Charles Cross was born in 1855 in Brentford, England. Upon his graduation from King's College of London in 1878, he set up an analytical and consulting chemical firm with Edward John Bevan in London.

In 1892 Cross, Bevan, and Beadle developed viscous rayon which is formed by first dissolving cellulose from wood fibers in a sodium hydroxide solution and then treating it with carbon disulfide after drying. The resulting solution--called viscose--is extruded through a small hole into an acid bath to form. After drying these fibers can be spun into fabric.

Cross wrote several technical books, including Cellulose, before his death in Sussex in 1935.