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Merryweather & Sons Ltd., Greenwich, England

Merryweather and Sons was originally established around 1690 by a Nathaniel Hadley whose factory on Cross Street in London manufactured - among other things - pumps and fire-fighting apparatus. The first fire engine factory was built in 1738 at the corner of Bow Street and Long Acre and was used for the manufacture of hand engines and leather hose, and later for steam engines.

For a time the company was called "Hadley - Simpkin" (after a master plumber who invented a kind of fire pump). In 1791 Henry Lott joined the firm and it became "Hadley, Simpkin and Lott". At some point Lott took over full control of the company and when he retired handed it over to his nephew by marriage, Moses Merryweather, who had apprenticed there in 1807.

Merryweather had three sons who joined the company in the latter half of the 19th century including James, who was responsible for promoting its products internationally.

In 1862 a new factory was built in York Street, Lambeth, for the manufacture of steam engines. In 1873 the Long Acre factory was destroyed by fire and a new building constructed to be used for offices and as a show room. In 1876 another factory was built in Greenwich Road and three years later the Lambeth factory was closed.

They began building tramway engines in 1875. In Britain, because of very restrictive tramway legislation obtaining until 1879-1880, horse traction was the only practical method of operation. Consequently, all Merryweather's production went to tramways on the Continent of Europe and a little later to Empire destinations.

Wellington Tramway Co. received eight Merryweather engines, Nos 60 to 64 and 85 to 87 in 1877-1878 all of which bore names. While the locomotives worked well they were too hard on the light track and it was not long before there were frequent derailments. Although the track was re-laid, the locomotives were set aside in favour of horse traction. Being practically new, the locomotives were quickly taken up by light railway and bush tramway interests. The Kauri Timber Co. ended up with three of them. Most had a long life on rails a long way from Wellington.

As "Fire Engine Makers by Appointment to His Majesty the King", Merryweather and Sons sold fire-fighting apparatus to cities around the world. By 1913 its machines were being used across the UK, in South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Burma, Egypt, India and Singapore and China. No Merryweathers appear to have been sold in Canada, however.

The standard Merryweather Petrol Motor Fire Engine in the years leading up to the First World War came with the choice of either a 50 or 60 horsepower, 4-cylinder water-cooled Aster motor, 3-speed transmission and a chain drive supplying power to the rear wheels. The whole unit could attain a speed of 30 mph "and upwards" on level ground, "with corresponding hill climbing capabilities". Merryweather fire engines were generally equipped with their patented "Hatfield" three-cylinder reciprocating water pumps driven off the engine through a clutch and drive-shaft.

In the 1960s Merryweathers built a range of fire vehicles based upon the AEC bus chassis but by the mid 1970s seemed to have left the business. It may have been that they had a problem when the AEC buses went out of production; they had very low centres of gravity & so where ideal. The newer buses used Leyland Chassis but Leyland also made so fire trucks so..........

The recent history of the firm is a little murky. At some point the company moved to Wales, but its stock ceased being traded sometime in the early 1980's and reports suggest that the company's papers were destroyed at that time.

A search of Companies House in the UK shows that the company still survives although it changed its name in 1996 to Siebeco Three Ltd. based in London, and listed as a non-trading company.