William Asquith, machine tool makers, of Highroad Well Works, Halifax.
c.1865 Founded by William Asquith (1840-1901), a native of Halifax, who had spent time in the gold fields of Canada and California. Right from the start the company operated from the Highroad Well area of Halifax. The company became specialist manufacturers of radial drilling machines and one claim to fame was that they supplied 40 drilling machines used during the building of the Sydney Harbour Bridge in 1924.
This site expanded to service several branches of the Asquith business which included a foundry.
The company has had numerous changes of ownership and is now part of Asquith Butler. Although no longer operating from the Highroad Well site, there is still plenty of evidence of over 100 years of engineering by Asquith on this site.
1886 Description and engraving of a lathe designed to turn two railway wheels on their axle at one operation, or to turn a tyre on one face-plate and bore the boss of the wheel on the other, simultaneously or independently.[2]
1896 Description and engraving of Asquith's milling, boring and drilling machine[3]
1897 Description and engraving of a large plate-edge planing machine for HM Dockyard, Hong Kong. 'The machine illustrated will plane 24 ft. long at one cut, and the ends have been so formed that, by re-setting, any length of plate can be planed. The maximum depth is 12 in., and a hand and variable self-acting vertical feed motion is adopted.' See 1897 illustration [4]
1901 The Asquith was a short-lived English automobile manufactured from 1901 to 1902. The car originally had a front-mounted De Dion engine and belt-drive; this last was later replaced by a two-speed gearbox because the belts kept slipping disastrously. Probably only one car was built before the firm decided to concentrate on machinery. Used the name West End Motor Co.
1914 Directory: Listed as Drilling Machinery Makers and of Victoria Buildings, High Street, Stockton. [5]
1920 September. Exhibited at the Machine Tool and Engineering Exhibition at Olympia with several new types of radial drilling machines. [6]
c.1921 Public company incorporated
1927 See Aberconway for information on the company and its history.
1934 Illustrated description of railway wheel and axle turning lathe [7]
1937 Machine tool manufacturers. [8]
1939 See Aircraft Industry Suppliers
1953 Acquired Drummond Brothers of Guildford
1954 William Asquith changed the company name to Asquith Machine Tool Corporation; the operating company would take on the previous name[9]
See Also
- The Engineer 1952 Jul-Dec: Index
- The Engineer 1953 Jul-Dec: Index
- The Engineer 1956 Jan-Jun: Index
- The Engineer 1957 Jan-Jun: Index
- The Engineer 1957 Jul-Dec: Index
- The Engineer 1958 Jul-Dec: Index
- The Engineer 1964 Jan-Jun: Index
- The Engineer 1965 Jul-Dec: Index
- The Engineer 1968 Jan-Jun: Index
- The Engineer 1968 Jul-Dec: Index
Sources of Information
- ↑ The Engineer 1918/03/15
- ↑ Engineering 1886/08/13
- ↑ Engineering 1896/02/21
- ↑ [Engineering 1897/07/09]]
- ↑ Kelly's Directory of Durham, 1914 p658
- ↑ The Engineer of 10th September 1920 p244
- ↑ Engineering 1934/04/20
- ↑ 1937 The Aeroplane Directory of the Aviation and Allied Industries
- ↑ The Times, Aug 20, 1954