Armstrong Whitworth

Sir W G Armstrong Whitworth & Co Ltd
Private
Industry Engineering, Shipbuilding
Aircraft
Fate Demergers
Take over
Predecessor W.G. Armstrong & Mitchell Company
Successor Vickers-Armstrongs
Founded 1847 (W.G. Armstrong Co.)
Defunct 1927
Headquarters Newcastle upon Tyne, England
Key people
 William George Armstrong Founder
Products Aircraft
Armaments
Locomotives
Ships
Subsidiaries Vickers Armstrong
Armstrong Siddeley
(Demerged)

Sir W G Armstrong Whitworth & Co Ltd was a major British manufacturing company of the early years of the 20th century. With headquarters in Elswick, Newcastle upon Tyne, Armstrong Whitworth engaged in the construction of armaments, ships, locomotives, automobiles, and aircraft.

History

In 1847, engineer William George Armstrong founded the Elswick works at Newcastle, to produce hydraulic machinery, cranes and bridges, soon to be followed by artillery, notably the Armstrong breech-loading gun, which re-equipped the British Army after the Crimean War. In 1882, it merged with the shipbuilding firm of Charles Mitchell to form Armstrong Mitchell & Company and at the time its works extended for over a mile (about 2 km) along the bank of the River Tyne.[1] Armstrong Mitchell merged again with the engineering firm of Joseph Whitworth in 1897.[2] The company expanded into the manufacture of cars and trucks in 1902, and created an "aerial department" in 1913, which became the Armstrong Whitworth Aircraft subsidiary in 1920.

In 1927, it merged with Vickers Limited to form Vickers-Armstrongs.

Automobiles

and

Main article: Armstrong Siddeley

The Armstrong-Whitworth was manufactured from 1904 (when the company took over construction of the Wilson-Pilcher designed by Walter Gordon Wilson) until 1919 (when the company merged with Siddeley-Deasy and began construction of the Armstrong Siddeley) in Coventry.

The Wilson-Pilcher was an advanced car, originally with a 2.4-litre engine, that had been made in London from 1901 until 1904 when production moved to Newcastle. When Armstrong-Whitworth took over production two models were made, a 2.7-litre flat four and a 4.1-litre flat six, the cylinders on both being identical with bore and stroke of 3.75in (95mm). The engines had the flywheel at the front of the engine, and the crankshaft had intermediate bearings between each pair of cylinders. Drive was to the rear wheels via a preselector gearbox and helical bevel axle. The cars were listed at £735 for the four and £900 for the six. They were still theoretically available until 1907. According to Automotor in 1904[3] "Even the first Wilson-Pilcher car that made its appearance created quite a sensation in automobile circles at the time on account of its remarkably silent and smooth running, and of the almost total absence of vibration".

The first Armstrong-Whitworth car was the 28/36 of 1906 with a water-cooled, four-cylinder side-valve engine of 4.5 litres which unusually had "oversquare" dimensions of 120 mm (4.7 in) bore and 100 mm (3.9 in) stroke. Drive was via a four-speed gearbox and shaft to the rear wheels. A larger car was listed for 1908 with a choice of either 5-litre 30 or 7.6-litre 40 models sharing a 127 mm (5.0 in) bore but with strokes of 100 mm (3.9 in) and 152 mm (6.0 in) respectively. The 40 was listed at £798 in bare chassis form for supplying to coachbuilders. These large cars were joined in 1909 by the 4.3-litre 18/22 and in 1910 by the 3.7-litre 25, which seems to have shared the same chassis as the 30 and 40.

In 1911, a new small car appeared in the shape of the 2.4-litre 12/14, called the 15.9 in 1911, featuring a monobloc engine with pressure lubrication to the crankshaft bearings. This model had an 88-inch (2,200 mm) wheelbase compared with the 120 inches (3,000 mm) of the 40 range. This was joined by four larger cars ranging from the 2.7-litre 15/20 to the 3.7-litre 25.5.

The first six-cylinder model, the 30/50 with 5.1-litre 90 mm (3.5 in) bore by 135 mm (5.3 in) stroke engine came in 1912 with the option of electric lighting. This grew to 5.7 litres in 1913.

