Albert Thornton

Albert James Thornton (17 January 1856 – 14 June 1931),[lower-alpha 1] born Albert James Lee,[lower-alpha 2] was an English amateur cricketer who played first-class cricket between 1879 and 1891. Thornton played mainly for Kent County Cricket Club as well as amateur sides in Kent, Devon, Sussex and Hampshire. He worked as a stockjobber and was the grandson of the 19th century millionaire Richard Thornton.

Albert Thornton
A black a white photograph of a man in a cap and stripped blazer sitting
Albert Thornton in 1888
Personal information
Full name
Albert James Thornton
Born(1856-01-17)17 January 1856
Folkestone, Kent
Died14 June 1931(1931-06-14) (aged 75)
Kensington, London
BattingRight-handed
BowlingRight-arm slow underarm
RoleAll-rounder
RelationsRichard Thornton (grandfather)
Richard Napoleon Thornton (father)
Rev. Richard Thornton (brother)
Walter Thornton (brother)
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
1879–1887Devon
1880–1881Sussex
1884–1891Kent
1885EJ Sanders' XI
FC debut15 May 1879 MCC v Sussex
Last FC25 June 1891 Kent v Middlesex
Career statistics
Competition First-class
Matches 30
Runs scored 947
Batting average 21.04
100s/50s 1/4
Top score 137
Balls bowled 1,406
Wickets 27
Bowling average 24.70
5 wickets in innings 0
10 wickets in match 0
Best bowling 4/20
Catches/stumpings 13/–
Source: CricInfo, 5 December 2018

Early life and professional career

Thornton was born at Folkestone in Kent, the second son of Richard Napoleon Thornton[lower-alpha 2][lower-alpha 3] and his wife Margaret.[3][4][5] He was educated at Winchester College, where he played some cricket, and at St John's College, Oxford before going on to work in the London Stock Exchange. He was commissioned as a Lieutenant in one of the volunteer battalions in the Royal Sussex Regiment in 1885.[3]

Cricket career

Thornton played cricket for the Gentlemen of Devon and Devon County Cricket Club during the 1870s before making his first-class debut for MCC against Sussex at Lord's in 1879. He played five times for Sussex in 1880 before moving to play for Kent between 1884 and 1891. Thornton made a total of 30 first-class appearances, 21 of which were for Kent.[6] He was awarded his Kent county cap in 1886, a year after his brother Richard Thornton.[7] He also played non-first-class cricket for the Gentlemen of Hampshire.[8][9]

Thornton was described in his Wisden obituary as a "good and free hitter and a useful lob bowler", batting right-handed and bowling underarm.[8] He made one first-class century, scoring 137 for Kent against Sussex in 1887.[4][8] He toured North America with EJ Sanders XI in 1885 as part of a team captained by his brother Richard, playing in both of the first-class matches on the tour against the Gentlemen of Philadelphia, and played in Portugal for a team led by Tom Westray in 1895.[6][8]

Family and later life

Thornton was married twice. He married his first wide, Ernestine Alice Hawker, in 1877 at Honiton in Devon, the county where his parents had owned property at Knowle near Sidmouth. The couple had four children, two sons and two daughters. Ernestine died and Thornton married Rose Thompson in 1905 at Fulham. The couple had a daughter.[5][10] Thornton's brothers, Walter and Richard, both played first-class cricket, Richard for Kent and Walter for Oxford University.[8]

Thornton died at Kensington in London in 1931 aged 75.[4]

Notes
  1. Thornton's birth date is given as 17 January 1857 by Winchester College sources.
  2. Thornton's father was born Richard Lee and was the illegitimate son of Richard Thornton, one of the richest men of the 19th century. Lee changed his surname to Thornton in 1865 as a condition of his father's will.[1] Alumni Oxoniensis gives the birth names of both of Thornton's brothers as Lee, although it does not make the connection between him and the remainder of the family.[2]
  3. Carlaw refers to Thornton by the forename Alfred. No other sources does so.

References
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Albert Thornton.
  1. The London Gazette, 4 August 1865, quoted at Family of Richard Napoleon (Lee) Thornton and Margaret James, Attfield Family Tree. Retrieved 2018-12-05.
  2. Foster, Joseph (1888–1892). "Thornton, Albert James" . Alumni Oxonienses: the Members of the University of Oxford, 1715–1886. Oxford: Parker and Co – via Wikisource.
  3. Wainewright JB (1907) Winchester College, 1836–1906 : a register, p.272. Winchester: P and G Wells. (Available online. Retrieved 2018-02-03.)
  4. Albert Thornton, CricInfo. Retrieved 2018-12-03.
  5. Carlaw D (2020) Kent County Cricketers A to Z. Part One: 1806–1914 (revised edition), pp.520–522. (Available online at the Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians. Retrieved 2020-12-21.)
  6. Albert Thornton, CricketArchive. Retrieved 2018-12-03.
  7. Kent County Cricket Club - Capped Male Players, Kent County Cricket Club. Retrieved 2020-12-21.
  8. Thornton, Mr Albert J, Obituaries in 1931, Wisden Cricketers' Almanack 1932. Retrieved 2018-12-03.
  9. Ambrose D (2003) A brief profile of Albert Thornton, CricketArchive. Retrieved 2018-12-05.
  10. Family of Albert James Thornton and Ernestine Alice Hawker, Attfield Family Tree. Retrieved 2018-12-05.
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