Benjamin Hick and Sons
Encyclopedia
B. Hick and Sons, later known as Hick, Hargreaves & Co, was a British engineering company, based at the Soho Ironworks in Bolton
, England
.
Benjamin Hick
had originally been a partner in Rothwell, Hick and Rothwell
and set up his company in partnership with this sons, John and Benjamin in 1832. Benjamin however very soon left the firm.
The first locomotive was built in 1833, followed by several more over the remainder of the decade, including an unconventional gear driven steam rail carriage. A number were built for export to America.
Between 1837 and 1840 the company became a subcontractor for Edward Bury and Company, supplying engines to the Midland Counties Railway
, the London and Birmingham Railway
, the North Union Railway
and the Manchester and Leeds Railway
. Engines were also built for the Liverpool and Manchester Railway
and the Paris
and Versailles
Railway.
In 1841 the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway
had found some American Norris
4-2-0
locomotives very successful, especially on the notorious Lickey Incline
, and Hick built three similar ones for the line.
Between 1844 and 1846 the firm built a number of "long boiler" locomotives
with haystack fireboxes, plus four 2-4-0
s in 1848 for the North Staffordshire Railway
.
At the end of the nineteenth century they began the manufacture of steam engines for electricity generating power stations, and from 1911 began the manufacture of diesel engines. In World War I the firm did much war work, and began making high vacuum condensing plant, used in power generation. This was greatly expanded in later years as centralised power generation was adopted in Great Britain.
In 1933 they acquired the records, drawings and patterns of three defunct steam engine manufacturers and did a lucrative business in making repairs and supplying spare parts. Large stationary steam engines were still used by many textile manufacturers in the Bolton area until the collapse of the industry after World War II.
After World War II the firm expanded its work in electricity generation, and branched out into food processing, oil refining, petrochemicals and offshore oil equipment production. In 1968 the firm was sold to Electrical & Industrial Securities Ltd.. By 2002 the firm was part of the BOC group, and the historic records were deposited with Bolton library.
Later The BOC Group plc was taken over by Linde A.G. of Germany who intended to return the combined group to a 'pure gas' business and so sold off the "BOC Edwards" engineering division into which Hick Hargreaves of Bolton had been placed where it had been combined with the Edwards High Vacuum business of BOC Edwards based at Crawley, West Sussex. The business of the vacuum company was sold to private shareholders CCMP Capital
and on 1 June 2007 was re-established as an independent UK private limited company "Edwards Limited".
The old Bolton site was sold and became the site of a Sainsburys supermarket in centre of Bolton.
The Bolton site of Edwards Limited is now a design shop with outsourced UK and foreign manufacture and has moved to new office premises in Lostock, where it continues to sell some steam ejector, feed heater and de-aeration technology of the old Hick Hargreaves business as a Process Vacuum part of Edwards Limited.
Bolton
Bolton is a town in Greater Manchester, in the North West of England. Close to the West Pennine Moors, it is north west of the city of Manchester. Bolton is surrounded by several smaller towns and villages which together form the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, of which Bolton is the...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
Benjamin Hick
Benjamin Hick
Benjamin Hick was a mechanical engineer. He was born at Leeds in 1790 and trained at Fenton, Murray and Wood, the well known makers of steam engines, textile machines and other machinery. In 1810 Hick moved to Bolton as manager of Rothwell's Union Foundry...
had originally been a partner in Rothwell, Hick and Rothwell
Rothwell, Hick and Rothwell
Rothwell, Hick and Rothwell was an engineering company in Bolton, England.Set up in 1830, the partners became interested in the production of steam locomotives after the Rainhill Trials...
and set up his company in partnership with this sons, John and Benjamin in 1832. Benjamin however very soon left the firm.
The first locomotive was built in 1833, followed by several more over the remainder of the decade, including an unconventional gear driven steam rail carriage. A number were built for export to America.
Between 1837 and 1840 the company became a subcontractor for Edward Bury and Company, supplying engines to the Midland Counties Railway
Midland Counties Railway
The Midland Counties Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom which existed between 1832 and 1844, connecting Nottingham, Leicester and Derby with Rugby and thence, via the London and Birmingham Railway, to London. The MCR system connected with the North Midland Railway and the...
, the London and Birmingham Railway
London and Birmingham Railway
The London and Birmingham Railway was an early railway company in the United Kingdom from 1833 to 1846, when it became part of the London and North Western Railway ....
, the North Union Railway
North Union Railway
The North Union Railway was an early British railway company, formed in 1834.-Origins:The North Union Railway resulted from the first railway amalgamation in British history. The two companies were the Wigan Branch Railway and the Wigan and Preston Junction Railway...
and the Manchester and Leeds Railway
Manchester and Leeds Railway
The Manchester and Leeds Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom which opened in 1839, connecting Manchester with Leeds via the North Midland Railway which it joined at Normanton....
