Aveling & Porter Ltd

Aveling & Porter Ltd - manufacturers of Traction Engines and Steam Rollers :

In 1858, Thomas Aveling adapted a Clayton & Shuttleworth engine with a chain drive from the flywheel to a cog inside the rear wheel. He patented this arrangement in 1859 but did not manage to remove the horse in shafts to steer the machine until a later patent of 1860 which then had a steersman controlling a rather unsatisfactory fifth wheel at the front.

By 1858, he had moved to new premises in Rochester and also acquired a foundry in nearby Strood. The latter site would later become the famous Invicta Works. In 1859, he had designed and patented his first 8hp traction engine but as he did not have the facilities to manufacture, had it made by Clayton & Shuttleworth [C & S] of Lincoln. He was also an agent for several manufacturers of engines and ploughing equipment. 

His 1860 catalogue featured "Aveling's Patent Locomotive Steam Thrashing Train consisting of an 8 h.p. engine, thrashing machine and patent straw carrier" (all made by C & S) and costing £475. (see above)

He moved very quickly and by 1861 had established his main works at the Strood site. These buildings survived until their demolition in 2010. He managed to produce some 34 No - 7.5 ton engines in his first year. However, he needed finance to expand the company and in 1862 took Richard Porter (see below) into partnership and in the same year, in Battersea, the company first exhibited as "Aveling & Porter". 

There was some strong opposition to steam road locomotives and in 1865, the Locomotive Acts were passed requiring a speed limit of 2 mph in towns and 4 mph in the country. The act also required three men to operate an engine with one walking in front with a red flag. Thomas Aveling was very vocal in opposing actions against locomotive owners but the sheer economics of using a traction engine in place of teams of horses to transport heavy loads maintained progress of the technology.

Aveling & Porter undertook impressive public displays of the traction engine's capabilities including towing a load of 21 tons on five carriages up a steep hill and then back down and around the sharp street corners in Chatham. These displays drew international interest and by 1863 they had exported engines to Prussia and Australia.  The engines exported to Australia could haul some 45 tons and their use in a copper mine in South Australia had an immediate effect of cutting production costs from £10 to £2 a ton. By 1865, the company produced more steam road engines than all other British manufacturers combined.

Steam Rollers :  Although some work on steam rollers had been undertaken without great success by the French, in 1865 Thomas Aveling, built a Steam Roller based on a traction engine and he displayed it in several places including London's Hyde Park.   

In 1867, Aveling & Porter made a 30 ton roller for Liverpool Corporation but this was far removed in design from a traction engine (see photo below). It appears to have been developed in conjunction with Batho of Birmingham and featured large 7 feet diameter front driving wheels and a 500 gallon water tank at the rear. The ship's wheel operated a worm gear arrangement that could turn the machine around in its own length. The company received some 20 enquiries and set up a production line. By 1869, 10 machines had been exported to the USA, France and India. However, the 30 ton roller tended to "crush" rather than interlock the road material and as a result a range of smaller 15, 20, 25 ton rollers were introduced during the production run of 86 rollers until 1871.

In 1871, Aveling & Porter developed a steam roller design that is familiar today. It featured the conventional front roller with chain operated steering and two large rear drive roller wheels. However, it had conical shaped front rolls that were close together on the road but opened up at the top to allow a vertical steering pin to be used. These rollers were produced in some quantities and by 1874, the company could advertise the fact that they were in use in many British counties, many USA states, Berlin, Vienna, Milan and Stockholm in addition to others in India, Canada, Australia, South America and the West Indies.

In 1880, an improved design emerged from the company which had parallel front rolls with a steering fork that spanned the rolls themselves.  This was far stronger and allowed the steering chains to be attached at each end of the front axle.

Below :   

Left : The 1871 Roller with conical front rolls with steering pin.            

Middle : Improved Roller design of 1880 with forks over front rolls.

Right : Roller c 1900 - similar really to the rollers manufactured in the 1920's

During Birmingham's Royal Agricultural Show in 1876, the company exhibited self propelling engines of 10, 8, 6 & 4 hp in addition to a 12 hp ploughing engine and a 10 ton road roller. By this time, they were also manufacturing living vans, water carts and 4 & 6 ton haulage waggons.

The company also made some steam rail locomotives, steam trams, steam cranes (front mounted on traction engine), steam lorries and later made petrol lorries and farm tractors. However, the steam roller turned out to be most manufactured vehicle accounting for 8600 out of a total of some 12,700 steam engines produced at the company's Strood works.

Thomas Aveling was a very innovative engineer and patented many inventions during his lifetime. To save weight and to make the vehicle compact, Traction engines used their boilers as a chassis but this gave rise to many problems with stresses and leaking or failing rivets. To overcome this, in 1870, Aveling introduced "horn plates" which extended the outer firebox and these were able to carry the motion, gearing and cranks. In the same year, he took out another patent for improved reversing gear. Conventional gear drive (instead of chain) and front wheel steering were also introduced at this time. Later in 1878, he managed to move the gears between the bearings making for an even more compact and stronger motion.

Thomas Aveling worked extremely hard and he was a hard taskmaster only keeping his best men. However, the company did provide facilities including a lecture room and messroom (probably in an effort to keep the men out of the public houses !) He carried out many civic duties including Mayor of Rochester in 1869/70 and belonged to several farming and engineering bodies. He was a keen yachtsman and helped set up several local sailing clubs. He died in 1882, aged only 58, having contracted pneumonia after catching a chill in his 28ton yacht.

His son - Thomas Lake Aveling - (born 25/8/1856 - died 4/10/1931 ; aged 75) : He took control of Aveling and Porter in 1881, shortly before his father's death. The company became Limited in 1895 and he was the chairman and managing director until he retired in 1928. Like his father, he undertook civic duties and belonged to several engineering and manufacturing institutions.

His grandson - Major Thomas Aveling MC  - (born 20/1/1892 - died     ; aged    ) : He rose to the rank of Major during WW1 and in 1917 was awarded the Military Cross. He took over control of the company upon his father's retirement in 1928. He became a director of Agricultural & General Engineers (AGE) that had been formed earlier in 1919. In the same year as the collapse of the combine in 1932, the London Gazette published  :  Major Thomas Aveling, M.C. appointed as Consul of Salvador at Rochester, Kent. 

The AGE combine had been formed at the joint instigation of T.L.Aveling and Archibald Maconochie. As well as Aveling & Porter, AGE took over James and Frederick Howard Ltd and twelve other companies. Production of Aveling and Porter steam wagons was transferred to Richard Garrett & Sons. 

However, by 1928, short time working had been introduced along with downsizing of the operation. It finally went into receivership in 1932. However, the Aveling company was rescued and moved to Grantham by Barford & Perkins. Aveling-Barford continued to make steam & motor rollers.  

Above -  Right :  The Machine Shop c.1922                                                                  Left :  The Boiler Shop c.1922

Perhaps parts of Simon's roller (manufactured in 1922) are shown !