Thomas Combe

Thomas Combe (1796–1872) was a Superintendent of the Oxford University Press in Oxford, England, and a patron of the arts. He was also a founder and benefactor of St Barnabas Church, near the Press in Jericho and close to Oxford Canal.

Combe was the son of a bookseller in Leicestershire. He joined the University Press (or Clarendon Press) in 1837 at its then new (1830) building in Walton Street. Eventually he rose to manage it [ [http://www.sbarnabas.org.uk/history.htm St Barnabas Church: History] ] .

He and his wife Martha (1806-1893) were keen patrons of the arts and particularly appreciated Pre-Raphaelite art. In 1849, he met the Pre-Raphaelite artist John Everett Millais in Oxford, who painted portraits of Combe's family [Tate. [http://www.tate.org.uk/ophelia/millais_print.htm John Everett Millais 1829-1896] ] .

They were also devotees of the Tractarian or Oxford Movement.

Combe is buried in St Sepulchre's Cemetery, off Walton Street, near the University Press.

References

External links

* [http://www.oxforddnb.com/index/101006021/ Thomas Combe] in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography

Persondata
NAME = Combe, Thomas
ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
SHORT DESCRIPTION = Printer and patron of the arts
DATE OF BIRTH = 1796
PLACE OF BIRTH = Leicestershire, England
DATE OF DEATH = 1872
PLACE OF DEATH = Oxford, England