Rathbone family

In England, the Rathbone family of Liverpool were nonconformist merchants and ship-owners who were known to engage in philanthropy and public service. The family origins trace back to Gawsworth, Cheshire, where the first William Rathbone was born in 1669; it was his son, William Rathbone II, who left Gawsworth for the growing port of Liverpool, where he worked as a sawyer and most likely established a timber business.^[1] Having arrived in Liverpool prior to 1730, the family subsequently became involved in the building and ownership of ships, as well as general commerce.^[2] In 1788, William Rathbone IV took a lease on the house and estate of Greenbank, then part of the Toxteth Park estate, to serve as a country retreat for his young family, and purchased the freehold of house in 1809, the year of his death.

Notable members

• William Rathbone II (1696–1746)
• William Rathbone III (1726–1789)
• William Rathbone IV (1757–1809)
• William Rathbone V (1787–1868)
• Richard Rathbone (1788–1860)
• Hannah Mary Rathbone (1798–1878)
• William Rathbone VI (1819–1902)
• Henry Rathbone (1837–1911), United States military Brevet Colonel who was present at the assassination of Abraham Lincoln
• Hugh Reynolds Rathbone (1862–1940)
• Elfrida Rathbone (1871–1940)
• Eleanor Rathbone (1872–1946)
• Basil Rathbone (1892–1967), actor famous for portraying Sherlock Holmes
• Irene Rathbone (1892–1980), English novelist
• John Rathbone (1910–1940), Conservative MP, fighter pilot with the RAF^[3]
• Tim Rathbone (1933–2002), Conservative MP^[3]
• Julian Rathbone (1935–2008), English novelist
• Jenny Rathbone (b. 1950), member of the Senedd for Cardiff Central^[4]
• Jackson Rathbone (b. 1984), American actor who traces his ancestry back to the Rathbone family