Brief profile of William Gunn by Don Ambrose

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Player:

W Gunn

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GUNN, William.
Professional.
Born at St Anne’s, Nottingham, 4th December 1858.
Died at Nottingham, 29th January 1921.
In 1873, at the age of fourteen he was employed at Richard Daft’s cricketing warehouse in Lister Gate, Nottingham. He made his debut in first-class cricket in 1880 and between then and 1904 he played in 521 first-class matches, 363 of them for Nottinghamshire and nine of them Test Matches. He toured Australia in 1886/7. He was also a fine footballer, playing for Nottingham Forest and County, later becoming a director of Notts County. He played for England twice in 1884. He was engaged by the M.C.C. at Lord’s from 1881 until 1901 and at the end of his career was granted two benefit matches by Nottinghamshire and one by the M.C.C. at Lord’s. He helped to found the sporting goods firm of Gunn & Moore in 1885 and when he died of cancer in 1921 his estate was valued at £57,392-15-9. His two nephews George and John R. also played cricket for Nottinghamshire and England.
In the 1881 Census he is shown living at 169 Kirkewhite Street, St Mary, Nottingham, aged 22 unmarried and a cricketer. It is the house of his widowed mother Sarah aged 58, formerly a laundress. His elder sister Elizabeth, aged 29 is a dressmaker and his two younger sisters Charlotte aged 19 and Sarah A. aged 16, are unmarried teachers of music. Also at this address is an unmarried aunt of Sarah, Matilda Daley, aged 48 and a domestic servant and a grandson, Sidney Gunn aged 8.

(Article: Copyright © 2003 Don Ambrose)