Sir Titus Salt, 1st Baronet (20 September 1803 – 29 December 1876) was an English manufacturer, politician and philanthropist in Bradford, West Riding of Yorkshire, England, who is best known for having built Salt's Mill, a large textile mill, together with the attached village of Saltaire, West Yorkshire.
Titus Salt was born in 1803 to Daniel Salt, a drysalter, and Grace Smithies, daughter of Isaac Smithies, of Old Manor House, Morley where the Salt family were to live.[1] Titus attended a local dame school[2] and then Batley Grammar School.[3] In 1813, the Salt family moved to a farm at Crofton near Wakefield and Daniel became a sheep farmer. Titus attended “the day school connected with Salem Chapel” in Wakefield and later, the grammar school.[2]
Titus made a long-standing friend at the day school - his teacher, Enoch Harrison. In 1853, Harrison was a guest at Salt's Mill's opening banquet on Salt's 50th birthday.[2]
Career
Salt's first job was as a wool-stapler in Wakefield but the family moved to Bradford in 1820,[4] bringing that post to a close. Whilst father Daniel set up as a dealer in wool, Titus spent two years learning about textile manufacture at William Rouse and Sons[5] before joining his father's company which traded in Russian Donskoi wool amongst others. Donskoi was widely used in the woollens trade but not in the manufacture of worsted cloth. Titus encouraged the Bradford spinners to use Donskoi in worsted manufacture, with no success. So father and son decided to utilise it themselves and set up as spinner and manufacturer. The experiment was a success.[2]
Between 1833 and 1835, the Salt business changed significantly. Daniel retired; Titus's brother Edward joined; Titus struck out on his own; and the family partnership was dissolved.[6][2]
During this same period, Titus embarked on experiments with alpaca wool from Peru. The first documentary record of Salt encountering the wool is in his Day Book. On 27 June 1835, Salt recorded one bag of “Peruvian wool”.[7]
The story of Salt's discovery of the fibre is well known, not least because it was published by Charles Dickens in a slightly fictionalised form in the magazine Household Words.[8] Salt came upon bales of alpaca wool in a warehouse in Liverpool and, after taking some samples away to experiment, came back and bought the consignment. According to Balgarnie, his friend and biographer, the tale is substantially true.[2]
Though he was not the first in England to work with the fibre, he was the creator of the lustrous and subsequently fashionable cloth called 'alpaca'.[9] It was this that transformed Salt from successful young businessman to the largest employer in Bradford.[10]
Around 1850, he decided to build a mill large enough to consolidate his textile manufacture in one place. However, he "did not like to be a party to increasing that already over-crowded borough [Bradford]"[11] and bought land three miles from Bradford, in Shipley, next to the River Aire, the Leeds and Liverpool Canal and the Midland Railway. In 1851, the construction of the factory began. Saltaire Mills, now known as Salt's Mill, opened with that grand banquet, on his 50th birthday, 20 September 1853. The construction of the village of Saltaire, with its houses, almshouses, shops, schools, an infirmary, a club and institute, baths and washhouses, started in the following year. In 1858–59, he built the congregational church, now Saltaire United Reformed Church, later donating land on which the Wesleyan chapel was built by public subscription in 1866–68.
Famously, he forbade 'beershops' in Saltaire,[9] but the common supposition that he was teetotal himself is untrue.[12]
Salt was a private man and left no written statement of his purposes in creating Saltaire, but he told Lord Harewood at the opening of Salt's Mill that he had built the place "to do good and to give his sons employment".[13]
Bust of Titus Salt (not then a baronet) presented to him by his workforce in 1856 and now in Saltaire United Reformed Church.
