Frank Geere Howard (3 March 1861 – 14 July 1935) was a

Municipal Reform Party The Municipal Reform Party was a local party allied to the parliamentary Conservative Party in the County of London. The party contested elections to both the London County Council and metropolitan borough councils of the county from 1906 to 194 ...

politician in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. He was a member of the

London County Council The London County Council (LCC) was the principal local government body for the County of London throughout its existence from 1889 to 1965, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today ...

from 1926 to 1934.

Early life

Howard was born in

Hampstead Hampstead () is an area in London, England, which lies northwest of Charing Cross, located mainly in the London Borough of Camden, with a small part in the London Borough of Barnet. It borders Highgate and Golders Green to the north, Belsiz ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

in 1861, the son of George Howard and his wife Emily (née Geere). His father and grandfather, John Tabor Howard, were upholsterers, practising under the name of Howard & Sons Ltd. Howard wound-up the company in 1935, shortly before his death. Howard qualified as a civil engineer in 1879.

Political career

Howard was Mayor of

Hampstead Borough Council Hampstead was a Civil parishes in England, civil parish and Metropolitan boroughs of the County of London, metropolitan borough in London, England. It was an ancient parish in the county of Middlesex, governed by an administrative vestry. The pa ...

on three occasions: 1921-22, 1923-24 and 1924-25. In 1926 there was a casual vacancy for

on the

following the resignation of Sir Andrew Taylor, and Howard was elected unopposed, as a member of the

. He was re-elected in

1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly demonstrating that DNA is the genetic material. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris B ...

and

1931 Events January * January 2 – South Dakota native Ernest Lawrence invents the cyclotron, used to accelerate particles to study nuclear physics. * January 4 – German pilot Elly Beinhorn begins her flight to Africa. * January 22 – Sir I ...

. He did not seek re-election in

1934 Events January–February * January 1 – The International Telecommunication Union, a specialist agency of the League of Nations, is established. * January 15 – The 8.0 1934 Nepal–Bihar earthquake, Nepal–Bihar earthquake strik ...

. In 1921 (the centenary of the death of

John Keats John Keats (31 October 1795 – 23 February 1821) was an English poet of the second generation of Romantic poets, along with Lord Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley. His poems had been in publication for less than four years when he died of tub ...

) Howard was responsible for the fund-raising activities that allowed Keats' House to be acquired by Hampstead Council. He was one of the original owners of the house in 1921 (then known as Lawn Bank) when it was taken into public ownership. He was also responsible for the acquisition by the London County Council of Kenwood and the Paddock, adding them to the public open spaces of

Hampstead Heath Hampstead Heath is an ancient heath in London, spanning . This grassy public space sits astride a sandy ridge, one of the highest points in London, running from Hampstead to Highgate, which rests on a band of London Clay. The heath is rambling ...

Personal life

Howard married Feona Mary Duport Wren (1862-1931) (the daughter of the

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * Generally, a supporter of the political philosophy liberalism. Liberals may be politically left or right but tend to be centrist. * An adherent of a Liberal Party (See also Liberal parties by country ...

/ Progressive politician

Walter Wren Walter Wren (28 December 1833 – 5 August 1898) was an English tutor and Liberal Party (UK), Liberal Party politician who sat in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons briefly in 1880. Wren was born at Buntingford, Hert ...

and his first wife, Eliza (née Cox)) in 1886 at

St Mary Magdalene, Paddington St Mary Magdalene, Paddington, is a Grade I listed Anglican church at Rowington Close, London, dedicated to Jesus' follower, Saint Mary Magdalene. The parish was established in 1865 and work on the church started in 1867. Although complete in , ...

. They had one son,

George Wren Howard George Wren Howard (24 March 1893 – 30 July 1968) was a British publisher. He was a co-founder with Cape of the publishing house of Jonathan Cape in 1921, and took over as chairman when Cape died in 1960. Biography The son of Frank Geere How ...

, who would become a book publisher with

Jonathan Cape Jonathan Cape is a British publishing firm headquartered in London and founded in 1921 by Herbert Jonathan Cape, who was head of the firm until his death. Cape and his business partner Wren Howard (1893–1968) set up the publishing house in ...

. Howard died in 1935, aged 74.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Howard, Frank Geere Members of London County Council 1861 births 1935 deaths Municipal Reform Party politicians