At the outbreak of war, as well as the 30/50, the range consisted of the 3-litre 17/25 and the 3.8-litre 30/40.

The cars were usually if not always bodied by external coach builders and had a reputation for reliability and solid workmanship. The company maintained a London sales outlet at New Bond Street. When Armstrong Whitworth and Vickers merged, Armstrong Whitworth's automotive interests were purchased by J. D. Siddeley as Armstrong Siddeley.

An Armstrong Whitworth car is displayed in the Discovery Museum, Newcastle upon Tyne. In the bibliography heading links are given to the museum's information sheet as available through Wiki Commons.

Aircraft

Armstrong Whitworth established an Aerial Department in 1912. This later became the Sir W. G. Armstrong Whitworth Aircraft Company. When Vickers and Armstrong Whitworth merged in 1927 to form Vickers-Armstrongs, Armstrong Whitworth Aircraft was bought out by J. D. Siddeley and became a separate entity.

Armaments

The Elswick Ordnance Company (sometimes referred to as Elswick Ordnance Works, but usually as "EOC") was originally created in 1859 to separate William Armstrong's armaments business from his other business interests, to avoid a conflict of interest as Armstrong was then Engineer of Rifled Ordnance for the War Office and the company's main customer was the British Government. Armstrong held no financial interest in the company until 1864 when he left Government service, and Elswick Ordnance was re-united with the main Armstrong businesses to form Sir W.G. Armstrong & Company. EOC was then the armaments branch of W.G. Armstrong & Company and later of Armstrong Whitworth.

Elswick Ordnance was a major arms developer before and during World War I. The ordnance and ammunition it manufactured for the British Government were stamped EOC, while guns made for export were usually marked "W.G. Armstrong".

Locomotives

Metropolitan Railway K Class 2-6-4T locomotive
Works plate on Armstrong Whitworth-built LMS Stanier Class 5 4-6-0 45305 showing completion in 1936

After the Great War, Armstrong Whitworth converted its Scotswood Works to build railway locomotives. From 1919 it rapidly penetrated the locomotive market due to its modern plant.[4] Its two largest contacts were 200 2-8-0’s for the Belgian State Railways in 1920 and 327 Black 5 4-6-0’s for the LMS in 1935/36.

AW also modified locomotives. In 1926 Palestine Railways sent six of its H class Baldwin 4-6-0 locomotives to AW for conversion into 4-6-2 tank locomotives to work the PR's steeply graded branch between Jaffa and Jerusalem.[5] PR also sent another six H Class Baldwins for their defective steel fireboxes to be replaced with copper ones.[5]

AW's well equipped works included its own design department and enabled it to build large locomotives, including an order for 30 engines of three types for the modernisation of the South Australian Railways in 1926. These included ten "500" class 4-8-2 locomotives, which were the largest non-articulated locomotives built in Great Britain, and were based on Alco drawings modified by AW and SAR engineers. They were a sensation in Australia.[6] AW went on to build 20 large three-cylinder "Pacific" type locomotives for the Central Argentine Railway (F.C.C.A) in 1930, with Caprotti valve gear and modern boilers. They were the most powerful locomotives on the F.C.C.A.[7]

AW also obtained the UK license for Sulzer diesels from 1919, and by the 1930s was building diesel locomotives and railcars.[8] An early example is the Tanfield Railway's 0-4-0 diesel-electric shed pilot, No.2, which was built by AW as works number D22 in 1933. A total of 1,464 locomotives were built at Scotswood Works before it was converted back to armaments manufacture in 1937.[4]

Overseas operations

The company can also be credited with helping to create the town of Deer Lake in the Dominion of Newfoundland. Between 1922 and 1925, a hydroelectric station was built at Deer Lake by the Newfoundland Products Company and Sir W. G. Armstrong Whitworth and Company. The canal system used by the hydroelectric station helped to expand the forestry operations in the area. Some of the equipment used in the construction of the Panama Canal was shipped to Newfoundland island. Electricity from the project was used to power the pulp and paper mill in Corner Brook. Since the 1920s, Deer Lake has grown into a major area for the lumber industry, as well becoming a service-oriented centre.

