Benjamin Fenton was born on 4 December 1783, the son of Francis Fenton (1755-1835) and his wife, Elizabeth.  The latter was the daughter of Benjamin Roebuck, a prominent Sheffield merchant and banker.  Francis Fenton became Roebuck’s business partner and, when Roebuck retired to Bath, he assumed the direction of the business.  In 1796, a visiting Philadelphia Quaker, Benjamin Johnson, recorded in his diary a meeting with Fenton: ‘a man of considerable note here’, who was also remarkable for his attachment to the local Volunteer militia (Hickman, 2006).  His comrades in arms included Thomas Asline Ward, who frequently referred to Fenton in his diary (Bell, 1909).  In 1797, Fenton was listed as a merchant in Church Lane.  However, he was bankrupt in 1808, though he remained prominent in the local community.  He was a church burgess, surveyor to the commissioners of the police, and used the Volunteer title ‘Colonel’.  He lived at Woodhill, Grimesthorpe Road, and died on 18 May 1835, aged 80 (Wallis, 1952-57).  He was buried in St Peter’s churchyard.

Francis’s son, Benjamin, was born on 4 December 1783.  In 1811, Benjamin Fenton & Co was listed as a merchant in Lambert Street, though by 1818 the address was Church Street.  In 1828, the firm was a merchant and factor in Arundel Street.  By the 1830s, Benjamin traded from a warehouse in Newcastle Street, with his residence in Wilkinson Street.  In the 1820s, Fenton is known to have sent consignments of folding, trade, and scalping knives to the Hudson’s Bay Co via Montreal (Black & Rich, 1955).  Fenton’s trade knives were stamped with the +L mark.  Levine (1997) noted that this mark was very common on scalpers found on old Native American sites.  He attributed the knives to Lockwood Brothers, who certainly later owned the mark.  However, these early scalpers were apparently exported by Fenton (though Joseph Antt, may also have used this mark).

Benjamin Fenton died at his residence in Wilkinson Street on 17 June 1847, aged 63.  He was buried in Ecclesall churchyard.  He had become wealthy, leaving a substantial annuity to his widow, Susan, and one of the finest private collections of paintings in the neighbourhood, which included works by French, Dutch, and Italian masters (Sheffield Independent, 17 July 1847).  He also owned 2,000 books and 3,000 coins.  The auction advertisement stated that he had been collecting for forty-five years (Sheffield Independent, 3 July 1847).  His warehouse in Newcastle Street was also sold.  An unconfirmed report suggested that Richard Cowlishaw acquired the +L mark, presumably prior to its use by Lockwood Brothers.  The business became defunct, though Benjamin’s son, Benjamin Roebuck Fenton (1815-1843), also became a merchant/manufacturer, and ivory dealer.  He died at Hanover Square on 22 October 1843, aged 28, and was buried in Ecclesall.  His wife, Maria (related to the Shore banking family), died suddenly at Brighton on 23 September 1856, aged 44.