Peter Foxcroft (1819 – 3 April 1896) was an English

cotton mill A cotton mill is a building that houses spinning or weaving machinery for the production of yarn or cloth from cotton, an important product during the Industrial Revolution in the development of the factory system. Although some were driven ...

manager, inventor, Bible Christian Church preacher, and

vegetarianism Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the Eating, consumption of meat (red meat, poultry, seafood, insects as food, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slau ...

activist. He was an early and prominent member of the

Vegetarian Society The Vegetarian Society of the United Kingdom (VSUK) is a British Registered charity in England, registered charity. It campaigns for dietary changes, licenses Vegetarian Society Approved trademarks for Vegetarianism, vegetarian and Veganism, v ...

and a leading figure in the Bible Christian Church. Foxcroft managed a cotton mill owned by Charles and John Tysoe, and filed several patents for improvements in cotton machinery.

Biography

Early life and career

Peter Foxcroft was born in 1819 in

Gargrave Gargrave is a large village and civil parish in the county of North Yorkshire, England. It is located along the A65 road, A65, north-west of Skipton. The village is situated on the very edge of the Yorkshire Dales; the River Aire and the Leeds ...

, Yorkshire, the son of Thomas Foxcroft, a grocer. Originating from a humble background, he managed to build a modest fortune through hard work and careful living on two separate occasions. In his early years, Foxcroft was not in good health. He spent a significant portion of his life working in a

with workrooms heated to temperatures . Despite these challenging conditions, he outlived his entire family, which included his father, mother, brothers, and sisters, a total of seven members. Foxcroft worked at one mill for 26 years without missing a single day due to illness. Later, after adopting a

vegetarian Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the Eating, consumption of meat (red meat, poultry, seafood, insects as food, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slau ...

diet and experiencing an improvement in his health, he was advised to return to his previous dietary habits. However, his former health issues reemerged with greater severity, leading him to ultimately commit to a vegetarian lifestyle permanently. He was also a dedicated teetotaller. In 1847, Foxcroft joined the

. He succeeded Henry S. Clubb as the Society's secretary in 1850 and became the local secretary of the Society in Salford around 1852, remaining in the role for two decades. Foxcroft also served as a vice-president of the Society and was a chair of its executive for the same period. He criticised

Francis William Newman Francis William Newman (27 June 1805 – 4 October 1897) was an English classical scholar and moral philosopher, prolific miscellaneous writer and activist for vegetarianism and other causes. He was the younger brother of John Henry Newman. Th ...

for allowing associate memberships in the Society for individuals who wanted to be members but were not fully vegetarian.Spencer, Colin. (1995). ''The Heretic's Feast: A History of Vegetarianism''. University Press of New England. pp. 274–276. The following year, Foxcroft became a Bible Christian and served as a

lay preacher A lay preacher is a preacher who is not ordained (i.e. a layperson) and who may not hold a formal university degree in theology. Lay preaching varies in importance between religions and their sects. Overview Some denominations specifically disco ...

of its ideas. In the same year, he married Esther Horrocks at St. Mary's Church, Manchester. At the time of their marriage, Foxcroft was a 30-year-old bookkeeper residing in Berkley Street, Manchester, while Esther, aged 35, was the daughter of George Horrocks, a dyer. In 1851, Foxcroft and his wife stayed at the home of James Simpson, a fellow member of the Bible Christian Church, in Fox Hill Bank, Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire. Foxcroft officiated at Christ Church in Salford from 1853 to 1855. Foxcroft later became the manager of a cotton mill owned by Charles and John Tysoe, which had previously been owned by Joseph Brotherton. While working in this position, he filed three patents. In 1853, he filed a patent for specific enhancements in machinery or equipment for doubling cotton and other fibrous materials. In 1856, Foxcroft, along with John and Charles Tysoe, were granted a patent for improvements in machinery or apparatus for roving, spinning, and doubling cotton and other fibrous substances. In 1857, Foxcroft and William Crighton, a

machinist A machinist is a tradesperson or trained professional who operates machine tools, and has the ability to set up tools such as milling machines, grinders, lathes, and drilling machines. A competent machinist will generally have a strong mechan ...

, were granted a patent for improvements in machinery or equipment for processing cotton wool or other fibrous materials. Foxcroft was an ardent supporter of the

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 ...

(founded in 1859) and actively participated in committees supporting national and local Liberal candidates. In 1870, a 13-year-old girl died at the cotton mill, leading the factory inspector to attempt prosecution against a

spinning mule The spinning mule is a machine used to spin cotton and other fibres. They were used extensively from the late 18th to the early 20th century in the Cotton mill, mills of Lancashire and elsewhere. Mules were worked in pairs by a minder, with th ...

minder, for which Foxcroft provided evidence. The magistrate dismissed the case, stating it was the responsibility of the factory masters to prevent such accidents.

Later life and death

After the death of his first wife, on 26 October 1876, Foxcroft continued to live in Salford, where he retired. On 4 January 1883, he married Jane Dickinson (born 1832), the daughter of Henry Dickinson, at Christ Church, Heaton Norris, Manchester. His second wife was a vegetarian from birth. They later moved to Glazebrook. In his retirement, Foxcroft devoted his time to lecturing on

, delivering hundreds of lectures throughout the United Kingdom. His lecture were well-documented, with notable appearances including a lecture at the Temperance Hall in Pollitt Street, Guernsey. Foxcroft claimed he had not consumed meat, fish, or fowl for 31 years and credited his vegetarian diet for alleviating his indigestion and avoiding medical expenses. He also lectured at the Literary and Philosophical Society Hall in Newcastle, the Torquay

YWCA The Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) is a nonprofit organization with a focus on empowerment, leadership, and rights of women, young women, and girls in more than 100 countries. The World office is currently based in Geneva, Swit ...

, and the

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organisation based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It has nearly 90,000 staff, some 920,000 volunteers and 12,000 branches w ...

at Mount Pleasant. In addition, he served as the director of a vegetarian restaurant operated by Frederick Harrison, opened in 1884, which functioned more like a club. Around a year before his death, Foxcroft made a donation of £100 () to the Vegetarian Society, a significant amount for him, as he was not wealthy. He died at the age of 77 on 3 April 1896, in Glazebrook and was buried with his first wife, Esther, at Weaste Cemetery. Rev. James Clark delivered his funeral sermon. Shortly after his death, a memorial window for Foxcroft was installed in the Bible Christian Church in Cross Lane, Salford, in recognition of his extensive and valuable contributions to both the church and the Vegetarian Society.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Foxcroft, Peter 1819 births 1896 deaths 19th-century English inventors 19th-century English businesspeople 19th-century English educators Bible Christians Bookkeepers British textile industry businesspeople Burials at Weaste Cemetery Businesspeople from Yorkshire English Christian religious leaders English vegetarianism activists People associated with the Vegetarian Society People from Gargrave People from Salford Textile engineers