Sir Fisher Tench, 1st Baronet facts for kids

Sir Fisher Tench (born around 1673, died October 31, 1736) was an important businessman in London. He worked with money, was a Member of Parliament (a person who helps make laws for the country), and was in charge of many companies. He was also given the special title of a Baronet.

Early Life and Family

Fisher Tench was the son of Nathaniel Tench, who passed away in 1710. His mother was Ann, who died in 1696. Ann's father, William Fisher, was an important city official in London.

Fisher's father, Nathaniel, bought a large property called the Great House estate in Leyton around 1686. Nathaniel was also one of the first people to help run the Bank of England. He was even its Governor (the main leader) from 1699 to 1701. Before that, Nathaniel was a merchant who traded goods from places like Eastern Europe and India.

Fisher Tench went to school at the Inner Temple and Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge. These were important places for education in his time.

The Great House at Leyton

In 1697, Fisher Tench and his wife, Elizabeth, received part of the Leyton property from his father. This included a main house and about 29 acres of land.

When his father died in 1710, Fisher inherited the rest of the family's property. He likely started building the new Great House at Leyton soon after. It was a very large house with two main floors, a basement, and attic rooms.

The house was built in a style popular at the time, sometimes called the 'Wren' style. It had dark red brick walls with lighter brick and stone details. The front of the house faced the main road. It had a central part with two slightly set-back wings on each side.

The main part of the house had tall, decorative pillars and a triangular shape at the top. The side wings had special stone corners. The entire front of the house had 13 sections and was topped with a decorative ledge and a flat roof with windows. Six large stone vases decorated the roofline. The back of the house, facing the garden, looked similar.

The decorative dome from the Great House was moved to the tower of St. Mary's church after the house was taken down in 1905.

Sir Fisher Tench in Parliament

Fisher Tench first tried to become a Member of Parliament (MP) in 1708 for a place called Shaftesbury. At that time, he was known as a merchant who traded with India.

In 1711, he served as the High Sheriff of Essex for a year. This was an important local government role.

He then became a Whig MP for Southwark in 1713. The Whigs were a political group. During this election, Fisher and another Whig candidate wore wool in their hats. This showed they supported British cloth makers. They were against some trade agreements made by the other political group, the Tories.

His election in 1713 was later cancelled in 1714. However, he and his fellow MP, John Lade, were both re-elected. This re-election was a tough and likely expensive competition. He was then re-elected without anyone running against him in 1715.

Fisher Tench was made a Baronet in 1715. This is a special title that is passed down through the family. He remained an MP until 1722. After losing the election in 1722, he stopped being involved in politics.

Business Activities

Fisher Tench was involved in many different businesses and companies.

Company Leadership

In 1711, Fisher Tench became an Assistant at the Royal Africa Company. He then became its sub-Governor in 1716. This company was involved in trade, including the slave trade. Being part of this company might have helped him get elected to Parliament.

He was also a director of the South Sea Company from 1715 to 1718. Later in his life, he was sometimes a director of the Company of Mineral and Battery Works. He sometimes had disagreements with the leader of that company, Sir John Meres.

Lighting London's Streets

In 1716, Fisher Tench and Sir Samuel Garrard took on a project to light the streets of London. They leased the "convex lights" for the City of London, following a law passed in 1716.

In 1735, he had trouble paying his rent for this lighting project. He tried to argue that his 21-year lease was not allowed by the Corporation of London (the city's government), but he was not successful.

Plantations and Enslaved People

Fisher Tench owned a large farm, called a plantation, in Virginia. This plantation was worked by enslaved people. He tried to teach these enslaved people about Christianity.

One enslaved man named George Pompey was remembered in a special memorial. It said he was a good Christian and had worked for Sir Fisher Tench for 20 years before he died in 1735.

Charitable Corporation Involvement

In October 1725, Fisher Tench was chosen to be on the committee (like a board of directors) of the Charitable Corporation. He was on the committee for a little over a year. Because of this, he was not involved in some dishonest actions that happened at the company later.

However, he was at a meeting where the company's cashier (William Tench, who was his second son) was told to move the company's money. He was also at earlier meetings where they decided to print notes that would work like bank notes. Some people wondered if Fisher Tench should be blamed. This was because his son, William, stayed as cashier even when dishonest things were happening. William's job was worth a lot of money to him, even though his official salary was much lower.

Later Life and Legacy

Sir Fisher Tench passed away in 1736. He had five sons and four daughters. However, several of his children, including his second son William, died before him.

His son Nathaniel became the next Baronet after him. But Nathaniel died the very next year. The Great House property then went to Nathaniel's sister, Jane.

Jane married Adam Soresby. When she died in 1752, the property went to her stepson, William Soresby. William then sold the Great House property in 1758.