Francis Wright (industrialist)

Francis Wright
Born	(1806-12-21)21 December 1806 Lenton, Nottinghamshire
Died	24 February 1873(1873-02-24) (aged 66) Osmaston, Derbyshire Dales
Nationality	British
Spouse	Selina FitzHerbert
Parents	John Wright Elizabeth Beresford

Francis Wright JP DL (21 December 1806 – 24 February 1873), was a British industrialist and philanthropist.

Early life

Lenton Hall, Wright's birthplace, now part of Nottingham University's Hugh Stewart Hall. Much of the University campus was built on the estate land.

Wright was born on 21 December 1806, at Lenton Hall, Nottingham, the son of John Wright and Elizabeth Beresford. The Wrights were a landed family of Genoese origin, first settling in East Anglia and then in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire. Their line can be traced back to John Wright (alias Camplyon) of Stowemarket, who lived in the sixteenth century. The name Camplyon was anglicised from the Italian Camplioni. Wright's great-grandfather, Ichabod Wright (1700-1777) had set up Wright's bank, in Long Row, Nottingham; which in 1918 became part of Lloyd's bank. As the second son, Wright was set to spend life as a banker, however on the premature death of his elder brother John in Italy in 1828, his father altered his will, making Francis his primary heir.

Butterley Company

In 1792, Wright's father and William Jessop joined Benjamin Outram and Francis Beresford in the establishment of what was to become the Butterley Company at Ripley, in Derbyshire. In 1830, after almost forty years at Butterley, John Wright chose to retire, and passed all of his shares to the twenty-four year-old Francis. Until 1851, Wright worked alongside William Jessop (the younger)- son of the original partner of the same name- and then continued to run Butterley until his death in 1873.

As Francis Wright took over at Butterley, England was emerging into the steam age, and throughout the 1830s, the Wright family had invested in the Midland Counties Railway, although due to its location it was of no use to Butterley. The Company did however build one of the engines used in the maiden run. Butterley made many rails and these were used not only in England, but also abroad; an example being a railway line near to St. Petersburg in Russia. Similar was the situation with structures such as bridges, which were sent to many countries including Holland and India. One of Butterley's last projects under Wright's leadership was the construction of the iron frame of St Pancras railway station.

The train shed at St. Pancras under construction in 1868 using Butterley iron

Wright was well liked by his workers, however "commanded respect rather than affection". He was most certainly a deeply moralled man, banning Ashbourne's annual Shrovetide football match, and his eldest son's coming of age had a far more solemn approach, being completely devoid of alcohol. Also a greatly devout and kind man, the Earl Manvers saying of him "I have always found the name of Mr Wright associated with everything that had to do with promoting Christianity, kindness and good fellowship amongst all". Unlike some of his descendants, who distanced themselves from the workers, Wright was a very active member of Butterley, concerned about their welfare. Believing that 'busy hands keep the devil away', he saw hard work as a way of increasing employee morale. As a Christian, he also saw it as his duty to help others with his great wealth, leading to many philanthropic acts including the construction of the village of Ironville. Ironville was built close to the Butterley hubs of Ripley and Codnor, with many small terraced houses. As well as the accommodation for the Butterley workers which by that time had amassed more than a thousand, there was a Church, community centre, school and medical facilities.

Many of Wright's descendants continued to run Butterley, the last of which being John Leslie FitzWalter Wright, Francis' great-great-grandson, who sold his shares in the company to James Slater, and then to Lord Hanson in 1968.

