Thomas Patten
of Thomas Patten and Co of Warrington
The name of Patten dominated the industrial and social history of Warrington from the 17th to the late 19th century.
The Patten family originated in Chelmsford, Essex about 1119
William Patten founded Magdalen College Oxford, was Bishop of Winchester, and Chancellor of England in 1456.
1536 Another branch of the Patten family arrived in Warrington
By the middle of the 17th century the family had settled in Patten Lane, off Bridge Street, as merchants dealing in a wide range of commodities including tobacco, sugar and tea.
c.1662 Thomas Patten was born in Warrington, son of Thomas Patten (born c.1638) and his wife Mary.
1686 Married Margaret Blackburne on July 20. They had three children during their marriage.
1690 Birth of his son, Thomas Patten (1690-1772)
c.1690 Thomas Patten realised the importance of the river for Warrington to become a key distribution point for inland trade and was responsible for making the lower Mersey navigable from Runcorn to Bank Quay, enabling copper to be brought by boat from Ireland, Cornwall and Anglesey right to the family's quay.
By 1697 Patten had established a copper works at Bank Quay in Warrington, and had improved the navigation of the River Mersey specifically to enable him to import copper ore for his works. By 1795, however, the works were said to be disused.[1]
1717 Patten erected a copper works at Bank Quay, Warrington[2]
1719 The Cheadle Company was formed by Thomas Patten and his associates; they took the lease on the Alton Mill which they converted to making wire and established a new joint stock company for making wire[3]
C.1726 Died in Warrington.
1749 Thomas Junior employed James Gibbs, the architect, to design and build Bank Hall (now the town hall) at Warrington, in the Palladian style[4].
Thomas Patten's grand house - Bank Hall - in the centre of Warrington - is now the Town Hall.