Sir William Bower Forwood (21 January 1840 – 23 March 1928) was an English merchant, shipowner and politician. He was a wealthy businessman and a local politician in

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

who raised money for the building of the

Liverpool Overhead Railway The Liverpool Overhead Railway (known locally as the Dockers' Umbrella or Ovee) was an overhead railway in Liverpool which operated along the Liverpool Docks and opened in 1893 with lightweight electric multiple units. The railway had a number ...

and

Liverpool Cathedral Liverpool Cathedral is the Cathedral of the Anglican Diocese of Liverpool, built on St James's Mount in Liverpool, and the seat of the Bishop of Liverpool. It may be referred to as the Cathedral Church of Christ in Liverpool (as recorded in the ...

Early life and business

Forwood was born in Edge Hill, Liverpool, the second son of Thomas Brittain Forwood, a Liverpool merchant, and Charlotte née Bower. He was educated at Liverpool Collegiate and at a

Pestalozzian Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi (, ; 12 January 1746 – 17 February 1827) was a Swiss pedagogue and educational reformer who exemplified Romanticism in his approach. He founded several educational institutions both in German- and French-speaking r ...

school in

Worksop Worksop ( ) is a market town in the Bassetlaw District in Nottinghamshire, England. It is located east-south-east of Sheffield, close to Nottinghamshire's borders with South Yorkshire and Derbyshire, on the River Ryton and not far from the nor ...

. He joined the family business in 1859 and, when his father retired from it on 22 November 1862, ran it with his elder brother,

Arthur Arthur is a common male given name of Brittonic languages, Brythonic origin. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. The etymology is disputed. It may derive from the Celtic ''Artos'' meaning “Bear”. An ...

. This was when the cotton trade was being disrupted by the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

. The brothers made a fortune "first from wartime speculation and

blockade A blockade is the act of actively preventing a country or region from receiving or sending out food, supplies, weapons, or communications, and sometimes people, by military force. A blockade differs from an embargo or sanction, which are le ...

running, and then from exploiting telegraph and cotton

futures Futures may mean: Finance *Futures contract, a tradable financial derivatives contract *Futures exchange, a financial market where futures contracts are traded * ''Futures'' (magazine), an American finance magazine Music * ''Futures'' (album), a ...

".Killick, J. R. (2004)
Forwood, Sir William Bower (1840–1928)
, ''

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

'',

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

. Retrieved 25 December 2009. The brothers set up offices in New York City,

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

and

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

and ran a small fleet of ships that traded in the West Indies,

Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...

and New York. William entered politics in 1868 when he was elected to Liverpool Town Council, serving on it for over 40 years, and was a JP for Lancashire from 1882. He was president of the American

chamber of commerce A chamber of commerce, or board of trade, is a form of business network. For example, a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses. Business owners in towns and cities form these local societies to ad ...

in 1872 and of its Liverpool equivalent in 1871 and 1878–81, became president of the Liverpool Cotton Association.

Civic and charitable work

William Forwood was chairman of Liverpool's Libraries Museum and Art committee from 1890 to 1909, and persuaded

Andrew Carnegie Andrew Carnegie (, ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century and became one of the richest Americans i ...

to give £50,000 towards building new libraries. He was

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

on 19 July 1883 for his work as the city's Lord Mayor in opposing the

Fenian The word ''Fenian'' () served as an umbrella term for the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB) and their affiliate in the United States, the Fenian Brotherhood, secret political organisations in the late 19th and early 20th centuries dedicated ...

s. In 1888 he played an important part in raising money for the building of the

, and in 1893 became its first chairman. He was a director of the

Cunard Line Cunard () is a British shipping and cruise line based at Carnival House at Southampton, England, operated by Carnival UK and owned by Carnival Corporation & plc. Since 2011, Cunard and its three ships have been registered in Hamilton, Berm ...

from 1888 to 1923 and its deputy chairman from 1906 to 1909. From 1887 to 1928 he was a director of the

Bank of Liverpool The Bank of Liverpool was a financial institution founded in 1831 in Liverpool, England. In 1918, it acquired Martins Bank, and the name of the merged bank became the Bank of Liverpool and Martins Ltd. The name was shortened to Martins Bank Ltd ...

