Lincoln’s Engineering Industries: A Concise History, c.1780-1980s

Description

This collection explores the important contribution made by the city of Lincoln, over more than 200 years, to the engineering industry.  Attention is paid to the fortunes of Lincoln’s ‘big four’ companies, all with international reputations – Clayton and Shuttleworth; William Foster & Co; Robey & Co; and Ruston, Proctor & Co (later Ruston & Hornsby) – but also to smaller, innovative and sometimes short-lived firms.  The work examines how the focus of the city’s engineering production changed over time, from largely agricultural engineering in the Victorian period to a more diverse range of outputs in the twentieth century, epitomised during the First World War by the city becoming a major site of aircraft production and the birthplace of the tank.  Emphasis is placed upon the later development and manufacture of products such as those related to railway and road transport, excavators, gas turbines and semiconductors.

The work emphasises the need for this important part of the city’s history to be cherished and engineering’s continuing significant contribution to Lincoln’s present and future to be celebrated.