Robert Hensley

Sir Robert Mitton Hensley (4 July 1840 - 5 August 1912).

The son of Lewis Hensley of Minehead, Somerset, and his wife Martha nee Mitton, he was educated at Harrow school and Trinity College, Cambridge, graduating in 1864.

In 1881 he became a member of the Metropolitan Asylums Board, elected by the Wandsworth Board of Guardians. He remained a member of the MAB until his death (from 1889 being a nominee of the Local Government Board) at which time he was the oldest member.

He was a very active member of the board, heading a number of committees before being appointed chairman in 1901. In 1902 he was knighted for his work dealing with a cholera epidemic in the capital.

Hensley settled in Putney, and was involved in the preservation of Wimbledon Common.

He died suddenly, aged 72, and was buried in Putney Vale Cemetery.