and its chairman from 1898 to 1901. As part of his charitable work, he was President of the Seaman's Orphanage. Forwood was treasurer of the executive committee responsible for raising money towards the building of

at the beginning of the 20th century. He took six weeks away from his other affairs and raised a total of £168,000 (£ as of ). Forwood was appointed a deputy lieutenant of

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 Lancashi ...

in April 1902, and on 4 June 1902 received the Freedom of the City of Liverpool ″in recognition of the eminent services he has rendered to the municipality throughout his membership of the council, extending over a period of 33 years, ... and especially for the deep interest he has taken in the establishment of libraries and reeding-rooms in the city". He served as mayor of Liverpool for a second period between 10 January and 4 February 1903 and as

High Sheriff of Lancashire The High Sheriff of Lancashire is an ancient officer, now largely ceremonial, granted to Lancashire, a county in North West England. High Shrievalties are the oldest secular titles under the Crown, in England and Wales. The High Sheriff of Lanca ...

for 1909.

Personal life

Forwood's first marriage was in 1862 to Mary Eleanor née Moss (1841–1896), daughter of William Miles Moss (1809–1871), a Liverpool merchant and shipowner, and Esther née Johnson (1809–1876). Forwood and Mary had three sons and seven daughters. Mary died in 1896 and in 1898 he married Elizabeth Constant née Hughes – later Hughes Le Fleming (1860–1933), the daughter of Major-General George Cumberland Hughes le Fleming and his second wife Anne Jane née Rennick of Rydal Hall, Cumbria. Forwood was a committed Anglican Christian who, as well as raising funds for the construction of Liverpool Cathedral, also developed a lasting relationship with

St Martin's Church, Bowness-on-Windermere St Martin's Church stands in the centre of the town of Bowness-on-Windermere, Cumbria, England. It is an active Anglican parish church in the deanery of Windermere, the archdeaconry of Westmorland and Furness, and the diocese of Carlisle. The ch ...

, where he funded the construction of a War Memorial Chapel in the early 1920s. He developed an interest in

yachting Yachting is the use of recreational boats and ships called ''yachts'' for racing or cruising. Yachts are distinguished from working ships mainly by their leisure purpose. "Yacht" derives from the Dutch word '' jacht'' ("hunt"). With sailboats, t ...

, was commodore of the Mersey and the

Windermere Windermere (sometimes tautology (language), tautologically called Windermere Lake to distinguish it from the nearby town of Windermere, Cumbria (town), Windermere) is the largest natural lake in England. More than 11 miles (18 km) in leng ...

yacht club A yacht club is a sports club specifically related to yachting. Description Yacht clubs are mostly located by the sea, although there some that have been established at a lake or riverside locations. Yacht or sailing clubs have either a mari ...

s, and was co-founder of the

Yacht Racing Association The Royal Yachting Association (RYA) is a United Kingdom national governing body for sailing, dinghy sailing, yacht and motor cruising, sail racing, RIBs and sportsboats, windsurfing and personal watercraft and a leading representative for i ...

. Forwood died at the

Belmond Reid's Palace Belmond Reid's Palace (a.k.a. Reid's Palace) is a historic hotel located to the west of Funchal Bay in Madeira, Portugal, in an imposing position looking out over the Atlantic Ocean. The hotel has beautiful sloping gardens. The hotel's complex i ...

hotel in

Funchal Funchal () is the largest city, the municipal seat and the capital of Portugal's Madeira, Autonomous Region of Madeira, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean. The city has a population of 105,795, making it the sixth largest city in Portugal. Because of ...

Madeira ) , anthem = ( en, "Anthem of the Autonomous Region of Madeira") , song_type = Regional anthem , image_map=EU-Portugal_with_Madeira_circled.svg , map_alt=Location of Madeira , map_caption=Location of Madeira , subdivision_type=Sovereign st ...

. He was buried in Windermere Cemetery, Rayrigg Road in

. His estate amounted to a little more than £356,000 (£ as of ).l

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Forwood, William Bower 1840 births 1928 deaths Businesspeople from Liverpool Knights Bachelor Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire Mayors of Liverpool High Sheriffs of Lancashire Deputy Lieutenants of Lancashire People from Edge Hill