Head, Wrightson and Co
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Head, Wrightson and Co, engineers and iron founders, of Thornaby-on-Tees and Teesdale Ironworks, Stockton-on-Tees
1840: An iron works was founded at Stockton.
1851: Teesside's first blast furnace was built, after iron ore was discovered in the Cleveland Hills.
1856 Thomas Howard Head started the Teesdale Iron Works at Stockton-on-Tees in partnership with Joseph Wright. The firm was known as Head and Wright. Later Joseph Ashby joined the firm.
1859: Mr. Skinner bought the Teesdale Iron Works.
1860 Joseph Wright of Teesdale Iron Works gained a patent on lifting apparatus for use in mines, also useful for raising heavy weights[1].
1860: Mr. Skinner bought the Cotton Mill.
1860 July: Upon dissolution of a partnership, Messrs Head, Wright and Ashby made a declaration about the ownership of 2 pieces of land in South Stockton and Thornaby[2].
1860 Joseph Wright left the partnership with Thomas Head and Joseph Ashby, under the firm Head, Wright and Ashby, ironfounders and engineers[3], the style of the firm being afterwards Head, Ashby and Co.
1860/70s built locomotives
1865 The firm made cast iron and wrought iron for boilers, railway chairs, naval ships, and many bridges across the world, the largest being in India. The firm employed 450 people.
1866 Head, Ashby and Co, Teesdale Iron Works, advertised a machine that consumed smoke and improved the economy of fuel use, based on Juckes' patent, improved by the company[4].
1866 Thomas Wrightson, having trained at William Armstrong's works, joined the firm, Head, Ashby and Co[5].
1867 After 12 years with the business, Thomas Howard Head sold his interest to Messrs. C. A. Head and Thomas Wrightson. The firm became Messrs. Head, Wrightson and Co Ltd.
1867 Alteration of partnership between Thomas Howard Head, Charles Arthur Head and Thomas Wrightson on the retirement of Thomas Head[6]. In the same file is an undated draft agreement between T. H. Head and M. T. Shaw of 141 Cannon St.
1867 Dissolution of partnership Thomas Howard Head and Joseph Ashby[7] under the firm Head, Ashby and Co in October 1866[8].
1878 Description and illustrations of the Empress Bridge for the Indus Valley Railway in Engineering [9]. Extract: 'The specification provides for all butts to be planed, and for all boles not rivetted in England to be drilled. Owing to the urgency of the work it was decided to divide the contract, and the tenders of Messrs. Head, Wrightson, and Co. of Stockton-on-Tees, and of Messrs. Westwood, Baillie and Co., of London, were accepted, each for eight complete spans . Messrs. Head, Wrightson, and Co. constructed for this contract a very large travelling crane, spanning 70 ft., so that two sets of girders could bo erected at the same time; this was supported upon wrought-iron girders, 30ft. high, upon strong cast-iron stanchions. The moving traveller is worked by steam, and can lift up to 20 tons. The gauntries were 300ft. long over all. With this efficient means of moving the heavy parts of the bridge, rapid progress was made, and the various spans erected and taken down again with great celerity. To further hasten the work, Messrs. Head, Wrightson, and Co. experimented upon, and finally introduced, the Siemens electric lighting apparatus with considerable success, enabling the workmen to continue their work up to late hours of the night during the winter of 1876. The plates of the Stockton girders were made by the Bowesfield Iron Company. The largest plates were the webs of the end fascias, which were in one piece, 16ft. 2 in . by 4ft. by 3/8 in., and not rivetted in the centre.'
1888 Head, Wrightson and Co exhibited a model of the Empress Bridge for the Indus Valley Railway from a design by Sir A. M. Rendel, as well as a hydraulic centre crane for steel plant patented by T. Wrightson which incorporating an automatic fluid balancing system[10].
1889 Rolling Mill Engines for the Bowesfield Iron Co
1890 Public company. The company was registered on 21 June, to take over the business of engineers and general contractors of the firm of the same name. [11]. Mr. C. A. Head was chairman and Mr. William Anderson was managing director.
1890 The works was three times as big as in 1860, and covered Thornaby Carrs.
1892: The firm employed 1,200 people.
1897 Acquired Stockton Forge[12].
1897 Description and drawings of a conveyor-based coal-shipping machine erected at the staithes of the Cramlington Coal Co in the Northumberland Dock on the Tyne.[13]
1900 Issue of preference shares for machinery for Teesdale Iron Works, Stockton Foundry and Egglescliffe Foundry (purchased in 1900)[14].
1915 Built 6 of the 'X' lighters for naval use, 4 were powered and 2 were dumb craft. They were an early form of landing craft.
1922 Head, Wrightson and Co acquired the interest in Whitwell and Co previously held by Amalgamated Industrials[15].
1937 Headgear for 6,660 ft deep shaft of the Simmer and Jack Mines, South Deep Shaft, South Africa [16]
1939 See Aircraft Industry Suppliers
1955 Four industrial groups formed to exploit the information being made available by UKAEA on design of nuclear power "furnaces" - Industrial Atomic Energy Group involving AEI and John Thompson with electrical generating expertise from Metropolitan-Vickers and BTH; English Electric Co and Babcock and Wilcox; C. A. Parsons and Co and Head, Wrightson and Co; GEC and Simon-CarvesLtd[17].
1960 Advert for ore mining and treatment plant. Head, Wrightson Stockton Forge Limited of Stockton Forge Works, Stockton-on-Tees
1961 General engineers, designing and manufacturing equipment for winning and processing coal, oil and iron ore; reactors and other atomic plant; builders of bridges and other steel structures. 636 employees. [18]
1968 The firm employed nearly 6,000 people and mostly made boilers and other heavy engineering. Its factory covered 68 acres.
1972 Acquired B. and S. Massey.[19]
1976 Acquired by Davy International.[20]
1983 Owned by Davy Corporation. Under the Lazard scheme to reduce capacity in castings, the Thornaby and Billingham foundries were closed[21]
See Also
Sources of Information
- ↑ The Bradford Observer, 12 April 1860
- ↑ National Archives [1]
- ↑ London Gazette, 27 July 1860
- ↑ The Leeds Mercury, 31 August 1866
- ↑ NE England's history[2]
- ↑ National Archives [3]
- ↑ National Archives [4]
- ↑ London Gazette, 20 December 1867
- ↑ Engineering, 20 Dec 1820
- ↑ Glasgow Herald, 23 August 1888
- ↑ The Stock Exchange Year Book 1908
- ↑ National Archives [5]
- ↑ Engineering 1897/08/13
- ↑ The North-Eastern Daily Gazette, 29 June 1900
- ↑ The Times, 26 June 1922
- ↑ Engineering 1937/01/08
- ↑ The Times, 17 March 1955
- ↑ 1961 Dun and Bradstreet KBE
- ↑ The Scotsman - 08 January 1972
- ↑ Aberdeen Press and Journal - 24 November 1976
- ↑ Competition Commission report on William Cook, 1990
- British Steam Locomotive Builders by James W. Lowe. Published in 1975. ISBN 0-905100-816
- [6] Wikipedia
- The Engineer of 15th Feb 1889 p144
- Mining Year Book 1960. Published by Walter E. Skinner. Advert p425
- Obituary of Thomas Howard Head, 1880, Institution of Civil Engineers Minutes of the Proceedings.