Fison Family of East Anglia & Bradford
Background to William Fison & Co., Greenholme Mills, Burley in Wharfedale.
James Fison (1) 1735-1806 born Langham near Bury St Edmunds. On the death of his parents aged 15, he trained as a baker and then moved to Barningham. He set up his own bakery & branched out into farming and the businesses of flour milling & corn merchant.
In 1757 he married Ann Cornell (1736-1773) and they had 6 children - Ann Fison (b1758); James Fison (2) (1759-1817); Joseph Fison (1) (1765-1808); Penelope Fison (1768-1844) (m J Clarke); Robert Fison (b1772) and Rebecca Fison (1773-1852) (m George Wiseman).
James Fison was joined in the business by 2 of his sons James Fison (2) and Joseph Fison (1) and his 2 sons-in-law to create James Fison & Sons of Barningham.
In 1757 he married Ann Cornell (1736-1773) and they had 6 children - Ann Fison (b1758); James Fison (2) (1759-1817); Joseph Fison (1) (1765-1808); Penelope Fison (1768-1844) (m J Clarke); Robert Fison (b1772) and Rebecca Fison (1773-1852) (m George Wiseman).
James Fison was joined in the business by 2 of his sons James Fison (2) and Joseph Fison (1) and his 2 sons-in-law to create James Fison & Sons of Barningham.
On 21 December 1784 James [2] married Sarah Sparham (1762-1838), the daughter of John Sparham, from whom his father had rented his first mill. They had seven children, James Fison (3) (1784-1844); Sparham Fison (1786-1849); William Lorimer Fison (1) (1788-1833); Charles Fison (1789-1790); Thomas Fison (1) (1790-1861); Cornell Fison (1) (1793-1880) and Sarah Fison (1794-1853). All of whom helped in the business as soon as they were old enough.
1789 - As part of James Fison & Sons of Barningham, James [2] opened a ‘moltons’ or maltings at Barningham to supply the rapidly expanding brewing trade.
(Malt is dried germinating barley and is the starting point for the beer brewing process).
1789 - As part of James Fison & Sons of Barningham, James [2] opened a ‘moltons’ or maltings at Barningham to supply the rapidly expanding brewing trade.
(Malt is dried germinating barley and is the starting point for the beer brewing process).
1806 - James Fison (1) died, a wealthy man with property in several villages around Barningham.
1806 - Joseph Fison (1) and James Fison's 3rd son WIlliam Lorimer Fison (1) moved to Stowmarket, where the family purchased a mill, maltings and warehouse for malt shipments to London via Ipswich. The enterprise became known as James Fison & Sons of Stowmarket.
1807 - James (2) purchased a maltings business in Thetford & managed this with the help of his first son James (3). This became known as James Fison & Sons of Thetford.
Meanwhile his 2nd, 5th and 6th sons, Sparham Fison, Thomas Fison (1) & Cornell Fison (1) remained in charge of the Barningham operations. 1808 - Joseph (1) died. The James Fison & Sons businesses were re-constituted i.e. new partnership agreements, with James Fison (2) at its head and his sons as the component parts. 1809 - James Fison (2) established a number of new businesses in Thetford using the Thetford Navigation that connected them to Kings Lynn and the east coast ports. James Fison & Sons of Thetford became major dealers & merchants, exported wool fleeces & staples, corn & seeds and imported cattle cake and oil seed. They also began dealing in manure and manufacturing & trading in bricks & tiles.
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Note: Thomas William Coke, owner of Holkham Hall was a major seller of sheep fleeces at Thetford Wool Fair. From the 1790s Coke had held Sheep-Shearings & Agricultural meetings in June. They were annual gatherings for hundreds of farmers & dignitaries and the forerunners of modern country shows.
In 1804 Jonas Whitaker (1768-1850) of Greenholme Mills & renowned breeder of short horn cattle visited with the Rev. Armitage Rhodes of Horsforth. They went back to Otley & together with Sir Henry Carr Ibbetson of Denton Park, set up Wharfedale Agricultural Show.
In 1804 Jonas Whitaker (1768-1850) of Greenholme Mills & renowned breeder of short horn cattle visited with the Rev. Armitage Rhodes of Horsforth. They went back to Otley & together with Sir Henry Carr Ibbetson of Denton Park, set up Wharfedale Agricultural Show.
1811 - Thomas Fison (1) married Mary Matthew Gostling (1794-1823). They had 7 children: James Fison (4) (1813-1884); Thomas Sparham Fison (1818-1875); William Fison (1820-1900); Anne Fison (1817-1834); Sarah Fison (2) (1815-1879); Cornell Fison (2) (1823-1889) and Mary Rebecca Fison (1823-1829).
