Fox, Fowler, and Company was a British

private bank Private banks are banks owned by either the individual or a general Partner (business rank), partner(s) with limited partner(s). Private banks are not incorporation (business), incorporated. In any such case, creditors can look to both the "enti ...

, based in

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

. The company was founded in 1787 as a supplementary business to the main activities of the Fox family, sheep-herding and

wool Wool is the textile fibre obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have properties similar to animal wool. As ...

-making.

Banknote issue

Like many other commercial banks of the time, Fox, Fowler, and Company was legally entitled to issue its own banknotes. However, when the

Bank Charter Act The Bank Charter Act 1844 (7 & 8 Vict. c. 32), sometimes referred to as the Peel Banking Act of 1844, was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, passed under the government of Robert Peel, which restricted the powers of British banks ...

was passed in 1844, no new banks could issue notes in England and Wales, and the number of note-issuing institutions fell gradually with financial sector consolidation. Fox, Fowler, and Company was the last commercial note-issuing bank in

England and Wales England and Wales () is one of the three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the constituent countries England and Wales and was formed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. The substantive law of the jurisdiction is Eng ...

, until it was bought out by

Lloyds Bank Lloyds Bank plc is a British retail and commercial bank with branches across England and Wales. It has traditionally been considered one of the " Big Four" clearing banks. Lloyds Bank is the largest retail bank in Britain, and has an exte ...

in 1921.

Peter Mathias Peter Mathias, (10 January 1928 – 1 March 2016) was a British economic historian and the former Chichele Professor of Economic History at the University of Oxford. His research focused on the history of industry, business, and technology, ...

, ''The First Industrial Nation'', Routledge, pp. 326, Under the terms of the 1844 act, the bank lost the legal right to issue banknotes upon its merger with Lloyds, and the

Bank of England The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694 to act as the English Government's banker, and still one of the bankers for the Government of ...

became the sole note-issuing bank in England and Wales. Some commercial banks in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

and

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

retain the right to issue bank notes, but only the

may now issue sterling bank notes in England and Wales. Fox, Fowler Bank of Wellington £5 Note

This original £5 note is on display at

Tone Dale House Tone Dale House (or Tonedale House) is a Grade II listed country house built in 1801 or 1807 by Thomas Fox in Wellington, Somerset, England. Wellington lies west of Taunton in the vale of Taunton Deane, from the Devon border. Tone Dale House, ...

, which Thomas Fox built in 1801.

References

External links

The British Museum: A 1921 Fox, Fowler, and Company £5 note
{{Lloyds Banking Group Defunct banks of the United Kingdom Former banknote issuers of the United Kingdom Banks established in 1787 Companies based in Somerset History of Somerset Banks disestablished in 1921 1787 establishments in England Wellington, Somerset 1921 disestablishments in England British companies disestablished in 1921

Banknote issue

See also

References

External links