Alfred Felton
Encyclopedia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n entrepreneur, art collector and philanthropist.
Biography
Alfred Felton was born at MaldonMaldon, Essex
Maldon is a town on the Blackwater estuary in Essex, England. It is the seat of the Maldon district and starting point of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation.Maldon is twinned with the Dutch town of Cuijk...
, Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, the fifth child of six sons and three daughters of William Felton, a currier
Currier
A currier is a specialist in the leather processing industry. After the tanning process, the currier applies techniques of dressing, finishing and colouring to the tanned hide to make it strong, flexible and waterproof...
, and his wife Hannah. Felton travelled to Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
on the ship California in 1853 intending to search for gold.
In 1857, he was in business in Collins Street, Melbourne
Collins Street, Melbourne
Collins Street is a major street in the Melbourne central business district and runs approximately east to west.It is notable as Melbourne's traditional main street and best known street, is often regarded as Australia's premier street, with some of the country's finest Victorian era buildings.The...
, as a commission agent and dealer in merchandise, and in 1859 was an importer and general dealer. In 1861 he was in business in Swanston Street
Swanston Street, Melbourne
Swanston Street is a major thoroughfare in the centre of Melbourne, Australia. It is historically one of the main streets of central Melbourne, laid out in 1837 as part of the Hoddle Grid, the layout of major streets that makes up the central business district...
as a wholesale druggist.
In 1867 Felton went into partnership with Frederick Sheppard Grimwade
Frederick Sheppard Grimwade
Frederick Sheppard Grimwade was a businessman and Victorian member of parliament.Born in Norfolk, England, Grimwade arrived in Victoria in 1863. In 1867 he bought a pharmaceutical company and renamed it Felton Grimwade & Co.; it soon became the largest in the colony, prospering well into the...
and founded Felton Grimwade and Company, wholesale druggists and manufacturing chemists. As the business grew over the years, the partners acquired interests in associated industries such as Melbourne Glass Bottle Works, and Cuming Smith and Company, makers of artificial manures.
Felton also purchased two large estates, Murray Downs and Langi Kal Kal in Partnership with merchant and pastoralist Charles Gordon Campbell
Charles Gordon Campbell
Charles Gordon Campbell was born on the 14 January 1840, in Aberdeen Scotland. He is the son of Duncan Campbell, cattle driver and his wife Catherine née Mclean. Campbell was a Colonial Australian merchant and pastoralist. Along with Frederick Sheppard Grimwade, Alfred Felton, and James Cuming, he...
, a founding partner in Cuming Smith and Company. Upon Felton's death, his share in the Estates were sold to Campbell.
Felton's wants were few and he never married. He gave away considerable amounts to charity, and formed large collections of pictures and books which at times threatened to push him out of his rooms at the Esplanade Hotel, St Kilda
St Kilda, Victoria
St Kilda is an inner city suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 6 km south from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Port Phillip...
, near Melbourne. He died there on 8 January 1904.
In 2005, Melbourne Grammar Grimwade House opened "The Alfred Felton Hall" in honour of Felton.
Felton Bequest
Alfred Felton had no direct descendants. In his will, he established a philanthropic trust, known as the Felton Bequest.Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n entrepreneur, art collector and philanthropist.
Biography
Alfred Felton was born at MaldonMaldon, Essex
Maldon is a town on the Blackwater estuary in Essex, England. It is the seat of the Maldon district and starting point of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation.Maldon is twinned with the Dutch town of Cuijk...
, Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, the fifth child of six sons and three daughters of William Felton, a currier
Currier
A currier is a specialist in the leather processing industry. After the tanning process, the currier applies techniques of dressing, finishing and colouring to the tanned hide to make it strong, flexible and waterproof...
, and his wife Hannah.Poynter, John. 2003. Mr Felton's Bequests. Melbourne: The Miegunyah Press. Felton travelled to Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
on the ship California in 1853 intending to search for gold.
In 1857, he was in business in Collins Street, Melbourne
Collins Street, Melbourne
Collins Street is a major street in the Melbourne central business district and runs approximately east to west.It is notable as Melbourne's traditional main street and best known street, is often regarded as Australia's premier street, with some of the country's finest Victorian era buildings.The...
