Weaste Cemetery

Biographies of people buried between 1870 & 79

William Galloway (1796 - 1873)


 William Galloway was an engineer and ironfounder, famous for manufacturing "Lancashire" and "Galloway" boilers which powered many of the cotton mills of Lancashire. In 1820 he married Elizabeth Johnson in Northampton.

 

He was born in 1798 in Manchester. His father, also named William Galloway (1768 – 1836), was a Millwright from Coldstream, Scotland, who moved to Manchester in 1790 and set up business in Lombard Street. In 1806, William snr, along with a fellow Scot named James Bowmen, established the Caledonia Foundry, Great Bridgewater Street, Manchester. They made water wheels for mills, including one for the water-powered spinning mill at Douglas Green, Whit Lane, Pendleton. In 1820, another Scot named William Glasgow joined the partnership and the company became Galloway, Bowman and Glasgow. One of their ventures was in 1830, at the time of the world's first passenger railway from Liverpool to Manchester. They had a railway workshop for maintenance and repair of the locomotives. It is believed that William jnr and his brother John (born 1804) worked on this project and even built the first railway locomotive in Manchester, named "Manchester". It had a vertical cylinder and its wheels were wooden with iron tyres. It took six, third-class carriages to Chat Moss, but on the way back it hit the points, bent a crank and returned "wobbling". They made four more locos including the "Caledonian" that had trials in September and October 1832. However, they were not robust enough to run on the mainline.

 

In 1835, William jnr and John decided on their own venture called Knott Mill Ironworks of W & J Galloway. They made steam engines for mills, gas works equipment, screw jacks and other machinery. In 1840 they started making the "Lancashire Boiler" (credited to Fairbairn) and took out several patents relating to the improvement of boilers and other parts of steam engines. Their first "Galloway" boiler was made in 1849 for Messrs J Leeming & Co, Adelphi, Salford. Up to 1891, they made nearly nine thousand Galloway type boilers, including a 30 horse power specimen for the Great Exhibition in 1851. They also designed and built the Levens Railway Viaduct at Ulverston and Southport Pier.

 

In 1851 William lived at Princess Street, Hulme, Manchester with his wife Elizabeth, son John (aged 24) and daughter Sarah (aged 17). In 1861 their address was 14, Seymour Grove, Stretford, Manchester, where William was descried as Millwright and Engineer employing 390 men and 85 boys. In 1856, William's son, John Galloway and John's son, Charles John Galloway entered the business as partners and the firm became known as W & J Galloway and Sons. It diversified and prospered.

 

William Galloway died on 8th May 1873 at his residence, Seymour Cottage, Old Trafford, Stretford, aged 76, and was buried in a vault in A4 plot at Weaste Cemetery on 14th May. His widow, Elizabeth Galloway died on 28th July 1874 aged 74 and was re-united with her husband at Weaste Cemetery on 1st August.