b. Blackburn JFM 1864
d. Blackburn 11 March 1934
 

Debut 27 September 1884 Final Game 25 December 1885
First Goal 27 September 1884 Final Goal 13 October 1885
CAREER: Blackburn Olympic '82;Blackburn Rovers Sep'84-'85.
 

FAC     1 app  1 gl
LC        5 apps
 

The younger brother of Richard Birtwistle, he started as a weaver and then helped Richard run the mill owned by their father Micah, before becoming a yarn agent. Arthur elected not to follow his brother to the Rovers and played for the Olympic, mostly in the reserves, where he was captain of the team. In his first season he almost brought the Lancashire Cup to his club when his early goal was only equalised by the Rovers late in the game. With the Olympic full of fine forwards he moved to the Rovers where there was the attraction of using a six forward formation but even so he only played in emergencies. A director of several of the textile companies founded by his father, he was also director of Cunningham and Thwaites who operated Snig Brook Brewery.He was a director of the Rovers for about six years. Unlike the rest of the thrifty Birtwistle dynasty, Arthur spent his money on a succession of fancy homes, including  Cliffe Villa in Great Harwood, and eventually lost most of his capital investing in a spinning mill in Oldham. He spent the last years of his life on family property at Bank Hey Farm. In 1889 he was one of a group of men who formed Wilpshire Golf Club.