John Prentice (businessman)

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John Prentice
John Prentice SMC.png
Chairman of the Shanghai Municipal Council
In office
1901–1902
Preceded by Edbert Ansgar Hewett
Succeeded by William George Bayne
Personal details
Born(1847-08-07)August 7, 1847
Beattock, Scotland
Died(1925-04-30)April 30, 1925 (aged 77)
Shanghai
ProfessionBusinessman

John Prentice was the Chairman of the Shanghai Municipal Council between 1901 and 1902.

Shanghai International Settlement

The Shanghai International Settlement originated from the 1863 merger of the British and American enclaves in Shanghai, in which parts of the Qing Empire would hold extraterritorially under the terms of a series of Unequal Treaties until 1941.

Contents

Biography

Prentice was born on 7 August 1847 Beattock, Scotland, and educated at Greenock. [1]

Beattock village in United Kingdom

Beattock is a village in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, approximately 1⁄2 mile (0.80 km) south-west of Moffat and 19 miles (31 km) north of Dumfries.

Greenock town and administrative centre in the Inverclyde council area in Scotland

Greenock is a town and administrative centre in the Inverclyde council area in Scotland and a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, located in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. It forms part of a contiguous urban area with Gourock to the west and Port Glasgow to the east.

Prentice moved to Shanghai 1870 to join Muirhead & Co which was absorbed later by Boyd & Co.. Boyd & Co was subsequently absorbed by Shanghai Dock and Engineering Co, a major shipbuilding company. Prentice rose through the ranks to become the controlling interest and principal of the firm. [2]

He served on the Shanghai Municipal Council and was chairman from 1901 to 1902. [3]

He died on 30 April 1925 following an attack of pneumonia in Shanghai. [4] He was buried in Bubbling Well Cemetery. [5]

Pneumonia Infection of the lungs

Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung affecting primarily the small air sacs known as alveoli. Typically symptoms include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and trouble breathing. Severity is variable.

Jing'an Park is a park located at the Western section of Nanjing Road, just opposite the Jing'an Temple in Shanghai, China. It occupies the site of the former Bubbling Well Road Cemetery.

A bust of Prentice was placed in the hall of the French Club in Shanghai following his death. [6] A stained glass window in memoriam of Prentice was placed in the Union Church in Shanghai. [7] Route Prentice (now Jinxian Road) in the Shanghai French Concession was named after Prentice. [8]

Union Church is a former Protestant church in Shanghai, built in Gothic style in 1886. The building housed factory offices after 1949, when its steeple was removed. By 2005 it was neglected and became part of the restoration efforts of the Waitanyuan Project. While undergoing renovations, in 2007, it was ravaged by a fire and restored in 2010.

Shanghai French Concession French sphere of influence in Shanghai, China

The Shanghai French Concession was a foreign concession in Shanghai, China from 1849 until 1943, which progressively expanded in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The concession came to an end in 1943 when the French State under German pressure signed it over to the pro-Japanese Reorganized National Government of China in Nanjing. For much of the 20th century, the area covered by the former French Concession remained the premier residential and retail district of Shanghai, and was also one of the centres of Catholicism in China. Despite re-development over the last few decades, the area retains a distinct character, and is a popular tourist destination.

Marriage

Prentice married Jane Ann Law, the former wife of Mr Alexander Law. She died in 1935 and was buried in the Prentice family plot with her husband. [9]

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References

  1. ↑ Obituary, North China Herald, 2 May 1925, North China Herald, Jan 29, 1927, p158 (birth date)
  2. ↑ Obituary, North China Herald, 2 May 1925
  3. ↑ North China Herald, May 15, 1909, p402
  4. ↑ Obituary, North China Herald, 2 May 1925
  5. ↑ North China Herald, May 9, 1925, p236
  6. ↑ North China Herald, June 20, 1925, p462
  7. ↑ North China Herald, Jan 29, 1927, p158
  8. ↑ The Old Shanghai A-Z, p220
  9. ↑ North China Herald, Sept 25, 1935, p513
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