Daniel Adamson and Co
Daniel Adamson and Co of Newton Moor Iron Works, Hyde nr Manchester, specialising in engine and boiler making.
1842 Company founded.
In 1851 (1842?), Daniel Adamson established an iron works.
Initially, he followed designs created by Timothy Hackworth, but he improved the design and manufacturing process (pioneering the use of steel and taking out 19 patents in the process) over the next 36 years, exporting Manchester Boilers worldwide.
1866-1890 They built locomotives for Platt Bros and Co of Oldham and Oakeley Slate Quarries in North Wales.
1878 Adamson introduced a gas producer for use in conjunction with boiler furnaces; also machinery for testing the tensile strength of metals; at the works testing machines from 30 to 2,000 tons power were installed, for testing the breaking strength of bridge iron
1881 Introduced appliances for the consolidation and working of metals
1886 At the Edinburgh International Exhibition in 1886 Adamson's horizontal engine, which had been used for driving the electric-lighting machinery, was awarded the gold medal.
1887 Made improvements in the flues and shells of boilers, and in the machinery employed for making them; a labour-saving arrangement was developed by which as many as twelve tools could be worked simultaneously on a 60-ton bed.
1890 He employed some 600 people.
1903 Engine for St David's Tinplate Works.
1914 Private company.
1951 Company made public.
1961 Manufacturers of heavy fabrications and vessels; steam raising plant and boilers of all types; steam turbines and alternators; dished and flanged ends. 900 employees. [1]
1964 Daniel Adamson and Co remained a family business until it was sold to Acrow (Engineers).
Extract from Steam Locomotion on Common Roads by William Fletcher. Published 1891.
Daniel Adamson and Co., of Dukinfield, near Manchester, early in 1858 constructed a common road locomotive for Mr. Schmidt, which worked very satisfactorily.
The boiler was of the ordinary locomotive multitubular type, 2.5ft in diameter, and 5.5ft. long, and intended for a working pressure of 150 lb. per square inch. The engine weighed 56 cwt., and was supported on three wheels. The tank underneath contained 70 gallons of feed water, and the engine was designed for running at eight miles an hour. A steam cylinder, of 6in. diameter, was attached to each side of the locomotive. These cylinders actuated a pair of driving wheels, 3ft. 6in. in diameter. Underneath the front of the carriage a single wheel was employed for steering.
Many trials were conducted by Mr. Schmidt in various parts of the country. The following race is recorded in the technical papers for August 30th, 1867. On Monday morning in accordance with previous arrangement, two road steam carriages — one made by Mr. I. W. Boulton, of Ashton-under-Lyne; the other made by Messrs. Daniel Adamson and Co., of Dukinfield — started from Ashton-under-Lyne, at 4.30 a.m., for the show ground at Old Trafford, a distance of over eight miles. The larger engine, made by Messrs. Adamson, was a very well- constructed engine, but the smaller one passed it during the first mile, and kept a good lead of it all the way, arriving at Old Trafford under the hour, having to run slowly through Manchester. The running of both engines was considered very good. On arrival at Old Trafford they tested their turning qualities.
Mr. Schmidt sent this road locomotive to the Havre Exhibition, in 1868, and in accordance with his request a trial of its powers was made by French engineers, and M. Nicole, director of the exhibition. Mr. Schmidt conducted the engine himself, and to it was attached an omnibus containing the commissioners. The engine and carriage traversed several streets of Havre, and mounted a sharp incline. A very satisfactory report was drawn up by M. Ed. Croppi, and sent to several of the journals. Other trips were made to several villages in the neighbourhood of the exhibition, all of which were of a very creditable character.
See Also
Sources of Information
- [1] Wikipedia
- British Steam Locomotive Builders by James W. Lowe. Published in 1975. ISBN 0-905100-816
- The Steam Engine in Industry by George Watkins in two volumes. Moorland Publishing. 1978/9. ISBN 0-903485-65-6