Richard Champion letter book

1773-1775

Richard Champion (1743-1791) of Bristol, England was a noted merchant and porcelain manufacturer. Champion, a Quaker, was active in political and civic affairs and sympathetic to American interests. He worked to elect Edmund Burke to Parliament for Bristol in 1774. Champion emigrated with his family to South Carolina in 1784 and settled near Camden, where he died in 1791. This is the fourth volume in chronological order of five letter books transcribed by Richard Champion and members of his family from original correspondence (the other volumes, numbered I-IV, are at the Bristol Record Office). Incoming and outgoing letters, dating 18 February 1773-21 January 1775, concern civic affairs in Bristol, including the licensing of a theater; the election of Edmund Burke; Anglo-American commerce and politics; family and business matters; his china patent; and other subjects. Among the correspondents are William Baker, Edmund Burke, Richard Burke, Thomas Pitt, the painter Nicholas Pocock, and members of the Champion family and their friends.