Frederick Bathurst
Frederick Bathurst (1866-1902)
1903 Obituary [1]
FREDERICK BATHURST, born in 1866, was the eldest son of Colonel Bathurst of the Coldstream Guards, and grandson of General Sir James Bathurst.
His electrical career commenced at Finsbury Technical College, where he went through a course under Professor Ayrton, after which he was articled to the late firm of Woodhouse & Rawson, Limited.
In 1889 he went to the United States, and after visiting many places of interest, obtained an important position at the works of the Edison General Electric Co., where he was associated with Mr. Edison in his laboratory experiments.
He remained with Mr. Edison until 1894, when he was summoned home to the death-bed of his father; after this Mr. Bathurst took a long holiday in France, Germany, Holland and Switzerland, with the object of acquiring information regarding electrical progress in those countries. He then returned to the United States, where he took leave of the many friends he had made during his previous stay there, and, on returning to England, took over the Conduit Department of the General Electric Co., Ltd., and introduced the Insulated Conduit System in this country. He devoted great personal energy to the work, and was rewarded with a large measure of success.
He remained with the General Electric Co. for about four years, when the owners of the patents decided to form a separate company in order to advance the interests of Insulated Steel Conduit still more, and Mr. Bathurst joined the Conduit & Insulation Co. for this purpose. After two or three years, however, he found that his energies were somewhat fettered in a Limited Company, and he decided to become a free agent in order to develop the system alone. He, therefore, severed his connection with this Company, and, at the moment of his untimely death, was arranging to put on the market further improvements and new lines of Steel Conduit.
In 1897 he married Florence, second daughter of Mr. Thomas Sellars of Nottingham, by whom he had two sons, one of whom unfortunately pre-deceased him. At the time of his marriage the remembrance which gave him the greatest pleasure was a signed photograph from Mr. Edison, "Wishing Bathurst all good luck and happiness on his wedding day."
Mr. Bathurst was an indefatigable worker, and all that he did was carried out with that push and energy which was characteristic of the man, and which unfortunately appears to have overstrained his constitution. Besides his actual ability for business he was also an able speaker and writer, as was instanced by the papers which he read before various societies,, of which may be specially mentioned that entitled "The Electric Wiring Question," read before the Institution on the 28th of November, 1895, and published in the Institution Journal vol. 24. One of the papers which earned for him special distinction was that on "Prevention of Fire Risk," for which he was awarded by the Society of Arts a premium of £25 and their Gold Medal. For many years he had been subject to asthma, and on the 27th of September, 1902, after a severe attack, he retired to rest and passed away in his sleep. He was a man for whom all who came in contact had great respect, not only by reason of his business qualifications and the enthusiasm that he had for his particular hobby, but also for his sterling personal qualities, and his death occasioned the greatest regret amongst all members of the electrical profession.
Mr. Bathurst was elected a Student of the Institution on the 14th of February, 1884, and was transferred to the class of Associates on the 14th of February, 1889, and to the class of Associate Members on the 9th of February, 1899.