William Cadell
- Name : Cadell
- Born : 1708
- Died : 1777
- Category : Famous Historical Figures
- Finest Moment : Establishment of the Carron Company Iron Works, in 1759
Born in Cockenzie, East Lothian, William Cadell moved to Bo'ness (Borrowstounness) in 1759. He was from a family of merchants whose main was the import of iron from Russia and Sweden. The Seven Years' War demanded iron for weapons, but the flow of iron was itself disrupted by the war, so that strenuous means were made to produce iron in Scotland. Cadell therefore approached an Englishman, Dr John Roebuck (who had attended Edinburgh University), and along with another English partner, Samuel Garbett from Birmingham, they set up a company to locally mine and smelt iron ore.
The Carron Company Iron Works was set up in 1759, and from the start was planned to be on a large scale, including furnaces, forges and mills. They were aware of quality deposits of iron ore at Bo'ness, coal at Kinnaird, while the flow of the Carron Water could produce power for the blast furnaces.
Their first product was cannonballs. In 1765 Dr Black introduced James Watt to Dr Roebuck, and the following year Watt had his cylinder and pistons for his revolutionary new engine cast at Carron. It is fair to say, at least while the furnaces were roaring, that here was to be seen the first 'white heat of technology' in Scotland.
Other early products which Carron specialised in included cylinders, pipes, nails, and ornamental grates. John Adam, who had become a partner, designed the grates. First attempts at casting cannon did not work, but with improved techniques in boring, by the 1770s the Carron Iron Works were producing an extremely functional short, light cannon, known as a carronade. This became a favourite weapon of both Nelson and Wellington during the Napoleonic Wars.
As the Industrial Revolution increased its pace and Central Scotland saw a rapid growth in heavy industry, so the Carron Works thrived. In 1814 Carron was the largest iron works in Europe, with a labour force of over 2000. As competition increased the company turned to castings, and in the 20th century had a near-monopoly in telephone kiosks. They finally closed in 1982, but their role in Scotland's Industrial revolution was all-important. William Cadell died in 1777.