Colonel Sir Benjamin Alfred Dobson (1847–1898) was an English textile machinery manufacturer and mayor of

Bolton Bolton ( , locally ) is a town in Greater Manchester in England. In the foothills of the West Pennine Moors, Bolton is between Manchester, Blackburn, Wigan, Bury, Greater Manchester, Bury and Salford. It is surrounded by several towns and vill ...

. He was chairman of

Dobson & Barlow Dobson and Barlow were manufacturers of textile machinery with works in Bolton, Greater Manchester. Isaac Dobson (1767–1833) founded the company in 1790 and by 1850 Dobson in partnership with Peter Rothwell had premises in Blackhorse Street whi ...

, the company co-founded in 1790 by his great-great-uncle Isaac Dobson.

Early life and family

Dobson was born in

Douglas, Isle of Man Douglas (, ) is the Capital (political), capital city and largest settlement of the Isle of Man, with a population of 26,677 (2021) and an area of . It is located at the mouth of the River Douglas, Isle of Man, River Douglas, and on a sweepi ...

on 27 October 1847. His father Arthur Dobson was from Belfast, but was the great-nephew of Isaac Dobson, founder of

. He was educated at

Carlisle Grammar School Carlisle ( , ; from ) is a city in the Cumberland district of Cumbria, England. Carlisle's early history is marked by the establishment of a settlement called Luguvalium to serve forts along Hadrian's Wall in Roman Britain. Due to its proxim ...

and the Collegiate Institute, Belfast. His first job was with the

Belfast and Northern Counties Railway The Northern Counties Committee (NCC) was a railway that served the north-east of Ireland. It was built to Irish gauge () but later acquired a number of narrow gauge lines. It had its origins in the Belfast and Ballymena Railway which opened ...

before he moved to England in 1869 to join Dobson & Barlow. He married Coralie Palin (1852–1904) who in 1895 became the first woman to wear the official chain and badge as Mayoress of Bolton. They built a house called "Doffcockers" on Chorley Old Road in Bolton; it was named after the hamlet of

Doffcocker Doffcocker is a mostly residential district of Bolton, Greater Manchester, lying about 3½ miles from the town centre on the northwest edge of the suburbs on the lower south facing slopes of the West Pennine Moors. Historically within Lancashire, ...

. When Dobson was knighted in 1897 he threw a garden party for 1,000 guests in its extensive grounds, which accommodated a model railway. The house was demolished in 1913, but the gateposts remained until at least 1938. Screenwriter

Chris Bryant Sir Christopher John Bryant (born 11 January 1962) is a British politician and former Anglican priest who has served as Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Rhondda and Ogmore (UK Parliament constituency), Rhondda ...

(1936–2008, born Christopher Brian Spencer Dobson) was his great-grandson.

Career

Dobson joined Dobson & Barlow when his uncle Benjamin Dobson (1823–1874) was its chairman, and became a partner on his uncle's retirement in 1871. He travelled extensively on business, visiting Europe, Egypt, India, Japan, Canada, and the United States, and in 1890 went to Constantinople, Turkey, to see the work of the Yedi Koule Cotton Spinning Mills using his firm's machinery. Dobson took out 22 patents, and wrote works on the textile industry including ''Humidity in Cotton Spinning'' (1895), ''Some difficulties in cotton spinning'' (1893), ''Electric Welding'' (1894) and ''On the artificial lighting of workshops'' (1893). He joined the

Institution of Mechanical Engineers The Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) is an independent professional association and learned society headquartered in London, United Kingdom, that represents mechanical engineers and the engineering profession. With over 110,000 member ...

in 1871 and served on its council 1885 to 1891, and from 1894 until his death. Dobson was

Mayor of Bolton This is a list of the Mayors of Bolton in the north west of England. The office of Mayor is a ceremonial, non-political post. As the Borough's First Citizen, the Mayor serves as the civic representative at a wide range of functions and events thro ...

for four years, 1894–1898, dying in office. He also served in the

Bolton Rifles The Bolton Rifles, later the 5th Battalion, Loyal North Lancashire Regiment, was a volunteer unit of the British Army from 1859 until 1967. It served on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front during the World War I, First World War, and i ...

(the 2nd Volunteer Battalion of the

Loyal North Lancashire Regiment The Loyal Regiment (North Lancashire) (until 1921 known as the Loyal North Lancashire Regiment) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that was in existence from 1881 to 1970. In 1970, the regiment was amalgamated with the Lancashire Re ...

), rising to the rank of Lieutenant colonel and gaining the

Volunteer Decoration The Volunteer Officers' Decoration, post-nominal letters VD, was instituted in 1892 as an award for long and meritorious service by officers of the United Kingdom's Volunteer Force. Award of the decoration was discontinued in the United Kingdom ...

for 20 years' service as an officer. Dobson died on 4 March 1898, from

pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...

, aged 50. He left an estate of £240,134, and is buried at

St Peter's Church, Bolton St Peter's Church, Bolton-le-Moors, commonly known as Bolton Parish Church, is a Church of England parish church in Bolton, Greater Manchester, England. The parish church, dedicated to St Peter, is an example of the Gothic Revival style. The c ...

Honours and legacy

Dobson was made a Chevalier of the

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

in 1878 "for services to French industry". He was knighted on 9 August 1897, being described as "of Doffcockers, Heaton, in the Parish of Deane, Co. Lancs, Mayor of Bolton". A statue of Dobson by John Cassidy stands beside

Bolton Town Hall Bolton Town Hall in Victoria Square, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, was built between 1866 and 1873 for the County Borough of Bolton to designs by William Hill of Leeds and George Woodhouse of Bolton. The town hall was extended in the ...

References

External links

Portrait
by David Winder {{DEFAULTSORT:Dobson, Benjamin Alfred 1847 births 1898 deaths Mayors of places in Lancashire People educated at Carlisle Grammar School Engineers from Belfast Knights of the Legion of Honour British textile industry businesspeople