John Sparks (cricketer, born 1873)

Captain John Barnes Sparks CBE (31 May 1873 – 29 March 1920) was an English first-class cricketer and Royal Navy officer.

John Sparks
Personal information
Full name
John Barnes Sparks
Born31 May 1873
Morar, Gwalior State, British India
Died29 March 1920(1920-03-29) (aged 46)
Marylebone, London, England
BattingRight-handed
Career statistics
Competition First-class
Matches 1
Runs scored 17
Batting average 8.50
100s/50s –/–
Top score 13
Catches/stumpings –/–
Source: Cricinfo, 6 December 2019

Life

The son of lieutenant colonel John Barnes Sparks of the Bengal Staff Corps, he was born in May 1873 at Morar in British India. Sparks was educated in England at the Britannia Royal Naval College, before entering into the Royal Navy as a sub-lieutenant. He was promoted to the rank of lieutenant in September 1894.[1]

Sparks served in the Mahdist War, commanding the steam gunboat Sheikh. He was mentioned in dispatches for his role in the Nile Expedition of 1898.[2][3] In June 1900 he was appointed in command of the tender HMS Columbine, serving on the North America and West Indies Station. The ship visited Bermuda, Saint Lucia and Trinidad in late 1902.[4] He was promoted to the rank of commander in December 1905.[5]

Sparks served in the First World War, during which he was promoted to the rank of captain in December 1914.[6] He was made a CBE in the 1919 New Year Honours for services rendered during the war and was mentioned in dispatches in April 1919.[7][8] He was invalidated from active service due to esophageal cancer, succumbing to the disease in March 1920. He is buried in Brompton Cemetery, London.

Cricket

Sparks made a single appearance in first-class cricket, captaining the Royal Navy against the British Army cricket team at Lord's in 1913.[9] Batting twice in the match, he was dismissed for 13 runs in the navy first-innings by Francis Wyatt, while in their second-innings he was dismissed for 4 runs by Harold Fawcus.[10] He also acted as wicket-keeper.[11]

Family

Sparks married in 1902 Dorothy Talbot Nicholson, daughter of John Nicholson of Saint John, New Brunswick; she died in 1909. At the time of the marriage he was serving on HMS Columbine.[12][13]

References
  1. "No. 26552". The London Gazette. 14 September 1894. p. 5311.
  2. "No. 27009". The London Gazette. 30 September 1898. p. 5731.
  3. Richard Hill and R. L. Hill, A Register of Named Power-Driven River and Marine Harbour Craft Commissioned in the Sudan 1856-1964—II, Sudan Notes and Records Vol. 53 (1972), pp. 204–214, at p. 208. Published by: University of Khartoum JSTOR 42678024
  4. "Naval & Military intelligence". The Times. No. 36945. London. 8 December 1902. p. 11.
  5. "No. 27870". The London Gazette. 2 January 1906. p. 25.
  6. "No. 29024". The London Gazette (Supplement). 29 December 1914. p. 6.
  7. "No. 31099". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 1918. p. 111.
  8. "No. 31286". The London Gazette (Supplement). 8 April 1919. p. 4735.
  9. "First-Class Matches played by John Sparks". CricketArchive. Retrieved 11 December 2019.
  10. "Army v Royal Navy, 1913". CricketArchive. Retrieved 11 December 2019.
  11. Bailey, Philip; Thorn, Philip; Wynne-Thomas, Peter (1984). Who's Who of Cricketers. London: Newnes Books. p. 951. ISBN 0600346927.
  12. "n/a". Portsmouth Evening News. 15 August 1902.
  13. Debrett's Peerage. 1920. p. 1814.
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