Pinckney Wilkinson

Pinckney Wilkinson (circa 1693 – 26 February 1784) was a British merchant and politician. He served as a Member of Parliament in the House of Commons from 1774 to 1784.

Wilkinson was engaged in mercantile activities in London and amassed considerable wealth. On 16 December 1735, he married Mary Thurloe (also spelled Thurlow) at Lincoln's Inn chapel. Mary was an heiress, and Wilkinson received approximately £10,000 from her fortune. In 1752, Wilkinson purchased the estate known as Polestead or Westgate in Norfolk. In the 1750s, he built Burnham Westgate Hall on the estate, employing Matthew Brettingham, who was also the architect for the Holkham estate.

He and Mary had two daughters and a son. Wilkinson retired from business following the death of his son in 1760. By the 1760s, Wilkinson held around £50,000 in Government stock and approximately £6,000 in Bank stock. Upon Mary's death in 1771, he held her property in trust. His daughter Anne married Thomas Pitt on 29 July 1771; Wilkinson reportedly provided her with a dowry of £30,000, with an expectation of additional sums. Thomas Pitt referred to the marriage as inheriting “the great inheritance” brought by Mary.

Wilkinson's second daughter, Mary, married John Smith without her parents' consent. In the 1774 general election, Wilkinson was elected as a Member of Parliament for Old Sarum, supported by his son-in-law Thomas Pitt. Wilkinson and Pitt were re-elected in 1780. During his parliamentary tenure, Wilkinson generally voted with the Opposition and apparently did not speak in Parliament.

In May 1782, Wilkinson suffered a stroke, which incapacitated him during his remaining years in Parliament. He died on 26 February 1784 at the age of approximately 90. Wilkinson’s will became a matter of legal contention in Chancery, primarily due to the exclusion of the Smith family and disputes over property delineation between Wilkinson’s and his wife’s holdings.

John Smith and Mary’s son, Sidney Smith, became a notable admiral, serving during the American and French revolutionary wars, as well as the Napoleonic Wars.