John Wilhelm Rowntree

John Wilhelm was the eldest of Joseph’s sons. He was interested in internationalising the Rowntree & Co. business, particularly establishing supply chains of raw materials and selling Rowntree Cocoa to other countries. It was for this reason that he advocated the acquisition of plantation estates in Jamaica and Dominica to supply cocoa. He was a close advisor to his father but they did not always agree on strategy, especially regarding the acquisition of these estates. John Wilhelm was also very instrumental in the development of Quaker thought and a new branch of ‘Liberal’ Quakerism, working with the American Quaker, Rufus Jones. He believed that religion should be relevant to society’s needs and argued that Quakers should vigorously pursue their peace mission and join wider non-conformist campaigns on issues such as temperance and social reform. Sadly, he died at the age of 36 so we do not know what he would have achieved had he lived to the age of his father.