William McConnel (1810 – 10 October 1902) (sometimes written: William McConnell) was a British industrialist and mill-owner from

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 Lancash ...

, England. He founded the Aberdovey Slate Company that ran the

Bryn Eglwys Bryn Eglwys quarry was a slate quarry and mine near Abergynolwyn, in Merionethshire (now part of Gwynedd), Wales. More than 300 men worked at the site, making it the principal employer in the area. Two veins of slate, known as the Broad Vein ...

slate quarry from 1863 onwards and oversaw the construction of the associated

Talyllyn Railway The Talyllyn Railway ( cy, Rheilffordd Talyllyn) is a narrow gauge preserved railway in Wales running for from Tywyn on the Mid-Wales coast to Nant Gwernol near the village of Abergynolwyn. The line was opened in 1865Drummond 2015, page 17 ...

Cotton mill owner

The McConnel family were owners of a series of large cotton spinning mills in Ancoats in the city of

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

.The first mill, Sedgewick Mill, was built between 1818 and 1821 by the company of Messrs. McConnel & Kennedy under the chairmanship of James McConnel, William's father, and in partnership with John Kennedy. James McConnel died in 1831 and three of his sons, Henry, James and William became partners in the business. By 1833, the McConnel & Kennedy Mills were the largest importer of cotton from America, and Sedgwick Mill was one of the largest mills in operation in the United Kingdom. Henry retired from the business in 1860 and his brother James retired in 1861, leaving William as the sole owner of the mill. The outbreak of 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 ...

in 1861 had a dramatic impact on McConnel & Kennedy. Raw cotton supplies from America were cut off, causing many Lancashire Mills to sharply reduce production or close completely. Sedgwick Mill held large stocks of raw cotton and continued in limited production. By 1863, with the war continuing, McConnel was looking for other enterprises to diversify his interests away from cotton spinning.

Slate quarry and railway owner

In 1859, McConnel purchased Hengwrt Hall near Dolgellau in mid

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

. His connection to Wales lead him to form the Aberdovey Slate Company on 3 January 1864, to exploit the mineral resources of the district. The company leased the land on which the

slate quarry stood and took over slate extraction operations. McConnel oversaw a significant expansion of operations at the quarry. A major part of this was to construct a new railway from the quarry to the standard gauge

Aberystwith and Welsh Coast Railway The Aberystwith and Welsh Coast Railway was a standard gauge railway company, running a line along the west coast of Wales. The railway was planned to run between Anglicised place name spellings were used during most of the history of the line ...

at Tywyn, some 7 miles away. This new railway was the

narrow gauge A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structu ...

which opened in 1866. Bryn Eglwys was a successful venture and continued in production until 1946. The Talyllyn Railway continued serving the local district after the closure of the quarry, and in 1951 became the first railway in the world to be taken over by volunteers and run as a heritage railway. It continues to operate as a successful

tourist attraction A tourist attraction is a place of interest that tourists visit, typically for its inherent or an exhibited natural or cultural value, historical significance, natural or built beauty, offering leisure and amusement. Types Places of natural ...

Other industrial interests

McConnel's desire to diversify beyond cotton led him to other industries besides slate quarrying. He owned the Deeside Ironworks at

Saltney Saltney is a cross-border town, split between Flintshire, Wales and Cheshire, England. The town is intersected by the England–Wales border, with its larger part being a community of Wales in the historic county of Clwyd. The town forms par ...

, was a director of the Amalgamated Denaby Collieres, the Newstead Colliery, Yorkshire Amalgamated Collieries Ltd. and was chairman of the Sheepbridge Coal and Iron Co. and the Tinsley Park Collieries.

Later life

McConnel continued to control McConnel & Kennedy until his retirement in 1878. John Wanklyn McConnel, his eldest son, took over the business in 1880. William McConnel died in 1902. (Margaret) Elisabeth Innes-Ker, Duchess of Roxburghe (''née'' McConnel), daughter of Frederick Bradshaw McConnel, was his great-granddaughter. Another descendant was Diana, Duchess of Wellington, née Diana Ruth McConnel, daughter of Douglas Fitzgerald McConnel and granddaughter of William Holdsworth McConnel. Thus the present dukes of Roxburghe and Wellington are two of his descendants.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McConnel, William British textile industry businesspeople Talyllyn Railway 1809 births 1902 deaths People from Ancoats