Samuel Thornton
Born(1754-11-06)6 November 1754
Clapham
Died3 July 1838(1838-07-03) (aged 83)
Brighton[1]
NationalityBritish
Occupation(s)Politician, abolitionist and Governor of the Bank of England
ChildrenSophia Thornton who married John Leslie-Melville, 9th Earl of Leven
ParentJohn Thornton

Samuel Thornton (6 November 1754 – 3 July 1838) was one of the sons of John Thornton, a leading merchant in the Russian and Baltic trade, and was a director of the Bank of England for 53 years[1][2] and Governor (1799–1801). He had earlier served as its Deputy Governor.[3] He was Member of Parliament (MP) for Kingston upon Hull (with William Wilberforce in 1784) from 1784 to 1806 and for Surrey from 1807 to 1812. He and was a member of the Committee for the repeal of the Test and Corporation Acts.

As MP for Kingston he was painted by Karl Anton Hickel in the group portrait "William Pitt addressing the House of Commons on the French Declaration of War, 1793" which still hangs at the National Portrait Gallery.[4]

He bought Albury Park, Albury, Surrey in 1800, and lived there until 1811. He employed the architect Sir John Soane[5] to improve the property.

During the early 19th century Thornton built housing in the hamlet of Weston Street, a mile to the west of Albury, for the resettlement of villagers removed from cottages in Albury Park, as part of the agricultural improvements.

His brothers Henry Thornton and Robert Thornton were also notable men of their time and MPs.[1] all three were members of the Clapham Sect and lived in adjoining houses in Clapham.[6]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Gentlemen's Magazine. London: F. Jefferies. September 1838. pp. 326. Retrieved 12 February 2008.
  2. ↑ Macleod, Henry Dunning (1856). The Theory and Practice of Banking. London: Longmans, Green, Reader, and Dyer. pp. 194. Retrieved 12 February 2008.
  3. ↑ "Deputy Governors of the Bank of England" (PDF). Bank of England. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 January 2014. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  4. ↑ "Nation Portrait Gallery Information - Samuel Thornton". Retrieved 18 February 2008.
  5. ↑ "Soane Website". Archived from the original on 8 February 2008. Retrieved 12 February 2008.
  6. ↑ "Oxford Dictionary of National Biography - Clapham Sect". May 2007. Retrieved 12 February 2008.
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