Operation
of Messrs. Wilkins & Co.
The general operation of Wilkins Bank was
dominated by John Parry Wilkins. In
August 1826 he became the manager of the Branch Bank of England in Swansea at
the salary of £1,000 per annum and had to maintain no direct involvement in
Wilkins Bank as a condition of his employment but remained a sleeping partner.
Walter Wilkins II died in May 1831 and at the time of his death he had
been the only other partner. This
necessitated John Parry Wilkins to leave the employ of the Bank of England in
1832 to take over control of the bank and make additional investment to give him
a half share in Wilkins Bank.
John Parry Wilkins was an extremely shrewd man. He had, through his business activities, acquired a considerable personnel fortune. He was extremely knowledgeable concerning the principals of banking in general and the banking requirements and trade in South Wales in general. He had proposed the formation of a ‘chartered joint stock bank’ to serve the needs of not only South Wales but also Herefordshire. Not surprisingly he suggested that the head office of this bank should be in Brecon and that he be appointed overall manager. This was not just wild scheme formulated to enhance his own standing and funds it was a serious proposal that would greatly enhance banking in the area. The agent for the Bank of England, in 1842, commented upon his shrewdness and a later historian classed him with the most reputable of the British country bankers of the early 19thC. A further indication of the social standing of John Parry Wilkins is that he was made Mayor of Brecon in 1837; an office that was filled in later years by his son and grandson.
Issue
of Banknotes.
The operation of banks in the 18th and 19th centuries was very different to the manner banks conduct business today. Their financial backing and immediately available resources were not always sufficient to meet outstanding debts if there was a run on the bank. Many banks found themselves in a precarious financial position and banks sometimes were unable to satisfy their responsibilities. The instances of banks being declared bankrupt were not uncommon during this period. In February 1832 the bank of Waters, Jones & Co of Carmarthenshire failed sending ripples through the whole of the Welsh banking community.
This situation was exacerbated by the fact that it was common, if not normal practice, for banks to issue their own promissory notes. Wilkins and Co adhered to this practice and until at least the 1830’s their notes were the main form of currency used in Breckonshire. A number of these notes fortunately have survived. These notes are often in what we today would regard as being in rather unusual denominations, 1 Guinea, 5 Guinea and 9 Guinea notes exist in preservation.
The Brecon Old Bank issued banknotes in both Brecon and Merthyr Tydfil in 1818 with a face value of £89,000. The issue of notes continued to expand up until 1827 when total circulation amounted to £124,000.
These banknote issues by country banks were defined as ‘local issues’ and required a lot of co-operation between the country banks that enabled them to provide ‘clearing’ facilities for others notes. This arrangement was normally conducted through a London Agent that was frequently one of the larger established banks and conducted business on their behalf in London.
The London Agents for Wilkins and Co were:
Before 1797 Sir Charles Raymond, Harley & Co. Later Thomas Harley’s Cameron & Sons.
1797 – 1817 Possibly Messrs. Down & Co.
1817 – 1884 Messrs. Barnett, Hoare & Co.
1884 – 1890 Lloyds & Co.
John Parry Wilkins was a careful and astute business operator and claimed that his bank had always acted prudently in the issue of notes. He stated that the bank issued notes according to the demand for them and in relation to the value of reserved held. In the 1830’s the reserves of gold and silver held by Wilkins & Co amounted to up to a fifth of the value of notes in circulation; however deposits held were almost twice that of the note issue.
Industrial
Development.
During its early period Wilkins & Co assisted with the financing of many business ventures including manufacturing, mining and a wide range of commercial enterprises. It is believed that it was this activity which directly resulted in the opening of a branch at Merthyr Tydfil which was in the heart of the industrial area of South Wales. Significant advances were made to a number of iron making enterprises and thus the Wilkins family retained their financial interest in this important, and profitable, industry.
In the 1790’s money was provided to finance the Glamorganshire and Brecknock and Abergavenny Canals which was a major business venture in the area.
