Arthur Heath Cricketer
Arthur Howard Heath TD (29 May 1856 – 26 April 1930) was a British industrialist, first-class cricketer, Rugby Union international and Conservative Party politician. Born at Newcastle-under-Lyme in Staffordshire on 29 May 1856 Heath was educated at Clifton College and Brasenose College, Oxford. His father was a mine and iron works owner. The family was also very involved in cricket, Heath played for his school;Gloucestershire, making his debut in 1875, just after leaving school; Oxford University; and Middlesex. He was also an MCC member. Three brothers-in-law, two brothers, his father-in-law and his son all played club and county cricket. Heath himself made 44 appearances at first class level in all, scoring 969 runs and taking 26 wickets. He was active in rugby union for Oxford University and once for England against Scotland in 1876, the last 20-a-side international. He was a double Blue and competed in The Varsity Match in rugby in 1875, 1877, 1879 and 1880 and in The University Match at cricket in 1876, 1877 and 1878. In addition to the first-class game, Heath was involved in Staffordshire County Cricket Club for many years, playing from 1879 to 1898, in addition captain from 1884 to 1895, including captaining the county in its first ever Minor Counties Championship match. He was also county secretary and treasurer. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Staffordshire Yeomanry on 18 August 1880. He was promoted lieutenant on an unknown date, and captain on 16 October 1886. He was promoted honorary major on 9 September 1896, honorary lieutenant-colonel on 12 July 1905, substantive lt-col, and commanding officer, on 7 April 1906, and honorary colonel on 31 May 1906. He was awarded the Territorial Decoration on 2 April 1909. He retired on 6 April 1910. He was involved in founding the Staffordshire Post in 1892, but this did not last long, with its parent company, The Staffordshire Potteries Newspaper Company, Ltd, wound up in 1896. The title was bought out by the Staffordshire Sentinel and Heath subsequently served as a director of that company, and later chairman, until the title was sold in 1928. Heath had joined the family business after graduation. On the death of his father in 1893, Heath and his two brothers formed the company of Robert Heath and Sons, Ltd to run the family's coal and iron interests. This was sold to the Low Moor Iron Company in 1910. The brothers had also founded the Birchenwood Colliery Company at Newchapel near Kidsgrove in 1893, developing a coking and coal byproducts business. This was the largest industrial site that the Newchapel area has ever known and provided employment for several thousand people in its heyday. According to his obituary in The Times Birchenwood did well during the First World War when its chemical products were in demand for explosives, but in the depression that followed, the company began to struggle, but the brothers kept it going to provide employment to the people of Kidsgrove, though it returned no profit to them. Heath was elected as the 1900 general election as the Member of Parliament (MP) for the borough of Hanley in Staffordshire, having fought the seat unsuccessfully in 1892 and 1895. After losing his seat at the 1906 general election, he was returned to the House of Commons at the January 1910 general election for the Leek division of Staffordshire, with a majority of only 10 votes. He did not stand again at the December 1910 general election. He died aged 73 on 24 April 1930, in Marylebone, London. In legal notices relating to his estate he was described as "Arthur Howard Heath, late of Keele Hall, in the county of Stafford, and of No. 46, Orchard-court, Portman-square".