James Morrison (businessman)
Encyclopedia
James Morrison was a British
millionaire
businessman and Member of Parliament
.
Alternatively (http://www.berkshirehistory.com/bios/jmorrison.html adapted from Sidney Lee
's 'Dictionary of National Biography
' (1894) so out of copyright) he was born in 1790, probably at Middle Wallop, Hampshire, and died 30 October 1857 at Basildon, Berkshire
possessed of property in England valued at between three and four million pounds, besides large investments in the United States.
Mary Anne, daughter of Joseph Todd
, a London draper
business and quickly made it one of the most profitable in the World.
His children included Alfred Morrison, a notable art collector (see The Morrison Triptych
), and High Sheriff of Wiltshire
in 1857, and Charles of Basildon Park and Islay; Alfred of Fonthill (Wiltshire), the father of Major James Archibald Morrison of Fonthill and Basildon; Frank of Hole Park (Kent) and Strathraich (Ross); and Walter of Malham Tarn, (Yorkshire).
The politician James Morrison, son of Alfred, was a grandson.
of Joseph Todd
, whose daughter he married. The firm latterly became known as Morrison, Dillon & Co and was afterwards converted into the Fore Street Limited Liability Company.
Morrison was one of the first English traders to depend for his success on the lowest remunerative scale of profit. He thus endeavoured to secure a very rapid circulation of capital, his motto being "small profits and quick returns". He made an immense fortune, a great part of which he expended in buying land in Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Kent, Wiltshire, Yorkshire and Islay in Argyllshire (which island he purchased for nearly £½m in 1854). In his Life and Correspondence, Robert Southey
records how he saw Morrison at Keswick
in September 1823. He was then worth some £150,000 and was on his way to New Lanark
on the Clyde and intended investing £5,000 in Robert Owen
's philanthropic community "if he should find his expectations confirmed by what he sees there".
From his earliest settlement in London, Morrison was associated with the liberal party in the city. In 1830, he entered Parliament as member for St. Ives (Cambridgeshire), which he helped to partially disfranchise by voting for the Reform Bill. He did not return to his offended constituents but, in 1831, he secured a seat at Ipswich, for which he was again elected in December 1832. He was, however, defeated there on the 'Peel Dissolution' in January 1835. On an election petition, Fitzroy Kelly and Robert Adam Dundas, the members, were unseated and Morrison, with Rigby Wason, headed the poll in June 1835. At the succeeding dissolution, in July 1837, Morrison remained out of parliament and, in the following December, on the occasion of a by-election for a vacancy at Ipswich, he was defeated in a contest with Joseph Bailey. In March 1840, he re-entered the House of Commons as member for the Inverness Burghs and was again returned unopposed in the general election of 1841 but, on the dissolution of 1847, his health being much impaired, he finally retired.
In the 1830s, Morrison established the American trading company, Morrison, Cryder & Co., and invested heavily in the railway industry both in the United States and in France. On 17 May 1836, he made an able speech on moving a resolution urging the periodical revision of tolls and charges levied on railroads and other public works. In 1845, he moved similar resolutions and, again in March 1846, when he finally succeeded in obtaining a select committee for the better promoting and securing of the interests of the public in railway acts. His draft report, not altogether adopted, was drawn with great skill and many of its principles were adopted in subsequent legislation.
Though an entirely self-educated man, Morrison possessed considerable literary tastes, which were exercised in the formation of a large library. He was likewise a lover of art and made a large collection of pictures of the old masters, Italian and Dutch, together with many fine examples of the English school. It was one of the most magnificent collection of the era, housed in both his London house in Harley Street
as well as at Basildon Park
in Berkshire which, by 1842, had completely replaced the Pavilion at Fonthill (Wiltshire) as his favoured country estate. It included works by Constable, Da Vinci, Hogarth, Holbein, Poussin, Rembrandt, Reynolds, Rubens, Titian, Turner and VanDyck.
trading company, Morrison, Cryder & Co.. He invested heavily in foreign railways and also in art. His art collection included works by Constable, Cuyp, Jan Steen, Murillo, Poussin, Rembrandt and Rubens.
In 1854, he bought the Isle of Islay
for nearly half a million pounds. He lived at the Pavilion at Fonthill
in Wiltshire
before purchasing Basildon Park
in Berkshire
. He also entered politics and was MP for St Ives
(1830), Ipswich
(1832) and the Inverness Burghs
(1840–1847).
British people
The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
millionaire
Millionaire
A millionaire is an individual whose net worth or wealth is equal to or exceeds one million units of currency. It can also be a person who owns one million units of currency in a bank account or savings account...
businessman and Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
.
