Huntsman, Francis

1785 – 1879

English steel manufacturer and company owner from Sheffield.

Francis Huntsman was the grandson of the famous watchmaker and cast steel pioneer Benjamin Huntsman. In 1776 Francis’s father, William Huntsman, took over his father’s company, which is thought to be the world’s oldest steel manufactory. Francis’s father also founded the firm Huntsman and Asline, together with Robert Asline, in 1764. The factory specialised in making buttons. Francis took over the plants, which flourished under his leadership in the 19th century.

During his travels in England, Johann Conrad Fischer visited Huntsman’s plants on several occasions (1814, 1825–1827, 1845, 1846, 1851).

See family: Huntsman.

Traveljournal 1814

Traveljournal 1825–1827

Traveljournal 1845

Traveljournal 1846

Traveljournal 1851

  • B. Huntsman. In: Grace’s Guide To British Industrial History (Grace’s Guide, Stand 31.5.2022).
  • Fischer, Johann Conrad: Tagebücher. Bearbeitet von Karl Schib. Schaffhausen 1951.
  • Francis Huntsman. In: Grace’s Guide to British industrial History (Grace’s Guide, Stand 23.9.2022).
  • Huntsman and Asline. In: Grace’s Guide To British Industrial History (Grace’s Guide, Stand 31.5.2022).
  • Huntsman Francis, steel mfr. Attercliff. In: History, Directory & Gazetteer of Yorkshire, Vol. I: West Riding (1822), S. 326 (Special Collections, Stand 6.10.2022).
  • Materialising Sheffield representing the Past (Onlineressource, 27.6.2022).
  • William Huntsman. In: Grace’s Guide To British Industrial History (Grace’s Guide, Stand 31.5.2022).

Cite as: Huntsman, Francis. In: Travel Reports of a Pioneer: Digital Edition of the Travel Journals of Johann Conrad Fischer 1794–1851. Published by Franziska Eggimann. Edited by Franziska Eggimann, Nicolau Lutz, Valerija Rukavina und Christopher Zoller-Blundell. Schlatt 2023, Version 1.2, https://johannconradfischer.com/en/names/gfa-actors-7540, viewed on 7 June 2025.