Mathew Murray (1765-1826)

Biography

Murray was born in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne in 1765 and became an apprentice millwright at the age of 14 (Howe, 2019). With his whole life planned out he set about understanding the details of engineering and managed to make a name for himself. He set up the Round Foundry on Water Lane in Holbeck along the Leeds Liverpool Canal between 1795 and 1797 and turned it into a hotspot for businessmen and industrialists. He was extremely important to designing and developing of both stationary and locomotive engines, supplying Middleton tramway with four of the latter in 1812-13. (Historic England, n.d.). This Middleton tramway was extremely important in the development of Leeds’ and Holbeck’s industrial history as it helped supply Leeds with coal from the Middleton colliery.

Murray is widely known across the world as his business exported products to many other countries. The Emperor of Russia gave him a diamond ring and the king of Sweden gave him a gold snuff box (Burt and Grady, 2002). Murrays influence is shown because Leeds has built more railway engines than any other place in England, including the major engine building towns of Swindon, Doncaster and Crewe. Murray died in 1826 and his foundry survived for another thirty years until it was taken over by Smith Beackock and Tannet and was burned to the ground in 1873, however some buildings still remain (Holbeck Urban Village, n.d.)

Context

Matthew Murray, despite his achievements, is relatively unknown. This is because other industrialists who were influenced by and improved on Murray’s methods were rewarded with greater recognition. For example, George Stephenson’s first steam locomotive Blücher was modelled on Matthew Murray’s Willington after studying it at Kenton and Coxlodge colliery on Tyneside (McCann, 2013). McCann believes that the BBC has influenced this through their programmes on the industrial revolution because as he said throughout the series only once did Murray’s world's first commercially successful locomotive show on the screen (McCann, 2013). Murray is still commemorated with his obelisk and Leeds’ historians and public still remember his which helped push the city and country through into the industrial revolution.

The Monument

Date Erected:
1826

Artist:
Unknown (Round Foundry)

Commissioned / funded by:
Obelisk built after Murray’s death as a grave marker and memorial, funded by workers from his factory.

Format and materials:
Iron Obelisk built at the Round Foundry; Also ‘Salamanca’ bench commemorating the railway locomotive of that name built by Murray in 1812.

Location:
The obelisk was erected in St. Matthew’s Churchyard near his old factory in Holbeck, with his and his wife's remains buried underneath. The churchyard was closed to burials in 1857 and since the closure of the church in the 1970s has been largely cleared of grave markers and laid out as a park.

Description:
An iron obelisk on 4-steps of stone and an iron podium with Murray’s remains underneath. On the obelisk there is the description: In a vault underneath are deposited remains of Matthew Murray civil engineer of Holbeck who died the XX of February MDCCCXXVI, aged LX years also of Mary his wife who died the XVIII of December MDCCCXXXVI aged LXXII years (Historic England, n.d.)

Sources

• Historic England (n.d.) Murray Memorial and Enclosure Railings. Historic England. (Accessed on: 1/12/2021)
• Burt, S. and Grady, K., (2002) The Illustrated History of Leeds. Breedon Books: Derby.
• Howe,J., (2019) ‘Respect Overdue: How Matthew Murray changed the world and why nobody knows it’. A Leeds Revolution. (Accessed on: 01/12/2021)
• McCann, M., (2013) How the BBC rewrote history to disrespect Leeds… again. The Guardian. (Accessed on: 1/12/2021)
• Holbeck Urban Village, (n.d.) Matthew Murray: A Biography. Holbeck Urban Village. (Accessed on: 1/12/2021)

[Image by Betty Longbottom via Wikimedia Commons]