Cockerill, William (1759–1832)

English engineer. Born in Lancashire, he is generally regarded as the founder of the European textile-machinery industry. His working career began with the building of spinning jennies and flying shuttles. In 1794 he went to St Petersburg, Russia, and enjoyed the patronage of Catherine II. Her successor, however, imprisoned Cockerill for failing to complete a contract within the given time. Eventually he escaped via Sweden to Belgium in 1799, where he established himself as a manufacturer of textile machinery, first in Verviers and from 1807 in nearby Liège. There, together with his sons Charles and John, he made rotary carding machines, spinning frames, and looms for the French woollen industry.