Fry Family (Chocolate)
Encyclopedia
The Fry family was prominent in England especially Bristol
, in the Society of Friends, and in the confectionery
business in the 18th, 19th, and early 20th centuries.
The patriarch of the most important branch of the family was John Fry (1701–1775), a shopkeeper of Sutton Benger
, Wiltshire
who was not involved in the chocolate business; his father was Zephaniah Fry (1658–1724) who joined the Society of Friends.
His son, William Storrs Fry (1736–1808), was the father of the Joseph Fry
(1777–1861) who married the prison reformer Elizabeth Fry
née Gurney (1780–1845). There is also another William Storrs Fry (circa 1806–1844) who was one of the 11 children of Joseph and Elizabeth Fry.
(1728–1787), was apprenticed to Henry Portsmouth of Basingstoke
as an apothecary
and doctor. He married Portsmouth's daughter, Anna (1719/20–1803). Joseph Fry founded a chocolate
company called Fry, Vaughan & Co. in Bristol
. He also founded Fry and Pine later Joseph Fry & Co., a typefoundry.
(1754–1835) and renamed Edmund Fry & Co. Edmund Fry had two sons who survived to adulthood: Windover Fry (1797–1835) and Arthur Fry (1809–1878). Windover joined him in the business. An example of a font that the firm designed is Fry's Ornamented.
(1769–1835) who, after his mother's death, renamed the firm J. S. Fry & Sons
under which name it became quite well known. Joseph Storrs Fry was the first to introduce factory methods into the making of chocolate and the first to use a Watt's
steam engine to grind the beans.
The sons of Joseph Storrs Fry and his wife Ann Allen (1764?–1829) are
They also had four daughters. The sons all became partners in the firm.
Besides the directorship of the chocolate firm, he was also involved in porcelain, typefounding, director of the Bristol Water
works, and railways (including the Bristol and Gloucester Railway
). He was also a well known collector of old Bibles. He headed the firm when it started producing the first chocolate bars in 1847.
He married Matilda Penrose (circa 1808–1888). They had four sons and three daughters including:
His daughter, Norah Cooke-Hurle born Fry
(1871–1960), was an advocate of better services for people with learning difficulties. In 1988, the University of Bristol named their new research centre after Norah Fry, because she did so much for people with learning difficulties.
One of his sons was Geoffrey Storrs Fry (1888–13 October 1960) From 1929, the first (and last) Baronet Fry of Oare
in Wiltshire. He was private secretary to Bonar Law and Stanley Baldwin
. He married Alathea Gardner, the second daughter of Lord Burghclere.
(1836–1912), was the son of Francis Fry (1803–1886). He was Liberal MP for Darlington
and made baronet. His wife, Sophia Fry
née Pease (1837–1897) was a prominent philanthropist and political activist. Their son, John Pease Fry (1864–1957), the second baronet, became Chairman and managing director of Bearpark Coal & Coke of Durham
and three other daughters, one of whom died in infancy.
For other people with the surname "Fry" but probably NOT related to the Quaker Chocolate manufacturing Fry family see Fry (surname)
.
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
, in the Society of Friends, and in the confectionery
Confectionery
Confectionery is the set of food items that are rich in sugar, any one or type of which is called a confection. Modern usage may include substances rich in artificial sweeteners as well...
business in the 18th, 19th, and early 20th centuries.
Origins
The earliest known Fry ancestor is supposed to be Richard Fry who married secondly Joan Beaufort, great granddaughter of John of Gaunt.The patriarch of the most important branch of the family was John Fry (1701–1775), a shopkeeper of Sutton Benger
Sutton Benger
Sutton Benger is a small village in the county of Wiltshire in England located North East of Chippenham. In the Survey of English Dialects, the recording from the village was one of the furthest away from Standard English that was recorded. The village was the home of shopkeeper Joseph Fry,...
, Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
who was not involved in the chocolate business; his father was Zephaniah Fry (1658–1724) who joined the Society of Friends.
His son, William Storrs Fry (1736–1808), was the father of the Joseph Fry
Joseph Fry (tea merchant)
Joseph Fry was a tea dealer and an unsuccessful banker. He was the husband of Elizabeth Fry, prison reformer.-Parental family:...
(1777–1861) who married the prison reformer Elizabeth Fry
Elizabeth Fry
Elizabeth Fry , née Gurney, was an English prison reformer, social reformer and, as a Quaker, a Christian philanthropist...
née Gurney (1780–1845). There is also another William Storrs Fry (circa 1806–1844) who was one of the 11 children of Joseph and Elizabeth Fry.
