William Vestey, 1st Baron Vestey
Encyclopedia
William Vestey, 1st Baron Vestey Bt (1859 - 10 December 1940) was an English shipping magnate.
William Vestey came from an old Liverpool
family of traders. In 1876, at the age of seventeen, he was sent to Chicago
by his father Samuel Vestey, a provisioner of Liverpool.
William first managed a meat canning factory that was financed by his father. Together with his younger brother Edmund
, he established Vestey Brothers (which later became the Vestey Group
) in 1897 from a family butchery business in Liverpool. They were pioneers of refrigeration
, opening a cold store in London
in 1895.
The Vestey brothers then went to South America
in an attempt to make a fortune because the economy there was booming. They started by buying game birds and storing them in the cold stores of American companies before shipping them to Liverpool. These early activities soon developed into importing beef
and beef products into the UK, which in turn led to them owning cattle ranches in Brazil
, Venezuela
and Australia
and their own meat processing factories in Argentina
, Uruguay
(Frigorífico Anglo del Uruguay
), New Zealand
and Australia
.
In 1914 the Vestey Brothers built a meat processing works at Bullocky Point, Darwin, Australia
, but closed its operations in 1920 after the Darwin Rebellion
. The Vestey Group
's cattle station in Australia
was the focus of a landmark strike
in the 1960s, the Gurindji strike, which was instrumental in Indigenous Australians
regaining rights to their land
.
In 1915 the brothers, after being refused a request for income tax
exemption made to David Lloyd George
, moved to Buenos Aires to avoid paying income tax in the UK. The family later administered the business through a Paris trust that enabled it to legally avoid UK tax until the loophole was closed in 1991.
During World War I
another Vestey company, the Blue Star Line (now part of P&O Nedlloyd
), was a major supplier of Argentine beef
to England, and it was for this service to the wartime provisioning of England that William Vestey was later raised to the peerage. William Vestey was made a Baronet
on 21 June 1913 and Baron Vestey
on 20 June 1922.
In 1915 to 1918 the Vestey family moved to Chicago then to Argentina
and back to England. Lord Vestey later became an important benefactor to Liverpool Cathedral
, where he funded the building of the bell tower.
His first wife died in 1923 and was buried in Liverpool Cathedral. Lord Vestey then married Evelene Brodstone
of Superior, Nebraska
on 1 August 1924. She had been working as a stenographer with the Vestey Meat Packing Plant in Chicago, where she was spotted by Vestey's brother. She would rise through the company, eventually becoming the highest paid female executive in the world. On 24 July 1941 the 2nd Lady Vestey was buried at Evergreen Cemetery of Superior in Nebraska USA. Each spring during memorial weekend, Superior holds the annual Lady Vestey Festival in her honor. This is the town's largest annual celebration and it attracts many people from around the area.
Lord Vestey died in 1940 and his ashes were buried in Liverpool Cathedral
. He was succeeded by Samuel Vestey, 2nd Baron Vestey (1882–1954).
William Vestey came from an old Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
family of traders. In 1876, at the age of seventeen, he was sent to Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
by his father Samuel Vestey, a provisioner of Liverpool.
William first managed a meat canning factory that was financed by his father. Together with his younger brother Edmund
Sir Edmund Vestey, 1st Baronet
Sir Edmund Hoyle Vestey, 1st Baronet was an English food producer and importer and shipowner, co-founder of Vestey Brothers....
, he established Vestey Brothers (which later became the Vestey Group
Vestey Group
The Vestey Group is a privately owned UK group of companies, comprising an international food product business and significant cattle ranching and sugar cane farming interests in Brazil and Venezuela.-Business origins:William...
) in 1897 from a family butchery business in Liverpool. They were pioneers of refrigeration
Refrigeration
Refrigeration is a process in which work is done to move heat from one location to another. This work is traditionally done by mechanical work, but can also be done by magnetism, laser or other means...
, opening a cold store in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in 1895.
The Vestey brothers then went to South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
in an attempt to make a fortune because the economy there was booming. They started by buying game birds and storing them in the cold stores of American companies before shipping them to Liverpool. These early activities soon developed into importing beef
Beef
Beef is the culinary name for meat from bovines, especially domestic cattle. Beef can be harvested from cows, bulls, heifers or steers. It is one of the principal meats used in the cuisine of the Middle East , Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Europe and the United States, and is also important in...
and beef products into the UK, which in turn led to them owning cattle ranches in Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and their own meat processing factories in Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
(Frigorífico Anglo del Uruguay
Frigorífico Anglo del Uruguay
The Frigorífico Anglo del Uruguay was a meatpacking plant located at Fray Bentos, Uruguay, on the Uruguay River bank.In 1924, the Vestey group purchases the old installations of Liebig Extract of Meat Company and the production goes on under a new name....
), New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
In 1914 the Vestey Brothers built a meat processing works at Bullocky Point, Darwin, Australia
Darwin, Northern Territory
Darwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. Situated on the Timor Sea, Darwin has a population of 127,500, making it by far the largest and most populated city in the sparsely populated Northern Territory, but the least populous of all Australia's capital cities...
