John T. Arundel
John T. Arundel | |
---|---|
Born | John Thomas Arundel 1 September 1841 London, England |
Died | 30 November 1919 Bournemouth, England | (aged 78)
Other names | Aneru |
Occupation | Entrepreneur |
Known for | guano and copra |
Spouse | Eliza Eleanor Whibley "Lillie" |
Children | Lillian Arundel, Sydney Dorothy Aris |
Parent(s) | John Arundel, merchant and shopkeeper |
Relatives | Paternal grandfather, Rev. John Arundel, Home Secretary of the London Missionary Society 1820–1846 |
John T. Arundel (1 September 1841 – 30 November 1919) was an English entrepreneur who was instrumental in the
Early life
His father owned a gentleman's outfitter in the
Early career
In 1860, J. T. Arundel travelled on a Houlder Brothers & Co ship into the Pacific, calling at the Chincha Islands, on which guano was mined for refining into superphosphate. J.T. Arundel took an interest in the potential of the fertiliser business and in 1868 the company sent him on a second voyage into the Pacific to pursue opportunities.[2]
When J. T. Arundel set off in 1871 to develop a business in the Pacific he left his fiancée Eliza Eleanor (Lillie) Whibley in England, as he wanted to secure their financial future by achieving success with his business ventures. J .T. Arundel and Lillie Whibley were not to marry until 1881. Following their marriage Lillie Arundel would travel into the central Pacific with J. T. Arundel when he would visit the various islands on which his company had operations. Lillie Arundel gave birth in 1884 to their second daughter while on Manra, then known as Sydney Island, giving her the name of that island.[2]
In 1898 Fred Whibley, Lillie's younger brother, arrived in Sydney, after 10 years in the United States and Canada. J. T. Arundel offered Fred Whibley a position with John T. Arundel & Co. Fred Whibley declined and chose to become an island trader on Niutao in what is now Tuvalu. A harmonious working relationship would have been unlikely given the pious Christian attitudes of J.T. Arundel and Fred Whibley's reputation as the 'black sheep' of the family.[3]
John T. Arundel & Co.
In 1871 with financial support from Houlder Brothers and Co., he established John T. Arundel & Co. The initial activities were carried out by the two companies. Houlder Brothers and Co leased Flint Island from the British government and Arundel managed the guano digging in the central part of the island from 1875 to 1880.[2] In 1872, Caroline Island was leased by the Houlder Brothers. In 1881, the lease was later taken over by Arundel (for whom one of the islets is named).[4]
John T. Arundel & Co went on to engage in mining guano on other Pacific islands and also established coconut plantations and traded in copra and other commodities.[2] The company operated from Sydney, Australia with business interests in the Pacific that included:
- Mining guano on:
- Caroline Island from 1872 (with the support of Houlder Brothers and Co) then under John T. Arundel & Co from 1881.[4] The guano mining, which began in 1874, supplied a total of about 10,000 tons of phosphate until supplies were exhausted around 1895.[5]
- Baker Island from 1886 to 1899,[6] which is now claimed as an unincorporated territory of the United States.
- Howland Island from 1886 to 1899,[6] which is geographically part of the Phoenix Islands and now claimed as an unincorporated territory of the United States.
- Jarvis Island from 1886 to 1899,[7] which is geographically part of the Line Islands and now claimed as an unincorporated territory of the United States.
- Manra or Sydney Island in 1884, which is geographically part of the Phoenix Islands and is part of Kiribati.
- Raine Island in the Torres Strait, Rocky Island, in the Gulf of Carpentaria, Lady Elliot Island off Bundaberg, Queensland and several islands in the Capricorn and Bunker Group in the waters off Northern Australia.[6]
- Establishing coconut plantations on:
- Flint Island in 1881 in what is now Kiribati, with the plantation operated by the firm until 1891.
- Caroline Island in 1885, however the coconut palms suffered from disease and the plantation failed.[5]
- Nikumaroro, or Gardner Island, which is geographically part of the Phoenix Islands and is part of Kiribati. The plantation was started in 1892 but as a consequence of severe drought the plantation was abandoned within 12 months.[8]
Pacific Islands Company Ltd
In 1897 John T. Arundel & Co., merged its business with that of the trading and plantation firm of
The PIC continued to expand its plantation interests and in 1899, acquired a license to develop coconut plantations on Birnie Island, which is geographically part of the Phoenix Islands and is part of Kiribati, with the PIC attempting to acquiring licenses to develop coconut plantations in the British Solomon Islands in 1900 and 1901.[9][10]
Despite this attempt to broaden the operations of the company the company remained chronically short of capital throughout its existence and was lent money from time to time by its directors.[9] The PIC abandoned the plans to develop coconut plantations in 1902.[10]
Pacific Phosphate Company Ltd
In 1899
J. T. Arundel and Lord Stanmore were responsible for financing the new opportunities and negotiating with the German company that controlled the licences to mine in Nauru.
