Pemberton, Christopher

Christopher Pemberton was born in 1767 into an affluent and prominent land owning family of lawyers. On his father’s side his great grandfather, Sir Francis Pemberton, had been Chief Justice of the Kings Bench (1624-97) and his grandfather, Francis, had been a barrister in the Inner Temple.
His father Christopher (Fellow of Catherine Hall, 1751-60) married Anne Stevenson on 9th June 1760 and Christopher was born at Newton Hall in 1767. He was one of 6 children (4 surviving into adulthood): Anne (1761-1838); Arabella (1762-1838) and William (1765-1828).
At this time the Pemberton family owned two substantial landed estates - Trumpington Estates owned by his uncle Revd Jeremiah Pemberton (1740-1800) and Newton Estate owned by Christopher Pemberton’s father Christopher (1727-1809).

Career:
In 1789 Christopher Pemberton qualified as an attorney and solicitor and started up in practice on his own account. He remained in practice on his own for 24 years until he took on his first partner Thomas Fiske in 1813. They remained in business together until Thomas Fiske died in 1829. In 1820 William Woodcock Hayward joined the firm as a third partner. He died in 1838. In 1843 Pemberton entered into partnership with William Thrower which continued until 1850. A Memorandum of Agreement dated 6th July 1850 anticipated the establishment of a partnership between Pemberton, Thrower and Clement Francis (a young solicitor with his own practice in Emmanuel Street) but another Agreement dated 18th July involved only Thrower and Francis. So Christopher Pemberton enjoyed 3 months retirement before he died on 26th October 1850.

Public appointments:
1793 - Clerk of the Peace
1803 - Treasurer to the Eau Brink Commissioners
1806 - Receiver General for the County of Cambridgeshire. Appointed to the post by 3rd Earl of Hardwicke on the death of his father (who had been the previous post holder)
1813 - Member of the Society of Clerks of the Peace (the Society had only been founded 2 years previously)

He was also Solicitor to the University and a very large number of Colleges; Steward of upwards of 30 manors and served in the Office of Under Sheriff on many occasions.

The practice started by Christopher Pemberton in 1789 went on to become Mills & Reeve.

1789 - 1813 Christopher Pemberton
1813 - 1820 Pemberton and Fiske
1820 - 1829 Pemberton Fiske and Hayward
1829 - 1838 Pemberton and Hayward
1838 - 1843 Christopher Pemberton
1843 - 1850 Pemberton and Thrower
1850 - 1861 Clement Francis
1861 - 1876 Francis Webster and Riches
1876 - 1879 Francis Riches and Francis
1879 - 1887 Francis and Francis
1887 - 1888 Francis Francis and Parker
1888 - 1898 Francis and Francis
1898 - 1905 Francis Francis and Collin
1905 - 1907 Francis Francis Collin and Peile
1907 - 1987 Francis & Co
1987 - Mills & Reeve Francis

Personal Life:
Christopher Pemberton never married. There is a memorial tablet erected to his memory in Newton Parish Church

Grove Lodge, Trumpington was his residence and office between 1798 and his death in 1850. He leased the land on which he built the house from Peterhouse. The architect was William Custance

Solicitor

"A Cambridge Bicentenary. The History of a Legal Practice 1789-1989" by Christopher Jackson