Sir John Arthur Brooke (1844-1920)

Sir John Arthur Brooke was a textile manufacturer and director of the firm John Brooke and Sons, Limited of Armitage Bridge Mills.

Biography

He was born on 22 March 1844, the son of Thomas Brooke and his wife Ann (née Ingham), and was baptised on 3 July 1844 at St. Mary's Church, Honley.

He married Blanche Weston[1] on 7 January 1872 at Holy Trinity Church, Paddington, London. The couple resided at Fenay Hall and had four children:

He was an Alderman on Huddersfield Town Council between 1901 and 1907, and also served as the chairman of Huddersfield Technical College. During his lifetime, he was a Justice of the Peace for both the West Riding and for Ross-shire in Scotland.

Following the death of his older brother Thomas Brooke of Armitage Bridge House in 1908, Sir John inherited a collection of rare books including early folio editions of Shakespeare.

He became the 1st Baronet Brooke of Almondbury on 13 September 1919 and was succeeded by his son, Robert Weston Brooke.

He became a Freeman of the Borough of Huddersfield in 1920.

Sir John Arthur Brooke died on 12 July 1920 at Fenay Hall, aged 76. He was buried on 14 July at All Hallows, Almondbury.

An auction of his library was held at Sotherby's in London over eight days in May and June 1921. Around 20,000 volumes were sold for a total of £32,312.[4]

Extracts

The West Riding of Yorkshire at the Opening of the Twentieth Century: Contemporary Biographies (1902) edited by W.T. Pike:

John Arthur Brooke, M.A., J.P., Fenay Hall, Huddersfield, and Fearn Lodge, Ardgay, Ross-shire, N.B. ; son of the late Thomas Brooke, of Honley ; born at Honley, 1844 ; educated at Repton School, and at Oriel College, Oxford; M.A. Justice of the Peace for the West Riding of Yorks since 1887 ; takes an interest in both municipal and county matters, and is an Alderman for the North Ward of the county borough of Huddersfield ; President of the Huddersfield Technical College, and connected with most of the philanthropic institutions of the district ; Director of John Brooke and Sons, Ltd., Armitage Bridge, Huddersfield. Married Blanche, daughter of Major C. S. Weston, of Clifton Hampden, Abingdon. Clubs : United University, and Constitutional.

Obituaries

Further Reading

Gallery

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Notes and References

  1. Born circa 1850 in India. Died 1924.
  2. John Weston Brooke was killed in Tibet on 24 December 1908.
  3. Wikipedia: John Weston Brooke.
  4. Approximately £1.5m in today's money.