William CLAPPERTON

William Clapperton b 1785 d 1860

      1. William CLAPPERTON ¹  was born about 1785 in Torwoodlee, Roxburghshire, Scotland. He died on 26 Feb 1860 in Huddersfield, Galashiels, Selkirk, Scotland.  The cause of death was apoplexy brought to a climax by excess of joy at the unexpected recovery of a sick cow.

William was employed as Weaver and Chartist.

An extreme Chartist and keen politician respected for way he put forward ideas. A founder of

temperance movement in Galashiels & organised 1st cooperative store. As the local patriarch

of the weaving fraternity, William presented a plaid to the visiting Hungarian patriot Kossuth

in 1856 [see footnote below]. William had been a weaver for much of his life, then had taken

up cows. William was also a breeder of bees.

Border Advertiser Friday March 2nd 1860:

"Sudden Death; - A startling instance of the uncertainty of life took place place on Sunday

morning in the sudden death of Mr. William Clapperton, an old, well known and respected

inhabitant. For a short time previous one of his cows, on which he set much value, had been

unwell and nearly dead, and his rest had been disturbed by attending to the animal. During

Saturday night he had got little rest, and on Sunday morning he rose at 5 o'clock and was

very mach overjoyed to find his animal beginning to recover. He retired to rest after having

had a cup of tea in his son's house adjoining, and about, 8 o'clock his son Alexander,

happening to look into his bed noticed his features strangely altertered, and on springing into

the bed and raising him up his head fell back and he immediately expired. The cause of death

is believed to have been apoplexy, brought to a climax by excess of joy at the unexpected

recovery of his cow. William was one, if not the chief originator and leader of the temperance

movement In this town. He was also a keen politician and held extreme Chartist views, though

be was always respected for the independent way in which he advocated his political creed.

He was the individual selected by the working classes, on the occasion of Kossuth's visit to

Galashiels, to present the illustrious Hungarian with a plaid of our own manufacture, which he

did in a very appropriate speech. He followed the occupation- of a spinner during the greatter

part of his life, but latterly had given up his attention almost exclusively to the keeping of a

dairy. He maintained also a local celebrity as a breeder and of bees, no less than does his

son for the knowledge he possesses of our British cage and wild birds. He was seventy five

years of age and leaves an aged partner., two years older then himself to mourn his sudden

bereavemen."

The following appears under Deaths, in the Border Advertiser dated Friday March 2nd 1860.

"Suddenly at Huddersfield, here, on the 26th ult., Mr. William Clapperton, Cowfeeder, aged

75."

Footnote:

KOSSUTH'S LATER INVOLVEMENT WITH THE NATIONAL MONUMENT

The National Wallace Monument took a long time to plan, and then from 1861-1869 to build.

John McAdam (1806-1883) brother of the proprietor of the Hydepark Pottery, Glasgow, was a

Glasgow businessman with an interest in political reform and revolution both at home and

abroad. When the fundraising campaign for the National Wallace Monument in Stirling was in

difficulty in the mid 1860s, McAdam stepped in to help. He wrote to some of the European

liberators of his own time to obtain their endorsement for the National Wallace Monument. In

1868 he obtained letters from Giuseppe Garibaldi (1807-1882) and Giuseppe Mazzini (1805-

1872) of Italy, Louis Kossuth (1802-1894) "the Wallace of Hungary", Karl Blind (1826-1907) of

Germany, and Louis Bland (1811-1882), the French Socialist. These men were the great

patriots of the age, and the letters McAdam had solicited from them were, with English

translations, set in a specially carved frame with thistles and other Scottish symbols, made

from the Wallace Oak of Elderslie and provided by Captain Spiers on whose estate the tree

grew. The framed letters were regarded as the first gift which would lay the foundation of a

national museum collection at the Wallace Monument, and McAdam anticipated that the

letters would be a great attraction to visitors. The letters were obtained in the year before the

monument opened to the public, and large photographic prints of them were sold to raise

funds for the building. [information from Stirling Smith Art Gallery & Museum]

William married Marion ANDERSON  on 20 Feb 1811 in Edinburgh. Marion was born in 1783 in Stow, Scotland. She died on 7 Mar 1877 in , Galashiels, Selkirk, Scotland. She was buried in , Galashiels, Selkirk, Scotland.

Appendix A  -  Sources

  1. World Connect Project pages of  Roger Kelly, http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=kosmoid."QUAY 2."