The start of the chocolate dynasty
John Fry's other son, Joseph FryJoseph Fry (type-founder)
Joseph Fry , was an English type-founder and chocolate maker and founder of the Bristol branch of the Quaker Fry family...
(1728–1787), was apprenticed to Henry Portsmouth of Basingstoke
Basingstoke
Basingstoke is a town in northeast Hampshire, in south central England. It lies across a valley at the source of the River Loddon. It is southwest of London, northeast of Southampton, southwest of Reading and northeast of the county town, Winchester. In 2008 it had an estimated population of...
as an apothecary
Apothecary
Apothecary is a historical name for a medical professional who formulates and dispenses materia medica to physicians, surgeons and patients — a role now served by a pharmacist and some caregivers....
and doctor. He married Portsmouth's daughter, Anna (1719/20–1803). Joseph Fry founded a chocolate
Chocolate
Chocolate is a raw or processed food produced from the seed of the tropical Theobroma cacao tree. Cacao has been cultivated for at least three millennia in Mexico, Central and South America. Its earliest documented use is around 1100 BC...
company called Fry, Vaughan & Co. in Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
. He also founded Fry and Pine later Joseph Fry & Co., a typefoundry.
Typefounding Frys
Joseph Fry & Co., the typefoundry, was continued by Joseph Fry's elder son, Edmund FryEdmund Fry
-Early life:Fry was the son of Joseph Fry, and member of the Bristol Fry family, born at Bristol. He studied medicine; took the degree of M.D. at Edinburgh, and spent some time at St. George's Hospital, London.-Fry & Co.:...
(1754–1835) and renamed Edmund Fry & Co. Edmund Fry had two sons who survived to adulthood: Windover Fry (1797–1835) and Arthur Fry (1809–1878). Windover joined him in the business. An example of a font that the firm designed is Fry's Ornamented.
Chocolate making Frys
After Joseph Fry's death in 1787 his wife, Anna Fry, took over the chocolate company and it was renamed Anna Fry & Son. The son was the first Joseph Storrs FryJoseph Storrs Fry
Joseph Storrs Fry was an English chocolate and confectionery manufacturer and a member of the Fry Family of Bristol, England.-Early life:He was born in 1767, son of Joseph Fry and his wife Anna...
(1769–1835) who, after his mother's death, renamed the firm J. S. Fry & Sons
J. S. Fry & Sons
J. S. Fry & Sons, Ltd. was a British chocolate company owned by Joseph Storrs Fry and his family.This business moved through several names and hands before ending up as J. S. Fry & Sons.- History :*circa 1759 — Joseph Fry starts making chocolate...
under which name it became quite well known. Joseph Storrs Fry was the first to introduce factory methods into the making of chocolate and the first to use a Watt's
James Watt
James Watt, FRS, FRSE was a Scottish inventor and mechanical engineer whose improvements to the Newcomen steam engine were fundamental to the changes brought by the Industrial Revolution in both his native Great Britain and the rest of the world.While working as an instrument maker at the...
steam engine to grind the beans.
The sons of Joseph Storrs Fry and his wife Ann Allen (1764?–1829) are
- Joseph Fry (1795–1879) (See below)
- Francis FryFrancis Fry-Life:Fry was born at Westbury-on-Trym, near Bristol, on 28 October 1803, the second son of Joseph Storrs Fry. He was educated at a large school at Fishponds, in the neighbourhood of Frenchay, kept by a Quaker named Joel Lean, and began business training at Croydon....
(1803–1886) (See below) - Richard Fry (-1878)
They also had four daughters. The sons all became partners in the firm.
Francis Fry (1803–1886) - his interests and his family
Francis Fry was the son of Joseph Storrs Fry and his wife Ann Allen.Besides the directorship of the chocolate firm, he was also involved in porcelain, typefounding, director of the Bristol Water
Bristol Water
Bristol Water supplies 300 million litres of drinking water to over 1 million customers in a area centred on Bristol, England. It is regulated under the Water Industry Act 1991...
works, and railways (including the Bristol and Gloucester Railway
Bristol and Gloucester Railway
The Bristol and Gloucester Railway opened in 1844 between Bristol and Gloucester, meeting the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway. It is now part of the main line from the North-East of England through Derby and Birmingham to the South-West.-History:...
). He was also a well known collector of old Bibles. He headed the firm when it started producing the first chocolate bars in 1847.
He married Matilda Penrose (circa 1808–1888). They had four sons and three daughters including:
- Francis James Fry (1835 – November 15, 1918) (See below)
- Theodore Fry (See below).
