John Ellis Symonds Gowing (1835 – 2 October 1908) was an English

English people

The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...

-born Australian retailer and founder of the eponymous department store

Department store

A department store is a retail establishment which satisfies a wide range of the consumer's personal and residential durable goods product needs; and at the same time offering the consumer a choice of multiple merchandise lines, at variable price points, in all product categories...

 Gowings

Gowings

Gowings was a department store chain in Sydney, Australia, established in 1868. It specialised in men's casual clothing, camping gear and novelty items....

.

Early life

Gowing was born at Cranley Hall, Eye, Suffolk

Eye, Suffolk

Eye is a small market town in the county of Suffolk, East Anglia, England, south of Diss, and on the River Dove.Eye is twinned with the town of Pouzauges in the Vendée Departement of France.-History:An island...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

, and was the eldest son of Ellis Symonds Gowing, a farmer, and his wife Charlotte. At 24 years of age, Gowing emigrated

Emigration

Emigration is the act of leaving one's country or region to settle in another. It is the same as immigration but from the perspective of the country of origin. Human movement before the establishment of political boundaries or within one state is termed migration. There are many reasons why people...

 to Sydney, New South Wales with £400, on the American ship, the Commonwealth. A year later his parents and siblings followed him to Australia.

Retail career

On arrival in Sydney, Gowing worked on the harbour in a maritime

Sailing

Sailing is the propulsion of a vehicle and the control of its movement with large foils called sails. By changing the rigging, rudder, and sometimes the keel or centre board, a sailor manages the force of the wind on the sails in order to move the boat relative to its surrounding medium and...

 warehouse

Warehouse

A warehouse is a commercial building for storage of goods. Warehouses are used by manufacturers, importers, exporters, wholesalers, transport businesses, customs, etc. They are usually large plain buildings in industrial areas of cities and towns. They usually have loading docks to load and unload...

. Soon after, he commenced working in retail with David Jones

David Jones Limited

David Jones Limited , colloquially known as DJs, is a high-end Australian department store chain.David Jones was founded in 1838 by David Jones, a Welsh immigrant, and is claimed to be the oldest continuously operating department store in the world still trading under its original name. It...

. He rose to be in charge of the mercery

Mercery

Mercery initially referred to silk, linen, and fustian textiles imported to England in the 12th century.The term later extended to goods made of these and the sellers of those goods.-Mercer:...

 department and lived above the store, as was common in the era.

Gowings

Gowing opened a drapery

Drapery

Drapery is a general word referring to cloths or textiles . It may refer to cloth used for decorative purposes – such as around windows – or to the trade of retailing cloth, originally mostly for clothing, formerly conducted by drapers.In art history, drapery refers to any cloth or...

 business on Crown Street, East Sydney in 1863. Five years later he and his younger brother, Preston Robert Gowing (1839–1900), opened the Mercery and Glove Depot in George Street, Sydney

George Street, Sydney

George Street is one of Sydney's most notable city streets. There are more high rise buildings and more ASX 100 companies located here than anywhere else in Australia, and is well known for being busy around-the-clock...

. John Gowing managed the store for £200 per annum and a half share of the profits. The business prospered and in 1864 a mercery warehouse, Edinburgh House, was opened. In 1878 his brother left employment as manager of another outfitters and joined Gowings. In time, ladies' gloves and silk umbrellas became less important and Gowings became known as a high-class, gentlemen's outfitter. Preston Gowing predeceased his brother and in 1907 John Gowing transferred the business to his nephew and elder sons. John Gowing's son, Preston Lanchester Gowing, became chairman and ushered in a new era for the department store.

Death

In 1908, Gowing died at his home, Lyndhurst, Middleton Street, Stanmore

Stanmore, New South Wales

Stanmore is a suburb in the inner-west of Sydney, in New South Wales, Australia. Stanmore is located 6 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district and is part of the local government area of Marrickville Council.-History:...

. He was survived by his wife, Elizabeth, who had been a milliner in her native Cambridgeshire

Cambridgeshire

Cambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west...

, and eight children. His funeral service was held at All Saints' Anglican Church, Petersham before masonic burial

Burial

Burial is the act of placing a person or object into the ground. This is accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing an object in it, and covering it over.-History:...

 at Rookwood

Rookwood Cemetery

Rookwood Cemetery is the largest multicultural necropolis in the Southern Hemisphere, located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...

. Gowing was a prominent mason

Freemasonry

Freemasonry is a fraternal organisation that arose from obscure origins in the late 16th to early 17th century. Freemasonry now exists in various forms all over the world, with a membership estimated at around six million, including approximately 150,000 under the jurisdictions of the Grand Lodge...

 and a founder of the Royal Arch Masonic Lodge

Royal Arch Masonry

Royal Arch Masonry is the term used to denote the first part of the York Rite system of Masonic degrees. Royal Arch Masons meet as a Chapter, and the Chapter confers four degrees: Mark Master Mason, Past Master, Most Excellent Master, and Royal Arch Mason.-Chapter level:A Chapter is in many ways...

, Petersham

Petersham, New South Wales

Petersham is a suburb in the Inner West of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Petersham is located 6 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Marrickville Council...

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