The company also built a hydroelectric station at Nymboida, New South Wales, near Grafton in 1923–1924. This is still in use and is substantially original. In 1925 the company tendered unsuccessfully to construct the South Brisbane-Richmond Gap (on the New-South Wales-Queensland border) section of the last stage of the standard gauge railway linking Sydney and Brisbane. This was a heavily engineered railway which includes a long tunnel under the Richmond Range forming the state border and a spiral just south of the border. Armstrong Whitworth's tender price was £1,333,940 compared with Queensland Railway's tender price of £1,130,142.[9] In the mid-1920s the company clearly was trying to break into the booming Australian market, but was stymied by a preference for local companies.

Advertisement in the 1923 Brassey's Naval Annual showing HMS Malaya

Shipbuilding

Shipbuilding was a major division of the company. Between 1885 and 1918 Armstrong built warships for the Royal Navy, Imperial Russian Navy, Imperial Japanese Navy, and the United States Navy. Amongst these were HMS Glatton which, due to bodged construction, suffered a magazine explosion in Dover Harbour less than one month after commissioning.

Armstrong's also built civilian ships, among them the ice-breaking train ferries SS Baikal in 1897 and SS Angara in 1900 to connect the Trans-Siberian Railway across Lake Baikal.[10][11] Notably, the company built the first polar icebreaker in the world: Yermak was a Russian and later Soviet icebreaker, having a strengthened hull shaped to ride over and crush pack ice.

Mergers and demergers

In 1927, the defence and engineering businesses merged with those of Vickers Limited to create a subsidiary company known as Vickers-Armstrongs. The aircraft and Armstrong Siddeley motors business were bought out by J. D. Siddeley and became a separate entity. Production at the Scotswood Works ended in 1979 and the buildings were demolished in 1982.[12]

Products

Hydraulic engineering installations

The forerunner company, Sir WG Armstrong Mitchell & Company, was heavily involved in the construction of hydraulic engineering installations. Notable examples include:

Ships

Between 1885 and 1925 they built a number of warships:

They built oil tankers, including:

Locomotives

Armstrong Whitworth built a few railway locomotives between 1847 and 1868, but it was not until 1919 that the company made a concerted effort to enter the railway market.[14]

Many of the locomotives are shown in this catalogue in the collection of the North of England Institute of Mining and Mechanical Engineers

Contracts were obtained for the construction and supply of steam and diesel locomotives to railway systems in Britain and overseas, including those detailed in the following table.