, as a commission agent and dealer in merchandise, and in 1859 was an importer and general dealer. In 1861 he was in business in Swanston Street
Swanston Street, Melbourne
Swanston Street is a major thoroughfare in the centre of Melbourne, Australia. It is historically one of the main streets of central Melbourne, laid out in 1837 as part of the Hoddle Grid, the layout of major streets that makes up the central business district...
as a wholesale druggist.
In 1867 Felton went into partnership with Frederick Sheppard Grimwade
Frederick Sheppard Grimwade
Frederick Sheppard Grimwade was a businessman and Victorian member of parliament.Born in Norfolk, England, Grimwade arrived in Victoria in 1863. In 1867 he bought a pharmaceutical company and renamed it Felton Grimwade & Co.; it soon became the largest in the colony, prospering well into the...
and founded Felton Grimwade and Company, wholesale druggists and manufacturing chemists. As the business grew over the years, the partners acquired interests in associated industries such as Melbourne Glass Bottle Works, and Cuming Smith and Company, makers of artificial manures.
Felton also purchased two large estates, Murray Downs and Langi Kal Kal in Partnership with merchant and pastoralist Charles Gordon Campbell
Charles Gordon Campbell
Charles Gordon Campbell was born on the 14 January 1840, in Aberdeen Scotland. He is the son of Duncan Campbell, cattle driver and his wife Catherine née Mclean. Campbell was a Colonial Australian merchant and pastoralist. Along with Frederick Sheppard Grimwade, Alfred Felton, and James Cuming, he...
, a founding partner in Cuming Smith and Company. Upon Felton's death, his share in the Estates were sold to Campbell.
Felton's wants were few and he never married. He gave away considerable amounts to charity, and formed large collections of pictures and books which at times threatened to push him out of his rooms at the Esplanade Hotel, St Kilda
St Kilda, Victoria
St Kilda is an inner city suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 6 km south from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Port Phillip...
, near Melbourne. He died there on 8 January 1904. http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/10591944 His death notice in the Melbourne Argus.
In 2005, Melbourne Grammar Grimwade House opened "The Alfred Felton Hall" in honour of Felton.
Felton Bequest
Alfred Felton had no direct descendants. In his will, he established a philanthropic trust, known as the Felton Bequest.Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n entrepreneur, art collector and philanthropist.
Biography
Alfred Felton was born at MaldonMaldon, Essex
Maldon is a town on the Blackwater estuary in Essex, England. It is the seat of the Maldon district and starting point of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation.Maldon is twinned with the Dutch town of Cuijk...
, Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, the fifth child of six sons and three daughters of William Felton, a currier
Currier
A currier is a specialist in the leather processing industry. After the tanning process, the currier applies techniques of dressing, finishing and colouring to the tanned hide to make it strong, flexible and waterproof...
, and his wife Hannah.Poynter, John. 2003. Mr Felton's Bequests. Melbourne: The Miegunyah Press. Felton travelled to Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
on the ship California in 1853 intending to search for gold.
In 1857, he was in business in Collins Street, Melbourne
Collins Street, Melbourne
Collins Street is a major street in the Melbourne central business district and runs approximately east to west.It is notable as Melbourne's traditional main street and best known street, is often regarded as Australia's premier street, with some of the country's finest Victorian era buildings.The...
, as a commission agent and dealer in merchandise, and in 1859 was an importer and general dealer. In 1861 he was in business in Swanston Street
Swanston Street, Melbourne
Swanston Street is a major thoroughfare in the centre of Melbourne, Australia. It is historically one of the main streets of central Melbourne, laid out in 1837 as part of the Hoddle Grid, the layout of major streets that makes up the central business district...
as a wholesale druggist.
