Sir Charles Wathen (19 March 1833 - 14 February 1893) was a prominent Victorian wool merchant who from 1865 to 1887 ran the well-known British clothing firm of
Wathen Gardiner & Co, and served six times as
Mayor of Bristol.
He was knighted for his accomplishments on 1 January 1889 during his fourth term as mayor by
Queen Victoria
Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...
. He died on 14 February 1893 shortly after collapsing on the floor of the
Bristol City council chamber at the conclusion of an address he had just given to the city fathers.
His grave in the
Arnos Vale Cemetery is marked by a stone memorial with an epitaph that identifies him as "Charles Wathen, Kt. who died suddenly in the Council Chamber."
References
Mayors of Bristol
1893 deaths
Businesspeople from Bristol
1833 births
Knights Bachelor
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