Introduction
John Charles Bowring (1820–1893) was a Hong Kong businessman, a partner in the firm Jardine, Matheson & Co., and a keen amateur naturalist and JP for the County of Devon.
Origins
He was the eldest son of Sir John Bowring (1792-1872), of Exeter, Devon, Governor of Hong Kong, and accompanied him on some of his travels. He was brother of Lewin Bentham Bowring and Edgar Alfred Bowring.
Career
Bowring was a passionate botanist and entomologist (more specifically a coleopterist; a student in the study of beetles). Throughout his travels with his father, Sir John Bowring, he studied, took notes, and collected certain rare plants and beetles whenever the opportunity presented itself. In 1852 Bowring brought from Hong Kong ferns, mosses, and flowering plants back to England.
Marriage and progeny
Upon his widow's death in 1912 she bequeathed funds for the building of a cottage hospital in Haygate Road, Shropshire, in his memory. His sons included:
- Sir Charles Calvert Bowring, Governor of Nyasaland
- Rear Admiral Humphrey Wykeham Bowring
- Wellington: Public services (1985). A History of the County of Shropshire: Volume 11: Telford. Victoria County History. pp. 236–38. Retrieved 2007-05-23.
Legacy
He left a large collection of coleoptera to the British Museum.