Francis James Fry (1835–1918) - his family
F.J. Fry was the son of Francis Fry (1803–1886). He was Sheriff of Bristol in 1887. He married twice and had two daughters and four sons.His daughter, Norah Cooke-Hurle born Fry
Norah Fry
Norah Lillian Fry was a member of a Bristol Quaker Fry family of the J. S. Fry & Sons company. She became an advocate and campaigner for disabled children and those with learning difficulties and in 1918 became the first female councillor in Somerset.Norah Fry was born and educated in Clifton,...
(1871–1960), was an advocate of better services for people with learning difficulties. In 1988, the University of Bristol named their new research centre after Norah Fry, because she did so much for people with learning difficulties.
One of his sons was Geoffrey Storrs Fry (1888–13 October 1960) From 1929, the first (and last) Baronet Fry of Oare
Oare, Wiltshire
Oare is a small village near Marlborough and Pewsey in the County of Wiltshire, England.The A345 road runs through the village.-Geography:The village is within the parish of Huish with Oare and lies within the Devizes Parliamentary Constituency....
in Wiltshire. He was private secretary to Bonar Law and Stanley Baldwin
Stanley Baldwin
Stanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley, KG, PC was a British Conservative politician, who dominated the government in his country between the two world wars...
. He married Alathea Gardner, the second daughter of Lord Burghclere.
- [Ann] Jennifer Evelyn Elizabeth Fry (1916–2003), only child of Geoffrey and Alathea Fry. She was the wife of Alan RossAlan RossAlan John Ross, , was a British poet, writer and editor. He was born in Calcutta, India, where he spent the first seven years of his life...
, the poet.
Theodore Fry - his family
Theodore FryTheodore Fry
Sir Theodore Fry, 1st Baronet was an English Liberal Party politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1880 to 1895....
(1836–1912), was the son of Francis Fry (1803–1886). He was Liberal MP for Darlington
Darlington (UK Parliament constituency)
Darlington is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election....
and made baronet. His wife, Sophia Fry
Pease family (Darlington)
The Pease family was a prominent English and mostly Quaker family associated with Darlington and County Durham and descended from Joseph Pease of Darlington, son of Edward Pease . They were 'one of the great Quaker industrialist families of the nineteenth century, who played a leading role in...
née Pease (1837–1897) was a prominent philanthropist and political activist. Their son, John Pease Fry (1864–1957), the second baronet, became Chairman and managing director of Bearpark Coal & Coke of Durham
Durham
Durham is a city in north east England. It is within the County Durham local government district, and is the county town of the larger ceremonial county...
Joseph Fry and his family
Joseph Fry (1795–1879), son of the first Joseph Storrs Fry (1769–1835), and Mary Anne Swaine (1797–1886) were the parents of:- Joseph Storrs Fry IIJoseph Storrs Fry IIJoseph Storrs Fry was a member of the Bristol Fry family, head of the family chocolate firm of J. S. Fry & Sons and a philanthropist....
(1826–1913). Headed the chocolate firm after 1886 and very active in the Society of Friends. He never married but was known for his philanthropy. - Sir Edward FryEdward FrySir Edward Fry GCB, GCMG, PC, FRS , was a judge in the British Court of Appeal and also an arbitrator on the International Permanent Court of Arbitration. He was a Quaker, son of Joseph Fry and Mary Ann Swaine....
(1827–1918), a judge on the British Court of Appeal. Edward Fry was the father of the art critic and artist Roger FryRoger FryRoger Eliot Fry was an English artist and art critic, and a member of the Bloomsbury Group. Establishing his reputation as a scholar of the Old Masters, he became an advocate of more recent developments in French painting, to which he gave the name Post-Impressionism...
and the social reformers, Joan Mary FryJoan Mary FryJoan Mary Fry was an English social reformer and a Quaker.-Early life:Joan Fry was born on 27 July 1862 in London, into a wealthy family of Quakers...
(1862–1955), Margery FryMargery FryMargery Fry was a British prison reformer as well as one of the first women to become a magistrate.Margery Fry was born in London, the eighth child of Sir Edward Fry and his wife, Mariabella Hodgkin , who were Quakers. She was educated at home until, at the age of 17, she went to Miss Lawrence's...
(1874–1958) and Ruth FryRuth FryAnna Ruth Fry, usually known as Ruth Fry was a British Quaker writer, pacifist and peace activist.-Life:...
