Henry Boot (1851–1931) was the founder of Henry Boot PLC.

Henry Boot was the eldest surviving son of Charles and Ann Boot. He was born on 9 December 1851 in

Heeley Heeley is a former cluster of villages. Which all now form a suburb in the south of the City of Sheffield, England. The village has existed at least since 1343, its name deriving from ''Heah Leah'', ''High Lea'' then ''Hely'', meaning a high, w ...

, a small village two miles outside

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire and ...

. Henry's father had described himself as a stonemason in the 1851 census but as a farmer when the children were baptised.Ron Baines: ''The Boot Family'' (1998) In the 1871 census, the 19-year-old Henry is living with his parents and shown as a joiner's apprentice. The next year he married Hannah White (1855–1941) and moved to Napier Street, Sheffield, sandwiched between the Anglican Church and the

Plymouth Brethren The Plymouth Brethren or Assemblies of Brethren are a low church and non-conformist Christian movement whose history can be traced back to Dublin, Ireland, in the mid to late 1820s, where they originated from Anglicanism. The group emphasizes ...

meeting hall. Having first worshiped at the Church, he moved to the Brethren and later formed his own Brethren meeting. Henry and Hannah had 13 children over a period of 20 years, ten of whom survived to adulthood. Henry worked as an employee in the building industry for around 20 years before establishing his own joinery shop in 1886. The censuses record his increased status: 1891 a joiner; 1901 a builder and joiner; and 1911 a joiner builder and contractor. His accommodation kept pace as well with successive moves to larger houses – by 1911 he was living in an eleven room house in Sheffield. As is described in Henry Boot PLC the firm became an increasingly important contractor but the driving force was Henry's eldest son,

Charles Boot Charles Boot JP (1 October 1874 – 14 June 1945) was an English businessman and film producer who was the driving force behind the growth of Henry Boot & Sons in the inter-war period. As well as creating one of the largest contracting and hous ...

. By the start of World War I Henry had retired from the Company. He died on 2 November 1931 at his home on Victoria Road in Broomhall aged 80, his grave is in

Crookes Cemetery Crookes Cemetery is a cemetery between Crosspool and Crookes in the city of Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. Its main entrance is on Headland Road with additional access from Mulehouse Road. It was opened in 1906, and covers . By 2009, over ...

in Sheffield.''"It Comes To Us All - A Portrait of Crookes Cemetery"'', Julie Stone, self published, , p. 34 Gives details of death.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boot, Henry 1851 births 1931 deaths 20th-century English businesspeople