The family claimed descent from Sir Nicholas Bacon (1540–1624); however, since very little is known about his ancestry and upbringing, the connection may be spurious or illegitimate.
During the Seven Years' War Bacon became a government contractor for shipping and victualling in partnership with London merchant William Biggin, also from Whitehaven.
[4] In 1765 Bacon went into partnership with William Brownrigg of Whitehaven, taking out a lease on 4,000 acres (16 km2) of land in the Merthyr valley.
In 1773, after the Carron Company's guns had been withdrawn from service as dangerous, Bacon offered to provide three cannon for a trial, made respectively with charcoal, coke, and mixed fuel.
The next year, Bacon asked for Richard Crawshay's name to be included in his warrants, and from this time the cannon were cast at Cyfarthfa.
This continued until Bacon as a member of parliament was disabled from undertaking government contracts in 1782, when the forge and some of the gunfoundry business were leased to Francis Homfray.
In addition, "The Hirwaun furnace and collieries became the joint property of Anthony II and Thomas, while Robert, it seems, had the mines, etc., at Workington.
William, then a baby, was to receive the remainder of the trust funds, provided the sum did not amount to more than £10,000, when he came of age.