Sir Frederick Mappin, 1st Baronet

Sir Frederick Thorpe Mappin, 1st Baronet, known as Frederick Mappin (16 May 1821 - 19 March 1910) was a British politician and factory owner.

Born in Sheffield, Mappin worked for his father's cutlery company from the age of thirteen, running it alone after his father's death in 1841. In 1851, he became the youngest ever Master Cutler, but after a dispute with his younger brother, he left the firm, which later became part of Mappin and Webb.

Mappin then bought a steelworks and implemented machine working, despite a strike by employees. In 1854, he was elected to Sheffield Town Council as a Liberal, stepping down in 1857. In the 1860s, Mappin became a director of the Sheffield Gas and Light Company, and of the Midland Railway.

In 1876, Mappin was re-elected to the Town Council, and served as the Mayor of Sheffield in 1877-8. In 1878, he was a juror at the Paris Universal Exhibition, and was awarded the Légion d'honneur. At the 1880 UK general election, he was elected as Member of Parliament for East Retford, while remaining on Sheffield Town Council until 1883.

Mappin was a major supporter of the creation of the Sheffield Technical School. Also in the 1880s, he gave a bequest to create the Mappin Art Gallery.

In 1885, Mappin's Parliamentary seat was abolished, and he moved instead to represent Hallamshire, a post he held until 1905. That year, he supported the formation of the University of Sheffield, and was created its first Pro-Chancellor. The University's Sir Frederick Mappin Building is named after him.

References

*"Mappin, Sir Frederick Thorpe", "Oxford Dictionary of National Biography"
*" [http://www.made-in-sheffield.com/People/frederickThorpeMappin.htm Sir Frederick Thorpe Mappin] ", Made in Sheffield