Difference between revisions of "Harold Butler"
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Harold Butler (1877-1941) of the [[Butler Machine Tool Co]] | Harold Butler (1877-1941) of the [[Butler Machine Tool Co]] | ||
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'''1942 Obituary <ref>[[1942 Institution of Mechanical Engineers: Obituaries]]</ref> | |||
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[[Category: Births 1870-1879]] | [[Category: Births 1870-1879]] | ||
[[Category: Deaths 1940-1949]] | [[Category: Deaths 1940-1949]] | ||
[[Category: Institution of Mechanical Engineers]] | |||
Revision as of 07:50, 6 June 2015
Harold Butler (1877-1941) of the Butler Machine Tool Co
1942 Obituary [1]
1942 Obituary [2]
WE greatly regret to learn that Mr. Harold Butler, chairman and managing director of the Butler Machine Tool Company, Ltd., Halifax, died on December 24th, 1941, in his sixty-sixth year.
He was born in Halifax and received his early education there, and at the Yorkshire College, Leeds, entering his father's business of J. Butler and Co. at the age of seventeen.
In 1908 the commercial management of the company was largely in his hands, the practical side being administered by his brother, the late Mr. Herbert Butler. His commercial activities extended over most European countries and included the Brussels Exhibition of 1910, while in 1911 he paid his first visit to Canada and the U.S.A.
During the war of 1914-18 he was a member of the Halifax Munitions Board, and his company was responsible for the production of over 1,000,000 shells, in addition to large numbers of machine tools. For his services to the country during the war, Mr. Butler was honoured by receiving the M.B.E.
His local business activities included being a founder member of the local branch of the Foreman's Mutual Benefit Society, of which he was Chairman from 1918 to 1920, following which he was President in 1920-21 of the Halifax District Engineering Employers' Association. He was also one of the founder members of Associated British Machine Tool Makers. Ltd., and was Chairman of the board in 1922-23 and from 1932 to 1935.
In 1930 and 1931 he was President of the Halifax Chamber of Commerce.
In 1938 Mr. Butler became President of the Machine Tool Trades' Association, and continued in that office until March, 1941. In 1919 the firm of J. Butler and Co. became the Butler Machine Tool Company, Ltd., with Mr. Harold Butler and Mr. Herbert Butler as directors, and since 1937, when it became a public limited company, Mr. Harold Butler has been chairman and managing director.
During his lifetime Mr. Butler has seen the business grow from a small concern, occupying converted premises, to one of the largest machine tool firms in the country, with extensive modem buildings designed and built for the large-scale production of machine tools. Under his guidance the policy of the firm was to concentrate on one particular type of machine, with the result that the company now enjoys a wide reputation for machine tools of the reciprocating type.
The extent of this reputation was due almost entirely to the efforts of Mr. Butler, who travelled extensively in Europe, the British Empire, and the United States of America.