Sir Thomas Isaac Birkin, 1st Baronet (15 February 1831 – 16 January 1922) was a Nottingham lace manufacturer.

Early life

He was born on 15 February 1831, the second son of

Richard Birkin Richard Birkin (6 July 1805 – 10 October 1870) was a Nottingham lace manufacturer. Early life Richard Birkin was born in Belper, Nottinghamshire, on 6 July 1805, the eldest son of Richard Birkin, a calico handloom weaver, and started working ...

(1805–1870), who founded the family lace-making business.

Career

After his father retired in 1856, his sons Richard Jr and Thomas took over, until Richard Jr retired in 1862, and Thomas was left in sole charge. By 1898, the business had been split into two companies, Birkin and Co (fancy lace), and T. I. Birkin and Co (lace curtains), both headquartered at Broadway, Nottingham. They had expanded internationally, with large factories in Saxony and

Chester, Pennsylvania Chester is a city in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. Located within the Philadelphia Metropolitan Area, it is the only city in Delaware County and had a population of 32,605 as of the 2020 census. Incorporated in 1682, Chester is ...

, US. Birkin was a magistrate, and a Deputy Lieutenant of Nottinghamshire, of which he was the High Sheriff in 1892. He was a director of the Great Northern Railway.

Personal life

He married Harriet Tebbutt (1835-1921), on 9 October 1856, and they had nine children: * Sir Thomas Stanley Birkin, 2nd Baronet (1857–1931) * Sir Alexander Russell Birkin, 4th Baronet (1861–1942) * Lt-Col Richard Leslie Birkin (1863–1936) * Harriet Maud Birkin (1864–1951) * Colonel Charles Wilfred Birkin (1865–1932); married American Claire Lloyd Howe. One of their daughters was English socialite

Freda Dudley Ward Winifred May, Marquesa de Casa Maury (''née'' Birkin; 28 July 1894 – 16 March 1983), universally known by her first married name as Freda Dudley Ward, was an English socialite best known for being a married paramour of the Prince of Wales, w ...

, who was the mistress of the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...

prior to his meeting

Wallis Simpson Wallis, Duchess of Windsor (born Bessie Wallis Warfield, later Simpson; June 19, 1896 – April 24, 1986), was an American socialite and wife of the former King Edward VIII. Their intention to marry and her status as a divorcée caused ...

. * Hilda Mary Birkin (1868–1926) * Major Philip Austen Birkin (1869–1951) * Major Harry Laurence Birkin (1872–1951) * Ethel Lillian Birkin (1874–1972) He died on 16 January 1922, and is buried in the grade II listed Birkin Mausoleum, a small classical temple built in 1921 of Portland stone in

Wilford Hill Cemetery Wilford is a village in the city of Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England. The village is to the northeast of Clifton, Nottinghamshire, Clifton, southwest of West Bridgford, northwest of Ruddington and southwest of Nottingham city centre. It i ...

West Bridgford West Bridgford is a town and the administrative centre of the Borough of Rushcliffe in the county of Nottinghamshire, England. It lies immediately south of the city of Nottingham, from which the River Trent divides it. Forming part of the Nott ...

, Nottingham.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Birkin, Thomas Isaac 1831 births 1922 deaths Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom

Thomas Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the Ap ...

High Sheriffs of Nottinghamshire Deputy Lieutenants of Nottinghamshire English justices of the peace