Scottish agricultural implement makers

One of the less-well known implement makers that is recollected today is R. G. Morton, Errol. In its day, the company was a highly regarded engine maker, making among other items, horizontal engines, semi-portable engines, boilers, turbines and threshing mills.

By 1877 Robert G. Morton had set up his business at the railway station, Errol, Perthshire, from which he had the ease of transport to distribute his manufactures. By 1913 the company had changed form and R. G. Morton (Errol) was located at Motherwell, Lanarkshire.

The company actively promoted its manufactures in both the North British Agriculturist and the Scottish Farmers, especially from the mid 1880s onwards until 1913. It was a regular attender at the Highland Show from 1870. It considered itself as an innovative business, entering a number of its manufactures for trials of the Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland. These included an exhaust fan in 1884 which won a £10 prize. In 1884 it entered the Society’s trial of machines adapted for cleaning all sorts of grain and other seeds from weeds. In 1888 one of its steam engines was selected for and entered for trial. In 1890 it entered the Society’s trial of grist mills.

By trade, the company was an agricultural implement maker, a boilermaker, engineer and millwright,a machine maker, a mechanical engineer, and more lately a motor-van, lorry and builder.

On the death of Robert G. Morton in the spring of 1920, the North British Agriculturist, acknowledged his innovative business. It wrote:

“To farmers of twenty-five to forty years ago, few men were better known in the agricultural engineering business than Mr R. Aikman Gray Morton, whose death has taken place at his son’s residence, 2 hamilton Drive, Bothwell. Mr R. G. Morton was the noted millwright and agricultural engineer of Errol, Perthshire, and in his time carried on an extensive business which had a wide and well-established reputation. Mr Morton first made his mark in 1868, having in that year invented the “Comb Drum” threshing machine, an implement which practically revolutionised the system of grain threshing then in force. One of his greatest improvements on the original Comb Drum machine was the introduction of the double drum, by which it was possible not only to thresh clean grain of every description, but also to preserve the most tender-fibres straw from being unduly broken up or damaged. In addition to threshing machines and farm engines (which at Errol had been brought to a wonderful degree of perfection), Mr Morton did a large trade in numerous other agricultural appliances, as well as in general machinery for manufacturing purposes, and these were sent to almost every manufacturing centre in the world. He was a man of high ideal and universally esteemed.”

Morton is a fantastic example of how innovative engineering was carried on in rural Scotland and of its outstanding reputation.

By 1959 there were a number of key tractor agents throughout Scotland, especially in the eastern arable areas. Here is a list of the main agents – what ones do you recollect? what ones art missing from the list?

