William Arrol

The son of a spinner, Arrol was born in Houston, Renfrewshire, and started work in a cotton mill at only 9 years of age,[1] prior to commencing training as a blacksmith by age 13, and going on to learn mechanics and hydraulics at night school.

[2] In 1863 he joined a company of bridge manufacturers in Glasgow, but by 1872 he had established his own business, the Dalmarnock Iron Works, in the east end of the city.

[4] He served as President of The Institution of Engineers and Shipbuilders in Scotland from 1895–97.

He spent the latter years of his life on his estate at Seafield House, near Ayr,[5] where he died on 20 February 1913.

[1] He is buried in Woodside Cemetery, Paisley, on the north side of the main east-west path on the crest of the hill.

Portrait of William Arrol
Bust of William Arrol, People's Palace museum, Glasgow
Memorial to Sir William Arrol, now on display in the Glasgow People's Palace