, but closed its operations in 1920 after the Darwin Rebellion
Darwin Rebellion
The Darwin Rebellion of 17 December 1918 was the culmination of unrest in the Australian Workers' Union which had grown between 1911 and 1919. Led by Harold Nelson, some 1000 demonstrators marched on Government House at Liberty Square in Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia where they burnt an...
. The Vestey Group
Vestey Group
The Vestey Group is a privately owned UK group of companies, comprising an international food product business and significant cattle ranching and sugar cane farming interests in Brazil and Venezuela.-Business origins:William...
's cattle station in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
was the focus of a landmark strike
Strike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
in the 1960s, the Gurindji strike, which was instrumental in Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
regaining rights to their land
Native title
Native title is the Australian version of the common law doctrine of aboriginal title.Native title is "the recognition by Australian law that some Indigenous people have rights and interests to their land that come from their traditional laws and customs"...
.
In 1915 the brothers, after being refused a request for income tax
Income tax
An income tax is a tax levied on the income of individuals or businesses . Various income tax systems exist, with varying degrees of tax incidence. Income taxation can be progressive, proportional, or regressive. When the tax is levied on the income of companies, it is often called a corporate...
exemption made to David Lloyd George
David Lloyd George
David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor OM, PC was a British Liberal politician and statesman...
, moved to Buenos Aires to avoid paying income tax in the UK. The family later administered the business through a Paris trust that enabled it to legally avoid UK tax until the loophole was closed in 1991.
During World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
another Vestey company, the Blue Star Line (now part of P&O Nedlloyd
P&O Nedlloyd
P&O Nedlloyd Container Line Limited was an Anglo-Dutch worldwide ocean-going container shipping line, with dual headquarters in London and Rotterdam. The company was formed in 1997 by the merger of the container-shipping interests of the leading Dutch transportation company Royal Nedlloyd and the...
), was a major supplier of Argentine beef
Argentine beef
Beef is a key component of traditional Argentine cuisine.-Current situation:Argentina has the world's second highest consumption rate of beef, at 55 kg a year per capita. In 2006, livestock farmers kept between 50 and 55 million head of cattle, mostly in the fertile pastures of the Pampas...
to England, and it was for this service to the wartime provisioning of England that William Vestey was later raised to the peerage. William Vestey was made a Baronet
Baronet
A baronet or the rare female equivalent, a baronetess , is the holder of a hereditary baronetcy awarded by the British Crown...
on 21 June 1913 and Baron Vestey
Baron Vestey
Baron Vestey, of Kingswood in the County of Surrey, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1922 for the shipping magnate Sir William Vestey, 1st Baronet. He was the co-founder of the Blue Star Line...
on 20 June 1922.
In 1915 to 1918 the Vestey family moved to Chicago then to Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
and back to England. Lord Vestey later became an important benefactor to Liverpool Cathedral
Liverpool Cathedral
Liverpool Cathedral is the Church of England cathedral of the Diocese of Liverpool, built on St James's Mount in Liverpool and is the seat of the Bishop of Liverpool. Its official name is the Cathedral Church of Christ in Liverpool but it is dedicated to Christ and the Blessed Virgin...
, where he funded the building of the bell tower.
His first wife died in 1923 and was buried in Liverpool Cathedral. Lord Vestey then married Evelene Brodstone
Evelene Brodstone
Evelene Brodstone, later Evelyn Vestey, Lady Vestey was one of the highest paid woman executives of the 1920s. Beginning as a stenographer for the Vestey Cold Storage Company in Chicago, Illinois, she rose through the ranks to become the chief auditor and troubleshooter for Vestey Brothers...
of Superior, Nebraska
Superior, Nebraska
Superior is a city in Nuckolls County, Nebraska, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 1,957.Superior bills itself as the "Victorian Capital of Nebraska", and holds an annual Victorian Festival...
on 1 August 1924. She had been working as a stenographer with the Vestey Meat Packing Plant in Chicago, where she was spotted by Vestey's brother. She would rise through the company, eventually becoming the highest paid female executive in the world. On 24 July 1941 the 2nd Lady Vestey was buried at Evergreen Cemetery of Superior in Nebraska USA. Each spring during memorial weekend, Superior holds the annual Lady Vestey Festival in her honor. This is the town's largest annual celebration and it attracts many people from around the area.
Lord Vestey died in 1940 and his ashes were buried in Liverpool Cathedral
Liverpool Cathedral
Liverpool Cathedral is the Church of England cathedral of the Diocese of Liverpool, built on St James's Mount in Liverpool and is the seat of the Bishop of Liverpool. Its official name is the Cathedral Church of Christ in Liverpool but it is dedicated to Christ and the Blessed Virgin...
. He was succeeded by Samuel Vestey, 2nd Baron Vestey (1882–1954).
Literature
- Phillip KnightleyPhillip KnightleyPhillip Knightley is a journalist, critic, and non-fiction author, visiting Professor of Journalism at the University of Lincoln, England, and media commentator on the intelligence services and propaganda.-Biography:...
The Rise and Fall of the House of Vestey, on the business empire established by William Vestey in 1897;