Serial
numbers 		Year Quantity Customer Class Wheel
arrangement 		Road
numbers 		Notes
1–50 1919–1921 50 North Eastern Railway T2 0-8-0 2253–2302 to LNER (same numbers) in 1923, class Q6; renumbered 3410–3459 in 1946 scheme.[15]
69–93 1921 25 Bombay, Baroda and Central India Railway G
(BESA HGS) 		2-8-0 122–146 later all-India 26528–26552.[16]
94–110 1920 17 Madras and Southern Mahratta Railway M
(BESA HGS) 		2-8-0 483–499 later all-India 26610–26626.[17]
111–120 1921 10 Caledonian Railway 72 4-4-0 82–91 to LMS 14487–14496 in 1923
137–159 1922 23 North Western Railway SGS 0-6-0 2484–2506 [18] all except one to Pakistan at Partition;[19] 2500 to Eastern Punjab Railway; later all-India 36889.[20]
161–170 1922 10 Buenos Aires Western Railway 4F 2-6-2T 824–833 [21]
175–179 1922–23 5 Midland Great Western Railway Fa 0-6-0 44–48 to GSR 641–645 in 1925.[22]
185–190 1923 6 Great Southern and Western Railway 400 4-6-0 407–409
403–405 		to GSR (same numbers) in 1925.[23]
17.05.1921
to
12.01.1923 		200 État Belge Type 37 2-8-0 5001–5200
391–415 1922 25 North Eastern Railway E1 0-6-0T 2313–2339 to LNER (same numbers) in 1923, class J72; renumbered 8721–8745 in 1946 scheme.[24]
416–465 1921–22 50 Midland Railway 3835 / 4F 0-6-0 3937–3986 to LMS (same numbers) in 1923
466–467 Cancelled (2) Northern Counties Committee (U) 4-4-0 — Order cancelled; locomotives built at Derby Works instead.[25]
468–472 1922 5 Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway 3835 / 4F 0-6-0 57–61 to LMS 4557–4561 in 1930
479–487 1923 9 North Western Railway SGS 0-6-0 2536–2544 ;[18] to Eastern Bengal Railway 312–318/66/20 in 1929/39;[26] four survivors became all-India 34265–67/73.[27]
488–499 1923 12 North Western Railway SPS 4-4-0 2989–2996, 3006–3009 three to Pakistan at Partition;[28] remainder to Eastern Punjab Railway, later all-India 24481–28889.[29]
500–515 1923 16 Bombay, Baroda and Central India Railway A
(BESA PTS)		 2-6-4T 265–280 [30] to North Western Railway 517–532 (not in order) in 1929;[31] most to Pakistan at Partition;[28] seven to Eastern Punjab Railway, later all-India 27106–27112.[32]
516–535 1923 20 Oudh and Rohilkhand Railway SGS 0-6-0 505–524 [33] to East Indian Railway 1448–1457 in 1925; [34] split between Eastern and Northern Railways, later all-India in range 34236–34243,[27] 36804–36818.[35]
536–552 1923 17 East Indian Railway SGS 0-6-0 1390–1406 [36] split between Eastern and Northern Railways, later all-India in range 34163–34164,[37] 34218–34224,[27] 36792–36811.[35]
565–566 1924 2 Ferrocarril Pacífico de Colombia 4-6-0+0-6-4 29–30 [38]
567–591 1923 25 Buenos Aires Great Southern Railway 11C 4-8-0 4201–4225 [39]
605–616 1924 12 London and North Eastern Railway D11/2 4-4-0 6388–6399 Renumbered 2683–2694 in 1946 scheme.[40]
623–632 1926 10 South Australian Railways 600 4-6-2 600–609 [41]
633–642 1926 10 South Australian Railways 500 4-8-2 500–509 [42]
643–652 1926 10 South Australian Railways 700 2-8-2 700–709 [43]
655–701 1924 47 Bengal Nagpur Railway HSM 2-8-0 700–729, 744–760 later all-India 26174–26220.[44]
702–707 1924 6 Metropolitan Railway K 2-6-4T 111–116 to London and North Eastern Railway 6158–6163, class L2, in 1937; survivors allocated 9070–9073 in 1946 scheme.[45]
714–725 1925 12 Buenos Aires and Pacific Railway 2101 4-6-2 2101–2112 [46]
726–760 1925 35 Buenos Aires Great Southern Railway 11D 2-8-0 4301–4335 [47]
