A fact from Sir Arthur Pearson, 1st Baronet appeared on Wikipedia's
Main Page in the Did you know column on 12 December 2005. The text of the entry was as follows:
Did you know... that the
Scouting movement's "one good turn" was inaugurated on behalf of British newspaper
magnateCyril Arthur Pearson, who founded several
newspapers before going blind with
glaucoma and then devoted his life in support of the
blind?
This article is within the scope of WikiProject Biography, a collaborative effort to create, develop and organize Wikipedia's articles about people. All interested editors are invited to
join the project and
contribute to the discussion. For instructions on how to use this banner, please refer to the
documentation.BiographyWikipedia:WikiProject BiographyTemplate:WikiProject Biographybiography articles
This article is within the scope of WikiProject Journalism, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of
journalism on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join
the discussion and see a list of open tasks.JournalismWikipedia:WikiProject JournalismTemplate:WikiProject JournalismJournalism articles
This article is within the scope of WikiProject Somerset, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of
Somerset on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join
the discussion and see a list of open tasks.SomersetWikipedia:WikiProject SomersetTemplate:WikiProject SomersetSomerset articles
Sir Arthur Pearson, 1st Baronet is part of the Scouting WikiProject, an effort to build a comprehensive and detailed guide to
Scouting and
Guiding on the Wikipedia. This includes but is not limited to boy and girl organizations,
WAGGGS and
WOSM organizations as well as those not so affiliated, country and region-specific topics, and anything else related to Scouting. If you would like to participate, you can edit the article attached to this page, or visit the
project page, where you can join the project and/or contribute to the
discussion.ScoutingWikipedia:WikiProject ScoutingTemplate:WikiProject ScoutingScouting articles
The Daily Express article says it was sold in 1914. Since this involves a change in its politics, which date is correct?
Septentrionalis 20:02, 19 January 2006 (UTC)reply
Add: a BBC article
[1] gives 1916. Clearly there is some confusion amongst sources.
BillC 23:14, 19 January 2006 (UTC)reply
After some research, I'm tending to the view that Beaverbrook's holding in the Express became a majority share in 1916. In a
review of a Beaverbrook biography, Piers Brendon, author of The Life and Death of The Press Barons gives 1916. The history section of a
report by the
Monopolies and Mergers Commission in August 1985 records that Beaverbrook started purchasing shares in the Express from its start in 1900, and gradually increased his holding until it became a majority in 1916. A
bio on the Beaverbrook Foundation's website also gives 1916, adding that Beaverbrook himself drew little attention to the fact at the time. Any thoughts?
BillC 00:05, 21 January 2006 (UTC)reply
I didn't know there was a question till I ran across these two articles. A biography of
Lloyd George might explain the sequence of events, but 1916 looks good on your evidence. I'll get back to you. If we can't find an explanation, how about a genuine, non-disputatious content RfC?
Septentrionalis 03:49, 21 January 2006 (UTC)reply
A. N. Wilson (After the Victorians) says he bought a "controlling interest" in the fall of 1916, and dedicated the paper to building up
Bonar Law and turning out
Asquith. Presumably you are right: he built up slowly, and Pearson's shares were one step. I'll edit after I see what AJP Taylor actually wrote.
Septentrionalis 03:50, 16 March 2006 (UTC)reply