Sir William Crossley, 1st Baronet
Sir William John Crossley, 1st Baronet (22 April 1844 – 12 October 1911) was a British engineer and Liberal politician.
W J Crossley was born at Glenburn, near Lisburn, County Antrim. His ancestors had come to Ireland from Lancashire at the time of the Williamite War.[1] He was educated at the Royal School Dungannon and in Bonn.[1]
He was first employed at the machine works of
Elswick, before joining his brother, Francis to found the Crossley Brothers engineering firm in Manchester in 1867.[1] In 1876 the company began the production of gas engines, and the firm went on to be major employers.[1]
In
MP, Coningsby Disraeli. He was created a baronet in 1909.[2] He lost his parliamentary seat at the December 1910 election by 119 votes.[1]
Crossley was involved in philanthropic works. He was Chairman of the
In 1876 he married Mabel Gordon Anderson.[1] Sir William and Lady Crossley had five children:[5]
- Kenneth Irwin Crossley (1877–1957), who succeeded as 2nd Baronet, and was High Sheriff of Cheshire in 1919.
- Eric Crossley (1878–1949)
- Brian Crossley (b. 1886)
- Lettice Crossley (b. 1879) and Cicely Crossley (b. 1880). Both Lettice and Cicely died as infants.
He died aged 67 in 1911, following complications from an operation.[1]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h Obituary: Sir W. J. Crossley, The Times, 13 October 1911, p.9
- ^ "No. 128312". The London Gazette. 26 November 1909. p. 8934.
- ISBN 0954339207.)
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link - ^ "Court Circular". The Times. No. 36972. London. 8 January 1903. p. 7.
- ISBN 0-86093-574-4.