Percy May Bright (1863 – 7 February 1941) was a British collector of butterflies, stamps and the owner of the departmental store Brights and Sons. He was founder of the Bournemouth Natural Science Society and a Fellow of the

Royal Entomological Society The Royal Entomological Society is devoted to the study of insects. Its aims are to disseminate information about insects and improving communication between entomologists. The society was founded in 1833 as the Entomological Society of London ...

. He served as mayor for

Bournemouth Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the Southern ...

for three terms from 1929 to 1931. Bright was born in

Mirzapur Mirzapur () is a city in Uttar Pradesh, India, 827 km from Delhi and 733 km from Kolkata, almost 91 km from Prayagraj (formally known as Allahabad) and 61 km from Varanasi. It is known for its carpets and brassware industries, and the folk ...

, India where his father, Frederick John Bright (1832-1905), originally from

Braintree, Essex Braintree is a town and former civil parish in Essex, England. The principal settlement of Braintree District, it is located northeast of Chelmsford and west of Colchester. According to the 2011 Census, the town had a population of 41,634, ...

, worked with the

London Missionary Society The London Missionary Society was an interdenominational evangelical missionary society formed in England in 1795 at the instigation of Welsh Congregationalist minister Edward Williams. It was largely Reformed in outlook, with Congregational miss ...

. The family returned to England due to the poor health of his mother (Julia Eliza née May) and they set up a photography studio, a printing press, and a store selling needlework, wool, and later books. Bright grew up to manage what became the departmental store of Bright & Colson. He also took part in activities of the London Missionary Society, making a trip to India. He became a Justice of Peace and served as Mayor of Bournemouth for three terms from 1929. In 1941, returning from a trip to the grave of his wife, he was killed when he was hit by a coal lorry while crossing Charminster Road. He is buried at

Wimborne Road Cemetery Wimborne Minster (often referred to as Wimborne, ) is a market town in Dorset in South West England, and the name of the Church of England church in that town. It lies at the confluence of the River Stour and the River Allen, north of Poole ...

, Bournemouth. Bright collected stamps, antiques, fine furniture, and lepidoptera. He founded a stamp market in London and was a member of the South London Entomological and Natural History Society from 1890 and along with H.A. Leeds he published the ''Monograph of the British Aberrations of the Chalk-hill Blue'' (1938). His vast collection of lepidoptera went to Lord

Walter Rothschild Lionel Walter Rothschild, 2nd Baron Rothschild, Baron de Rothschild, (8 February 1868 – 27 August 1937) was a British banker, politician, zoologist and soldier, who was a member of the Rothschild family. As a Zionist leader, he was present ...

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Film showing Percy May Bright as mayor inaugurating a new extension
(1931) {{DEFAULTSORT:Bright, Percy May 1863 births 1941 deaths Lepidopterists Mayors of places in Dorset British people in colonial India