Sir Richard Atkinson Robinson
DL (16 October 1849 – 28 April 1928) was a retail
chemist and
druggist, who later became a local politician and was the first member of the
Municipal Reform Party (linked to the
Conservatives) to lead the
London County Council (1907–1908).
Early life
He was the eldest son of a
Whitby family engaged in the owning and operating of sailing ships. His father died when he was 18, and with four sisters and four younger brothers, there was no money for expensive
higher education.
He
apprenticed himself to a chemist and druggist in
Bootle, migrating to a
Kensington
Kensington is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in the West End of London, West of Central London.
The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up b ...
firm in 1870 and qualifying for registration in 1872. The firm's owner died and he bought it, going on to acquire also a shop in
Tunbridge Wells and later a fashionable
pharmacy
Pharmacy is the science and practice of discovering, producing, preparing, dispensing, reviewing and monitoring medications, aiming to ensure the safe, effective, and affordable use of medicines. It is a miscellaneous science as it links heal ...
near
St. James's Palace
St James's Palace is the most senior royal palace in London, the capital of the United Kingdom. The palace gives its name to the Court of St James's, which is the monarch's royal court, and is located in the City of Westminster in London. Alt ...
.
As a chemist and druggist, he could not become a full member of the
Pharmaceutical Society
The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPharmS or RPS) is the body responsible for the leadership and support of the pharmacy profession (pharmacists) within England, Scotland, and Wales. It was created along with the General Pharmaceutical Council ...
, but in 1898 he and others in the same position became able to do so under an amending
Act of Parliament which he had actively promoted. He subsequently became a member of the society's council and served as president in 1904–1907. He was instrumental in securing the drafting and adoption of compulsory
poison
Poison is a chemical substance that has a detrimental effect to life. The term is used in a wide range of scientific fields and industries, where it is often specifically defined. It may also be applied colloquially or figuratively, with a broa ...
regulations in 1899.
Local government
He was always active in local affairs. He became chairman of the Tunbridge Wells Tradesmen's Association and was a Town
Councillor there; an
Alderman in Kensington; a
Deputy Lieutenant in the County of London and a
Justice of the Peace
A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...
both there and in the
North Riding of Yorkshire
The North Riding of Yorkshire is a subdivision of Yorkshire, England, alongside York, the East Riding and West Riding. The riding's highest point is at Mickle Fell with 2,585 ft (788 metres).
From the Restoration it was used as ...
; a Governor of the
Imperial College of Science
Imperial College London (legally Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom. Its history began with Prince Albert, consort of Queen Victoria, who developed his vision for a cu ...
; a member of the board of the Thames Conservancy; an Income Tax Commissioner, and a cofounder and first chairman of the Society of Yorkshiremen in London. He turned down the mayoralties of both Tunbridge Wells and Kensington.
He was also elected to the
London County Council as one of the "Moderates" (linked to the
Conservatives) who opposed the "Progressive" (linked to the
Liberals) majority. He served as Deputy Chairman of the council in 1903–04, and was leader of the "
Municipal Reform Party" (the more active title assumed by the Moderates) in 1907 when, in a bitterly fought election, they won a remarkable majority against what they denounced as the Progressives' extravagance and wastefulness. After forming the first Municipal Reform administration, he served as Chairman of the council in 1908–09. He was
knighted in 1916, the first time that (as a result of the formation of the wartime
coalition
A coalition is a group formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political or economical spaces.
Formation
According to ''A Gui ...
government) the Conservative Party could honour the success he had helped to achieve in 1907.
Later life
During the
First World War, he retired from business, serving as vice-chairman of the London Tribunal on Profiteering. In 1920 he moved back to Whitby where he became chairman of the
urban district council.
Family
In 1876 he married Jane Thistle of another Whitby family, and in 1926 they celebrated their golden
wedding anniversary,
[''The Pharmaceutical Journal and Pharmacist'', 12 May 1928, p. 463] as her parents and grandparents and his grandparents had done and as one of their sons and four of their grandchildren did later. He helped his children get better education than he had done and all his sons attended university or took equivalent professional qualifications, while his eldest daughter graduated at the
London School of Economics and lectured there before the First World War.
Death
He died in 1928, survived by his widow, three daughters and two sons. (Two other sons predeceased him, having been killed in action during WWI.)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Robinson, Richard
1849 births
1928 deaths
Conservative Party (UK) councillors
People associated with Imperial College London
Knights Bachelor
Members of London County Council
Councillors in Greater London
Councillors in North Yorkshire
Councillors in Kent
Deputy Lieutenants of the County of London
Municipal Reform Party politicians
People from Whitby
English justices of the peace