Richard Flower (1760–1829) was an English banker and brewer who was one of the pioneers of
Albion, Illinois and promoted English immigration to the USA after the
War of 1812
The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States, United States of America and its Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom ...
.
Early life
Richard was the youngest son of George Flower (1715–1778), who had a stationery business in the
City of London
The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London f ...
, and his wife Martha Fuller (1717-1805). She was the sister of two influential bankers:
William Fuller, who became one of the richest men in England, and
Richard Fuller, a long-serving Member of Parliament. His elder brother was
Benjamin Flower
Benjamin Flower (1755 – 17 February 1829) was an English radical journalist and political writer, and a vocal opponent of his country's involvement in the early stages of the Napoleonic Wars.
Early life
He was born in London, the son of a pro ...
.
Career
Initially destined for an agricultural career, Richard instead went into business in
Hertford, becoming a brewer and a banker. In 1803 he was able to sell up and retire to his country estate of
Marden Hill, where he farmed and also pursued his political interests. These included financial support for his brother Benjamin's radical publications and his own campaigns against what he considered unjust taxation. In 1817 he sold up and took his whole family with all their possessions to join his son George in Illinois.
Family
On 25 December 1786 at Hertford, Richard married Elizabeth Fordham (1765–1846), daughter of Edward Fordham (1721–1778) and sister of the brewer and banker
Edward King Fordham. They had ten children, including George Flower (1788–1862) who with
Morris Birkbeck was one of the founders of the
English Settlement in Illinois, Martha Flower (1800–1838) who married
William Pickering (governor)
William Pickering (March 15, 1798 – April 22, 1873) was an English-born American politician who served the fifth governor of Washington territory, from 1862 to 1866. He is the member of the Republican Party.
Biography
Pickering was born in ...
, Mary Katherine Flower (1802–1852) who wed Sir
Francis Ronalds
Sir Francis Ronalds FRS (21 February 17888 August 1873) was an English scientist and inventor, and arguably the first electrical engineer. He was knighted for creating the first working electric telegraph over a substantial distance. In 1816 ...
' brother Hugh Ronalds,
and the brewer
Edward Fordham Flower
Edward Fordham Flower (1805–1883) was an English brewer and author who campaigned for a Shakespeare memorial theatre and against cruelty to animals.
Origins
Born at Marden Hill in Hertfordshire on 31 January 1805, he was the younger surviving ...
.
Publications
*Observations on Beer and Brewers, in which the inequality, injustice and impolicy of the malt and beer tax are demonstrated. Richard Flower. Cambridge, 1802
*Abolition of Tithe recommended, in an address to the agriculturalists of Great Britain ... with some observations on the present construction of the law of tithing, etc. Richard Flower. Harlow, 1809.
*Flower's Letters from Lexington (25 June 1819) and the Illinois (August 16, 1819). Reprint of the original edition. Richard Flower. London, 1819. 1819
*Letters from the Illinois, 1820, 1821. Containing an account of the English settlement at Albion and its vicinity, and a refutation of various misrepresentations, those more particularly of Mr. Cobbett; with a letter from M. Birkbeck; and a preface and notes by B. Flower. Richard Flower. London, 1822.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Flower, Richard, settler
1760 births
1829 deaths
People from Hertford
People from Albion, Illinois