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{{for|the British politician born in 1779|Benjamin Lester Lester}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2025}}
{{Use British English|date=March 2018}}

'''Benjamin Lester''' (13 July 1724 – 25 January 1802) was a British politician and merchant involved in the [[Colony of Newfoundland|Newfoundland]] fishery.

He was born in [[Poole]], England, the son of Rachell Taverner and Francis Lester, who was a merchant and also served as mayor of Poole, and the nephew of [[William Taverner (surveyor)|William Taverner]]. His father was involved in the Newfoundland fish trade and Lester went to Newfoundland around 1737, working for another merchant from Poole involved in the fishery. He married his cousin Susannah Taverner around 1750. After the death of his employers, he entered the fish trade on his own, partnering with his brother Isaac. His operations were based in the area of [[Trinity, Newfoundland and Labrador|Trinity]]. During the 1760s, he began building a large brick house there, now preserved as the Lester-Garland house. In 1762, he was forced to temporarily surrender Trinity to the [[France|French]]. Lester continued to return to Newfoundland for the fishing season until 1776. After that, he continued to manage operations from England and his business continued to expand until he owned a fleet of almost 30 ships, making his the largest in the area.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.poolemuseum.org.uk/collections/collection-highlights/benjamin-lester/|title=Portrait of Benjamin Lester|publisher=The Poole Museum}}</ref> Lester was also involved in the trade in [[Pinniped|seal]]s.

In England, he lobbied for the exclusion of the Americans from the fish trade. He also opposed the concession of [[Saint-Pierre and Miquelon]] to France. Lester served as mayor of Poole in 1779 and from 1781 to 1783 and was Member of Parliament representing [[Poole (UK Parliament constituency)|Poole]] from 1790 to 1796.

He was uncle to [[Lieutenant-general (United Kingdom)|Lieutenant General]] [[Frederick Lester|Sir Frederick Parkinson Lester]] through his elder brother John Lester of Racquet Court.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1790-1820/member/lester-benjamin-1724-1802|title=Lester, Benjamin (1724-1802), of Poole, Dorset|publisher=The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1790-1820, ed. R. Thorne, 1986}}</ref>

After his death in Poole in 1802, his son-in-law [[George Garland (MP)|George Garland]], who had married Lester's daughter Amy, took over the operation of the business which Lester had established.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

* {{cite DCB |first=D.F. |last=Beamish |title=Lester, Benjamin |volume=5 |url=https://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/lester_benjamin_5E.html}}

== External links ==
*[https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/people/mr-benjamin-lester Hansard]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110708084410/http://www.boroughofpoole.com/go.php?structureID=U46405d3d22e69&ref=S464C3F9E5C0C5 Benjamin Lester – Borough of Poole]

{{s-start}}
{{s-par|gb}}
{{s-bef
| before = [[William Morton Pitt]]
| before2 = [[Michael Angelo Taylor]]
}}
{{s-ttl
| title = [[Member of Parliament]] for [[Poole (UK Parliament constituency)|Poole]]
| years = [[1790 British general election|1790]]–[[1796 British general election|1796]]
| with = [[Charles Stuart (1753–1801)|Hon. Charles Stuart]] 1790–91
| with2 = [[Michael Angelo Taylor]] 1791–96
}}
{{s-aft
| after = [[John Jeffery (c.1751-1822)|John Jeffery]]
| after2 = [[Charles Stuart (1753–1801)|Hon. Charles Stuart]]
}}
{{s-end}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lester, Benjamin}}
[[Category:1724 births]]
[[Category:1802 deaths]]
[[Category:Mayors of Poole]]
[[Category:Newfoundland Colony people]]
[[Category:Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies]]
[[Category:British MPs 1790–1796]]

Benjamin Lester - Revision history

imported>Darrend1967: Adding/improving reference(s)