Samuel Lister

Samuel Cunliffe Lister, 1st Baron Masham, (1st January 1815 - 2nd February 1906) was a British inventor and industrialist. Samuel Lister played a key role in the development of Bradford's wool industry during the nineteenth century industrial revolution. The textile industry transformed Bradford from a small rural town into a rich and famous city.

In 1838 he and his elder brother John started as worsted spinners and manufacturers in a new mill which their father built for them at Manningham. Lister's Mill (otherwise known as Manningham Mills), and its owner, were particularly well known in the district. The business eventually made Lister one of Bradford's most famous fathers, a multi-millionaire and the provider of thousands of jobs in the city. Lister's Mill changed the identity of the region, and its economy. Lister himself came to epitomise Victorian enterprise.

Lister invented the Lister Nip Comb which separated and straightened raw wool, which has to be done before it can be spun into yarn, and in the nineteenth century it was a hot, dirty and tiring job. By inventing the Nip Comb, Lister revolutionised the industry.