# William Losh

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{{short description | British chemist and industrialist (1770 – 1861)}}

'''William Losh''' (1770 in Carlisle – 4 August 1861, in Ellison Place, Newcastle) was a [chemist](/source/chemist) and [industrialist](/source/industrialist) who is credited with introducing the [Leblanc process](/source/Leblanc_process) for the manufacture of [alkali](/source/alkali) to the United Kingdom.

==Life and work==

Losh worked in a family business, [Losh, Wilson and Bell](/source/Losh%2C_Wilson_and_Bell), manufacturing chemicals in [Walker-on-Tyne](/source/Walker%2C_Newcastle_upon_Tyne), near [Newcastle upon Tyne](/source/Newcastle_upon_Tyne), England.  The firm manufactured akali and saltsake by processes patented by [Archibald Cochrane](/source/Archibald_Cochrane%2C_9th_Earl_of_Dundonald).<ref name="h217">{{Harvnb|Hardie|1950|p=217.}}</ref>  Losh went to Paris in 1802 where he learnt about the Leblanc process and then started to use it in his own factory.<ref>{{Harvnb|Hardie|1950|p=11.}}</ref>

Losh also became involved in the early development of the railways, when he collaborated with [George Stephenson](/source/George_Stephenson) in the development of improved  cast-iron rails that did not break as easily as existing rails. At the time, Losh had an ironworks in Walker, where the new rails could be manufactured. Subsequently, when Stephenson was building the [Stockton and Darlington Railway](/source/Stockton_and_Darlington_Railway), he decided to use wrought-iron rails obtained from the [Bedlington Ironworks](/source/Bedlington_Ironworks). This caused a permanent rift with William Losh, who had believed that he had an agreement with Stephenson to use his own rails.<ref name="Davies">Davies, 1975.</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Dow |first1=Andrew |title=The Railway - British track since 1804 |date=2014 |publisher=Pen and Sword Transport |isbn=978-1-47382-257-3 |pages=19, 26}}</ref>

Losh retired from the alkali business in 1831.  In addition to being an alkali manufacturer he worked as a [colliery](/source/Coal_mining) agent and as [consul](/source/Consul_(representative)) for [Prussia](/source/Prussia), the [Scandinavia](/source/Scandinavia)n countries and, later, for [Turkey](/source/Turkey).<ref name="h217"/>

==References==

{{Reflist}}

==Bibliography==

*{{cite book | last=Davies | first=Hunter |year=1975 |title=George Stephenson |publisher=Weidenfeld and Nicolson |isbn=0-297-76934-0}}
*{{cite book | last=Hardie | first=David William Ferguson<!-- Often abbreviated to D.W.F. --> | title=A History of the Chemical Industry of Widnes | publisher=[Imperial Chemical Industries](/source/Imperial_Chemical_Industries) Limited, General Chemicals Division | year=1950 | location=London | id=ASIN B0007JBZRQ}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Losh, William}}
Category:1770 births
Category:1861 deaths
Category:British industrialists
Category:British chemists
Category:English businesspeople

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