Leonard Fairclough (1853–1927) was a

stonemason Stonemasonry or stonecraft is the creation of buildings, structures, and sculpture using stone as the primary material. It is one of the oldest activities and professions in human history. Many of the long-lasting, ancient shelters, temples, ...

who founded Leonard Fairclough & Son which later merged with William Press Group to become

AMEC Amec Foster Wheeler plc was a British multinational consultancy, engineering and project management company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. In October 2017, it was acquired by Wood Group. It was focused on the Oil, Gas & Chemicals, M ...

, one of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

's largest

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad range of more speciali ...

businesses.

Career

Fairclough was born in 1853 in Adlington,

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancas ...

. He apprenticed locally and duly qualified as a

. He set up in business on his own in 1883, initially carving

funeral A funeral is a ceremony connected with the final disposition of a corpse, such as a burial or cremation, with the attendant observances. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember and respect ...

monuments. He subsequently brought his son, Leonard Miller Fairclough, into the business which was renamed '' Leonard Fairclough & Son''. They gradually moved into general contracting building their first bridge in 1905. Leonard Fairclough Senior was Chairman of the business until he died in 1927.

References

1853 births 1927 deaths People from Adlington, Lancashire {{UK-business-bio-stub