Sir Francis Tress Barry, 1st Baronet, DL (8 June 1825 – 28 February 1907) was an English businessman who made his fortune from a copper mine in Portugal. Late in his life he became a Conservative Party politician, and sat in the Commons from 1890 to 1906.
Early life
Barry was born on 8 June 1825,[1] the eldest son of Charles Barry (1790–1866), of Orpington, Kent, a London ship broker and wharfinger, and his wife Harriet, daughter of Robert Ades, of Brede Place, Sussex.[2] The Barry family owned the manor of Hampton Gay from 1544 to its sale in 1682, when the family settled in London and became merchants.[3][4][5] Barry was educated in London at Camberwell Collegiate School.[6] In 1851 he married Sarah Douglas, the daughter of Arthur Herron, of Northiam in Sussex. The couple had four sons and two daughters, and celebrated their golden wedding in 1901.[6]
Career
The Sao Domingos Mine in Portugal, owned by Barry's company Mason & Barry
Leaving school at the age of 16, Barry went to Spain to work in a business in Bilbao. He became the British vice-consul for the Biscay province in 1846, and the following year he served as temporary consul for the Biscay, Santander and Guipúzcoa provinces.[6]
In the 1850s he was offered the post of consul in Madrid, but turned down the job to concentrate in his business interests. He returned to England, where he joined with his brother-in-law James Mason to take a 50-year lease on the Sao Domingos copper mine in Portugal.[6] They switched production technique to opencast mining, and made large profits.
^Craig, F. W. S. (1983) [1989]. British parliamentary election results 1885–1918 (2nd ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. p. 211. ISBN0-900178-27-2.