In David James's assessment:
"Salt's motives in building Saltaire remain obscure. They seem to have been a mixture of sound economics, Christian duty, and a desire to have effective control over his workforce. There were economic reasons for moving out of Bradford, and the village did provide him with an amenable, handpicked workforce. Yet Salt was deeply religious and sincerely believed that, by creating an environment where people could lead healthy, virtuous, godly lives, he was doing God's work. Perhaps, also, diffident and inarticulate as he was, the village may have been a way of demonstrating the extent of his wealth and power. Lastly, he may also have seen it as a means of establishing an industrial dynasty to match the landed estates of his Bradford contemporaries. However, Saltaire provided no real solution to the relationship between employer and worker. Its small size, healthy site, and comparative isolation provided an escape rather than an answer to the problems of urban industrial society".[14]
Titus Salt's statue in Roberts Park
Saltaire was named alongside Hyde, Egerton (then Turton), Tottington (Bury), Bollington, Holbeck (Leeds), Belper and Copley as an example of workers' colonies built by British rural factory owners in the Austrian economist Emil Sax's 1869 book Die Wohnungszustände der arbeitenden Classen und ihre Reform. Sax reported that "the employers' main motive for building dwellings for their workers" was to increase their productivity by shortening their walking commute, and construed the projects as "housing reform".[15] In The Housing Question, Friedrich Engels objected to this view and explained that the colonies constituted a "cottage system" in which the employers doubled as landlords, and could thereby impose monopoly prices and prevent strikes with the threat of eviction.[16] On these grounds, he commented, "for factory production in the rural districts expenditure on workers' dwellings was a necessary part of the total investment of capital, and a very profitable one, both directly and indirectly".[15]
Public life
Titus was a politically active and conscientious citizen, arguing for change and financially supporting it. In the 1830s, both Daniel and Titus were founders of the Bradford Reform Society.[10] In 1838, he made a gift to the Bradford Mechanics Hall Building Fund,[17] signalling his support for the education of working people and, in 1842, in response to pollution, he installed Rodda Smoke Burners[18] in the chimneys of his mills.[19] As mayor of Bradford, he tried to persuade the council to require all of the town's factory owners to install them, but he was unsuccessful.[19][20]
He occupied many public positions. Before Bradford's incorporation as a borough, he was elected as Constable on two consecutive years.[21][22] At incorporation in 1847, he was elected as a senior alderman. He became the second Mayor of Bradford, in office from 1848 to 1849,[23] and was one of the first borough magistrates.[24] In 1857, Salt was President of the Bradford Chamber of Commerce.[9] Later, he was Deputy Lieutenant for the West Riding of Yorkshire and appointed to the Riding's Commission of the Peace.[25]
From 1859 until he retired through ill health on 1 February 1861, Salt served as Liberal Member of Parliament for Bradford.[9] At the 1859 hustings which would choose him as the party's candidate, Salt spoke of the political positions he had taken in his life: Mr. Salt then came forward and said he had always been of the opinion that the intelligent working classes were entitled to the exercise of the franchise. He need not tell them that he had advocated all the great questions relating to the liberties of the people - amongst others, the Catholic Emancipation Bill, and the Repeal of the Corn Laws, which he supported from first to last. In fact, he had ever supported all measures for the extension of freedom, whether civil, commercial, or religious. He would, if returned to parliament, support Lord John Russell's Reform Bill, as a practical measure . He was an advocate of peace; of non-interference in European politics. He believed the ballot was necessary for the protection of the working classes who possessed votes.[26]
After he agreed to exhibit at the 1867 Paris Exposition, Salt was awarded the French Légion d'honneur for his exemplary philanthropic approach to business in founding Saltaire.[27] On 30 October 1869, he was created a Baronet, of Saltaire and Crow Nest in the County of York.[28]
Philanthropy
"One of the most celebrated traits of Sir Titus Salt was his philanthropy", say Barlo and Shaw.[2] They list many of his gifts and estimate that the total value was "approx.£139,000". However, they warn that their list "should not be regarded as complete" and a new study has confirmed this caution.[29] It identifies a total of 269 gifts with an original value of nearly £170,000 and says that “At today's prices, this represents more than £16,000,000”.
Most of Salts' gifts benefitted the Bradford area but Hull, Scarborough and Grimsby feature along with places many hundred miles from northern England. In 1867, Salt provided the funds to pay for the first Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) lifeboat to be stationed at Stromness, Orkney. The boat was duly named Saltaire.[30]
Several gifts benefitted people from outside Britain. For example “sufferers of a fire in Hamburg” in 1842; “Hungarian refugees” in 1850; and the “sick and wounded of the armies of the two Nations engaged in war on the Continent” in 1870.
Personal life and death
On 21 August 1830, Salt married Caroline, daughter of George Whitlam, of Great Grimsby.[2][31] They had eleven children, six sons and five daughters.[32] The children all have a street named after them in Saltaire.[33]
William Henry Salt born 5 December 1831
George Salt born 22 April 1833
Amelia Salt born 29 November 1835
Edward Salt born 3 April 1837
Herbert Salt born 17 April 1840
Fanny Caroline Salt born 7 August 1841 died aged 19 on 4 August 1861
Titus Salt, commonly known as Titus Salt Jr, born 28 August 1843
Whitlam Salt born 20 October 1846 died 5 April 1851 aged 4
Mary Salt born 30 April 1849 died 14 May 1851 aged 2
In 1876 Salt died at his home, Crow Nest,[34]Lightcliffe, near Halifax. "Estimates vary, but the number of people lining the route [of the funeral cortege, from Lightcliffe to Bradford to Saltaire[6]] probably exceeded 100,000."[35]
Saltaire is a Victorian model village near Shipley, West Yorkshire, England, situated between the River Aire, the railway, and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal. Salts Mill and the houses were built by Titus Salt between 1851 and 1871 to allow his workers to live in better conditions than the slums of Bradford. The mill ceased production in 1986, and was converted into a multifunctional location with an art gallery, restaurants, and the headquarters of a technology company. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and on the European Route of Industrial Heritage.
Shipley is a historic market town and civil parish in the City of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England.
Baildon is a town and civil parish in the Bradford Metropolitan Borough in West Yorkshire, England and within the historic boundaries of the West Riding of Yorkshire.
