Wallasey Dock Impounding Station - geograph

Gwynnes Limited was a

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London fr ...

England engineering business,

iron founder An iron founder (also iron-founder or ironfounder) in its more general sense is a worker in molten ferrous metal, generally working within an iron foundry. However, the term 'iron founder' is usually reserved for the owner or manager of an iron foun ...

s and pump makers founded in 1849 to capitalise on the

centrifugal pump Centrifugal pumps are used to transport fluids by the conversion of rotational kinetic energy to the hydrodynamic energy of the fluid flow. The rotational energy typically comes from an engine or electric motor. They are a sub-class of dynamic ...

inventedThe first practical centrifugal pump called the Massachusetts pump was built in the United States in 1818. In 1830 a pump having a fairly good efficiency was built by McCarty at the dock yards of New York. About 1846 centrifugal pumps began to be manufactured in England by Appold Thompson and Gwynne. Appold improved the pump by the addition of curved vanes in 1849. (page 10, R L Daugherty (prof. Hydraulics, Cornell U.) '’Centrifugal Pumps'’, McGraw-Hill, New York 1915)

John Gwynne bought Andrews USA 1846 patent and introduced it to England. Lloyd took out a fan patent in 1848 and J G Appold began the manufacture of almost the same fan. John Gwynne did not trouble to patent various improvements but applied for a new patent in 1850 though the patent agent made a mistake and the patent is dated 1851.
In 1854 J E A Gwynne obtained a patent for an improved form of Gwynne pump
In 1868 J and H Gwynne secured a patent for an improved centrifugal pump
P R Bjorling, '’Pumps, Historically, Theoretically and Practically Considered'’, Spon, London 1895

by James Gwynne (1804–1850). :James Gwynne (1804–1850) All his children were born in

Bushmills Bushmills (From Irish ''Muileann na Buaise'') is a village on the north coast of County Antrim, Northern Ireland. Bushmills had a population of 1,295 in the 2011 Census. This article contains quotations from this source, which is available und ...

, co. Antrim. His eldest son— :James Eglinton Anderson Gwynne (1833–1915) who was only 17 when his father died, became the largest landowner in East Sussex and James's second son—
Nevile Gwynne (1869–1951) was managing director in 1920. :Notable descendants include: :

Elizabeth David Elizabeth David CBE (born Elizabeth Gwynne, 26 December 1913 – 22 May 1992) was a British cookery writer. In the mid-20th century she strongly influenced the revitalisation of home cookery in her native country and beyond with articles and bo ...

Violet Gordon-Woodhouse Violet Gordon-Woodhouse (23 April 18729 January 1948) was a British keyboard player. She specialised in the harpsichord and clavichord, and was influential in bringing both instruments back into fashion. She was the first person to record the ha ...

Rupert Gwynne Rupert Sackville Gwynne (2 August 187312 October 1924), was a British Conservative politician. He was Member of Parliament (MP) for Eastbourne from 1910 to 1924. He was the father of cookery writer Elizabeth David. Early years Gwynne was th ...

Roland Gwynne Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Roland Vaughan Gwynne DSO, DL, JP (16 May 188215 November 1971) was a British soldier and politician who served as Mayor of Eastbourne, Sussex, from 1928 to 1931. He was also a patient, close friend, and probable lover o ...

In 1856 his eldest son, J E A Gwynne, of Essex Street Wharves on the south side of The Strand was awarded a patent for the manufacture of carbon or charcoal powder. Their Strand site became part of the

Victoria Embankment Victoria Embankment is part of the Thames Embankment, a road and river-walk along the north bank of the River Thames in London. It runs from the Palace of Westminster to Blackfriars Bridge in the City of London, and acts as a major thoroughfare ...

built between 1865 and 1867 and Gwynne profited from judicious investment in the reclaimed land. Their Crisp Road, Hammersmith Ironworks and works at Church Wharf,

Chiswick Chiswick ( ) is a district of west London, England. It contains Hogarth's House, the former residence of the 18th-century English artist William Hogarth; Chiswick House, a neo-Palladian villa regarded as one of the finest in England; and Full ...

, London, were established in 1867 to specialise in the manufacture of these centrifugal pumps and pumping engines This machinery was for use in practically all purposes where large or small quantities of liquid were required to be lifted and dealt with for low or high heads. A limited liability company was formed in May 1897 to own the business. They made cars between 1920 and 1929. Following their 1919 agreement to purchase the Albert car business, Adam Grimaldi & Co Limited, a new holding company was formed and named Gwynnes Engineering Company Limited. Their share issue did not attract the expected support from investors and the car venture failed, hampered by lack of capital. After the company was dissolved in 1927 the pump-making business continued under the ownership of Gwynnes Pumps Limited which belonged to

Fosters of Lincoln William Foster & Co Ltd was an agricultural machinery company based in Lincoln, Lincolnshire, England often called "Fosters of Lincoln." The company can be traced back to 1846, when William Foster purchased a flour mill in Lincoln. William Fos ...

. Subsequent ownership was: W H Allen Sons & Company,

Vickers Vickers was a British engineering company that existed from 1828 until 1999. It was formed in Sheffield as a steel foundry by Edward Vickers and his father-in-law, and soon became famous for casting church bells. The company went public in 18 ...

then Amalgamated Power Engineering of Bedford before Gwynnes' separate identity disappeared in the 1970s.

