The research into woolsorters' disease and anthrax in Bradford between 1875 and 1920 was marked by the contributions of two particularly noteworthy medical practitioners: John Henry Bell and Frederick William Eurich. Bell was the first to demonstrate that the mysterious woolsorters' disease in humans was caused by the same organism as anthrax or splenic fever in animals, while Eurich was responsible for classifying different types of wool and hair according to the risk that each posed to health, as well as determining through laboratory-based research which substances might act as suitable disinfectants.

The measure of the importance of their work comes from the recognition afforded to them by the wool and textile industries during their lifetimes. Bell received a gold watch from several woolsorting firms in 1881 ‘as a token of the regard in which he was held by those whose cause he had so nobly maintained’ – this after he had been investigating the condition for less than three years. His obituary in the BMJ also noted that ‘[t]he number of lives saved through Dr. Bell's instrumentality has probably been far greater than those lost in fighting many of the great battles of history’ For his part, Eurich's retirement in 1937 saw him presented with the Textile Institute's gold medal – the first man from outside of the trade to be thus recognized.