| William Chesterman | |
| Birth Date: | 1837 12, df=yes |
| Birth Place: | Sheffield |
| Death Place: | Sheffield |
| Nationality: | English |
| Occupation: | Industrialist |
| Known For: | Secretary of Sheffield Football Club |
William Chesterman (22 December 1837 – 6 January 1930)[1] was a British sportsman and industrialist. By his own confession a "weak but ardent footballer",[2] Chesterman served as secretary of Sheffield Football Club from February 1862 to September 1866, replacing club founder Nathaniel Creswick in this role;[3] [4] [5] he also acted as treasurer of the club during that period. Chesterman was succeeded in both these roles by Harry Chambers. In February 1866, Chesterman proposed the idea of a match between Sheffield and a representative FA team, subsequently leading the "Sheffield" team in the historic London v Sheffield football match in March of that year. Chesterman continued to be associated with Sheffield FC for decades. He was a member of the committee in 1889, when the club took the decision to remain amateur.[1]
Although he was no longer secretary of Sheffield FC at the time, Chesterman represented the club at the 1867 meeting of the Football Association (FA).[6] At that meeting, which was attended by only six representatives, Chesterman was elected to the FA's committee. He continued to serve on the FA committee until 1871.[7]
As an industrialist, Chesterman was the principal partner of James Chesterman and Co, a manufacturer of measuring instruments. Chesterman's father, James, had founded the company after inventing a spring-loaded tape measure with an automatic recoil mechanism.[8] As a result of his prominence in business, Chesterman served as Master Cutler from 1880 to 1881.[9]
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