Invincible pumps

Gwynnes was founded in 1849 to make their ''Invincible'' centrifugal pumps in sizes from small to as large as, for example, the three pumps for the large graving dock of the Bombay Port Trust which together moved 8,500,000 gallons of water per hour. In 1910 they were reported to employ about 400 men in the Hammersmith works when new Battleships and Cruiser battleships were fitted with their hydraulic ejectors and bilge, sanitary, fresh water, fire and other pumps. Their pump engines were used for salvage work and dredging among many other purposes.Naval Construction in the United Kingdom And Germany.''The Times'', Wednesday, 2 March 1910; pg. 15; Issue 39209 They also provided supplementary equipment such as their eight-horsepower fire engine. The Gwynnes Eight vehicle range included a light

fire engine A fire engine (also known in some places as a fire truck or fire lorry) is a road vehicle (usually a truck) that functions as a firefighting apparatus. The primary purposes of a fire engine include transporting firefighters and water to an ...

equipped with Gwynnes' own pumps. Two examples are preserved. One was built in 1922 for the

Marconi Company The Marconi Company was a British telecommunications and engineering company that did business under that name from 1963 to 1987. Its roots were in the Wireless Telegraph & Signal Company founded by Italian inventor Guglielmo Marconi in 1897 ...

's factory fire brigade and is now at Coventry Museum of Transport. The other was stationed at

East Raynham East Raynham is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Raynham, Norfolk, Raynham, in the North Norfolk district, in the county of Norfolk, England. It is located on the A1065 road, A1065 some south-west of Fakenham. The River ...

in Norfolk and is now at

Holkham Hall Holkham Hall ( or ) is an 18th-century country house near the village of Holkham, Norfolk, England, constructed in the Neo-Palladian style for the 1st Earl of Leicester,The Earldom of Leicester has been, to date, created seven times. Thomas C ...

.Baldwin, Nick (1994). ''A-Z of Cars of the 1920''s. Bay View Books. p. not cited. .Good, Ken (2002). ''The House of Gwynne Cars, Pumps and Aeroengines 1849–1968''. Bookmarque Publishing. .

Clerget aero engines

During the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Gwynnes workshops made

Clerget Clerget-Blin (full name being ''Société Clerget-Blin et Cie'') was a French precision engineering company formed in 1913 by the engineer and inventor Pierre Clerget and industrialist Eugène Blin. In 1939, the company was absorbed into the '' ...

and

Bentley BR2 The Bentley B.R.2 was a nine-cylinder British rotary aircraft engine developed during the First World War by the motor car engine designer W. O. Bentley from his earlier Bentley BR.1. Coming as it did near the end of the war, the BR.2 was built ...

rotary aircraft engines.

Cars

On 1 January 1920 Gwynnes bought the limited liability company, Adam, Grimaldi & Co Limited, who made cars under the

Albert Albert may refer to: Companies * Albert (supermarket), a supermarket chain in the Czech Republic * Albert Heijn, a supermarket chain in the Netherlands * Albert Market, a street market in The Gambia * Albert Productions, a record label * Alber ...

name, with their freehold Albert Works on the Albert Embankment at Glasshouse Street Vauxhall SE13.Gwynnes Engineering Company Limited. ''The Times'', Friday, 26 March 1920; pg. 23; Issue 42369 They took W F Adam MIMechE MIAE with them to manage the bodybuilding and moved production to Gwynnes' Chiswick works now at the end of Pumping Station Road. In 1923 the name of the car was changed to Gwynne-Albert and the engine enlarged to 14 hp. In 1922 Gwynnes Limited started to make a small car, the Gwynne Eight, based on the design of the Spanish Victoria car. This had a 950 cc 4-cylinder overhead valve engine producing 24 bhp. Financial problems arose in 1923 and a receiver was appointed, but production continued. About 2,250 examples of the Eight were made. A larger model of car, the Gwynne Ten, was offered from 1927. About 600 were made before production ceased.

Receivership

A receiver and manager was appointed in July 1923. The company was compulsorily wound up by the Official Receiver in 1927. The Hammersmith Borough Council bought the former Gwynnes Wharf.

Gwynnes Pumps Limited

Gwynnes Pumps Limited was formed in early 1927 to acquire the business and assets of Gwynnes Engineering Company Limited It was part of the Fosters of Lincoln group, William Foster & Company Limited, which itself became a subsidiary of W H Allen Sons & Co Limited in 1961. By this time, 1961, Gwynnes products still remained in demand all over the world in their various sizes from Nuclear Power Stations, oil refineries, dry docks, dredges down to coal mines and pumps for many other materials as well as liquids.W. H. ALLEN SONS & CO. LTD. (Mechanical, Hydraulic and Electrical Engineers). ''The Times'', Monday, 19 June 1961; pg. 19; Issue 55111

Notes

Gwynnes centrifugal pump Brede Waterworks

References

External links

Archive of the Gwynne family of Folkington Manor, Folkington

Gwynnes-built Clerget in Powerhouse Museum, Sydney NSW
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gwynne (Car) British mechanical engineers Vintage vehicles Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of England Manufacturing companies based in London Vehicle manufacture in London