On the death of his first wife, Thomas Fison married Charlotte Reynolds (1796-1846) and they had another 13 children. Including Rev. Lorimer Fison (1832-1907) the famous anthropologist.
On the death of his first wife, Thomas Fison married Charlotte Reynolds (1796-1846) and they had another 13 children. Including Rev. Lorimer Fison (1832-1907) the famous anthropologist.
1814 - James Fison (3) married Mary Barker (1791-1865). They had 7 children, his only son, Edward Fison (1820-1888), played no part in the family businesses & became a Wesleyan (methodist) minister. None of his sons-in-law appear to have been involved either.
1814 - Living & working at Stowmarket, William Lorimer Fison (1) (1788-1833) married Deborah Prentice (1791-1834). They had at least 10 children, William Lorimer Fison (2) (1815-1847); Joseph Fison (2) (1819-1878); Thomas Fison (2) (1822-1906); James Fison (5) (1824-1852); Cornell Fison (3) (1825-1891); Edward Fison (2) (1831-1908).
In 1817 James Fison (2) died. Again the James Fison & Sons businesses were reconstituted, with new partnership agreements between his sons.
c1817 - James Fison (3) became one of the major buyers at the Thetford Wool Fair held in July every year.
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By the 1820s James Fison & Sons was importing large consignments of wheat from the Baltic ports for customers as far away as south Wales, and it had developed a special relationship for the supply of malt with Whitbread & Co., one of the largest London brewers.
1826 - James Fison & Sons of Barningham converted their grain mills to steam power.
1828 - James Fison (3) - Royal Commission evidence on Wool Tariffs(?)
1826 - James Fison & Sons of Barningham converted their grain mills to steam power.
1828 - James Fison (3) - Royal Commission evidence on Wool Tariffs(?)
c1829 - Believe James Fison (3) established James Fison & Sons wool warehouse on Cheapside (Cheap Side), Bradford. [OS 1852 Map].
The 1960s image below shows a typical wool warehouse in Bradford. This one's facing onto Cheapside, with Duke Street on the right.
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Wool fleeces & wool staples were shipped to Bradford. They were sent from Thetford to Kings Lynn then to Hull. Then Leeds and onwards via the Leeds and Liverpool Canal & the Bradford Canal branch into the centre of Bradford.
1831 - By this time James Fison & Sons was one of the largest enterprises in East Anglia.
1833 - Thomas Sparham Fison, aged 15, moved to Bradford to work as a wool stapler in James Fison & Sons warehouse.
1835 - Thetford Wool Fair all the principal growers in Norfolk and West Suffolk, and buyers include Messrs. Baldrey and Fuller (Halifax), Martin and Rouse (Bradford), Evered, Evans, Fison - James (3) & Cornell (1), Gardiner, Gill, Moyse, Mumford, Pymer, Revans Sayer, Sherringham, Shepherd, Scott and Tetley. [Newspaper Article]
1835 - William Fison, aged 15, moves to Bradford to work as a wool stapler in James Fison & Sons warehouse.
1835 - John Nicholson (poet) writes about "Mr Fison of Burley in Wharfdale" & "young Fison". He could be writing about Thomas Sparham or William Fison.
Note: 11 years later William Fison marries Fanny Whitaker daughter of Jonas Whitaker, the co-owner of the Greenholme Mills estate in Burley in Wharfedale.
1839 - James Fison & Sons warehouse on Cheapside, Bradford To Let. Enquiries to Thomas S. Fison, Hall Ings Bradford. [Advert]
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c1839 - William Fison and William Beaumont Leather partnership in stuff manufacturing / worsted begins at Leeming's Mill, bottom of South Gate, Bradford. [Map OS 1852]
They rented part of the premises of Samuel & John Leeming, machine makers shop & had 30 looms(?). c1840 - James Fison (3) health began to deteriorate. Cornell Fison (1) became the main wool buyer & stapler at Thetford Wool Fair for James Fison & Sons.
1841 - Thomas Sparham Fison & William Edward Forster (1818-1886) form a partnership in wool stapling. The name of the business was Forster & Fison. The partnership continued until 1851.
1842 Mar - William Fison & William Beaumont Leather partnership dissolved. Business reformed as William Fison & Co.
1842 Jul - William Fison takes on a new partner William Edward Forster. (The same partner as his older brother Thomas). The business retains the name of William Fison & Co.
