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I'm slightly confused. The Sydney Mail (Jan 11 1922) has an article titled "Arthur Phillip - An Unwritten Chapter" by E. M. Green (a relative of mine). She writes the following in regards to John Lane:

"Mr. John Lane appears to have been a man of substance, and his father, Sir Thomas Lane, was Lord Mayor of London.....In an old book Sir Thomas Lane is described as a Londoner, and ancestor of Lord Foley... We can picture the city gentleman driving to the village of Peckham to visit his son and daughter-in-law, and their portraits by Copley and Romney fill in the picture."

Emma seems to think that John's father was Sir Thomas Lane. She could be right, but I would like to confirm this. When searching on the net I came across Sir Thomas Lane and his wife Mary Ashurt and children. It shows us that John was born in the late 1600s. I've got John's year of birth as 1743. - Could it be possible that they have it all wrong and I'm correct. Also, on further research, I came across Joseph Lane son of Sir Thomas Lane who was born in 1743 and died in 1795 (This was found on google books, a primary source). The date range is similar to John.

Other evidence to support Sir Thomas being the father of John is his incredible amount of wealth. John privately funded a fleet of ships for Admiral Arthur Phillip (1st Gov. of NSW), as the crown and admiralty opposed funding for it. Also, I found out that Sir Thomas owned land in New Jersey and his grandson by the name of Thomas Lane had some control over the land prior to the outbreak of the American Revolution. John Lane had a son by the name of Thomas Lane.

I would appreciate it if someone could help me with this mess. I'd like to confirm that Sir Thomas Lane was the father of John Lane.

Kind Regards,

Sykes.

Since your original post Sykes, The Sydney Living Museum has published information on Arthur Philips.

https://sydneylivingmuseums.com.au/stories/first-fleet-ships/ambition-and-adventure-early-life-arthur-phillip

"When Phillip returned to England at the end of the war he brought with him two things crucial to his later success: the experience of lieutenancy supervising a diverse crew, and the patronage of Captain Michael Everitt, a family connection, and Captain Augustus Hervey, who was a future politician and the third earl of Bristol."



Captain Michael Everitt (1716-1776) was the father of Eleanor Everitt (1747-1827) who married John Lane (1743-1829) on 30 June 1767 in Fareham, Hampshire, England.

Together, they had 3 children, Elizabeth Lane (1782-1782), Harriet Eleanor Lane (1776-1860) and Thomas Lane (1768-1834).

Still working on the parentage of father of John Lane's father - Thomas Lane (?-1784). 

Have you got any further forward?

John Tilley, grandfather of Sir John Anthony Cecil Tilley married Elizabeth Fraser on 01 Feb 1804 (see above for further details).

4 Elizabeth Fraser was the daughter of 1 Thomas Fraser and Susannah Culpepper; sister of 5 Susannah Fraser who married John Anderson of Philpot Lane, brother of Alexander Anderson Philpot Lane and James Anderson plantation owner of South Carolina, USA (brothers and beneficiaries of Richard Oswald) 06 October 1792.

4 Elizabeth Fraser was the goddaughter of A Thomas Lane (d. 1784).

Identifying the death of 1) Thomas Fraser and 2) Thomas Fraser is a work in progress, although The Maine Historical Magazine 1888 page 186 (Forgottenbooks.com) indicates that 1) Thomas Fraser was still alive in 1803 as named in the will of Thomas Russell of Boston.

Reports of Cases Argued and Determined in the Court of Chancery of the State of South Caroline  (Google Books) in the case Winthrop, Todd and Winthrop, vs. Survivors of Lane, Son & Fraser in dealings between 1785-1789 (1811), the only survivor of Lane, Son and Fraser was John Lane.

Other names which seem to appear regularly within the Lane, Fraser, Anderson connection are Charlton and Thomas Palmer.

The Bedford (Massachusetts) Historical Society have published 2 letters from The Lane Family Papers which are signed as Lane, Son & Fraser and are from Job & John Lane, Gentlemen, Merchants of Beverly, New England.   It appears that John Lane (Lane, Son and Fraser) was related to Job Lane (1718-1796 of Massachusetts)

B) John Lane baptised 24th June 1743 in St. Nicholas Acons, London to A) Thomas Lane and Margaret.

B) John Lane (1743-1829) married C) Eleanor Everitt (1747-1827) 30th June 1767

Named individuals in B) John Lane will written 4th  August 1827:

D) Thomas Lane (1768-1834) son living in Jamaica 1827

E) Harriet Eleanor Lane (1776-1860) daughter living in Camberwell, Peckham

C) Eleanor Lane (late dear wife) who died on the fourteenth day of May last

H) Sarah Rule (my cousin ) daughter of F) Thomas and G) Sarah Rule who now resides with. 

This implies A) Thomas Lane or his wife Margaret had a brother F) Thomas or a sister G) Sarah.

According to the 1851 Census, H) Sarah Rule was living with E) Harriet Eleanor Lane and born abt. 1774.

F) Thomas and G) Sarah Rule had a daughter born 18th December 1773 and baptised 27th March 1774 St. Olave, Southwark Surrey.

F) Thomas Rule married G) Sarah Newman 24th November 1771, St. Saviour, Southwark, Surrey

I) G Everitt son of the late Thomas Everitt the portrait of his grandfather the late Captain Michael Everitt

I wonder whether Lane, Son and Fraser was originally

A) Thomas Lane (?-1784) (LANE)

B) John Lane (1743-1829) (SON)

1) Thomas Fraser (1736-?) (FRASER)

The Journal of Samuel Curwen, Loyalist Volume 1 (Google Books) shows that on Friday 4th August 1775, Samuel Curwen “Dined at John Lanes in the company with…Mrs. Lane, Mrs. Leggs and Thomas Lane (Thomas Lane and his son John were members of the mercantile house of Lane, Son & Fraser which carried on a substantial American business) to whom the son introduced me.

A case reported in Reports of Cases Argued and Determined in the High Court of Chancery Volume 17 by Francis Vesey (Google Books) suggests that by 1781, Boylston had joined forces with the firm.

Deed dated 30th August 1784 is between Boylston, Lane and Fraser “…all which to be improved by us Lane and Fraser, in a line of commerce and business as partners; the same as was followed and pursued by us under the firm of Lane, Son and Fraser…”

This seems to be confirmed by “Joint Commission of Bankruptcy against Lane, Fraser, and Boylston 20th April 1793, merchants and co-partners, carrying on trade under the firm of Lane, Son, and Fraser.”

And The Literary Panorama, and National Register, Volume 9, Page 1094 puts the date at Tuesday 19 February 1793 when the Bank of England threw out the paper of Lane, Son, and Fraser, who had never recovered the shocks of the American war.

This implies, that on the death of Thomas Lane (1784), the firm became

B) John Lane (1743-1829)

1) Thomas Fraser (1736-?)

(and) Thomas Boylston (Boston Massachusetts, late of London) (1720-1798)

But retained the name Lane, Son and Fraser

In fact, The London Gazette part 2 Page 1633 printed 1817 (Google Books) name “…John Lane and Thomas Fraser late of Nicholas Lane, London, Merchants and Copartners (carrying on trade under the firm of Lane, Son, and Fraser)…”

Walter Maynard’s will made in 1804, noted that he had expended “large sums on New River Estate (Nevis), now belonging to Messrs. Lane, Son & Fraser under a promise…” (Liverpoolmuseums.org.uk)

Which is expanded in the Legacies of British Slave-ownership project to “…'expended a very large amount of money' on the New River estate, the property of the assigns of Messrs Lane Son and Fraser, on the promise that he would be the purchaser,…”