Sir William Dunn, 1st Baronet, of Lakenheath
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Sir William Dunn MP JP FRGS |
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Sir William Dunn in 1909
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| Member of Parliament of the United Kingdom |
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In office 1891–1906 |
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| Preceded by | William Barbour |
| Succeeded by | Constituency reorganised |
| Constituency | Paisley, Scotland |
| Consul General of the Orange Free State in the United Kingdom |
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In office 1895–1900 |
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| Succeeded by | Office abolished |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
22 September 1833 Paisley, Scotland |
| Died | 31 March 1912 (aged 78) London, England |
| Nationality | British |
| Political party | Liberal Party |
| Spouse(s) | Sarah Elizabeth Dunn |
| Occupation | merchant, banker, politician |
| Religion | Presbyterian |
Sir William Dunn, 1st Baronet, of Lakenheath MP JP FRGS (22 September 1833 – 31 March 1912), was a London banker, merchant and philanthropist, Liberal Member of Parliament for Paisley (1891–1906), and from before 1896 until the outbreak of the Second Boer War in 1899 consul general for the Orange Free State in the United Kingdom.
Dunn's family origins were modest. He was born in Paisley near Glasgow on 22 September 1833 to John Dunn, a local shopkeeper, and Isabella Chalmers.
Dunn married in South Africa in 1859 with Sarah Elizabeth Howse (1 May 1830 – 2 February 1919), daughter of James Howse (1796–1852), of Grahamstown, Cape Colony, and Sarah Ann Dold (1803–1881). James Howse emigrated to Algoa Bay, South Africa from Oxfordshire in 1820. He started off as a labourer, but later owned the farm "Leeuwfontein". He was killed in an ambush on the way to his farm on New Year's Day 1852.
It is suggested that Dunn received his earliest education at home, although there are also indications that he attended school in the working-class West End District of Paisley. At the age of fourteen Dunn became an apprentice at a local accountant's office. In view of the fact that his elder brothers – William was the youngest – all went to work in spinning and weaving, it seems reasonable to surmise that Dunn, through his intelligence and education, was able to break free from his social environment.
Dunn emigrated to South Africa in 1852, supported by a friend of his father's, local Member of Parliament William Barbour. where he landed in Algoa Bay. He entered the firm of Mackie & Co. of Port Elizabeth. After two years, still only twenty-one years old, he was offered a partnership in the firm. Another six years later, in 1860, Dunn succeeded his deceased partner as sole proprietor of the business.
Over time, Dunn built up a large worldwide trading empire from his South African base. Later he returned to Great Britain and controlled his businesses from London. Dunn was senior partner in the firms of William Dunn & Co. of Broad Street Avenue, London EC; Mackie, Dunn, & Co. of Port Elizabeth; W. Dunn & Co. of Durban; and in Dunn & Co. of East London. He was also a director of the Royal Exchange Assurance Co. and of the Union Discount Co. and chairman of the Home and Foreign Insurance Co.
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