Yorkshire Insurance Company Ltd
The Yorkshire Insurance Company was established in 1824 as the Yorkshire Fire and Life Insurance Company. A deed of settlement was signed on July 21 1825 and was replaced by an act of parliament in July 1831. On May 27 1908, the company changed its name to the Yorkshire Insurance Company and was registered as a limited company on June 3 1908.
Company History
Yorkshire Fire and Life Insurance Company policy header, 1863
Yorkshire Insurance Company engraving
Yorkshire Insurance Company scroll
The first meeting of the company founders took place in York Tavern in St Helen's Square, York, and set out the company objectives :
"to effect insurance against loss by fire and on lives and survivorships and the sale and purchase of annuities and Reversions and the endowment of Children."
The company opened for business on September 1 1824 and, in 1826, adopted York minister as its official emblem.
During the early half of the 19th century there were no organised local fire brigades and the Yorkshire, like other insurance companies, maintained its own fire engine and brigade in York. The company purchased its first engine in November 1824 and the "Yorkshire" brigade tackled fires for over 50 years - including those at York Minster in 1829 and 1840 - until the city corporation assumed responsibility for all fire fighting in 1876.
Around the turn of the century, the company began a period of considerable expansion. In 1898, it started to offer accident insurance while a burglary business was added in 1901. The company extended its business to include fidelity guarantee insurance in 1904 followed by plate glass and livestock insurance in 1907. By 1938, the company was offering fire, life, annuity, sickness, accident, employers' liability, burglary, fidelity guarantee, motor, plate glass, third party, boiler and engineering, live stock and marine insurances.
In 1967, the majority of the company's share capital was acquired by the General Accident Fire and Life Assurance Corporation Ltd, which acquired the remaining share capital the following year. By 1974, the Yorkshire had ceased operating in the United Kingdom but was still active in Brazil, Iran and France. In 1991, its principal business was United States business written in the United Kingdom and general insurance through overseas agencies. The company was registered as non-trading on March 31 2006.
Key dates
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1824 | The company is established |
| 1826 | The company adopts York minister as its official emblem |
| 1908 | Name changes to the Yorkshire Insurance Company |
| 1908 | The company is registered as a limited company |
| 1967 | The General Accident Fire and Life Assurance Corporation acquires a majority shareholding |
| 1968 | General Accident acquires the remaining share capital |
| 2006 | The company was registered as non-trading |
Did you know...?
- During the First World War, Scotland Yard was investigating the deaths of three wives of George Joseph Smith, the so called "brides in the bath murderer". The doctor on the case received a letter from the Yorkshire stating that, on December 14 1914, prior to her marriage, his second wife had taken out a policy showing Smith as the beneficiary. The detectives reasoned that if the Yorkshire were ready to pay out on the policy, Smith would contact his solicitor. Police watched the solicitor's office and were able to apprehend Smith as a result. It was widely reported at the time that the Yorkshire policy was key to bringing Smith to justice.
- Samuel Tuke, one of the original company directors, was a Quaker and is considered the founder of Friends Provident.
- From 1954, the company ran a successful advertising campaign, known as the Dialect campaign, that included strap lines such as :
"Devonshire for cream but Yorkshire for insurance"
Subsidiaries and constituents
| Year | Company name |
|---|---|
| 1844 - 1882 | Great Britain Mutual Life Assurance Society |
| 1884 - 1890 | North of England Fire Insurance Company Ltd |