(Henry Mitchell (1824-1898) becomes manager of the enterprise). They occupy Ramsden's Mill on Market Street with 30 looms. (Note: Ramsden's Mill could be the same as Waterloo Mills - see 1846 below). 1842 Oct - Thomas S Fison marries Martha Womersley (1818-1886) of Mawcroft, Rawdon. They had 5 children.
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1844 - James Fison (3) died. The business retained the name James Fison & Sons, but Cornell Fison (1) took over as the head of it.
1845 - Ibbetson's Directory of Bradford
- Forster & Fison, woolstaplers. Hustler's Buildings, Leeds Road.
- Wm Fison & Co., stuff manufacturers. Brook Street.
- Forster & Fison, woolstaplers. Hustler's Buildings, Leeds Road.
- Wm Fison & Co., stuff manufacturers. Brook Street.
1846 Jul - William Fison marries Frances "Fanny" Whitaker (1815-1892) daughter of Jonas Whitaker of Greenholme Mills, Burley in Wharfedale. They had one child Frederick William Fison (1847-1927).
1846 - Wm Fison & Co., works at Waterloo Mills, Bradford. Believe to be located on the site of the Swan Arcade before it was built & subsequently demolished. (The Swan Arcade was a four-storey building located between Market Street and Brook Street, Bradford, and stood opposite the Wool Exchange).
(There is a later Waterloo Mills on the OS 1908 map up near Manchester Road).
1846 - Wm Fison & Co., works at Waterloo Mills, Bradford. Believe to be located on the site of the Swan Arcade before it was built & subsequently demolished. (The Swan Arcade was a four-storey building located between Market Street and Brook Street, Bradford, and stood opposite the Wool Exchange).
(There is a later Waterloo Mills on the OS 1908 map up near Manchester Road).
1847 - Wm Fison & Co., occupying Waterloo Mill and Holmfield (Mill), Bradford.
1848 - Wm Fison & Co. - Fison's Shed and Foundry Mill.
1849 - Wm Fison & Co. - Arundel Street (refectory, lecture room, and music hall) & works Foundry Mill and Fison's Shed, off Manchester Road, Bradford.
1849 Nov - William Fison & William E. Forster buy Greenholme Mills & its estate.
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1850 - Ibbetson's Directory of Bradford
- Forster & Fison, wool merchants, and commission wool and top agents, Hustler's Buildings, Leeds Road; (William E Forster & Thomas S Fison). Forster home: Lane End, Rawdon, Fison home: Mawcroft, Rawdon. - Harris & Fison, stuff manufacturers, warehouse Charles Street, works Victoria Mill, Manchester Road. (Richard Peckover Harris & Cornell Fison (3)); - William Fison & Co., worsted spinner & manufacturer, warehouse Charles Street, works Foundry Mill, Manchester Road. |
1850 May - Wm Fison & Co., announce the sale by auction of the contents of their works in Bradford. [Newspaper Article]
This would herald the transfer of their worsted business from Bradford to Greenholme Mills..
This would herald the transfer of their worsted business from Bradford to Greenholme Mills..
1850 May - Note: Unclear if the whole business of the mill transferred i.e. equipment and operatives or just parts of it. As there were already 300+ operatives in Burley at Greenholme Mills who had been manufacturing cotton textiles. What equipment is common to both cotton manufacture & worsted? What are the differences? Possible key figure (Sir) Henry Mitchell (1824-1898) who had been manager of Wm Fison & Co up to 1849 - research on-going.
In the 1851 Collinson Directory of Bradford, a number of different worsted spinners & manufacturers are listed as occupying what was known as Fison's Shed or Fison's Mill off Manchester Road.
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1851 - Partnership between William E Forster and Thomas S Fison, Forster & Fison officially dissolved.
1853 - Bradford Voting Registers
- Cornell Fison, stuff manufacturer. St Dunstan's works, Mill Lane, warehouse 10 Charles Street
- Thomas Sparham Fison, wool merchant. Warehouse Duke Street, followed by Well Street.
- Wm Fison & Co., Greenholme Mills, Burley and warehouse 17 Charles Street, Bradford.
- Cornell Fison, stuff manufacturer. St Dunstan's works, Mill Lane, warehouse 10 Charles Street
- Thomas Sparham Fison, wool merchant. Warehouse Duke Street, followed by Well Street.
- Wm Fison & Co., Greenholme Mills, Burley and warehouse 17 Charles Street, Bradford.
1856 - Lund's Directory of Bradford
- Cornell Fison, stuff manufacturer. St Dunstan's works, Mill Lane. Home: 620 Woodville Terrace.
- Fison & Lister, English & Foreign wool merchants, wool and top commission agents. Warehouse Well Street.
