William Allen (1736–1792) was an English banker who was a co-founder of the first bank to be opened in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

and was also the father of a future bishop.

Early personal life

William Allen was the youngest of six sons. His mother passed away in 1742, when he was six years old, and he was raised by his father. When his father died, he was the sole surviving child and inherited his father's house and property. In 1760, he married the daughter of Tomas Clowes and, in 1765, bought Davyhulme Hall, near

Urmston Urmston is a town in Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, which had a population of 41,825 at the 2011 Census. Historically in Lancashire, it is southwest of Manchester city centre. The southern boundary is the River Mersey, with Stretford ...

(now in

Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county and combined authority, combined authority area in North West England, with a population of 2.8 million; comprising ten metropolitan boroughs: City of Manchester, Manchester, City of Salford, Salford ...

). A year later, his wife died, and in 1768, he married Ellen (Nellie) Livesey, the daughter of John Livesey, a

Blackburn Blackburn () is an industrial town and the administrative centre of the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire, England. The town is north of the West Pennine Moors on the southern edge of the Ribble Valley, east of Preston and north-n ...

cotton mill owner. In 1770, their son,

Joseph Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...

, the future bishop, was born. A daughter, Ellen, was born in 1774.

Banking career

Allen was a co-founder of the bank of Byrom, Allen, Sedgwick, and Place, also known as the Manchester Bank, the first bank to be established in the city, which opened its doors on 2 December, 1771. Its other founders were Edward Byrom, Roger Sedgwick, and Edward Place. Place left the bank after a few months to take up other business interests. Byrom died in 1773 and Sedgwick in 1779, leaving Allen as the sole director. One of the bank's customers was the firm of

Livesey, Hargreaves and Company Livesey, Hargreaves and Company was an English business involved in the textile industry during the late 18th century. Business The company took a lead in the mechanisation of printing cloth using a process that had been developed by Thom ...

. Allen's wife is one of the Livesey family, and Allen made large loans to the company. However, the company went bankrupt in 1788, with debts totaling £1.5 million (equivalent to £ in 2021). Two days later, the bank itself collapsed, Allen was declared bankrupt, and he had to sell his property.

Later family life

Allen and his family went to live with Robert Wainwright Ashley, an old friend, in their home at Park Place (now

Castle Park House Castle Park House is a former country house surrounded by extensive grounds in the market town of Frodsham in Cheshire, England. It is reputedly built on the site of Frodsham Castle, and originates from the late 18th century. It was exten ...

) in

Frodsham Frodsham is a market town, civil parish, and electoral ward in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. Its population was 8,982 in 2001, increasing to 9,077 at the 2011 Census. It is s ...

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county t ...

, where he died four years later. In 1794, William's daughter, Ellen, married Wainwright's son, Daniel, and in 1807, Joseph married Wainwright's daughter, Margaret. Joseph had studied in Manchester, then at

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by Henry VIII, King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge ...

. After serving as vicar to two London churches, he was appointed

Bishop of Bristol A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

in 1834, then

Bishop of Ely The Bishop of Ely is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Ely in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese roughly covers the county of Cambridgeshire (with the exception of the Soke of Peterborough), together with a section of nort ...

two years later, remaining there until his death in 1845. William's wife, Ellen, had died in 1825. They were both buried in St. Laurence's Church, Frodsham, and there is a wall monument to their memory in the

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse. Ove ...

of the church.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, William 1736 births 1792 deaths English bankers 18th-century English businesspeople