Sir Jack Croft Baker,

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(25 February 1894 – 18 February 1962) was an English businessman and local politician.

Biography

Baker was the son of Henry Croft Baker and Alderman Ada Baker, JP. Educated at Clee Grammar School and Elmfield College, York,"Baker, Sir Jack (Croft)"
''Who Was Who'' (online edition, Oxford University Press, December 2007). Retrieved 8 January 2018. Baker was active in local politics, being elected to

Cleethorpes Cleethorpes () is a seaside town on the estuary of the Humber in North East Lincolnshire, Lincolnshire, England with a population of 29,678 in 2021. It has been permanently occupied since the 6th century, with fishing as its original industry ...

Urban District Council in 1928 and becoming its Chairman for 1933–34; in 1931, he was elected onto the Lindsey Council Council and in 1939 became an

Alderman An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law with similar officials existing in the Netherlands (wethouder) and Belgium (schepen). The term may be titular, denotin ...

of Cleethorpes (he was also Mayor of Cleethorpes for the year 1940–41). He resigned his commitments on the Borough and County Councils in 1945 to focus on business. With connections with a number of

Grimsby Grimsby or Great Grimsby is a port town in Lincolnshire, England with a population of 86,138 (as of 2021). It is located near the mouth on the south bank of the Humber that flows to the North Sea. Grimsby adjoins the town of Cleethorpes dir ...

trawling companies, he had become increasingly concerned with the fishing industry, as Vice-President (1940–44) and then President (1944–57) of the British Trawlers' Federation. In 1956, according to ''The Times'', he "played a leading part" in negotiations with

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

ic trawler owners ahead of the Paris agreement which ended the four-year ban on landing Icelandic fish at Grimsby. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he had been vice-chairman of the Fish Industry Joint Council; in 1949, he was appointed a Commander of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

and in 1958, he was

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

. He had married Doris Ann, daughter of Harry Beales in 1914, and had two sons and two daughters. He died on 18 February 1962, aged 67, at his Cleethorpes home."Sir Jack Croft Baker", ''The Times'', 22 February 1962, p. 21.

Biography

References

Further reading