| 1896 - 1899 | Commercial Insurance Company of Ireland Ltd (No. 1) |
| 1879 - 1902 | Lion Insurance Company Ltd |
| 1822 - 1904 | National Assurance Company of Ireland |
| 1895 - 1908 | Hastings St Leonards & District Mutual Plate Glass Insurance Company Ltd |
| 1875 - 1908 | Hibernian Plate Glass Insurance Company Ltd |
| 1901 - 1908 | Irish Vehicle Owners' Accident Company Ltd |
| 1883 - 1908 | Livestock and General Insurance Company of New Zealand |
| 1885 - 1908 | London Plate Glass Insurance Company Ltd |
| 1906 - 1908 | British Crown Plate Glass Insurance |
| 1902 - 1909 | United Legal Indemnity Insurance Society Ltd |
| - 1912 | Kolnische Glas-Versicherungs Gesellschaft |
| 1907 - 1912 | Celtic Insurance Company Ltd |
| 1910 - 1912 | Counties and General Insurance Company Ltd |
| 1860 - 1913 | London and Provincial Marine and General Insurance Company Ltd |
| 1903 - 1913 | Premier Insurance Company Ltd (all except fire and workmen's compensation) |
| 1881 - 1913 | Scottish Boiler Insurance and Engine Inspection Company Ltd |
| 1902 - 1913 | Newcastle and District Plate Glass Insurance Company Ltd |
| 1840 - 1914 | Guarantee Society Ltd |
| 1867 - 1918 | Ulster Marine Insurance Company Ltd |
| 1862 - 1921 | Oldham Fire Insurance Company Ltd |
| 1874 - 1921 | Bradford Plate Glass Mutual |
| 1884 - 1921 | Lancashire and Yorkshire Reversionary Interest Company Ltd |
| 1919 - 1922 | Commercial Insurance Company of Ireland Ltd (No. 2) |
| 1872 - 1922 | National Safe Deposit and Trustee Company Ltd |
| - 1924 | La Cooperation Insurance Company of Paris |
| - 1925 | La Union Antillana, Cuba |
| 1926 | Yorkshire Indemnity Company of New York |
| 1892 - 1931 | Property Estates and Reversion Company Ltd |
| 1928 | Seaboard Fire and Marine Insurance Company of New York |
| 1874 - 1947 | The Bloomfield Land and Building Company Ltd |
| 1942 | El Cabillo Insurance Company of Argentina |
| 1943 | Companhia de Seguros Gerais Corcovado |
| - 1944 | Redheugh Investment Trust Company |
| 1941 - 1944 | White Star Investment Trust Company Ltd |
| 1938 - 1947 | Hemphill, Quinton (Transvaal) Ltd |
| 1949 | Corcovada Life Assurance Company |
| 1900 - 1952 | Farmers Finance and Insurance Office Ltd |
| 1960 | Wandin Properties Ltd |
| 1961 | Canadian Pioneer Insurance Company of Montreal |
| 1961 | Yorkshire Life Insurance Company of Australia Ltd |
| 1877 - 1963 | Scottish Insurance Corporation Ltd |
| 1910 - 1963 | La Brabanconne Société Anonyme Belge d'Assurances |
| 1963 | Yorkshire Finance of Australia Ltd |
| 1965 | Yorkshire Insurance Company of South Africa Ltd |
| 1969 | Niger Insurance Company |
Head office premises
York
| Year | Address |
|---|---|
| 1824 - 1826 | 46 Coney Street |
| 1826 - 1965 | St Helen's Square, corner of Brearys Court |
| 1965 - 2002 at least | 2 Rougier Street |
London
| Year | Address |
|---|---|
| 1880 - 1901 | 82 Old Broad Street |
| 1901 - 1930 | 2 Bank Buildings, Princes Street |
| 1930 - 1958 | Yorkshire House, 66-67 Cornhill (temporary offices based at Littlehampton and Naseby Hall, Northamptonshire, during the war) |
| 1958 - 1966 at least | Beckett House, 36-37 Old Jewry |
Staff and officials
General Manager
| Year | Name |
|---|---|
| 1856 - 1884 | Frederick Leyland Mawdesley (also secretary) |
| 1884 - 1902 | John Allan Cunninghame (also secretary) |
| 1902 - 1921 | James Hamilton (also secretary until 1919) |
| 1922 - 1936 | W T Maudsley |
| 1937 - 1944 | A Harrower (joint manager) |
| 1937 - 1950 | R M Hamilton (joint manager) |
| 1950 - 1960 | A D Gladwin (joint manager) |
| 1950 - 1966 | H T Silversides (joint manager) |
| 1966 - 1969 | R H Gudgeon |
| 1969 - 1970 | J M Gray |
| 1970 - 1981 | D A Blaikie |
| 1981 - | B C Marshall |
| Position not listed after 1981 | |
Secretary
| Year | Name |
|---|---|
| 1824 - 1824 | H Henwood |
| 1824 - 1856 | William Lewin Newman (also actuary) |
| 1856 - 1884 | Frederick Leyland Mawdesley (also general manager) |
| 1884 - 1902 | John Allan Cunninghame (also general manager) |
