James Foster (ironmaster)
| James Foster | |
|---|---|
| Born | 9 May 1786 |
| Died | 12 April 1853 (aged 66) |
| Resting place | Family vault, St Mary's, Oldswinford |
| Nationality | English |
| Occupation |
|
| Organization | |
| Home town | Stourbridge |
James Foster (9 May 1786 – 12 April 1853) was a prominent Worcestershire ironmaster, coalmaster and senior partner in the important iron company of John Bradley & Co, Stourbridge, which was founded by his elder half-brother but greatly enlarged under his direction. As well as the Stourbridge ironworks, the business owned a number of coal and ironstone mines, furnaces, forges and other works in the Black Country and near Ironbridge. The business continued long after James Foster's death, ultimately being incorporated as John Bradley (Stourbridge) Ltd in the early 20th century. In the late 19th century, the company was a member of the Marked Bar Association, whose members were the makers of the highest quality bar iron of the time. Foster was also a partner in other companies including the engineering firm Foster, Rastrick and Company, which built the first steam locomotive to run on rails in the USA. He was also a banker and landowner as well as being elected Member of Parliament and appointed as Improvement Commissioner for Stourbridge, Lord Lieutenant of Worcestershire and High Sheriff of Worcestershire.
James Foster was the son of Henry and Mary Foster (née Haden). He was born on 9 May 1786 and baptised on 11 May 1786. The family house, which still exists, was in the Digbeth area of Stourbridge, then numbered 7 High Street but since renumbered. Mary's first husband, Gabriel Bradley from Stourbridge, had left her his iron business on his death in 1771. John Bradley, Mary's son by her first husband, founded the company John Bradley & Co., in 1800 taking a lease on land near the canal at Stourbridge with the aim of developing an ironworks. The deed of partnership for the company was drawn up in 1802 which granted a share in the company to Bradley's six half-brothers and sisters (which included James Foster). By 1813 only John Bradley and James Foster had shares in the company and on Bradley's death in 1816, James Foster took control of the enterprise, which included the Stourbridge Iron Works.
In 1818, Foster leased mines at Wombridge, Shropshire with an agreement to build blast furnaces there within 18 months.
Foster formed a subsidiary partnership with John Urpeth Rastrick in Stourbridge which traded as Foster, Rastrick and Company. The company was in existence from 1819 to 1831, and at the leading edge of iron technology; producing a wide range of products such as blast furnaces and rolling mill equipment, sugar mills for export to the West Indies, iron 'bearers' (beams) for important buildings of the age, wrought iron rails, and four early steam locomotives.
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