Goslings Bank was a historical English private bank, located since at least 1743 at No. 19

Fleet Street Fleet Street is a major street mostly in the City of London. It runs west to east from Temple Bar at the boundary with the City of Westminster to Ludgate Circus at the site of the London Wall and the River Fleet from which the street was na ...

, London, and identified to customers by a hanging signboard depicting three squirrels.

History

The bank originated in the business of Henry Pinckney, a goldsmith-banker who began trading in about 1650 at the sign of the Three Squirrels.The business passed through various hands until it came under the sole ownership of Thomas Ward, following the death of his partner in 1742. Ward brought in Sir Francis Gosling only for he (Ward) to die the following year. Ward’s replacement was Samael Bennett, a prominent East India merchant who brought valuable Indian business. On Bennett’s retirement, George Clive, a relative of

Lord Clive Robert Clive, 1st Baron Clive, (29 September 1725 – 22 November 1774), also known as Clive of India, was the first British Governor of the Bengal Presidency. Clive has been widely credited for laying the foundation of the British ...

, became a partner, the name of the firm changing to Gosling, Gosling and Clive. George Clive died in 1779 and more Goslings joined the partnership, the firm being known as Messrs Gosling for some years. Matthews, P W & Tuke, A W, ''History of Barclays Bank Limited,'' 1926, London pp 79-102 Benjamin Sharpe was the first employee to be appointed to the partnership. Sharpe had been a clerk at the Bank and was taken into partnership in 1794 and the name of the firm was changed to the familiar Goslings and Sharpe. Although there were always several Goslings in the partnership at any one time, a solitary Sharpe name remained in the partnership until the 1896 merger: the original Benjamin Sharpe; his son, and then grandson. In 1896, Goslings and Sharpe became one of the twenty constituent banks that merged to form Barclay and Company. The name of this well-known banking family is perpetuated in parentheses on all Barclays cheques relating to accounts held at the Fleet Street branch.

Customers

Goslings Bank boasted a number of prominent customers, including

St John's College, Oxford St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded as a men's college in 1555, it has been coeducational since 1979.Communication from Michael Riordan, college archivist Its founder, Sir Thomas White, intended to pro ...

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The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

newspaper,

the Law Society The Law Society of England and Wales (officially The Law Society) is the professional association that represents solicitors for the jurisdiction of England and Wales. It provides services and support to practising and training solicitors, as ...

, the

Stationers Company The Worshipful Company of Stationers and Newspaper Makers (until 1937 the Worshipful Company of Stationers), usually known as the Stationers' Company, is one of the livery company, livery companies of the City of London. The Stationers' Compan ...

, and the

Society of Licensed Victuallers The Licensed Trade Charity (LTC) is a registered charity in the United Kingdom that cares for people working in, or retired from, the licensed drink trade and their dependents. It is constituted as a registered charity under English law, and its ...

. Prominent individuals known to have banked with Goslings include

Edward Austen Knight Edward Austen Knight (born Edward Austen; 7 October 1767 – 19 November 1852) was the third eldest brother of Jane Austen, and provided her with the use of a cottage in Chawton where she lived for the last years of her life (now Jane Austen's ...

, Thomas Longman, and

Sir Edwin Landseer Sir Edwin Henry Landseer (7 March 1802 – 1 October 1873) was an English painter and sculptor, well known for his paintings of animals – particularly horses, dogs, and stags. However, his best-known works are the lion sculptures at the bas ...

Legacy

The Goslings name is perpetuated by Barclays Bank as part of the group's history, and in several practical ways. The three squirrels sign is still maintained outside the Fleet Street branch at 19 Fleet Street, and the Goslings name is still printed on cheques issued at that branch, as it has been since the 1896 merger.

References

External links

Cheque of Barclay's Bank with Goslings' name and address
held in the

British museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

. Defunct banks of the United Kingdom Banks established in 1743 1743 establishments in England {{Europe-bank-stub

History

Customers

Legacy

See also

References

External links