Agra Motor & Agricultural Engineers, Quayside, Banff
Alexanders of Edinburgh Ltd, Gardner’s Crescent, Edinburgh
Barclay, Ross & Hutchison Ltd, 67 The green, Aberdeen
A. J. Bowen & Co. Ltd, Harvester House, Markinch, Fife
Harry K. Brown (Motors) Ltd (Fordson distributors for Fife, Kinross, & Clackmannan, Ransome agents), Raith Motor Works, Nicol Street, Kirkcaldy – branches at Cupar, and Dunfermline
Caledonian Tractor & Equipment Co. Ltd, Rigby Street, Glasgow (factory, Tannochside, Uddingston)
Commercial Garage, Turriff
Cumming & Dempster, Dee Street, Banchory
Dalblair Motors Ltd (main Fordson dealers), 44 Dalblair Road, Ayr
John Davidson & Son (Engineers) Ltd, 51-53 High Street, Turriff
James Duncan (Fordson & Ferguson), Methlick, Aberdeenshire
James Duncan, Victoria Garage, Maud, Aberdeenshire
Elgin Central Engineers Ltd, Fordon Main Dealers, High Street and Hill Street, Elgin
Farm Mechanisation Co. Ltd, South Road, Cupar, Fife
George & Jobling, 14-160 Bothwell Street, Glasgow
Mark Goodson Ltd, 34-36 High Street, Jedburgh
James Gordon (Engineers) Ltd, Newmarket Street, Castle Douglas
John Harper & Sons (Blairgowrie) Ltd, 27-29 Perth Street, Blairgowrie
Harper Motor Co. Ltd, Fordson Main dealers, sales dept, 20 Union Glen, Aberdeen
D. McIntosh & Sons (diesel tractor repairs), Errol, Perthshire
Mackay’s Garage & Agricultural Co. Ltd, Central Garage, Dingwall (branches Thurso and Dornoch)
Mcleod & McLean Ltd, (Ferguson dealers), Commercial Road, Lerwick
Macneill Tractor & Equipment Co. Ltd, 20 Graham Square, Glasgow (sales and service dept, 57 Meiklewood Road, Glasgow), and Edward Road, Stirling)
Massey-Harris-Ferguson (manufacturing) Ltd, Kilmarnock. Head office, Barnton Dock Road, Manchester
John M. Millar, Ltd, Callendar Road, Falkirk
Morayshire Tractors Ltd, Nairn Road, Forres
A. T. Mungall Ltd (Fordson main dealers), Forfar
W. & R. Murray (all leading makes), Main Street, Alford, Aberdeenshire
P. S. Nicholson, 215-219 High Street, Elgin
P. S. Nicholson (Forres) Ltd, St Catherine’s Road, Forres
Jack Olding & Co. (Scotland) Ltd, Coronation Works, Coupar ANgus, Perthshire. Also Perth, Bucksburn, Huntly, Mintlaw.
Reekie Engineering Co. Ltd, Ferguson Tractor Distributors, Arbroath
Allan W. reid (Ayr) Ltd (International Harvester), 58 Main Road, Whitletts, Ayr and at Bridgemill, Glenluce
G. Ross & Co. (David Brown distributors), Friockheim, by Arbroath
Neil Ross (Elgin) Ltd, Greyfriars Street, Elgin
Geo. Sellar & Son Ltd, 30 Great Northern Road, Aberdeen. Branches at Huntly and Alloa; works, Alloa
Shearer Brothers Ltd (Fordson distributors), Maybank Works, Turriff, Aberdeenshire
J. B. W. Smith Ltd (Massey-Ferguson main agents), Cupar, Fife
Stirling Tractors Ltd, Ferguson Tractor distributors, St Ninians, Trucks & Pallets (Scotland), Wilson Place, East Kilbride.
The photographs were taken at the Bon Accord Steam Rally, June 2017.

If you were a farmer or an agriculturist in the north-east in 1919 you would have had a large number of agricultural implement and machine makers to undertake your business with. Some were small, trading locally in a parish or a small area. Others were well-known throughout the region. There were others that were well-known throughout Scotland and also much more widely throughout Britain, and indeed the world.

In may 1919 the North British Agriculturist published a description of some of the most noted traders. Some of their names were weak known until well-through the twentieth century.

Richard S. Allan was head of the firm of Allan Bros., Ashgrove Engineering Works, whose large “shop” for the manufacture of oil engines adjoins, and is very familiar to frequenters of the Royal Northern Society’s yard at kittybrewster. The NBA noted “it is a good number of years since Mr Allan, along with his brother, Mr Jas S. Allan, now in retirement in a farm, began the manufacture of oil engines, and developed a reputation for a sweet-running substantial engine, second to none turned out in Scotland.”

R. G. Garvie, the NBA noted, was “ably assisted in business by his two sons, trades under the style of R. Garvie & Sons. He has had a lifelong connection with the implement trade. Apprenticed as a joiner, in his early days he became expert in all wood-working machinery. In 1876 he joined the firm of Ben Reid & Co., and after a long connection with that firm in the Bon Accord Worksm he ultimately acquired premises on his own account, and has specialised in broad casters and thrashing machines. It is questionable, so far as thrashing machinery is concerned, if any one firm has supplied more thrashers of the medium and small type to Ireland and Scotland, and all parts of the country, where such sizes of machines are useful.

Another well-known person was Alex Pirie, JP “of that old established and celebrated firm for plough production-George Sellar & Son Ltd, Huntly. Mr Pirie has risen to his present position by his own individual efforts. From his knowledge both theoretically and practically of what is required for high cultivation on the farm, it can be truly said of him that in the North of Scotland no man has accomplished greater things in the introduction of harvesting machinery, ploughs, and general cultivation implements. He is a man of wide outlook and sympathies, and in the midst of a busy life takes a keen interest in the schooling of children, and is a member of the Education Authority for his district.”

Wm Reid of Reid & Leys, Aberdeen, was an “old landmark amongst the agricultural traders in the North-East, and has for a very long period of years, in his conveniently situated premises in madden Street, carried on a trade in agricultural seeds as well as machines. He has a wide knowledge and experience, and has the reputation of being one of the most trustworthy men in the agricultural providing trade.

