Jack Sangster
Encyclopedia
John Young Sangster was an industrialist who became an important figure in the history of the British motorcycle industry. He is more commonly known as Jack Sangster.
, Birmingham
, the son of Charles Thomas Brock Sangster, an engineer, and was educated at Hurstpierpoint College
, Sussex
. After leaving school he began an engineering apprentice
ship which was interrupted by the First World War. During the war, Sangster served with the City of Birmingham battalion of the 14th Royal Warwickshire Regiment. His elder brother Fredrick Charles Sangster was killed in action during 1916.
in Coventry
, with Sangster joining Rover to manage the production of the car which became the Rover Eight model.
In 1923 Sangster returned to his father's company, and by 1930 was joint managing director with him. In 1932 Cycle Components went bust, and Sangster bought most of the companies assets from the receivers, to start a new company called Ariel Motors
. Sangster rebuilt the company using the wealth of design and engineering talent employed by the company, which included men such as Edward Turner
, Val Page
and Bert Hopwood
. In 1944 Sangster sold Ariel to the BSA company for a considerable profit.
Sangster seized another business opportunity in 1935 when he bought the bankrupt Triumph Motorcycles company from the receivers. Sangster brought in Edward Turner and Bert Hopwood from Ariel to improve Triumph's product range. The Triumph Speed Twin
designed by Turner, with its parallel twin engine was the progenitor of a line of successful Triumph motorbikes that followed. In 1951, Sangster sold Triumph to BSA for £2.5 million pounds, which was not a bad return on the £50,000 he invested in buying Triumph in 1935.
Sangster joined the board of BSA following their acquisition of Triumph. Sangster became chairman of BSA in 1956, following a series of board room battles which ousted the previous chairman, Sir Bernard Docker
. Sangster retired as chairman of BSA in 1961.
He took in two London evacuees, Gordon & Jean Rookledge, in 1944.
Jack Sangster died from cancer on 26 March 1977.
Early life
Jack Sangster was born in Kings NortonKings Norton
Kings Norton is an area of Birmingham, England. It is also a Birmingham City Council ward within the formal district of Northfield.-History:...
, Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, the son of Charles Thomas Brock Sangster, an engineer, and was educated at Hurstpierpoint College
Hurstpierpoint College
Hurstpierpoint College is an independent, co-educational, day and boarding school for pupils aged 4–18, located just to the north of the village of Hurstpierpoint, West Sussex in the lee of the South Downs...
, Sussex
Sussex
Sussex , from the Old English Sūþsēaxe , is an historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. It is bounded on the north by Surrey, east by Kent, south by the English Channel, and west by Hampshire, and is divided for local government into West...
. After leaving school he began an engineering apprentice
Engineering apprentice
An engineering apprenticeship is an apprenticeship in mechanical engineering or electrical engineering. A typical example is the apprenticeships formerly available at the BTH and EEC at Rugby in England...
ship which was interrupted by the First World War. During the war, Sangster served with the City of Birmingham battalion of the 14th Royal Warwickshire Regiment. His elder brother Fredrick Charles Sangster was killed in action during 1916.
Career
In 1918 Sangster joined the Cycle Components Manufacturing Company, of which his father was managing director. Sangster designed a small low cost car which he began manufacturing. The design of the car was later sold to the Rover CompanyRover (car)
The Rover Company is a former British car manufacturing company founded as Starley & Sutton Co. of Coventry in 1878. After developing the template for the modern bicycle with its Rover Safety Bicycle of 1885, the company moved into the automotive industry...
in Coventry
Coventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
, with Sangster joining Rover to manage the production of the car which became the Rover Eight model.
In 1923 Sangster returned to his father's company, and by 1930 was joint managing director with him. In 1932 Cycle Components went bust, and Sangster bought most of the companies assets from the receivers, to start a new company called Ariel Motors
Ariel (vehicle)
Ariel was a bicycle, motorcycle and automobile marque manufacturer based in Bournbrook, Birmingham, England. Car production moved to Coventry in 1911. The company name was reused in 1999 for the formation of Ariel Ltd, a sports car producer.-History:...
. Sangster rebuilt the company using the wealth of design and engineering talent employed by the company, which included men such as Edward Turner
Edward Turner
Edward Turner was a British motorcycle designer. He was born in Camberwell in the London Borough of Southwark, on the day King Edward VII was proclaimed King....
, Val Page
Val Page
Valentine Page was a British motorcycle designer born in 1892. Described as Britain's greatest motorcycle designer, he worked for most of the leading marques, including Ariel, Triumph, and BSA. He died in 1978.-J.A Prestwich:...
and Bert Hopwood
Bert Hopwood
Herbert "Bert" Hopwood was a British motorcycle designer. He helped with some of the most influential designs for the British motorcycle industry and worked for Ariel, Norton, BSA and Triumph.-Motorcycle design career:...
. In 1944 Sangster sold Ariel to the BSA company for a considerable profit.
Sangster seized another business opportunity in 1935 when he bought the bankrupt Triumph Motorcycles company from the receivers. Sangster brought in Edward Turner and Bert Hopwood from Ariel to improve Triumph's product range. The Triumph Speed Twin
Triumph Speed Twin
The Speed Twin 5T is a motorcycle that was made by Triumph at their Coventry factory. Edward Turner, Triumph’s Chief Designer and Managing Director, launched the Triumph Speed Twin at the 1937 National Motorcycle Show. It was a 500 cc OHV vertical twin in a lightweight frame and the first...
designed by Turner, with its parallel twin engine was the progenitor of a line of successful Triumph motorbikes that followed. In 1951, Sangster sold Triumph to BSA for £2.5 million pounds, which was not a bad return on the £50,000 he invested in buying Triumph in 1935.
Sangster joined the board of BSA following their acquisition of Triumph. Sangster became chairman of BSA in 1956, following a series of board room battles which ousted the previous chairman, Sir Bernard Docker
Bernard Docker
Sir Bernard Dudley Frank Docker was an English industrialist.Bernard Docker was born in Edgbaston, Birmingham, the only child of Frank Dudley Docker an industrialist....
. Sangster retired as chairman of BSA in 1961.
He took in two London evacuees, Gordon & Jean Rookledge, in 1944.
Jack Sangster died from cancer on 26 March 1977.