In 1867 Felton went into partnership with Frederick Sheppard Grimwade
Frederick Sheppard Grimwade
Frederick Sheppard Grimwade was a businessman and Victorian member of parliament.Born in Norfolk, England, Grimwade arrived in Victoria in 1863. In 1867 he bought a pharmaceutical company and renamed it Felton Grimwade & Co.; it soon became the largest in the colony, prospering well into the...
and founded Felton Grimwade and Company, wholesale druggists and manufacturing chemists. As the business grew over the years, the partners acquired interests in associated industries such as Melbourne Glass Bottle Works, and Cuming Smith and Company, makers of artificial manures.
Felton also purchased two large estates, Murray Downs and Langi Kal Kal in Partnership with merchant and pastoralist Charles Gordon Campbell
Charles Gordon Campbell
Charles Gordon Campbell was born on the 14 January 1840, in Aberdeen Scotland. He is the son of Duncan Campbell, cattle driver and his wife Catherine née Mclean. Campbell was a Colonial Australian merchant and pastoralist. Along with Frederick Sheppard Grimwade, Alfred Felton, and James Cuming, he...
, a founding partner in Cuming Smith and Company. Upon Felton's death, his share in the Estates were sold to Campbell.
Felton's wants were few and he never married. He gave away considerable amounts to charity, and formed large collections of pictures and books which at times threatened to push him out of his rooms at the Esplanade Hotel, St Kilda
St Kilda, Victoria
St Kilda is an inner city suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 6 km south from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Port Phillip...
, near Melbourne. He died there on 8 January 1904. http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/10591944 His death notice in the Melbourne Argus.
In 2005, Melbourne Grammar Grimwade House opened "The Alfred Felton Hall" in honour of Felton.
Felton Bequest
Alfred Felton had no direct descendants. In his will, he established a philanthropic trust, known as the Felton Bequest.Felton Bequest Committee Report 2009 The Bequest has been established to support culture and the community, with half the funding benefiting Victorian charities (particularly those that support women and children) and the other half used to acquire and donate art works to the National Gallery of VictoriaNational Gallery of Victoria
The National Gallery of Victoria is an art gallery and museum in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1861, it is the oldest and the largest public art gallery in Australia. Since December 2003, NGV has operated across two sites...
. After the payment of legacies and probate duties, the residue of the estate was £378,033, a huge sum, the equivalent of about A$35 million at 2000 values. The Gallery selected a number of works from Felton's personal collection for retention by it, and the remainder was sold at auction, the proceeds being added to the Bequest.
Over its life, the Felton Bequest has contributed funds to many charitable purposes and projects in Victoria and has acquired numerous works of art which it has donated to the National Gallery of Victoria. The acquisition funds available to the Gallery, through the Bequest, exceed those of London's National
National Gallery, London
The National Gallery is an art museum on Trafalgar Square, London, United Kingdom. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The gallery is an exempt charity, and a non-departmental public body of the Department for Culture, Media...
and Tate
Tate Gallery
The Tate is an institution that houses the United Kingdom's national collection of British Art, and International Modern and Contemporary Art...
galleries combined.
Soon after the establishment of the Felton Bequest, the October Revolution
October Revolution
The October Revolution , also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution , Red October, the October Uprising or the Bolshevik Revolution, was a political revolution and a part of the Russian Revolution of 1917...
occurred in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
. The Bolshevik
Bolshevik
The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists , derived from bol'shinstvo, "majority") were a faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party which split apart from the Menshevik faction at the Second Party Congress in 1903....
government that came to power there sold a part of the collections of such museums as the Hermitage
Hermitage Museum
The State Hermitage is a museum of art and culture in Saint Petersburg, Russia. One of the largest and oldest museums of the world, it was founded in 1764 by Catherine the Great and has been opened to the public since 1852. Its collections, of which only a small part is on permanent display,...
, Pushkin Museum
Pushkin Museum
The Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts is the largest museum of European art in Moscow, located in Volkhonka street, just opposite the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour....
, part of which was acquired by the Felton Bequest for the National Gallery of Victoria. The Felton Bequest has also been used to buy many masterpieces of Australian art. Since the bequest was created, more than 15,000 art works have been acquired through the Felton Bequest, the current total value of which has been estimated at more than A$2 billion. These works are the core of today's National Gallery of Victoria collection, and have made the Gallery's collections celebrated around the world.