- Wm Fison & Co., spinners & manufactrurers. Warehouses Charles Street & Hustler's Buildings. Works Greenholme nr Otley.
- Cornell Fison, stuff manufacturer. St Dunstan's works, Mill Lane. Home: 620 Woodville Terrace.
- Fison & Lister, English & Foreign wool merchants, wool and top commission agents. Warehouse Well Street.
- Wm Fison & Co., spinners & manufactrurers. Warehouses Charles Street & Hustler's Buildings. Works Greenholme nr Otley.
1861 - White's Directory of Bradford
- Fison & Lister, woolstaplers and top agents. Warehouse 46 Well Street. Thomas S Fison (home - Rawdon) and Arthur Lister (home - London)
- Cornell Fison (3) stuff manufacturer. Warehouse 12 Charles Street, works St Dunstan's Mill, Mill Lane, Bradford.
- Wm. Fison & Co. worsted spinners and manufacturers. Warehouse 33 Hall Ings, and works Greenholme Mills.
- Fison & Lister, woolstaplers and top agents. Warehouse 46 Well Street. Thomas S Fison (home - Rawdon) and Arthur Lister (home - London)
- Cornell Fison (3) stuff manufacturer. Warehouse 12 Charles Street, works St Dunstan's Mill, Mill Lane, Bradford.
- Wm. Fison & Co. worsted spinners and manufacturers. Warehouse 33 Hall Ings, and works Greenholme Mills.
1863 - Jones' Mercantile Directory of Bradford
- Fison & Foster, wool merchants, Warehouse 46 Well Street. Thomas S Fison and ???? Foster
- Fison & Wilkinson, worsted manufacturers. Works Holme Top Mill, Little Horton, and 5 Mills Buildings, Brook Street, Bradford. James Reeve Fison and Robert Wilkinson. (James Reeve Fison (1838-1889) was the son of James Fison (4)).
- William Fison & Co., worsted spinners and manufacturers. Warehouse 33 Hall Ings, works Greenholme Mills, near Otley.
- Fison & Foster, wool merchants, Warehouse 46 Well Street. Thomas S Fison and ???? Foster
- Fison & Wilkinson, worsted manufacturers. Works Holme Top Mill, Little Horton, and 5 Mills Buildings, Brook Street, Bradford. James Reeve Fison and Robert Wilkinson. (James Reeve Fison (1838-1889) was the son of James Fison (4)).
- William Fison & Co., worsted spinners and manufacturers. Warehouse 33 Hall Ings, works Greenholme Mills, near Otley.
1866 - Bradford Trades Directory
- Cornell Fison, worsted manufacturer. Warehouse 3 Charles Street. Works St. Dunstan's Mill, Mill Lane. Home: Rawdon
- Fison & Wilkinson, worsted manufacturer. Warehouse 5 Mills' Passage. Works Holme Top MIll. Home: James R Fison: 9 Giles Street.
- Thomas Sparham Fison, woolstapler. Warehouse 46 Well Street. Home: Rawdon.
- Wm Fison & Co., worsted spinners & manufacturers. Warehouse 41 Hall Ings. Works Greenholme nr Otley.
- Cornell Fison, worsted manufacturer. Warehouse 3 Charles Street. Works St. Dunstan's Mill, Mill Lane. Home: Rawdon
- Fison & Wilkinson, worsted manufacturer. Warehouse 5 Mills' Passage. Works Holme Top MIll. Home: James R Fison: 9 Giles Street.
- Thomas Sparham Fison, woolstapler. Warehouse 46 Well Street. Home: Rawdon.
- Wm Fison & Co., worsted spinners & manufacturers. Warehouse 41 Hall Ings. Works Greenholme nr Otley.
1867 Oct - Partnership between Fison & Wilkinson (James Reeve Fison and Robert Wilkinson) dissolved.
1867 to 1881 - Wm Fison & Co., took on the Junction Mills, Windhill, Shipley.
1870 to 1880 - Wm Fison & Co., took on the Worth Valley Mills, Keighley.
1870 to 1880 - Wm Fison & Co., took on the Worth Valley Mills, Keighley.
1875 - Thomas S Fison died. Buried in St Oswald's churchyard, Guiseley.
1880 - Wm Fison & Co., took on the Castle Mill, Idle.
1886 - William E. Forster died. Buried in God's Acre, Bradford Road, Burley in Wharfedale.
1891 - Cornell Fison (3) died.
1900 - William Fison died. Wm Fison & Co., continued under his son Frederick & became a limited company in 1907.
Page Draft as of February 2024. Research by P. Grinham (BLH&AG)
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