The well-known firm of Barclay, Ross (later Barclay, Ross & Hutchinson), was represented by Robert R. Ross, the “well-known joint secretary of the Royal Northern Agricultural Society, the affairs of which he conducts along with the assistance of his energetic and obliging partner, Tom Hutchison.” The business was founded by Mr Barclay, brother of the famous MP who took a great part in agricultural legislation in “bygone years”.

Eric Shearer was of the firm Shearer Bros, Turriff. The NBA noted that “Mr Shearer has laid himself out to manufacture thrashing machines, and has a well-equipped establishment of modern labour-saving machinery. He has specialised in a small-sized thrashing machine, on the merits of which he has built up a large and steady-going business in many countries throughout the world.

William Watson was of Watson Bros., Banff Foundry. The NBA noted that “Banff Foundry has long been known to agriculturists not only in this district but throughout the whole country. It was in it that the first practical potato planter was made, when the business was in the lands of the late W. G. Murray. Since the steam drifter came into vogue, the Messrs Watson have done a large business in engineering these and during the war years the firm was exclusively engaged on repair work for the Government, although the implement business was still carried on. Mr Watson is one of the brothers in the business, and under their management the traditions of their predecessors is fully maintained.

Charles F. Watson was another well-known implement and machine maker. His company Chas. F. Wilson & Co., were located on the Links in Aberdeen. According to the NBA “Mr Wilson has for long been engaged in the oil-engine business, and has a good trade, especially with India and the Colonies.”

Around the rallies in north-east and indeed throughout Scotland, you can still see manufactures from these eminent traders. They represent some of the best Scottish agricultural implements and machines made and sold in Scotland.

The photographs were taken at the New Deer Show, July 2014.

One of the largest implement and machine makers in south-west Scotland was James Gordon. On his death in 1923,the North British Agriculturist included an extensive obituary. It provides a number of insights into the nam, his business and the implement trade:

