Transcript

of

Henry A. Willey [Obituary]

Trans. Devon. Assoc., vol. XXXVII, (1905), pp. 40-41.

by

J. Brooking-Rowe (Ed.)

Prepared by Michael Steer

The obituary was read at the Association’s July 1905 Princetown meeting. Willey's Foundry of Water Lane was the largest employer in Exeter during the late 19th and 20th century. At its height the company employed over a 1000 workers and manufactured the majority of gas meters in Great Britain. Willey’s were an important producer of munitions and equipment in both world wars. This important company was created by Henry Frederick Willey, a man from humble origins. At his early death in 1904, the Willey family fortune had grown to £92,000.Mr Willey’s full, illustrated biography, together with a handsome portrait is available on the Exeter Memories website. The obituary, from a copy of a rare and much sought-after journal can be downloaded from the Internet Archive. Google has sponsored the digitisation of books from several libraries. These books, on which copyright has expired, are available for free educational and research use, both as individual books and as full collections to aid researchers.

Henry A. Willey. Mr. H. A. Willey, of Exeter, joined the Association in 1901. He was well known in commercial life as the head of the firm of Willey & Co., gas and lighting engineers, of Exeter. He was a man of remarkable character, says the writer of a short sketch of his life which appeared shortly after his death. His great business capacity, his large-mindedness and public spirit, his un-bounded generosity in the cause of education and charity, his constant efforts to promote the spiritual, moral, and material well-being of the people, especially those in the humbler walks of life, were prominent traits, while his zeal and enthusiasm made him a man whose influence it would be difficult to estimate. Although weighed down by ill-health and the pressure of a vast business, he was always engaged in some cause which had for its object the promotion of public interests, and he espoused no cause without rendering it substantial financial aid. He died 21 September, 1904, at the early age of 41.