Alternatively (http://www.berkshirehistory.com/bios/jmorrison.html adapted from Sidney Lee
Sidney Lee
Sir Sidney Lee was an English biographer and critic.He was born Solomon Lazarus Lee at 12 Keppel Street, Bloomsbury, London and educated at the City of London School and at Balliol College, Oxford, where he graduated in modern history in 1882. In the next year he became assistant-editor of the...
's 'Dictionary of National Biography
Dictionary of National Biography
The Dictionary of National Biography is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published from 1885...
' (1894) so out of copyright) he was born in 1790, probably at Middle Wallop, Hampshire, and died 30 October 1857 at Basildon, Berkshire
Basildon, Berkshire
Basildon is a civil parish in the English county of Berkshire. It comprises the small villages of Upper Basildon and Lower Basildon, named for their respective heights above the River Thames...
possessed of property in England valued at between three and four million pounds, besides large investments in the United States.
Upbringing and family
Morrison was the son of an innkeeper from Middle Wallop. He marriedMary Anne, daughter of Joseph Todd
Joseph Todd
Joseph Todd is an Arena Football League defensive specialist for the Arizona Rattlers. In the 2006 season, Todd led Arizona Rattlers in tackles with 53....
, a London draper
Draper
Draper is the now largely obsolete term for a wholesaler, or especially retailer, of cloth, mainly for clothing, or one who works in a draper's shop. A draper may additionally operate as a cloth merchant or a haberdasher. The drapers were an important trade guild...
business and quickly made it one of the most profitable in the World.
His children included Alfred Morrison, a notable art collector (see The Morrison Triptych
The Morrison Triptych
.The Master of the Morrison Triptych is the name given to an unknown Early Netherlandish painter active in Antwerp around 1500-1510. He is named for the Morrison Triptych, now in Toledo, Ohio, which is described below....
), and High Sheriff of Wiltshire
High Sheriff of Wiltshire
This is a list of High Sheriffs of Wiltshire.Until the 14th century the shrievalty was held ex officio by the castellans of Old Sarum.-To 1400:*1066: Edric*1067-1070: Philippe de Buckland*1085: Aiulphus the Sheriff*1070–1105: Edward of Salisbury...
in 1857, and Charles of Basildon Park and Islay; Alfred of Fonthill (Wiltshire), the father of Major James Archibald Morrison of Fonthill and Basildon; Frank of Hole Park (Kent) and Strathraich (Ross); and Walter of Malham Tarn, (Yorkshire).
The politician James Morrison, son of Alfred, was a grandson.
Early career
Morrison began his career in a very humble capacity in a London warehouse. His industry, sagacity and integrity eventually secured him a partnership in the general drapery business in Fore StreetFore Street
"Fore Street": a name often used for the main street of a town. It is commonly found in some parts of England and the United States.There are over seventy "Fore Streets" in Cornwall and about twenty-five in Devon....
of Joseph Todd
Joseph Todd
Joseph Todd is an Arena Football League defensive specialist for the Arizona Rattlers. In the 2006 season, Todd led Arizona Rattlers in tackles with 53....
, whose daughter he married. The firm latterly became known as Morrison, Dillon & Co and was afterwards converted into the Fore Street Limited Liability Company.
Morrison was one of the first English traders to depend for his success on the lowest remunerative scale of profit. He thus endeavoured to secure a very rapid circulation of capital, his motto being "small profits and quick returns". He made an immense fortune, a great part of which he expended in buying land in Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Kent, Wiltshire, Yorkshire and Islay in Argyllshire (which island he purchased for nearly £½m in 1854). In his Life and Correspondence, Robert Southey
Robert Southey
Robert Southey was an English poet of the Romantic school, one of the so-called "Lake Poets", and Poet Laureate for 30 years from 1813 to his death in 1843...
records how he saw Morrison at Keswick
Keswick
-Geography:A place in Australia:*Keswick, South Australia, a suburb of Adelaide**Keswick railway station, Adelaide**Adelaide Parklands Terminal A place in Canada:*Keswick, Ontario...
in September 1823. He was then worth some £150,000 and was on his way to New Lanark
New Lanark
New Lanark is a village on the River Clyde, approximately 1.4 miles from Lanark, in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. It was founded in 1786 by David Dale, who built cotton mills and housing for the mill workers. Dale built the mills there to take advantage of the water power provided by the river...
on the Clyde and intended investing £5,000 in Robert Owen
Robert Owen
Robert Owen was a Welsh social reformer and one of the founders of utopian socialism and the cooperative movement.Owen's philosophy was based on three intellectual pillars:...
's philanthropic community "if he should find his expectations confirmed by what he sees there".
