| Honorific Prefix: | The Reverend |
| William Harvey | |
| Birth Date: | 1787 |
| Birth Place: | Whittington, Derbyshire, England |
| Death Date: | (aged 83) |
| Death Place: | Salford, England |
| Burial Place: | Weaste Cemetery, Salford, England |
| Occupation: | Cotton mill owner, deacon, activist |
| Mayor of Salford | |
| Term: | 1857–1858 |
| Children: | 6 |
William Harvey (1787 – 25 December 1870) was an English industrialist, cotton mill owner, deacon, and activist. He was an advocate for parliamentary reform, temperance, vegetarianism and against tobacco. Harvey helped found the Bible Christian Church and served as deacon from 1809 till his death. He helped establish the Vegetarian Society, the Manchester and Salford Temperance Union, and the United Kingdom Alliance, serving as President of each organisation. Additionally, he served as Vice President of the Anti-Tobacco Society. Harvey also assisted in founding Salford Council and served as one of Salford's first aldermen from 1844 to 1870. He was elected Mayor of Salford in 1857 and 1858.
William Harvey was born in Whittington, Derbyshire, in 1787, the son of a yeoman.[1] Harvey had six siblings including Martha, who later married their cousin Joseph Brotherton and authored the first vegetarian cookbook.[2] Harvey moved to Salford in 1804 to apprentice under Mr. Railton for cotton spinning, weaving, and printing, and resided with Brotherton.
The Bible Christian Church in King Street, Salford, was central to Harvey's life. He helped found it and served as deacon from 1809 until his death in 1870. Harvey was a committed advocate of the church's principles, including abstaining from meat, alcohol, and tobacco.
In 1810, Harvey partnered with his cousins, Joseph and William Brotherton, as cotton spinners. After Joseph's retirement and William's death in 1819, the company passed to Harvey, who then partnered with Charles Tysoe, a fellow Bible Christian Church member, forming Harvey, Tysoe and Co. Their mill, Brotherton Mill, was located on Canal Street, Oldfield Road. The Christian principles they followed—welfare, no child labour under 13, and a 10-hour maximum workday—were praised in Angus Bethune Reach's Manchester and the Textile Districts in 1849. Harvey's sons and grandsons later joined the business.[3]
Harvey co-founded and presided over the Vegetarian Society, the Manchester and Salford Temperance Union, the United Kingdom Alliance. He also served as Vice President of the Anti-Tobacco Society. Harvey was the second president of the Vegetarian Society after the death of his son-in-law James Simpson. In 1857, Harvey arranged the first recorded teetotal and vegetarian banquet.[4]
Harvey was a member of the Little Circle, a group of eleven influential early 19th-century Manchester political reformers, including Brotherton, recognised for their grasp of public opinion, involvement in key political issues from 1812 to 1846, and cohesive identity and ideas.[5] Harvey supported parliamentary reform and attended the Peterloo Massacre in 1819. He was Brotherton's election agent when Salford gained a parliamentary seat in 1832, helping him become Salford's first Member of Parliament.
An early member of the Anti-Corn Law League, Harvey advocated for a repeal of the Corn Laws. Locally, he was part of the Liberal group that helped establish Salford Council in 1844. Harvey became a Borough Constable in 1834, a Police Commissioner in 1843, and was one of Salford's first aldermen, from 1844 to 1870. He was also a justice of the peace. Harvey was elected Mayor of Salford in 1857 and 1858.[3]
Harvey continued his prominent role in the Council till his death on 25 December 1870 at his home at 8 Acton Square, Crescent, Salford, at the age of 83. He was buried in the family vault at Weaste Cemetery on 30 December, with Rev. James Clark of the Bible Christian Church officiating.[3]
On 19 June 1812, Harvey married Mary Titley at Manchester Cathedral. She was born in 1790 in Staffordshire to William and Mary Titley.[3] They had five sons and one daughter.[1] His wife died on 12 October 1857, aged 67.[3]
Harvey was a friend of William Cobbett.[6]