Jamrach, Charles

• Jamrach, Johann Christian Carl

Charles Jamrach was a leading dealer in wildlife, birds and shells in 19th century London. He owned an exotic pet store on the Ratcliffe Highway in east London - at the time the largest such shop in the world. Jamrach's nearest rival was Edward Cross, who ran a menagerie at Exeter Exchange on the Strand.

Jamrach was born in Germany. His father, Johann Gottlieb Jamrach, was chief of the Hamburg river police, whose contacts with sailors enabled him to build up a trade as a dealer in birds and wild animals, establishing branches in Antwerp and London.

Charles Jamrach moved to London and took over that branch of the business after his father's death in circa 1840. He became a leading importer, breeder and exporter of animals, selling to noblemen, zoos, menageries and circus owners, and buying from ships docking in London and nearby ports, with agents in other major British ports, including Liverpool, Southampton and Plymouth, and also in continental Europe. His business included a shop and a museum - named Jamrach's Animal Emporium - on the Ratcliffe Highway and a menagerie in Betts Street, both in the East End, and a warehouse in Old Gravel Lane, Southwark.

Jamrach was also largely responsible for restocking P T Barnum's circus after a fire in 1864.

A sea snail, Amoria jamrachii, was named after Jamrach by John Edward Gray, keeper of zoology at the British Museum, to whom Jamrach had forwarded the shell after he obtained it