Sir Isaac Holden, 1st Baronet was an inventor and manufacturer, who is known both for his work in developing the Square Motion wool-combing machine and as a Radical Liberal Member of Parliament.
Salts Mill is a former textile mill, now incorporating an art gallery, shops, restaurant and spaces to rent in Saltaire, Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. It was commissioned and financed by Sir Titus Salt and opened in 1853. At that point, the mill was the largest industrial building in the world by total floor area. The present-day 1853 Gallery takes its name from that date. The mill has many paintings by local artist David Hockney on display.
Sir Henry William Ripley, 1st Baronet, was a British businessman, philanthropist and Liberal Party politician who switched to the Conservative Party.
There have been two baronetcies created for persons with the surname Salt, both in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom. Both titles are extant as of 2007.
Alpaca fleece is the natural fiber harvested from an alpaca. There are two different types of alpaca fleece. The most common fleece type comes from a Huacaya. Huacaya fiber grows and looks similar to sheep wool in that the animal looks "fluffy". The second type of alpaca is Suri and makes up less than 10% of the South American alpaca population. Suri fiber is more similar to natural silk and hangs off the body in locks that have a dreadlock appearance. While both fibers can be used in the worsted milling process using light weight yarn or thread, Huacaya fiber can also be used in a woolen process and spun into various weight yarns. It is a soft, durable, luxurious and silky natural fiber.
Henry Francis Lockwood was an influential English architect active in the North of England.
Sir William Edwin Briggs Priestley (1859–1932) was a British Liberal politician from the West Riding of Yorkshire. He was Member of Parliament (MP) for Bradford East.
Roberts Park is a 14 acres (5.7 ha) public urban park in Saltaire, West Yorkshire, England. Higher Coach Road, Baildon, is to the north and the park is bounded to the south by the River Aire. A pedestrian footbridge crosses the Aire and links the park to the village of Saltaire. The park is an integral part of the Saltaire World Heritage site.
Sir James Falshaw, 1st Baronet JP, DL, FRSE, was a British railway engineer and politician.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England.
Saltaire United Reformed Church is a church at Saltaire, West Yorkshire, England. Commissioned and paid for by Titus Salt in the mid 19th century, the church is a Grade I listed building and sits within the Saltaire World Heritage Site.
Sir James Roberts (1848–1935) was a Yorkshire industrialist and businessman. He was born at Lane Ends in the parish of Oakworth, Yorkshire on 30 September 1848. He was one of eleven children of a weaver who became a tenant farmer. His parents were illiterate but determined that their children would receive an education
John Nicholson was popularly known as the Airedale Poet and also as the Bingley Byron. His most notable work was Airedale in Ancient Times. He died trying to cross the swollen River Aire near to Dixon's mill in Saltaire.
William Mawson was an English architect best known for his work in and around Bradford.
Saltaire is a model village in Shipley, a ward in the metropolitan borough of the City of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. The village contains 93 listed buildings that are recorded in the National Heritage List for England. Of these, one is listed at Grade I, the highest of the three grades, four are at Grade II*, the middle grade, and the others are at Grade II, the lowest grade. In 1850 Titus Salt started to build a textile mill, known as Salt's Mill, alongside the Leeds and Liverpool Canal and then developed the model village to house and serve its workers. This included housing, shops, and community buildings, all of which are listed. The architects for the entire scheme, including later mills, were the Bradford architects Lockwood and Mawson. All the listed buildings built between 1850 and 1870 were designed by them. The later listed buildings are a tram shed, a war memorial and a telephone kiosk.
Milner Field was a large country house near Saltaire in West Yorkshire, England built in 1872 for Titus Salt Junior, youngest son of the Yorkshire wool merchant and philanthropist Sir Titus Salt and demolished in the 1950s. The house was situated at the edge of the village of Gilstead, near Bingley, overlooking the Aire Valley in the direction of Titus Salt senior's model village of Saltaire and Salts Mill.
Thomas Milnes was an English sculptor. He exhibited at the Royal Academy from 1842 to 1866. He also exhibited at the Great Exhibition of 1851 and the International Exhibition in 1862.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Balgarnie, Robert; Barlo; Shaw, Dave (2003). BALGARNIE'S SALT with commentary and additions by Barlo and Shaw. Saltaire: Nemine Juvante. ISBN0-9545840-0-7.
1 2 Kirby, Professor David A. (16 October 2024). "Saltaire". harmonious-entrepreneurship.org. Retrieved 16 October 2024.
↑ Simkin, John (17 November 1992). "Education: Cleaning up Bradford's textile industry – Bright Spark / Innovators and those behind them. This Week: the British industrialist Salt (1803–1876)". The Guardian. p.12. ISSN0261-3077.
Balgarnie, Robert (1970) [1877]. Sir Titus Salt, baronet. Settle: Brenton Publishing. ISBN0902847007.
Balgarnie, Robert; Barlo; Shaw, Dave (2003). Balgarnie's Salt with commentary and additions by Barlo and Shaw. Saltaire. Nemine Juvante. ISBN0-9545840-0-7
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