Love of Children

Aside from his creation of the global enterprise that was Rowntree & Co. Ltd and his philanthropic activities, Joseph was very much a family man. “His love for children was continually apparent. He was delighted with the greetings from his grandchildren on his birthday and Christmas Day, and was most punctilious in answering each letter promptly. His replies generally contained some reference to the birds or wild flowers, or the signs of the season in his own garden. He was anxious for the children to make friends with his own constant friend, Nature.” – Joseph’s secretary, Miss A. Baker, in her tribute to him on his passing.

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Our work is enabled by grant funding from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust, and the Joseph Rowntree Reform Trust. If you would like to make a financial donation to further support our work, it is easy to pay online (with or without Gift Aid) by clicking the link below. You can get in touch with us about other ways of giving via info@rowntreesociety.org.uk

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Second wife – mainly focused on home and family

Antoinette or ‘Tonie’ as she was known was Joseph’s second wife and a cousin of Julia. What is known about Tonie focuses on her home and family. She certainly produced some remarkable sons. Snippets of information about her do exist in archival papers such as her liking for music and observations that lead us to believe that life with Joseph could be a little trying at times – such as his heading to the library in the middle of a meal to find a book. Joseph and Tonie were married for 57 years.

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First wife – never forgotten by Joseph

Joseph married twice. His first wife was Julia Seebohm who he married in 1862 and who died the following year. We do not know what she might have become had she lived. However, 187 letters between Julia and Joseph survive at the Borthwick Institute for Archives in York and give a detailed view of her childhood and young adulthood, her family and friendships. Joseph never forgot Julia and their daughter, who also died young, and remained closely connected to the Seebohm family.

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Top (Penn) House

38 St Mary’s and 68 Bootham, situated at the top of the road at the junction of St Mary’s and Bootham, was known as ‘Top House’ by the Rowntree family and was owned by them for 70 years. Joseph lived there as a teenager and the house was later divided to enable family members to live there with separate quarters. Joseph took over ownership when his mother died and it continued to be used by the family when he moved to Clifton Lodge in 1905. In 1920 it was given to Bootham School and became known as Penn House after the Quaker, William Penn. The house is now privately owned.

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Hannah Rowntree

Hannah Rowntree was the only one of Joseph’s sisters to survive to adulthood. She was very close to Julia, Joseph’s first wife, and in 1863 Hannah moved in with Joseph to look after his daughter, Lilley, after Julia’s death. Hannah married George Gillett in 1867 and had five children of her own. George worked in the family business, Gillett’s Bank, which was amalgamated with Barclays Bank in 1919. Hannah was a regular correspondent of Joseph for the rest of his life.

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