761–769 1925 9 Southern Railway K 2-6-4T A791–A799 Rebuilt to U class 2-6-0
771–801 1925 31 Bengal Nagpur Railway HSM 2-8-0 761–791 later all-India 26220–26251.[44][48]
850–874 1927 25 Queensland Railways C17 4-8-0 802–826 [49]
875–884 1927 10 Ferrocarril Central Argentino MS6A 4-8-4T 501–510 [50]
885–904 1928 20 Egyptian State Railways 545 2-6-0 [51] five appropriated by Israel Railways after the 1956 Israeli invasion of Sinai[52]
905–934 1927 30 Buenos Aires Great Southern Railway 11C 4-8-0 4226–4255 [39]
938–987 1928 50 Great Western Railway 5600 0-6-2T 6650–6699 [53]
1005–1015 1929 11 Madras and Southern Mahratta Railway XD 2-8-2 853–863 later all-India 22397–22407.[54][55]
1024–1025 1929 2 Great Western of Brazil Railway 2-6-2+2-6-2 238–239 [38]
1026–1037 1929 12 Ceylon Government Railway B1 4-6-0 279–290 [56]
1038–1057 1930 20 Ferrocarril Central Argentino MS6A 4-8-4T 511–530 [50]
1058–1068 1930 11 Eastern Bengal Railway XB 4-6-2 443–453 to Pakistan at Partition.[57]
1069–1080 1930 12 Madras and Southern Mahratta Railway XB 4-6-2 200–211 later all-India 22131–22142.[58][59]
1081–1100 1930 20 Ferrocarril Central Argentino PS11 4-6-2 1101–1120 3-cylinder with Caprotti valve gear.[60]
1105–1110 1931 6 Buenos Aires Western Railway 15 4-8-0 1500–1505 [61]
1111–1130 1931 20 London and North Eastern Railway K3/2 2-6-0 1100/01/02/06
1108/17/18/19
1121/25/33/35
1137/41/54/56
1158/62/64/66 		Renumbered 1899–1918 in 1946 scheme.[62]
1131–1155 1930–31 25 Great Western Railway 5700 0-6-0PT 7775–7799 [63]
1156–1165 1934–35 10 London and North Eastern Railway K3/2 2-6-0 1302/04/08
1310/24/06
2934–2937 		Renumbered 1919–1928 in 1946 scheme.[62]
1166–1265 1935 100 London, Midland and Scottish Railway Stanier 5 4-6-0 5125–5224 [64]
1266–1269 1935 4 Yue Han Railway, China ET6 0-8-0 501–504
1270–1279 1936 10 London and North Eastern Railway K3/2 2-6-0 2417/29/45/46
2453/55/58/65
2471/72 		Renumbered 1959–1968 in 1946 scheme.[62]
1280–1506 1936–37 227 London, Midland and Scottish Railway Stanier 5 4-6-0 5225–5451 [64]
D8 1 Preston Docks 0-6-0de Duchess 250 hp shunter
D9 1 Demonstrator 1-Co-1de 800 hp mixed-traffic diesel-electric[65]
1931 1 London and North Eastern Railway Railcar 25 One Sulzer 6-cylinder engine of 250 hp.[66]
1932 2 London and North Eastern Railway Railcar 224, 232 One Sulzer 6-cylinder engine of 250 hp.[66]
1933 1 London and North Eastern Railway Railbus 294 One Saurer engine of 95 hp.[66]
1933 1 Buenos Aires Great Southern Railway 1A-Bo+Bo-A1 CM210 Two Sulzer 8LV34 engines of 850 hp. [67]
D20 1933 1 London, Midland and Scottish Railway 0-6-0de 7408 250 hp shunter; renumbered 7058 in 1934; to have been renumbered 13000 by British Railways in 1948, but withdrawn before number applied.[68]
D21–D26 6 0-4-0de 85 hp shunter
D27–D28 1934 2 Demonstrator 1-Co-1de Sulzer 8LD28 engine, 800 hp, 66-inch gauge; trialled on Ceylon Government Railway; returned; to Buenos Aires Great Southern Railway in 1937.[56][67]
D43 1934 1 Ceylon Government Railway G1 0-4-0de 500 122 hp shunter.[56]
D46–D51 1934 6 Madras and Southern Mahratta Railway YZZT Railcar 1–6 160 hp diesel-electric.[59]
D54–D63 1936 10 London, Midland and Scottish Railway — 0-6-0de 7059–7068 350 hp shunter; to War Department in 1942 (4) and 1944 (6).[69]
D64 1936 1 Bombay, Baroda and Central India Railway DE 0-6-0de 800 360 hp shunter.[30]