“We noted last week the death of Mr James Gordon, in his time one of the most widely known men in the agricultural implement trade, which occurred at his residence, St Mary’s Drive, Kirkcudbright. Mr Gordon was born at Culraven, Borgue, near Kirkcudbright, on March 2, 1849, and it is of interest to note that his family have been connected with that farm for the long period of 400 years. In 1865 Mr Gordon went to Bradford, Yorkshire, to serve his apprenticeship with the then well-known firm of McKean, Tetley & Co., wholesale merchants and manufacturers. He had only been about three and a half years in the warehouse, when the management, recognising his ability, put him to the “road” as their representative, and he continued to act as their traveller, and that very successfully for the next four years. Those were exciting days, with great political unrest, and Fenianism was abroad in the land. It was during the years 1869-70 that Mr Gordon, then a strapping young Gallovidian, was sworn in as a special constable, and he retained until his death hhis baton as a memento of those stirring days.
In 1870, when the Highland and Agricultural Show was being held at Dumfries, Mr Gordon came to assist his brother John with his stand on that occasion, and this was his first introduction to the implement trade-a trade which soon came to claim such a large portion of his lifework and brought him into contact with agriculturists all over the country.
In 1872 his father passed away at Culraven, and he have up his situation at Bradford, coming to Castle Douglas to take over his brother John’s business, which had been established seven years before, and where a considerable business had been done in the seed and manure trade, as well as in agricultural implements. Mr John Gordon then went to take charge of the farm of Culraven, At that period agricultural implements were beginning to come into their own, and the business grew rapidly. In 1874 Mr Gordon introduced Wood’s side-delivery self delivery, which soon became very popular anode which a large number were sold in the next few years. Two years later he was the means of introducing another well-known machine, Harrison, Macgregor, & Co’s back-delivery self-delivery. It may be of interest to agriculturists to note that in those days, now so far away, the price of wool was 2s 6d per lb, grain 4s 6d a bushel, and hay about 1s 6d a stone. these were good prices, and thus farmers were enabled to go in for implements to a large extent. At the Royal Society’s show at Carlisle in 1881 Mr Gordon showed his champion turnip drill for the first time. It received the special attention of the judges and soon proved one of the most popular. A year later he showed the first binder in Galloway, the Walter A. Wood’s binder, which was tried on the farm of Marshfield, in the neighbourhood of Castle Douglas, then tenanted by his relative, Mr Payne, and also on the farm of Greenlaw, in the same district. It did good work, but at that time wire was used for binding the sheaves, and farmers had a strong prejudice against it. In addition, it was a pretty heavy draught.
Four years later Woods brought out a much improved binder, using twine in place of the wire, and this immediately came into its own. At the trials carried out by the Highland and Agricultural Society at Terregles, near Dumfries, Mr Gordon entered the Woods binder, and there was a great fight between the woods binder and a binder made by Hornsby, of Grantham, for the £100 prize offered by the Society. the judges were divided in their opinion as to the better machine, and eventually the prize was divided between the two competing firms. Mr Gordon’s next venture was the introduction, in 1900, of the Patent New Century Coulter on his drill. This was a big improvement on anything which had preceded it, and immediately brought his drill into the front rank, with the result that when he retired he had sold no fewer than 3500 of them. He also invented and registered the Galloway Turnip Cutter, with hinged hopper, and this too caught the popular fancy, he being sole agent over a wide extent of territory stretching from Penrith in Cumberland to Stranraer in Wigtownshire. He also patented an oil cake mill, with hinged hopper, on the same lines as the galloway cutter. Besides being agent for most of the leading manufacturers, Mr Gordon had a considerable workshop in Castle Douglas, where he manufactured, besides turnip drills and cutters, large numbers of cattle troughs, meat coolers, corn bins, ploughs and harrows, wheel barrows, &c, besides a large connection in repairing farm implements and machinery. As showing how he was respected as an employer, it may be mentioned that when the war broke out in 1914, one of his men had been 40 years with him, two about 35 years, one 24 1/2 years, one 17 1/2 years, and still another 5 years. Mr Gordon travelled through Wigtownshire twice a year, so that, with his four years in Bradford, he had travelled for over 54 years altogether, from 1868 to 1922.
When Mr Gordon came to Castle Douglas the last post left that flourishing market town at 6,40pm. He soon ascertained that the Newton Stewart people, who were 30 miles farther from London, could post up till two hours later. He took the matter up with the Postmaster-General, with the result, gratifying to the community as well as to himself, that a mail was granted up till 9.40pm, thereby adding very much to the convenience of the business community. In the course of the years he became well known among the agricultural community from Thurso to Cornwall, his turnip still being sent all over Great Britain by agents, and even to Nova Scotia, while the Canadian Government bought one 30 years ago.
While deeply engrossed in business, Mr Gordon found time tons serve the public in various useful capacities. he had been an elder in Kelton Parish Church and also Castle Douglas Parish Church for many years. In a more public capacity he was for long a member of Castle Douglas Town Council and also of the local School Board, and in both spheres did excellent work, always endeavouring to make for economy and efficiency. He was also vice-chairman of the Castle Douglas Citizen’s Union, and collected two-thirds of the funds to set it afoot. He also took a leading part in the formation of a branch of the Middle Class Union.He had been a life member of the Highland and Agricultural Society for 44 years.
Mr Gordon had a very worthy helpmate in his wife, who ably assisted her husband in his business career,a nd during the war years did an extraordinary amount of work on behalf of war charities, taking a prominent part in organising efforts on behalf of serving soldiers and their dependents.

Have you seen any implements and machines made by James Gordon?

Around our rally fields during the summer months we get to see some rather special displays. They might be of rare tractors or implements or machines or of particular exhibits brought together. On Sunday at the Fife Vintage Agricultural machinery rally we had a number of these, including the first Case tractor to arrive into British shores.

For me the most outstanding one was the two ploughing engines, Master and Mistress around the rally ring. Regular readers of this site will maybe have spotted that I have an enthusiasm for ploughing engines. But this was a really special display: you may recollect having seen the engines at the Scottish Ploughing Championships in 2014, the first time that they worked together since the two engines were reunited in the spring 2012. But this was the first time, I believe, that they were together around the rally ring. And didn’t they look spectacular.

The Ayrshire Elevator Co. Ltd, of Ayrshire Elevator Works, Knockentiber, Kilmarnock, was incorporated on 19 January 1959 and continued in business until it was dissolved on 29 October 1982; it ceased trading from 1974 onwards. Its proprietor was the Hurlford Engineering Co. Ltd, with Gerald Harris, an agricultural implement maker, being a Director.