South view of Osmaston Manor

Osmaston Manor east side

Osmaston-by-Ashbourne

On the death of his maternal grandfather, Wright inherited the 3,500 acre estate of Osmaston, just south of Ashbourne, Derbyshire. In 1845, he embarked on the construction of a 70 roomed neo-Tudor manor, and with it, the village of Osmaston. Osmaston Manor was designed by architect Henry Isaac Stevens, who also worked on the new village church. In many aspects, the design for the Manor reflected Tissington Hall, the family home of Wright's wife, and some of his ancestors. Considered second only to Chatsworth in splendour, the manor was revolutionary for its time, being built with functioning electricity, and an underground railway to transport coal around the house. After Wright's death, the manor was left to his eldest son, John, however due to financial difficulties it was sold to Sir Andrew Walker 1st Bt. As was the case with many houses of the time, the Manor became too big to keep going, especially as the Walker-Okeover family seat had been moved to Okeover Hall, and so in 1965 the Manor was demolished.

Osmaston Manor received many guests during its lifetime, notably Queen Mary's parents the Duke and Duchess of Teck, on a brief visit while travelling in the North, and TRH the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester.

Trent College

At a meeting of the Midland Clerical and Lay Association, of which he was Chairman, Wright proposed the founding of a set of schools of Anglican ethos for "boys of the middle class", which would provide a lower-cost option to public schools. Of these schools however, only Trent was realised. His descendants served on the board of governors for the school until the 1960s. Remaining very involved with Trent until his death, the Chapel is dedicated to him.

Family

On 12 August 1830, Wright married his cousin, Selina Fitzherbert, daughter of Sir Henry Fitzherbert 3rd Bt of Tissington Hall, and Agnes Beresford. She was a granddaughter of Sir William Fitzherbert 1st Bt of Tissington Hall, and a great-niece and goddaughter of Alleyne Fitzherbert, Baron St. Helens, envoy to the court of Catherine the Great.

Francis and Selena had 12 children:

• John Wright (1831-1901) Married 1st. Emily Sophia Plumptre, 2nd. Florence Mary Rice. Changed his name to Osmaston in later life. Had issue.
• Rev. Henry Wright (1833-1880) Married Lucy-Sophia Leslie-Melville, a granddaughter of the Earl of Leven and Melville. Minister at St John's Church, Hampstead. Had issue.
• Agnes Wright (1833-1909)
• Elizabeth Wright (1835-1909) Married John Bridges Plumptre, rector of Eastwood. Through his maternal grandfather, he was heir to the ancient barony of FitzWalter, which was called out of abeyance for their son, Henry Fitzwalter Plumptre, 20th Baron FitzWalter.
• Selina Wright (1836-1900) Married (Sir) Francis Fox. Her younger sister Mary would later marry his brother Charles. Parents of Selina Fitzherbert Fox MBE MD BS (1871-1958) founder of the Bermondsey Hospital and medical mission.
• Francis Beresford Wright (1837-1911) Married Adeline Frances Fitzherbert. Had issue.
• Frances Wright (1839-1914) Married Rev. Frederic Edward Wigram. Had issue.
• Mary Wright (1840-1920) Married Sir Charles Douglas Fox, brother of Francis Fox. Had issue.
• Fitzherbert Wright (1841-1910) Married Charlotte Rudolphine von Beckmann, daughter of Ernst Christopher Friedrich von Beckmann, a pastor from Mecklenburg. Their granddaughter Muriel Wright had a war time affair with Ian Fleming, and is widely thought an inspiration for the Bond girls. Among his descendants are Sarah, Duchess of York and the The Earl Cawdor.
• Judith Wright (1842-1903)
• Marcus Beresford Wright (1845-47)
• Philip Wright (1846-1915) Married Alice Elizabeth Bury, daughter of Rev. William Bury. Had issue.

  

  Wright in later life

Death and funeral

Wright died from bronchitis aged 66 on 24 February 1873 at Osmaston Manor. The Manor was left to his eldest son, however seeing him unfit for the job, all his shares in the Butterley Company were left to his remaining sons. His wife and their unmarried daughter Judith moved into the dower house at nearby Yeldersley Hall. Wright's funeral was held in St Martin's Church, Osmaston, on 7th March. After family and friends, over 1200 Butterley workmen and 30 officials followed his funeral cortége to the Church.