William Collingwood
Sir William Collingwood (1855-1928) K.B.E., J.P., M.Inst.C.E.,
1855 Born.
1880-92 District Loco. Supt. East Indian Railway.
1889 Birth of son Carlton Collingwood
1892 General manager and managing director of the Vulcan Foundry
Member B.E.S.A.
1928 'We regret to record the death, on November 2, at his home at Dedham Grove, near Colchester, of Sir William Collingwood, K.B.E., for many years managing director of Messrs. Vulcan Foundry Limited, Newton-le-Willows, Lancashire. The eldest son of the late Mr. George Collingwood of the Home Establishment of the Honourable East India Company, Sir William was born in London on August 18, 1855, and received his early education at Dedham Grammar School, Essex. In 1872 he entered upon a pupilage of five years under Mr. W. Adams, first at Bow, on the North London Railway, for two years, and afterwards at Stratford on the Great Eastern Railway for three years. Upon completing his pupilage he was employed for a few months at Maidstone, by Messrs. West's Gas Improvement Company. In January, 1878, he joined the staff of the East Indian Railway as assistant locomotive superintendent. He subsequently rose to the rank of district locomotive superintendent and, before leaving India in 1892, he acted as chief locomotive superintendent. During the greater portion of his service with the East Indian Railway he was in charge of the Allahabad works and district, representing in all some 910 miles of line. Mr. Collingwood returned to this country upon being appointed, at the early age of 37, general manager of Messrs. Vulcan Foundry Company. Subsequently, he became managing director of the company, which position he continued to hold until his death. During his period of office the works were rebuilt and entirely reorganised, and it is no exaggeration to say that the locomotive industry in this country owes much to his untiring activity.
Sir William became president of the Manchester District Engineering Trades Employers’ Federation in 1913, and was chairman of the Manchester and District Armaments Output Committee from 1914 to 1918. He was for many years on various sectional committees of the British Engineering Standards Association. For his services in connection with the production of munitions he was made a Knight of the Order of the British Empire in 1917. A former student of the Institution of Civil Engineers, he became an associate member on December 7, 1880, and was elected to full membership on March 5, 1895. He was a member of the Lancashire County Council from 1911 till 1913, and was for many years a Justice of the Peace for the County of Lancashire. An enthusiastic volunteer, he was, in his youth, a member of the 3rd Essex Volunteer Artillery and subsequently, while in India, served for nearly 15 years in the East Indian Railway Rifles, finally retiring with the rank of captain.'[1]