Thomas Henry Barker

Barker in about 1900, walking behind Alfred Lewis Jones and Guglielmo Marconi.

Barker started his career in 1856 at the age of 16 as a clerk with James Baines & Co., owners of the Black Ball Line of ships (at the time one of the largest shipping companies in Liverpool). Later he moved to work for Reynold, Mann & Co., ship-owners and East India merchants, for whom he travelled extensively to America, Australia, and elsewhere.

After this he joined the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce as an assistant to William Blood, who was then Secretary of the Chamber. Blood retired in 1884, and Barker was appointed Secretary in his place, at the age of 43. The Chamber at this time was involved in negotiating around the trade in cotton, wheat, and iron with India, and Barker worked in this area in relation to the East Indian Railway Company, and lobbied for reductions in import tariffs to India. The Chamber's first 'Trade Section' or subcommittee (relating to the cotton trade) had been set up in 1882, and by the end of the 1890s had twenty-three such Sections — with Barker instrumental in much of their organisation.

West African trade was also of great importance to the Chamber around the time when Barker became Secretary, and he was involved along with Sir Alfred Jones in establishing the West African Trade Section.

Barker also was instrumental in forming the Tobacco Trade Section. "Tobacco had been previously warehoused at various Liverpool docks, which was highly inconvenient. On the formation of the Tobacco Section, however, representations were made to the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board which led to the creation of a warehouse at the Stanley Docks, capable of storing the entire stock of tobacco entering the port."

He became Russian Trade Organiser for the Chamber, and this lead to him later helping during the Russian imperial visit to Cowes in 1909 for which he was awarded membership of the Order of Saint Anna.

Barker retired (after thirty-one years as Secretary) at the end of 1912, the year in which the Chamber had negotiated improvements to the Liverpool telephone network, alongside the General Post Office taking over UK telephone networks. (See also the photograph of Barker with Marconi at left.) During his time as Secretary he had been involved in many prominent people, such as Lord Halsbury, Lord Lansdowne, Winston Churchill, and the King of Siam.

Barker was born on 18 May 1841 at 9 Earle Street in Liverpool, the second son of Charles Frederick Barker and Elizabeth Barker (née Hezelwood), and he was baptised on 8 June 1841 at St Peter's Church, Liverpool. His siblings were Charles Frederick Barker (1838–1887), Elizabeth Barker (1838–1840) and Joseph Bolton Barker (1844–?).

Thomas Henry was living at 79 Canning Street, Liverpool in 1861 at the age of 19, with his mother Elizabeth (already a widow) and working as a ships' clerk. In the household were his brother Joseph Bolton Barker (16), brother Charles N. Barker (age 24) Mariner and their aunt Isabella Hazelwood, age 52.

On 25 April 1875 he married Mary Ellen Moulsdale in Walton, Liverpool.

Barker enjoyed travelling, and as well as visiting many different parts of the world in the course of his professional duties he also travelled for pleasure. In 1908 after the Conference of the Associated Chambers of Commerce in Montreal he went on a journey to Japan and China and returned to Liverpool via the Trans-Siberian Railway soon after it was opened.

On his retirement in 1912, the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce presented Barker with a large oil portrait of himself, which afterwards hung in the Chambers' offices and today is held by his descendants.