Another venture that was financially supported by members of the Wilkins family, if not the bank itself, was the proposed building of the Welsh Midland Railway. A prospectus had been issued in 1845 and a meeting was held at Brecon on 6th February 1846 where it was generally agreed to support the line. Amongst the promoters and a member of the Provisional Committee was John Parry deWinton. As it transpired this particular railway was never built but John Parry deWinton continued his financial involvement in the extremely profitable business of building railways.
Agricultural
Development.
During the early part of the 19th century farming and droving were widely conducted in mid and South Wales. The drovers were remarkable individuals who would herd animals, totally on foot, all the way from Wales to London where they would be sold at a considerable profit. Many types of animal were taken by this method to London including cattle, sheep goats and even geese. This required them to walk distances often in excess of 250 miles. It is recorded that to stop the geese from literally wearing out their feet the drovers would dip their feet in pitch and then while it was still wet coat the underside with sand to protect them on their long journey.
Wilkins and Co and particularly the Brecon branch greatly assisted farmers and drovers by providing them with both long and short term lending. It has been said that this was a major contribution to the economic development of Breconshire and South Wales. The Brecon Old Bank was so deeply involved in this activity that it has been referred to as ‘the agricultural bank’ and ‘the drover’s bank’. Until about 1800 it was normal practice for the drovers to fund their activities in the areas where they obtained their stock. Wilkins & Co changed this to some degree by advancing, on a joint promissory note up to £2,000 for a period of up to three months on demand that ‘some responsible person’ would underwrite the loan. These promissory notes issued to the drovers were not convertible into cash but they were regarded as being negotiable after endorsement by Wilkins & Co.
Conclusion.
The bank of Wilkins & Co. remained staunchly independent within the banking community and indeed continued to issue its own £5 notes long after other country banks had been persuaded by the Bank of England to cease this practice. But finally it was realised that with all the changes that were occurring within the overall banking industry they would be increasingly vulnerable. Finally by mutual agreement they were absorbed into the group of Lloyds & Co. in 1890 thus ending an illustrious history.
At the time of the merger with Lloyds the bank had been in continuous operation for 112 years serving the community of South Wales. By the astute management and control of the bank it provided not only for the safe deposit of funds but also extended loans and provided assurances to industry and commerce in the area. The bank remained trading when others did not during the periods of financial crisis of the 19th century including the troubles of 1825-26.
The help and financial assistance to industry provided by Messrs. Wilkins & Co. funded much of the farming and mining activities in the area. The bank’s support of the so called new ventures, the construction firstly of canals and then railways, did much to open up the area and provide new markets for coal and manufactured goods.
When the bank ceased independent trading it was indeed a sad day for South Wales. However part of the bank, in some respects still remains, the Lloyds Bank building in Brecon is the old Messrs. Wilkins & Co. premises and can be seen to this day.
Endnote.
This short paper is written to record the part that the Wilkins family played in the development of South Wales. The main personal interest of the author is the history of banking in general within the UK. The history and lineage of the family are of secondary interest and have not been as fully researched as they may have been. During the production of this paper I have drawn heavily on a historical paper published in 1961 in Brycheiniog by R O Roberts of the University of Swansea entitled ‘Brecon Old Bank’.
There are other areas concerning the Wilkins family that would make excellent topics for research. The considerable involvement by the family in the iron industry is a very interesting subject. They certainly were well established at Hirwaun by 1760 and later acquired the forge at Tredegar and the ironworks at Machen. They we severely affected by the non-transportation agreements of the American colonies in 1775 but continued with a direct interest until well into the 1820’s.
References.
Wilkins’ Bank is referred to in a large number of records and research papers. The following are the principle records and information sources that may be used by any researcher.
1. The operations of the Brecon ‘Old Bank’ of Wilkins & Co. R O Roberts (1958).
2. Glamorgan Record Office. Dowlais Iron Co., Letter Books.
3. Bank of England Court Books.
4. Bank of England Letter Books (particularly those relating to Swansea).
5. Lloyds Bank archives.
6. Lloyds Bank in the History of Banking. R S Sayers (1957).
7. The History of Brecknockshire. Theophilus Jones (1909).
8. Iron Works. Lloyd.
9. Maybury Papers. National Library of Wales.
Submitted by: adamwilkins1@aol.com