. Engines were also built for the Liverpool and Manchester Railway
Liverpool and Manchester Railway
The Liverpool and Manchester Railway was the world's first inter-city passenger railway in which all the trains were timetabled and were hauled for most of the distance solely by steam locomotives. The line opened on 15 September 1830 and ran between the cities of Liverpool and Manchester in North...
and the Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and Versailles
Versailles
Versailles , a city renowned for its château, the Palace of Versailles, was the de facto capital of the kingdom of France for over a century, from 1682 to 1789. It is now a wealthy suburb of Paris and remains an important administrative and judicial centre...
Railway.
In 1841 the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway
Birmingham and Gloucester Railway
The Birmingham and Gloucester Railway is a railway route linking Birmingham to Gloucester in England.It is one of the world's oldest main line railways and includes the famous Lickey Incline, a dead-straight stretch of track running up the 1-in-37 gradient of the Lickey Ridge...
had found some American Norris
Norris Locomotive Works
The Norris Locomotive Works was a steam locomotive manufacturing company based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that produced about a thousand railroad engines between 1832 and 1866. It was the dominant American locomotive producer during most of that period, and even sold its popular 4-2-0 engines...
4-2-0
4-2-0
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 4-2-0 represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles, two powered and coupled driving wheels on one axle, and no trailing wheels...
locomotives very successful, especially on the notorious Lickey Incline
Lickey Incline
The Lickey Incline is the steepest sustained main-line railway incline in Great Britain and is situated south of Birmingham, in England. The climb is a gradient of 1-in-37.7 for a continuous distance of two miles ....
, and Hick built three similar ones for the line.
Between 1844 and 1846 the firm built a number of "long boiler" locomotives
Long Boiler locomotive
The Long Boiler locomotive was the object of a patent by Robert Stephenson and the name became synonymous with the pattern.-History:It is generally perceived that it arose out of attempts to match the power of broad gauge locomotives within the limitations of the loading gauge of Stephenson railways...
with haystack fireboxes, plus four 2-4-0
2-4-0
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 2-4-0 represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels on one axle, four powered and coupled driving wheels on two axles, and no trailing wheels....
s in 1848 for the North Staffordshire Railway
North Staffordshire Railway
The North Staffordshire Railway was a British railway company formed in 1845 to promote a number of lines in the Staffordshire Potteries and surrounding areas in Staffordshire, Cheshire, Derbyshire and Shropshire....
.
Hick, Hargreaves & Co
After the death of Benjamin the elder in 1842, the firm continued under the management of his son, John (1815-1894). In 1845 he took into partnership William Hargreaves. Locomotive building continued until 1855, and in all some ninety to a hundred locomotives were produced; but they were a sideline for the company, which concentrated on marine and stationary engines, of which they made a large number. John Hick retired in 1868. William Hargreaves died in 1889 and, under a new directorship, the firm, which had been known as Hick, Hargreaves and Company for some time, acquired limited liability in 1889.At the end of the nineteenth century they began the manufacture of steam engines for electricity generating power stations, and from 1911 began the manufacture of diesel engines. In World War I the firm did much war work, and began making high vacuum condensing plant, used in power generation. This was greatly expanded in later years as centralised power generation was adopted in Great Britain.
In 1933 they acquired the records, drawings and patterns of three defunct steam engine manufacturers and did a lucrative business in making repairs and supplying spare parts. Large stationary steam engines were still used by many textile manufacturers in the Bolton area until the collapse of the industry after World War II.
After World War II the firm expanded its work in electricity generation, and branched out into food processing, oil refining, petrochemicals and offshore oil equipment production. In 1968 the firm was sold to Electrical & Industrial Securities Ltd.. By 2002 the firm was part of the BOC group, and the historic records were deposited with Bolton library.
Later The BOC Group plc was taken over by Linde A.G. of Germany who intended to return the combined group to a 'pure gas' business and so sold off the "BOC Edwards" engineering division into which Hick Hargreaves of Bolton had been placed where it had been combined with the Edwards High Vacuum business of BOC Edwards based at Crawley, West Sussex. The business of the vacuum company was sold to private shareholders CCMP Capital
CCMP Capital
CCMP Capital is a private equity investment firm that focuses on leveraged buyout and growth capital transactions. Formerly known as JP Morgan Partners, the investment professionals of JP Morgan Partners separated from JPMorgan Chase on July 31, 2006. CCMP has invested approximately $12 billion...
and on 1 June 2007 was re-established as an independent UK private limited company "Edwards Limited".
The old Bolton site was sold and became the site of a Sainsburys supermarket in centre of Bolton.
The Bolton site of Edwards Limited is now a design shop with outsourced UK and foreign manufacture and has moved to new office premises in Lostock, where it continues to sell some steam ejector, feed heater and de-aeration technology of the old Hick Hargreaves business as a Process Vacuum part of Edwards Limited.