Armament

Cannons and other armament were produced by the Elswick Ordnance Company, the armament division of Armstrong Whitworth. An especially notable example is the Armstrong 100-ton gun.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Newcastle Industrial Heritage
  2. ↑ Manchester College of Art & technology – The Whitworth collection history - accessed March 2009
  3. ↑ "The Wilson-Pilcher Petrol Cars", The Automotor Journal, 16 April 1904
  4. 1 2 "Steam index web site". Steamindex.com. Retrieved 2014-06-02.
  5. 1 2 Cotterell 1984, p. 49
  6. ↑ Burke 1985, pp. 108–127
  7. ↑ ARAR org web site
  8. ↑ "Sulzers web site". Derbysulzers.com. Retrieved 2014-06-02.
  9. ↑ Grafton-Kyogle-South Brisbane Railway - Tenders, 9 September 1925 in State Records of New South Wales, Series 15668, Item 4
  10. ↑ "Irkutsk: Ice-Breaker "Angara"". Lake Baikal Travel Company. Lake Baikal Travel Company. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  11. ↑ Babanine, Fedor (2003). "Circumbaikal Railway". Lake Baikal Homepage. Fedor Babanine. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  12. ↑ Newcastle Industrial Heritage web site
  13. ↑ Venice Arsenale crane restoration Archived 23 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  14. ↑ "Steam index". Steam index. Retrieved 2014-06-02.
  15. ↑ Boddy et al. 1984, p. 55.
  16. ↑ Hughes 1979, p. 62.
  17. ↑ Hughes 1979, p. 66.
  18. 1 2 Hughes 1990, p. 81.
  19. ↑ Hughes 1990, p. 84.
  20. ↑ Hughes 1979, p. 80.
  21. ↑ Carter 2006, p. 128.
  22. ↑ Clements & McMahon 2008, pp. 205–206.
  23. ↑ Clements & McMahon 2008, pp. 235–244.
  24. ↑ Allen et al. 1971, p. 28.
  25. ↑ Rowledge 1993, p. 10.
  26. ↑ Hughes 1990, p. 34.
  27. 1 2 3 Hughes 1979, p. 58.
  28. 1 2 Hughes 1996, p. 87.
  29. ↑ Hughes 1979, p. 72
  30. 1 2 Hughes 1990, p. 27.
  31. ↑ Hughes 1990, p. 78.
  32. ↑ Hughes 1979, p. 74.
  33. ↑ Hughes 1980, p. 89.
  34. ↑ Hughes 1990, p. 45.
  35. 1 2 Hughes 1979, p. 78.
  36. ↑ Hughes 1980, p. 45.
  37. ↑ Hughes 1979, p. 57.
  38. 1 2 Hamilton, Gavin. "Garratt locomotives from other builders". The Garratt Locomotive. Retrieved 2011-04-03.
  39. 1 2 Carter 2006, p. 60.
  40. ↑ Boddy et al. 1981, p. 102.
  41. ↑ "SAR 600 class". comrails.com.
  42. ↑ "SAR 500 class". comrails.com.
  43. ↑ "SAR 700 class". comrails.com.
  44. 1 2 Hughes 1979, p. 38.
  45. ↑ Boddy et al. 1977, pp. 10–12.
  46. ↑ Carter 2006, p. 96.
  47. ↑ Carter 2006, pp. 61–62.
  48. ↑ Hughes 1990, p. 18.
  49. ↑ "Locomotive builders". Queensland Railways Interest Group.
  50. 1 2 Carter 2006, p. 151.
  51. ↑ Hughes 1981, p. 22.
  52. ↑ Cotterell 1984, pp. 101, 137.
  53. ↑ Whitehurst 1973, pp. 58–59.
  54. ↑ Hughes 1979, p. 35.
  55. ↑ Hughes 1980, p. 68.
  56. 1 2 3 Hughes 1990, p. 94.
  57. ↑ Hughes 1990, pp. 34, 38.
  58. ↑ Hughes 1979, p. 32.
  59. 1 2 Hughes 1990, p. 68.
  60. ↑ Carter 2006, p. 162.
  61. ↑ Carter 2006, p. 130.
  62. 1 2 3 Boddy et al. 1982, pp. 142–143.
  63. ↑ Whitehurst 1973, p. 68.
  64. 1 2 Rowledge 1975, p. 11.
  65. ↑ "Armstrong Whitworth Locomotives and Railcars in the UK". Derby Sulzers.
  66. 1 2 3 Boddy et al. 1990, pp. 77–85.
  67. 1 2 Carter 2006, p. 72.
  68. ↑ Rowledge 1975, pp. 37, 46.
  69. ↑ Rowledge 1975, pp. 37–38, 46.

Bibliography

External links

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