It was a small implement and machine maker, with a share capital that did not exceed £5000. Its objects included carrying on the business of merchants, wholesale and retail, dealers in and manufacturers of mechanical and other implements, tractors, vehicles, and equipment and articles of all kinds designed for or adopted for use in agriculture and farming in all their branches; the carrying on the business of manufacturers, importers, exporters, and merchants, both wholesale and retail, of and in manures, fertilisers, sheep-dip, feeding stuffs, fattening preparations of all kinds, hay, straw, grain, feed and flour, and in agricultural and horticultural produce of all kinds.

The business was a forward-looking one, with Gerry Harris, inventing a number of implements and machines that were entered for the new implement award of the Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland in 1960. These were an automatic bale pick-up attachment fitted to Ayrshire elevator; a sugar beet cleaner, fitted to Ayrshire elevator, and attachments for bulk storing potatoes, fitted to Ayrshire elevator. It exhibited at most of the Highland Shows in the 1960s and sporadically advertised in the Farming News and the Scottish Farmer.

If you visited the company’s stand at the Highland Show in 1960 you would have seen a wide range of its implements. They included a standard elevator; a standard elevator arranged for bulk storing potatoes, complete with fixed extension and oversize wheel equipment designed to deliver potatoes at heights up to 9 feet; a standard elevator complete with automatic swinging extension designed to bulk store potatoes at heights of 8 ft 6 in and distribute them evenly through an arc of 6 ft; a dairy elevator with automatic pick-up coupled to Fordson “Dexta” tractor; a dairy elevator, fitted with lightweight bale extension for delivering bales to 21 feet; a dairy elevator with oversize wheel equipment; a standard elevator equipped with sugar beet cleaner and throw-off chute; a standard elevator equipped with automatic swinging extension; and a standard elevator, fitted with an automatic pick-up unit for round or square bales.

The Ayrshire name was closely linked with modern bulk handling – the way to modern, mechanised farming.

If you were a farmer in Perthshire or the surrounding counties from the 1930s to the early 1950s and you wanted to purchase a Caterpillar tractor you might have thought about purchasing one from L. O. Tractors Ltd of Perth. L. O. Tractors of St Catherine’s Road, Perth, were already operating as an agricultural tractor distributor in 1938; they continued in business until at least the end of 1950. Local directories also record them in 1939 as an engineer, iron founder and millwright, as well as an agricultural tractor distributor. Their agencies included Caterpillar and John Deere.

In 1948 they exhibited at the Royal Highland Show a range of Caterpillar track type tractors, as well as equipment for them made by The Birtley Co. Ltd, Birtley, Co. Durham, tractors and agricultural machinery manufactured by Deere & Co., Moline, Illinois. They also sold the “Angus” single and double row potato diggers, also sold by Jack Olding & Co., Herts.

If you are looking through old issues of the North British Agriculturist and the Scottish Farmer, you might notice the distinct adverts of L. O. Tractors. The company was also one of the small number of advertisers in the Transactions of the Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland  (http://archive.rhass.org.uk/…/transactions-of-rhass-…/610883)

Powerful adverts to advertise powerful tractors!

The photographs were taken at the Fife Vintage Agricultural Machinery Rally, June 2016.

It isn’t often that there are demonstrations of steam ploughing in Scotland. As a working practice, it continued on farms until the early 1950s. The last working sets appear to have been in East Lothian.

The steam ploughing at B. A. Stores uses the double engine system, with an engine at either end of the field. It became synonymous with John Fowler & Co. (Leeds), Ltd, the most famous ploughing maker of all, though not the only one. The plough is pulled between the engines, going backwards and forwards. One set of ploughs work one way; the plough is tipped up, and the other set work back the other way.

If you are ever around the rallies where the Scottish County Tractor Club exhibits, you will always know that they put on a superb display, whether it is in the selection of tractors, or the performances around the rally ring. The Club’s display at the B. A. Vintage Country Fair at the weekend was no exception. The Club is celebrating its 15th birthday. So in County Club style, it put on something rather special with the tractors on display (around 30 of them – that is a lot of horses together!).

The growing of crops in drills started in Scotland in the eighteenth century. The first crops to be grown were turnips follow much later with potatoes (they were first grown in the field in the early 1740s).

Ridging ploughs were a key implement in opening furrows for potatoes. After planting the soil was turned back over the potatoes with a ridger, plough or hand hoes. The splitting back of the ridges with a tractor-drawn rider required a lot of concentration – well, if you were not paying attention you had to look at your “mess” for a number of weeks until the growing plants hid your job.