Thomas ('Tom') Simpson Jay
(1842-1921), Mourning-ware vendor; Furrier; Racehorse ownerSitter in 1 portrait
Thomas ('Tom') Simpson Jay ('Men of the Day. No. 628. "J."')
by Sir Leslie Ward
chromolithograph, published in Vanity Fair 22 August 1895
NPG D44765
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Juliet O'Neill
24 January 2017, 17:20
Took over Jay's Mourning Warehouse, Regent St. from His father, William Chickall Jay. Then in 1882 founded the International Fur Store, 163-165 Regent St. His son-in-law, Lawrence Wethered,had a half-sister, Elizabeth Wethered, who married Augustine White. His family owned and ran Hawkes military outfitters ( now Gieves & Hawkes) at that time at 14 Piccadilly.
Dr Andrea Tanner
05 June 2017, 17:38
The dapper director/manager was born above the shop in Regent Street c 1842. His father, William, was a silk mercer, with a business in the Mile of Style. He was one of at least 6 children, his mother having died by the time he was 19. By 1861, the family lived in a house full of servants in Mill Hill, and his father had become a mourning warehouseman. His father was a member of the HAC for 53 years, and was responsible for introducing a mounted section of the regiment.
In 1871, Tom and his wife and 2 children lived in Hampstead, and he described himself as a silk mercer in Regent Street. In 1878, he was elected a member of the Royal Institution.
In 1881 he was living in the Wilderness, Inner Ring Road, Wandsworth Common, with his wife and four children. At that time, he was a 39 year old draper/mourning ware storekeeper. He was staying at an hotel in the King’s Road on the night of the 1891 census.
By 1901, he was living at Holmwood, Putney Hill, describing himself as a retired furrier, with his wife, one daughter and 8 servants. His business in Regent Street was called the International Fur Trade. He had a country home at Mayfield in Sussex, where he kept his stable.
In 1895, he was elected First President of the Royal Warrant Holders Association, and was the subject that year of a caricature by Spy, and a profile in The Illustrated London News.
He became a director of the newly-formed limited liability company, Fortnum & Mason Ltd, in March 1905.
At the time of his death, he was better known as a racehorse owner, being the owner of a famous horse called White Wings, and an enthusiastic breeder of horses for point to point and hunting.