(1878–1962). His daughter, Agnes Fry (1869–1958) compiled his biography. - Albert FryAlbert FryAlbert Fry was a businessman and a member of the influential Fry family. Fry was the owner of the Bristol Wagon & Carriage Works Company Ltd which he acquired in 1851. He was important in the development of the drainage plow....
(1830?–1903). He worked with John FowlerJohn Fowler (agricultural engineer)John Fowler was an English agricultural engineer who was a pioneer in the use of steam engines for ploughing and digging drainage channels...
(1826–1864) to develop and manufacture a drainage plough in the mid-19th century. He founded the Bristol Wagon and Carriage Works. He was a Chairman of the Council of the University of BristolUniversity of BristolThe University of Bristol is a public research university located in Bristol, United Kingdom. One of the so-called "red brick" universities, it received its Royal Charter in 1909, although its predecessor institution, University College, Bristol, had been in existence since 1876.The University is...
and, along with other members of his family and of the Wills family, a major donor - Susan Ann Fry (1829–1917) married in 1856, as his third wife, Thomas Pease and was the mother of Edward Reynolds Pease who help found the Fabian SocietyFabian SocietyThe Fabian Society is a British socialist movement, whose purpose is to advance the principles of democratic socialism via gradualist and reformist, rather than revolutionary, means. It is best known for its initial ground-breaking work beginning late in the 19th century and continuing up to World...
. - Lewis FryLewis FryLewis Fry DL, was a Quaker, lawyer, philanthropist and a Liberal and later Liberal and Unionist politician who sat in the House of Commons in three spells between 1878 and 1900.-Early life:...
(1832–1921) was the Liberal, later Liberal Unionist, MP for Bristol from 1878 until 1886 and from 1895 until 1900. He was Chairman of Parliamentary Committee on Town Holdings, 1886-1892. He was a member of the Privy CouncilPrivy councilA privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a nation, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the monarch's closest advisors to give confidential advice on...
. He was the first chairman of the Council of the University of Bristol. - Henrietta Jane Fry (1840–1911) who married in 1862, William Whitwell (ironfounder)
and three other daughters, one of whom died in infancy.
Other members of the family
- Cecil Roderick FryCecil Roderick FryCecil Roderick Fry was a member of the Fry family who ran the J. S. Fry & Sons confectionery business after World War I....
(1870–1952) was the last member of the family to head the chocolate firm before it merged with Cadburys.- Jeremy FryJeremy FryJeremy Joseph Fry was a British inventor, engineer, entrepreneur, adventurer and arts patron.-Early life:Born into the Fry family on May 19, 1924 in Bristol, he was the second son of Cecil Roderick Fry who as the last chairman of the J. S. Fry & Sons chocolate concern arranged for the sale of the...
(1924–2005) was an engineer and inventor, son of Cecil Fry. Founded Rotork.
- Jeremy Fry
Other Frys
Other Quaker Frys who might or might not be related to this family are:- Catherine Fry, mother of Lewis Fry RichardsonLewis Fry RichardsonLewis Fry Richardson, FRS was an English mathematician, physicist, meteorologist, psychologist and pacifist who pioneered modern mathematical techniques of weather forecasting, and the application of similar techniques to studying the causes of wars and how to prevent them...
, mathematician - Christopher FryChristopher FryChristopher Fry was an English playwright. He is best known for his verse dramas, notably The Lady's Not for Burning, which made him a major force in theatre in the 1940s and 1950s.-Early life:...
born Christopher Fry Harris (1907–2005) — playwright
For other people with the surname "Fry" but probably NOT related to the Quaker Chocolate manufacturing Fry family see Fry (surname)
Fry (surname)
Fry is the surname of several notable people:*Abi Fry, Scottish musician*Adam Fry , British footballer*Adrian Fry , British musician*Arthur Fry , American inventor and scientist...
.
Sources
; and the articles there on Francis Fry (1803–1886), Edmund Fry (1754–1835), Joseph Storrs Fry (1826–1913), Edward Fry (1827–1918), and Sophia Fry née Pease.- Bristol Wagon & Carriage Works (references to Albert Fry)
- University of Bristol History (references to the Fry family support in founding the university)
- Frenchay Village Museum — FrenchayFrenchayFrenchay is a suburb of Bristol, England, to the north east of the city, but located mainly in South Gloucestershire and the Civil Parish of Winterbourne....
, South GloucestershireSouth GloucestershireSouth Gloucestershire is a unitary district in the ceremonial county of Gloucestershire, in South West England.-History:The district was created in 1996, when the county of Avon was abolished, by the merger of former area of the districts of Kingswood and Northavon...
is where many of the Frys lived.