John Peele Clapham (1801–1875), from Leeds, West Riding of Yorkshire, was a justice of the peace for the West Riding of Yorkshire, and treasurer for the county courts of Yorkshire. Although he abandoned a medical career in the 1820s, "lost a fortune" in 1842 and "in bodily health he was never strong," he was a philanthropist who commissioned, subscribed to or supported various religious buildings and causes in his lifetime. Among other achievements he edited the Sunday School Union Hymn Book in 1833, commissioned the building of Salem Chapel on his land in 1839–1840 and led the building committee of West Park Congregational Church, Harrogate in 1861–1862. The hymn book "passed through many editions, and ... had a very large circulation." Historical background context The following gives some indication of how Clapham as a young man could afford higher education and a Grand Tour, how he likely inherited the fortune that he then lost, and what was the cultural and ethical background which contributed to his life's work of setting up church buildings and Sunday schools. Clapham's great grandfather John Clapham (ca.1724– 21 February 1792), a cloth dresser, "lies opposite the south transept of Leeds Parish Church." Clapham's grandfather John Clapham (ca.1749 – Penzance 16 December 1829) was "one of the earliest Friends, a steady and liberal supporter of the Bible, Missionary and Religious Tract societies," and treasurer of the Leeds Infirmary. John Clapham and his eldest son William Clapham (22 February 1775 – 12 October 1810), known for their "uprightness and integrity," were cloth merchants working from Hunslet Lane, Leeds, England. For nearly a century the Claphams were distinguished among the leading men of the borough, especially by their attachment to the principles of civil and religious liberty and the cause of education and improvement. They were evangelical dissenters of the independent communion, and took a foremost part among the supporters of the colleges, chapels and schools of the denomination throughout Yorkshire, as well as all unsectarian associations for religious and charitable objects at home and abroad. They were also among the leaders in the long conflict and ultimate victory on behalf of Parliamentary Reform, the abolition of the disabilities of Dissenters and Roman Catholics, [slave] emancipation &c. Personal life John Peele Clapham JP (Hunslet 7 July 1801 – Ilkley 19 November 1875) was born in Hunslet Lane, Leeds, the son of Leeds cloth merchant William Clapham, and Martha