| 1902 - 1919 | James Hamilton |
| 1919 - 1927 | E A Birks |
| 1927 - 1937 | A Harrower |
| 1937 - 1949 | A D Gladwin |
| 1950 - 1966 | C E Quickfall |
| 1966 - 1968 | D J Fearnley |
| 1968 - 1970 | A J Swift |
| 1970 - 1977 | I A Chambers |
| 1977 - 1982 | L S Mansfield |
| 1982 - 1985 at least | R G MacDonal |
Actuary
| Year | Name |
|---|---|
| 1824 - 1856 | William Lewin Newman (also secretary) |
| 1856 - 1889 | William Lewin Newman Jr |
| 1889 - 1924 | Phillip Lewin Newman |
| 1924 - 1944 | Harold W Wares |
| 1944 - 1947 | J E Preston |
| 1947 - 1960 | J A Shaljean |
| 1960 - 1966 | C L Hind |
| 1966 - 1970 at least | C G Myers |
| Position not listed after 1970 | |
Yorkshire Insurance Company, Canadian branch headed notepaper
Yorkshire Fire and Life Insurance Company fire mark
2 Rougier Street
Yorkshire Fire and Life Insurance Company branded blotter, 1902
Yorkshire Fire and Life Insurance Company advertisement
Yorkshire Fire and Life Insurance Company branded blotter
Dublin office
Yorkshire Fire and Life Insurance Company electrical installation manual
Directors (1824)
- Sir H J Goodricke
- Robert Appleby
- G F Barlow
- John Broadley
- Robert Cattle
- John Catton
- Ralph Creyke Jr
- Robert Dickson
- George Dodsworth
- Richard Drake
- William J Ellis
- Amaziah Empson
- J L Eyre
- Jonathan Gray
- W H Hearon
- William Hotham
- John Wormald
- Joseph Mawman
- John Pemberton
- Richard Price
- David Russell
- Philip Saltmarshe
- Isaac Spencer
- George Strickland
- John Swann
- Avison Terry
- Thomas Thompson
- Daniel Tuke
- Isaac Wilson
Home branches
- Hull (1877)
- London (1880)
- Manchester (1883)
- Liverpool (1884
- Birmingham (1886)
- Glasgow (1887)
- Leeds (1890)
- Bristol (1898)
- Newcastle-upon-Tyne (1898)
- West End Branch (1898)
- Cardiff (by 1901)
- Edinburgh (by 1902)
- Sheffield (1904)
- Dundee (by 1905)
- Belfast (by 1905)
- Southampton (by 1905)
- Hastings (by 1907)
- Peterborough (by 1907)
- Bradford (1908)
Home agencies
- Beverley (1824)
- Hull (1824)
- Banff (by 1830)
- Aberdeen (by 1830)
- Edinburgh (by 1830)
- Newcastle (by 1830)
- Middlesborough (by 1830)
- Nottingham (by 1830)
- London (1836) life only
- Liverpool (1848)
- Exeter (by 1850)
- Torquay (by 1850)
- Modbury (by 1850)
- Tavistock (by 1850)
- Bideford (by 1850)
- Moretonhampstead (by 1850)
Overseas branches and agencies
- Amsterdam, Netherlands (1898)
- Bombay, India (1899)
- Dublin, Ireland (1899)
- Yokohama, Japan (1899) (branch 1910)
- Shanghai, China (1899) (branch 1916)
- Antwerp, Belgium (1900)
- Alexandria, Egypt (1900) also Cairo
- Rotterdam, Netherlands (1900)
- Copenhagen, Denmark (1900)
- Hamburg, Germany (1900)
- Christiania, (Oslo) Norway (1902)
- Montreal, Canada (by 1906)
- Cork, Ireland (by 1907)
- Melbourne, Australia (by 1907) also Adelaide Brisbane Perth Sydney
- Strasburg, Germany (by 1907)
- Cape Town and Johannesburg, South Africa (by 1907)
- Dunedin, New Zealand (1908)
- Colombo, Sri Lanka (by 1908)
- Singapore (by 1908)
- Hong Kong (by 1908)
- Saigon, Vietnam (by 1908)
- Panang, Malaysia (by 1908)
- Paris, France (1910)
- United States (1911)
- Buenos Aires, Argentina (1912)
- Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (1922)
- Mesopatamia, Persia (by 1919)
- Gothenburg, Sweden (by 1929)
- Jamaica (by 1929)
In the archives
The Aviva archive contains records relating to the running of the Yorkshire Insurance Company between 1824 and 1997. The collection includes board and general minutes, local board minutes, deeds of settlement, memoranda and articles of association, annual reports and accounts, general ledgers, auditors' account books, journals, valuation books, salary books, staff magazines, letter books, registers of agents, agents' records, share registers, life policy assignments registers, life policy description books, registers of wills, policies, proposals, branch fire surveyors reports, accident insurance registers, livestock insurance files, advertising and promotional material and photographs of staff, officials, branches and events.