Sir William Baker (5 November 1705 – 23 January 1770) was an English merchant and politician, a Member of the Parliament of Great Britain and Governor of the Hudson's Bay Company.[1]
He was the son of John Baker, a London draper. He became an Alderman of London in 1739 and a director of the East India Company in 1741–5, 1746–50 and 1751–53. He was also deputy chairman (1749, 1751–52), chairman (1749–50, 1752–53), Deputy Governor (1750-60) and the 11th Governor (1760–70) of the Hudson's Bay Company. He was knighted in 1760.
He was MP for Plympton Erle from 1747 to 1768. In 1759 he built a country house in an estate at Bayfordbury in Hertfordshire.[2]
He died in 1770. He had married Mary, the daughter of Jacob Tonson, publisher, and with her had 6 sons and a daughter. His eldest son, also William Baker, who inherited and improved Bayfordbury, was also an MP.
The community Baker Lake in Nunavut, Canada was named after him.[3][4][5]
References
- ^ "BAKER, William (1705-70), of Winchester St., London, and Bayfordbury, Herts". History of Parliament Online. Retrieved 16 June 2016.
- ^ "Name: BAYFORDBURY List entry Number: 1176752". Historic England. Retrieved 21 July 2018.
- ^ "Sandy Lunan, Hudson's Bay Co. Factor, baking his own bread, Baker Lake, Northwest Territories, 1946". Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 17 March 2008.
- ^ Governors
- ^ Baker Lake history
External links
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