Sir Mark Oldroyd (30 May 1843 – 5 July 1927) was a British woollen manufacturer and

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

politician from

West Riding of Yorkshire The West Riding of Yorkshire was one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the riding was an administrative county named County of York, West Riding. The Lord Lieutenant of the West Riding of Yorkshire, lieu ...

Biography

Oldroyd was born the youngest of three sons and two daughters of Mark Oldroyd and his wife Rachel. He was educated initially at a small school in

Dewsbury Dewsbury is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees in West Yorkshire, England. It lies on the River Calder, West Yorkshire, River Calder and on an arm of the Calder and Hebble Navigation waterway. It is to the west of Wakefield, ...

, followed by a spell at

Batley Grammar School Batley Grammar School is a state-funded co-educational free school in Batley, West Yorkshire, England, for pupils aged 4 to 16. History The school was founded in 1612 by the Rev. William Lee. An annual founder's day service is held in his ...

. He then trained as a minister at

New College London New College London (1850–1980) (sometimes known as New College, St John's Wood St John's Wood is a district in the London Borough of Camden, London Boroughs of Camden and the City of Westminster, London, England, about 2.5 miles (4 ...

, but he did not pursue his vocation and returned to Dewsbury in 1862, getting a job at the family woollen firm. In 1871 he married Maria Mewburn, with whom he had no children however, he did have illegitimate children with a single mistress who was one of his mill girls and now has many descendants. In 1874 the family company was publicly floated for £750,000 in £10 shares, with Mark and his brother John running the firm as life directors, presiding over a merger with Blakeley & Latta, a blanket company. In 1877 John got into financial difficulties and was forced to leave the company, putting Mark in charge of rebuilding and managing the business, which he did with great success. By the 1880s the business's blanket works near

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

was manufacturing 1000 pairs of blankets a day, and four factories in Dewsbury were making between 7000 and of broadcloth a day. By 1888 the company employed 2000 people on of mill floor space, and had invested in a pair of

collieries Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground or from a mine. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extrac ...

Castleford Castleford is a town within the City of Wakefield district, West Yorkshire, England. It had a population of 45,106 at a 2021 population estimate. Historic counties of England, Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, to the north of the t ...

, which supplied coal for the textile industry. In

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

the company made army and navy uniforms. In 1888 he was also elected Member of Parliament for

as a

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * Generally, a supporter of the political philosophy liberalism. Liberals may be politically left or right but tend to be centrist. * An adherent of a Liberal Party (See also Liberal parties by country ...

, having been a card-carrying member since 1866. He had previously been a town councillor,

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, a borough

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and one-time

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of Dewsbury. His parliamentary attendance was infrequent, but was actively involved in trade and industry-related committees. In 1902 he resigned from Parliament to concentrate on business interests, and he was

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

in 1909. Local and national commitments diverted Mark's attentions from the company, and he resigned his life directorship in 1913. Sir Mark was also a

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...

who donated money for the building of local places of worship, schools and the first local hospital.

Tony Hannan Tony Hannan (born 11 June 1963 in Bradford, Yorkshire, England) is an author, journalist and publisher who specialises in British popular culture. Books Hannan has authored and edited numerous books, including Underdogs – A Year in the Life of a ...

, Being Eddie Waring The Life and Times of a Sporting Icon, 2008, page 24, Mainstream Publishing Company (Edinburgh) Ltd,

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Oldroyd, Mark 1843 births 1927 deaths Knights Bachelor Liberal Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1886–1892 UK MPs 1892–1895 UK MPs 1895–1900 UK MPs 1900–1906 People from Dewsbury People educated at Batley Grammar School