamley Green, Wonersh, Guildford, Surrey, with James Gunson Lawn listed as ‘Mining Engineer and Director of Companies’. A few years earlier a report in New Zealand newspaper showed his work was held in wide regard throughout the British Empire:
Professor J. G. Lawn, chairman of the Johannesburg Consolidated Investment Co., Johannesburg, speaking at the annual meeting of the company, said: “The most notable event of the year, and, indeed, the most important event that has ever happened in the history of the gold industry of South Africa, was the increase in the price of gold which occurred towards the end of December last, owing to South Africa being forced to abandon the old gold standard. Special reference was made to the Rand mines, but Professor Lawn’s remarks on them will be read no doubt with interest by those having confidence in mining development and possibilities in New Zealand.
18th December 1933, Evening Post.
The couple returned to South Africa in the late 1940s, and it was there that James Gunson Lawn died on 21 Oct 1952. Grace died three months after James Gunson in Eshowe, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, on 22 January 1953.
His book Mine accounts and mining book-keeping: A manual for the use of students, managers of metalliferous mines and collieries, and others interested in mining, first published in 1901 is still available as second-hand copies and digital versions on-line.
This image of James Gunson Lawn is in the National Portrait Gallery Collection and has been shared by richendasc on 08 Jun 2016 (Ancestry.com)
James Gunson’s children, like their father, were educated and well-travelled; they attended boarding school and university in England. Marjorie never married, Jack studied medicine and became a medical practitioner, as did Laurie and Brian. Brian also had an interest in translating medieval manuscripts and was a published author: ‘Notes on a seventeenth century almanack originally belonging to Richard Corbett Esq of Elton Herefordshire’ published in Woolhope Club Transactions 1939 and ‘Auctores britannici medii aevi V’. 1979 ( edited) Oxford University Press were part of his legacy. When Ross and Helen Lawn visited the UK they visited Brian Lawn in 1992 and his daughter Shirley. When Brian died in 2001 his books and manuscripts were left to the Bodelian Library, Oxford. Genifer was working as a secretary prior to WWII, then enlisted and served as a WREN from 1941-1944.
Ross Lawn with Brian Lawn on their visit to London in 1992 [HLR]
¹ Presumably Mary (née Searle) Lawn died sometime between 1906 and 1908 in South Africa; so far I have yet to identify a death or burial record; most South African records are not searchable on-line.
² These photographs are unnamed and undated, however the approximate age of the children is a guide to their date. Compared to the earlier photo (see previous post) of the John Webster Lawn family, the woman appears to have a different nose and eyebrows. Very little is known about James’ wives, except for marriage records, and the probate files for his second and third wife which also gives their dates of death.
Acknowledgement: Thanks to my cousin Peter Walker for providing the impetus for researching both James Gunson Lawn and his father John Webster Lawn (albiet several months from the original suggestion!) and special thanks for providing newspaper transcripts.
Of the Lawn family who I wrote of in my book and in previous posts, regular followers of this blog may recall that there were two sets of brothers – Cornish cousins, who came to New Zealand: James, John and Henry Lawn (I am a descendant of James) and Thomas and Edmund Lawn. These cousins were ‘double’ cousins – their mothers were sisters and their fathers were brothers.
Thomas and Edmund Lawn were the sons of John Lawn (b 1813) and Ann Webster (b 1815), both from the Gwennap area in Cornwall who married in 1836. Like the rest of the Lawn family, John was a miner, and his sons after him. There were nine children in the family, but not all of them made old bones:
Joseph Webster Lawn, b 1837, died in Melbourne, Australia in 1891,
John Webster Lawn, b 1837, died in Dalton in Furness, Lancashire in 1906,
Thomas Henry Lawn, b 1842, died in Reefton, New Zealand in 1902,
Emily Lawn, b 1844, died in Ulverston, Lancashire in 1873,
Richard Lawn, b 1847, died in Redruth, Cornwall in 1857,
Edmund Henry Lawn, b 1850, died in Reefton, New Zealand in 1894,
Samuel Lawn, b 1852, died in Ulverston, Lancashire in 1871,
Alfred Lawn, b 1855, died in Ulverston, Lancashire in 1871,
Richard Lawn, b 1857, died in Redruth in 1861,
This photograph of Lawn brothers and cousins was probably taken about 1868, and includes three of John Webster’s sons: Edmund, Alfred and Sam. It may have been taken at the time that Henry Lawn was married∗. For a long time this photograph, copies of which are in various descendants families, was labelled as ‘unknown Lawns’, until I found a named copy in Dunedin. Given two of the boys picture died just a few months apart in 1871, was this why the photograph was kept within the family? Where is the original of this photograph?
Back: David Lawn, cousins Edmund, Sam and Alfred Lawn (brothers of Thomas Lawn), Front: Benjamin (later Rev.) Lawn, Tom Cowley (another cousin) Henry Lawn. Edmund also came to New Zealand, while both Sam and Alfred died within months of each other in Dalton in Furness in 1871 aged 18 and 16 years. [Update: taken in Barrow in Furness. An original copy was given to Bob Lawn of Reefton by Florrie Bishop, nee James (1888-1986)]
John Webster Lawn
John Webster, the second son of John and Ann, began working life in the copper mines in Lanner just like his father, uncles brothers and cousins, but by the late 1850s he had left the area for the more stable iron mining district of Dalton in Furness, Lancashire. In 1861 census, age 21, he was recorded as lodging with another Gwennap man; Iron Ore Agent William Job and his wife in St Anne Street, Dalton. A few years later in 1864 he married a local girl, Eleanor Gunson. He soon worked his way up and became mining captain in the Barrow Hematite Steel Company, working in Park mine around 1863, a position he had held for 16 years when he gave lengthy evidence during the inquest of the death of two miners killed in a collapse of ore (see: Ulverston Mirror and Furness Reflector June 21, 1879).
