Benjamin Satchwell
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Benjamin Satchwell (1732- 1st December 1809 [1] ) was one of the founding fathers of Leamington Spa in Warwickshire, UK. Satchwell's cottage was in the old town to the south of the River Leam. He was the village's first postmaster, using his cottage as the post office, a shoemaker, and acted as an official mediator between two people in the village with a quarrel. In 1777 he helped set up The Foundation of Hospitality, a savings scheme which helped the poorer people of the village get medical attention.
It was however on the 14th January 1784 that Satchwell made the discovery that he would be remembered for. Until that date there was only one known spring in Leamington, on land belonging to the 4th Earl of Aylesford, who refused to sell the water (which was used for bathing and medicinal purposes), instead allowing people to have it for free. However in 1784 Satchwell and his friend William Abbotts found a second spring and in the manner of the time used its supposed medicinal qualities to make money from the leisured classes.
After Satchwell and Abbotts' spring was found several wells were bored and water was drawn. Leamington quickly grew into one of the most fashionable spa resorts of the 19th century, a process which turned it from a sleepy village to a thriving town.
Later in his life he founded the Leamington Spa Charity to help the poor of the town get free access to spas. He was also well known for his poetry, which he wrote and performed. He died in 1809 at the age of 77 and was buried in Leamington's parish church, All Saints, just yards from where his friend Abbotts had been laid to rest four years earlier.
[edit] Satchwell's Legacy
- Three streets in Leamington have been named after Satchwell: Satchwell Street, Satchwell Court and Satchwell Place.
- The Wetherspoons pub chain, noted for naming its pubs after important local people or events, called its Leamington outlet "The Benjamin Satchwell".
- There is a picture of Satchwell in the National Portrait Gallery in London.
- A pair of Satchwell's spectacles take pride of place in Leamington's museum.