In 1913 an anonymous correspondent to the New Age journal criticised the operation of the PPC under the title "Modern buccaneers in the West Pacific".[12]
The PPC investigated phosphate deposits on Makatea in the Tuamotus in French Polynesia and formed a company, the Compagnie des Phosphates de l'Océanie, with a Tahitian syndicate that was also investigating the potential of Makatea. This gave the PPC a virtual monopoly on the sources of high grade phosphate in the Pacific.[13]
In 1919 the business of the PPC in
Chronology
- 1841 Born in England. His paternal grandfather, John Arundel, was Home Secretary of the London Missionary Society.[2][6]
- 1872 Started John T. Arundel & Co., Sydney.[2][6]
- 1881 Started coconut plantation on Flint Island.[15]
- 1884 His second daughter was born on Sydney Island, and was named Sydney.[16]
- 1885, 3 March. Lectured at the Geographical Society of the Pacific, San Francisco, California.[17]
- 1886 Resumed guano mining on Baker Island, Howland Island and Jarvis Island.[7]
- 1897 J. T. Arundel & Co., Ltd., headquartered in Sydney merged with
- 1897 Visited Clipperton.[18]
- 1902 The Pacific Islands Company became the Pacific Phosphate Company, and began phosphate mining on
- 1909 He travelled on maiden voyage of the S.S. Ocean Queen, to Ocean Island. On this voyage he visited Jarvis Island, where his daughter Sydney photographed the construction of a day beacon.[19]
- 1909 (September) The S.S. Ocean Queen was wrecked on the reef at Makatea; a bent connecting rod caused the engines to stop and the current carried the ship onto the reef.[20][21]
- 1909 (October) In San Francisco J. T. Arundel became a member of the Pacific Union Club.[22] He suffered a heart attack and subsequently he resigned as deputy chairman of the PPC.[2][6]
- 1919 Died on 30 November 1919 at Bournemouth, England.[23]
Publications
Arundel, John T. The Phoenix group and other islands of the Pacific. New Zealand Herald, Geographical Society of the Pacific.
References
- ^ Maslyn Williams & Barrie Macdonald (1985) The Phosphateers, p. 6
- ^ ISBN 0-522-84302-6.
- ^ S. Aris, Fred Whibley and his Family (1963)
- ^ a b Bryan, E.H. (1942). American Polynesia and the Hawaiian Chain. Honolulu: Tongg Publishing Company.
- ^ a b Kepler, Angela K.; Cameron B. Kepler (February 1994). "The natural history of the Caroline Atoll, Southern Line Islands" (PDF). Atoll Research Bulletin. 397–398.
- ^ OCLC 3444055.
- ^ a b "Baker, Howland, and Jarvis". Archived from the original on 29 July 2009. Retrieved 8 October 2010.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ Bryan, E.H. Jr., (1942) American Polynesia and the Hawaiian Chain. Honolulu, Hawaii: Tongg Publishing Company
- ^ a b Hookey, J. F. "The Establishment Of A Plantation Economy in the British Solomon Islands Protectorate" Archived 22 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine, Commission of Inquiry into the Land Dealings & Abandoned Properties on Guadalcanal Archived 22 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine; retrieved 16 May 2011
- ^ ISBN 9781925022032.
- ^ a b Albert F. Ellis, (1935) Ocean Island and Nauru: Their Story, Chapter IV
- ^ Correspondent (5 June 1913). "Modern buccaneers in the West Pacific" (PDF). New Age: 136–140.
- ^ Maslyn Williams & Barrie Macdonald (1985) The Phosphateers, p. 80.
- ISBN 978-92-1-070936-1(United Nations, International Court of Justice)
- ^ Bryan, E.H. Jr. (1942). American Polynesia and the Hawaiian Chain. Honolulu, Hawaii: Tongg Publishing Company.
- ^ " Some recent PMB Manuscripts Series Microfilms, PMB 1227 Arundel Family Papers, 1803–1935.", Pacific Manuscripts Bureau Newsletter, series 5, n°20, December 2005, page 10
- ^ Jane Resture, McKean Island
- ISBN 1-4120-7032-5.
- ^ Arundel, Sydney (1909). "Kodak photographs, Jarvis Island". Steve Higley. Retrieved 23 April 2013.
- ^ "SS Ocean Queen (1909)". Wrecksite. Retrieved 5 December 2013.
- ^ Maslyn Williams & Barrie Macdonald (1985) The Phosphateers, p. 81-82.
- ^ Pacific Union Club Archived 1 May 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Probate Notice". The London Gazette. 23 July 1920. p. 7806.
Sources
Personal papers and journals of J .T. Arundel and business papers and records of John T. Arundel & Co., the Pacific Islands Company Ltd and the Pacific Phosphate Company Ltd are held by the Pacific Manuscripts Bureau Archived 13 December 2007 at the