From 1871 John was described in census as Iron Ore Agent, the family living firstly in Ulverston Road, then by 1891 their address was given as Fair View, with John now listed as Assistant Manager at Iron Mine.John contributed to his local community; standing for local board elections, eventually becoming Chairman of Dalton District Council. He was closely involved with the local Methodist church and laid a memorial stone to commemorate the building of the Methodist Sunday school in Dalton.
John Webster and Eleanor Gunson Lawn’s family consisted of seven children, but only two daughters and a son survived childhood.
Mary, b 1866, died in 1879 aged 13. James Gunson Lawn b 1868 was the only child of John Webster and Eleanor Lawn to marry and have children. More about him later. Annie, b 1870, died aged 3 in 1873. Her sisters Ada and Emily were born in 1872 and 1874. Both girls remained single, but like their brother James Gunson, were well-educated at boarding school and became teachers. Emily Lawn was also a researcher in the record office of the British Museum and Somerset House in London. The youngest children of John Webster and Eleanor Lawn were Joseph, born in 1876, died 1877 aged 9 months and Eleanor born 1878, died 1879 aged 3 months.
John Webster Lawn Family c 1899: Ada and Emily (not sure which is which), James Gunson Lawn with their parents John Webster Lawn and Eleanor née Gunson, James Gunson’s first wife Mary née Searle (far right) and from left their children John Gunson ‘Jack’ Lawn b 1894, Marjorie Lawn b 1893 and Laurence ‘Laurie’ b 1898 [image from HLR]28th April 1906, Greymouth Evening Star.
“Death of a Gwennap man in Lancashire. Another of the old familiar faces at Dalton has disappeared. Among all of the people of the town none was better known none could have been more respected than Mr John Webster Lawn, of Fair View; and it was with regret that the announcement was heard on Friday, that he had passed away at seven o’clock that morning. He had been in failing health for two or three years, and as a result was compelled to relinquish the important position of mine manager under the Barrow Hematite Steel Company. Mr Lawn was born in the parish of Gwennap, Cornwall, 66 years ago, and came to the North of England 47 or 48 years ago. By his diligence and perseverance, he rose from the lowest position in the Park Mines to the highest. He was appointed mining captain in the days of the mines when they were owned by Messrs Selmeider and Hannay, and he continued his connection when they were taken over by the Barrow Hematite Company. After the retirement of the late Mr Richard Hosking, the managership of the mines was vested in Mr William Kellett, J. P., of Southport, and Mr Lawn was appointed resident manager. That position was held up to the time of Mr Kellett’s death, when he was chosen general mine manager. He held the office to January, 1904, when his health gave way, and he was given six months’ rest. His health did not improve, however, and he felt compelled to resign the position.
As a public man, Mr Lawn’s services were often sought. He was elected to the Local Board in 1885, and continued to be a member of that body and the Urban Council up to 1904 – a period of nearly 20 years. He held the post of chairman in 1889 and 1890, and was again elected to that seat in 1893, continuing till 1898. As chairman of the Urban Council, he sat a magistrate (the first working man J. P.) on the Ulverston Bench for four years. The flag at the Council offices in Station Road flew at half-mast. He was also connected with the old Burial Board, and the Gas Committee, and was an overseer. At public meetings, concerts, and the like, his services were freely and generously given. In politics he was a Liberal, but took ne active part except on the temperance question, being a strong Abstinence man. To say that he was respected by his fellow townsmen is to freely express the feelings of those who knew him best. He adorned every position he occupied, wether in public, social, or religious life, and was a very valuable person. Mr Lawn was an earnest Wesleyan Methodist, a class leader, and a local preacher for many years. He spent his leisure in preparation for his pulpit work, and for religious engagements. His services were much appreciated wherever he went and especially in the Barrow, Ulverston and Millom circuits. He knew Methodism in these parts from the earliest days, and took an active part in its rise and progress throughout the towns and villages of the district. Mr Lawn leaves a widow and three children, including Professor James G. Lawn, mining expert, of Johannesburg, South Africa.
Every shade of politics, every shade of religious belief, almost every profession and trade were represented at the funeral at the Dalton cemetery on Sunday afternoon. An addition to the chief mourners, others present were Mrs Lawn, Miss Ada E. Lawn, Miss Emily Law and Mr David Lawn. The remains were enclosed in a plain oak coffin bearing a plate with the words “John Webster Lawn, died March 2nd, 1906, aged 66 years”. Following the hearse and mourning coaches was the horse and trap which Mr Lawn had used for many years in his daily round of the different mining properties worked by the Barrow Hematite Steel Company.
The above are taken from the “North Western News and Mail,” and were written by a Cambornian on the staff of the above paper. Mr John Webster Lawn was the last surviving brother of the late Thomas Lawn, well known in Reefton and Greymouth, and cousin of John Lawn, of Reefton.”
(followed by a lengthy list of attendees and concludes below:)Excerpts from Soulby’s Ulverston Advertiser and General IntelligencerMarch 8, 1906
∗ While the Lawn cousins who came to New Zealand eventually settled down and married, two brothers of James and John: George and Henry returned to England to marry. Henry returned for a couple of years: he married Harriet Richards in Gwennap in 1868, and then went to work in the mines in Dalton in Furness where his first son Charles was born. In May 1870 he left the UK and returned to New Zealand and in 1873 sponsored his wife and baby son as new immigrants. George married Sarah Barnett in Gwennap in 1874 and had several children; he died in 1879 before his youngest was born.
"1 Dish 4 The Road".. Fusing food writing with whatever else I find on the road - fiction, history, poetry, humour, diversity, family stories & London.
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