Historical information

Alfred Felton (8 November 1831 – 8 January 1904) lived at the Esplanade Hotel, St Kilda, from 1892 and died there in 1904. He was born in England and came to Australia in 1853 intending to search for gold. In 1867, having worked as a commission agent and dealer in merchandise, an importer and general dealer and a wholesale druggist, he went into partnership with Frederick Sheppard Grimwade and founded Felton Grimwade and Company, "wholesale druggists and manufacturing chemists". He was a keen collector of books and art. He never married, had no direct descendants and gave away considerable amounts to charity.

When Felton died, he left the bulk of his fortune to the creation of a charitable foundation known as the Felton Bequest to support culture and the community, with half the funding benefiting Victorian charities (particularly those that support women and children) and the other half used to acquire and donate art works to the National Gallery of Victoria. The Felton Bequest has been responsible for 15,000 artworks in the National Gallery of Victoria and they are the core of the collection.

Physical description

colour photograph unmounted

Inscriptions & markings

City of St Kilda. Alfred Felton (1831-1904) Philanthropist, Industrialist, lived here 1892 - 1904, sponsored by ACI International Ltd