Stevens's Model Dockyard was a company which made and sold models, toys and parts for modellers (not to be confused with the original Model Dockyard or Clyde Model Dockyard - different companies dealing in similar products). Established 1843, it was located in Aldgate, London.

Products

Stevens Model Dockyard was as much a retailer as a maker and large numbers of items are now claimed to be by the company that were only retailed by them, rather than made by them. There is little evidence of what exactly they made prior to 1900, but certainly ship models, fittings and engines, spirit fired steam locomotives, wooden rolling stock and brass-on-mahogany rail, stationary engines and components. Their 20th century catalogues differentiate 'our own make' from 'British made' (i.e. items retailed and made in the UK, but not be Stevens) and they do not mention the origin of those items made by concerns outside of the UK. Stevens' own make items are best quality, the steam engines and locomotives usually finished in lacquered brass, like optical equipment. Their catalogues included a huge range of items by other makers including model

sailing boats A sailboat or sailing boat is a boat propelled partly or entirely by sails and is smaller than a sailing ship. Distinctions in what constitutes a sailing boat and ship vary by region and maritime culture. Types Although sailboat terminology ...

and hulls, steam boats, boat fittings,

stationary steam engine Stationary steam engines are fixed steam engines used for pumping or driving mills and factories, and for power generation. They are distinct from locomotive engines used on railways, traction engines for heavy steam haulage on roads, steam cars ...

s, machine tools,

marine engines Marine propulsion is the mechanism or system used to generate thrust to move a watercraft through water. While paddles and sails are still used on some smaller boats, most modern ships are propelled by mechanical systems consisting of an electri ...

, railway locomotives, railway rolling stock,

track Track or Tracks may refer to: Routes or imprints * Ancient trackway, any track or trail whose origin is lost in antiquity * Animal track, imprints left on surfaces that an animal walks across * Desire path, a line worn by people taking the shorte ...

, lineside accessories, steam engine parts, clockwork motors, hydraulic motors, boilers, electric motors, electrical novelties,

telegraphs Telegraphs were an alternative rock band based in Brighton, England. Biography Formed in 2005, Telegraphs was made up of members Darcy Harrison (vocals), Hattie Williams (bass/vocals), Sam Bacon (drums), Darren LeWarne (guitar) and Aung Yay ...

, electrical accessories, optical instruments and books. They also sold Meccano, Klipit and other branded items.''Stevens's Model Dockyard'' catalogue, currently available as a reproduction published by TEE Publishing

Company name

William Stevens claimed he first set up on own account in 1843, but he does not appear in London directories until 1848. When he does he has nothing to do with models. Rather, he was a ‘news vendor’ or ‘news agent’ trading from Trinity Square in the city. In 1857 he first lists himself as a ‘news agent & ship modeller’. Only when he moved to 22 Aldgate in 1865 did he cease his news agency to focus on ship models alone. Three years later, in 1868, he finally expanded into ‘steam engines and all the separate parts’. It was only then that ‘Stevens Model Dockyard’ was fully established. The company name was slightly adapted from 'The Model Dockyard' a business established earlier in the 1860s by Edwin Bell. ''Train Collector''(The journal of the Train Collectors' Society) 54 (March 2020) p31 and 71 (June 2024) p17

References

External links

ToySteamBible.org: Stevens Model Dockyard
Steam engines Toy retailers of the United Kingdom Manufacturing companies established in 1843 Toy steam engine manufacturers 1843 establishments in England {{Toy-company-stub