Samuel Birch (Lord Mayor of London) the lord mayor, and on the reverse a representation of a wheatsheaf, with the legend, 'Free Importation, Peace and Plenty.' During his mayoralty the marble statue of George III by Chantrey, the inscription on which was written by Birch, was placed in the council chamber of Guildhall. Almost his last act as lord mayor was to lay the foundation-stone of the London Institution in Finsbury Circus (then called the Amphitheatre, Moorfields) on 4 November 1815. In 1836 Birch, who had for many years carried on his father's old business in Cornhill, disposed of it to Messrs. Ring & Brymer, the
William Leighton (Lord Mayor of London) south Wales. Leighton also owned several ships that were sent as military transports to the British Province of Quebec with contracts from the British Navy. Because of his maritime interests, Leighton served on various shipping committees. Leighton was a member of the Livery company of the Worshipful Company of Wheelwrights. He was created an alderman in the City of London's Billingsgate ward in 1799, before his resignation as an alderman in 1821. He was subsequently elected one of the Sheriffs of the City of London in 1803. In 1806, Leighton was proclaimed Lord Mayor of London, and knighted on 1