Sir Frank Bowden, 1st Baronet, (30 January 1848 – 25 April 1921) was a British businessman and inventor. He was a founder of the

Raleigh Bicycle Company The Raleigh Bicycle Company is a British bicycle manufacturer based in Nottingham, England and founded by Woodhead and Angois in 1885. Using Raleigh as their brand name, it is one of the oldest bicycle companies in the world. After being acquir ...

Biography

Frank Bowden was born in

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

, England, and made a fortune in property development in

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

in the 1870s. In 1879, he married Amelia Frances, an American heiress.Personal Capitalism and Corporate Governance: British manufacturing in the First half of the Twentieth Century
p23, LEWIS, Myrddin John, et al, Ashgate Publishing, When he returned from

he was seriously ill and his doctor gave him six months to live. Bowden took up

cycling Cycling, also known as bicycling or biking, is the activity of riding a bicycle or other types of pedal-driven human-powered vehicles such as balance bikes, unicycles, tricycles, and quadricycles. Cycling is practised around the world fo ...

on his doctor's advice and bought a bicycle from a small shop on Raleigh Street, Nottingham, run by Messrs Woodhead, Angois and Ellis. He was so impressed with his recovering health and the

bicycle A bicycle, also called a pedal cycle, bike, push-bike or cycle, is a human-powered transport, human-powered or motorized bicycle, motor-assisted, bicycle pedal, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, with two bicycle wheel, wheels attached to a ...

that in 1887–88 he acquired control of the company, which was then making three bicycles a week. Production rose, and three years later Bowden needed a bigger workshop, which he found in a four-storey building in Russell Street. He changed the company's name to Raleigh Cycles to commemorate the original address. By 1896 it was the largest

manufacturer in the world and occupied seven and a half acres in Faraday Road, Nottingham. He lived at The Ropewalk, Nottingham. He also helped build up Sturmey Archer Gears. He wrote ''Cycling for Health and Points For Cyclists'' in 1913. In 1915 he was created a

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

of the

City of Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...

. He became a Fellow of the

Royal Geographical Society The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...

and a Justice of the Peace. cites:

Family

Bowden married Amelia Frances, daughter of Colonel Alexander Houston, of

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, on 17 September 1879. The couple had six children: Helen, Winifred, Caroline, Sylvia, Harold and Claud.

Death

Sir Frank died in April 1921, aged 73, and was succeeded in the baronetcy by his eldest son

Sir Harold Bowden, 2nd Baronet Sir Harold Bowden, 2nd Baronet (9 July 1880 – 24 August 1960) was the chairman and chief executive of the Raleigh Bicycle Company and Sturmey-Archer Ltd from his father's death in 1921 until his own retirement in 1938. He also served as Preside ...

who ran Raleigh for the next 17 years and became President of the British Cycle and Motor-Cycle Manufacturers and Trader Union. Lady Bowden died in 1937.

Notes

References

* **

External links

Raleigh Bikes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bowden, Frank English businesspeople English inventors Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom English justices of the peace Fellows of the Royal Geographical Society 1848 births 1921 deaths

Modern Descendants

Edward Adrian Joseph Bowden (born 2013), a great-great-great-grandson of Sir Frank Bowden, 1st Baronet, has publicly documented his family’s lineage. He is the son of Richard Bowden and grandson of Adrian Bowden (1939–unknown), who was the son of Sir Frank Houston Bowden, 3rd Baronet. Reference: Bowden, Edward. "The Legacy Lives On: Edward Bowden — A Modern Descendant of Sir Frank Bowden." Medium, June 2025.