From his earliest settlement in London, Morrison was associated with the liberal party in the city. In 1830, he entered Parliament as member for St. Ives (Cambridgeshire), which he helped to partially disfranchise by voting for the Reform Bill. He did not return to his offended constituents but, in 1831, he secured a seat at Ipswich, for which he was again elected in December 1832. He was, however, defeated there on the 'Peel Dissolution' in January 1835. On an election petition, Fitzroy Kelly and Robert Adam Dundas, the members, were unseated and Morrison, with Rigby Wason, headed the poll in June 1835. At the succeeding dissolution, in July 1837, Morrison remained out of parliament and, in the following December, on the occasion of a by-election for a vacancy at Ipswich, he was defeated in a contest with Joseph Bailey. In March 1840, he re-entered the House of Commons as member for the Inverness Burghs and was again returned unopposed in the general election of 1841 but, on the dissolution of 1847, his health being much impaired, he finally retired.
In the 1830s, Morrison established the American trading company, Morrison, Cryder & Co., and invested heavily in the railway industry both in the United States and in France. On 17 May 1836, he made an able speech on moving a resolution urging the periodical revision of tolls and charges levied on railroads and other public works. In 1845, he moved similar resolutions and, again in March 1846, when he finally succeeded in obtaining a select committee for the better promoting and securing of the interests of the public in railway acts. His draft report, not altogether adopted, was drawn with great skill and many of its principles were adopted in subsequent legislation.
Though an entirely self-educated man, Morrison possessed considerable literary tastes, which were exercised in the formation of a large library. He was likewise a lover of art and made a large collection of pictures of the old masters, Italian and Dutch, together with many fine examples of the English school. It was one of the most magnificent collection of the era, housed in both his London house in Harley Street
Harley Street
Harley Street is a street in the City of Westminster in London, England which has been noted since the 19th century for its large number of private specialists in medicine and surgery.- Overview :...
as well as at Basildon Park
Basildon Park
Basildon Park is a country house situated 3 kilometres south of Goring-on-Thames and Streatley in Berkshire, between the villages of Upper Basildon and Lower Basildon. It is owned by the National Trust and is a Grade I listed building...
in Berkshire which, by 1842, had completely replaced the Pavilion at Fonthill (Wiltshire) as his favoured country estate. It included works by Constable, Da Vinci, Hogarth, Holbein, Poussin, Rembrandt, Reynolds, Rubens, Titian, Turner and VanDyck.
Later career
He later established the USUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
trading company, Morrison, Cryder & Co.. He invested heavily in foreign railways and also in art. His art collection included works by Constable, Cuyp, Jan Steen, Murillo, Poussin, Rembrandt and Rubens.
In 1854, he bought the Isle of Islay
Islay
-Prehistory:The earliest settlers on Islay were nomadic hunter-gatherers who arrived during the Mesolithic period after the retreat of the Pleistocene ice caps. In 1993 a flint arrowhead was found in a field near Bridgend dating from 10,800 BC, the earliest evidence of a human presence found so far...
for nearly half a million pounds. He lived at the Pavilion at Fonthill
Fonthill Gifford
Fonthill Gifford is a village in Wiltshire, England. Its population has dwindled from 493 in the 1801 Census to 120 in the 2001 Census.The current Church of England parish church of All Saints was built in 1864–66 to designs by the Gothic Revival architect T.H. Wyatt...
in Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
before purchasing Basildon Park
Basildon Park
Basildon Park is a country house situated 3 kilometres south of Goring-on-Thames and Streatley in Berkshire, between the villages of Upper Basildon and Lower Basildon. It is owned by the National Trust and is a Grade I listed building...
in Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
. He also entered politics and was MP for St Ives
St Ives (UK Parliament constituency)
St. Ives is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.-History:...
(1830), Ipswich
Ipswich (UK Parliament constituency)
Ipswich is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.- Boundaries :...
(1832) and the Inverness Burghs
Inverness Burghs (UK Parliament constituency)
Inverness Burghs was a district of burghs constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1708 to 1801 and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1918...
(1840–1847).
External links
- Dakers, Caroline (2005) James Morrison (1789-1857), 'Napoleon of Shopkeepers', Millionaire Haberdasher, Modern Entrepreneur. In: Fashion and Modernity. Berg , Oxford, pp. 17–32. ISBN 1845200276
- Dakers, Caroline (2012) A Genius for Money: Business, Art and the Morrisons. Wiley. http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=9Hm3PQAACAAJ&dq=A+Genius+for+Money:+Business,+Art+and+the+Morrisons.&hl=en&ei=1zYDTtNZxajwA_LfkOIN&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CC8Q6AEwAA