This page is just a brief synopsis of the main Lainchbury site
Lainchbury's was an agricultural engineering company engaged in the manufacture of farm equipment and machinery
E.J. Lainchbury senior
For over 100 years the Lainchbury Factory provided employment for many people in and around Kingham, at times over 100 people worked for the company. This web site is not intended to cover the full history of the Lainchbury company as the story is well covered on my other web site Lainchburys of Kingham . However it would be wrong for any website about Kingham village not to mention the company for they played such an important part in the history of Kingham.
So on this page I will give a brief outline of the Lainchbury company to 'wet' ones appetite so to speak but I would urge you to visit my Lainchbury site to learn a much fuller history of the company.
For over 100 years the Lainchbury Factory provided employment for many people in and around Kingham, at times over 100 people worked for the company.
The Lainchbury family were well respected and pillars of the community in Kingham, it would not be wrong to say that they played a big part in making Kingham the lovely village it is today. Hopefully the company Lainchbury and sons will be long remembered.
Lainchbury and Son. A brief history
In 1862, John Lainchbury bought a small portable steam engine and a 48 inch threshing machine. The engine had wheels but no motive power so had to be moved using horses. This was to be the start of Lainchbury's involvement as Steam threshing contractors.
Sometime in the 1870's, John Lainchbury moved to Kingham where he established a workshop complete with a forge and brass foundry. John Lainchbury passed away in 1881 and his son Caleb took over the running of the business.
Caleb purchased some land in the village of Kingham, Oxfordshire on which the engineering works of Lainchburys was established.
Caleb bought more threshing equipment and further expanded the threshing side of the business. He also started to manufacture other farm equipment including carts, waggons and milk floats.
Caleb Lainchbury
After Caleb Lainchbury passed away in 1918 Ernest John Senior took over the running of the company.
Under Ernest John senior the company continued to expand and as well as the manufacture of elevators he also manufactured small steam boilers, sterilizers for farming use and tractor winches, they also made balers. The Elevators were being sold all over the world and up unto and during the second world war the demand was so great that there was often a waiting list for one of up to two or three years.
During the second world war the manufacture of elevators increased and these were sent by the railways to all parts of the country. The production of other farm type implements such as winches was also increased.
Part of the works was turned over to making munitions inc various parts for bombs, shells and mines. One such item they made for the war effort was Rocket Heads. After the war Boxes and boxes of these were left in Lainchbury's yard next to the village school. Lainchburys also played an important part in the manufacture of the Upkeep mine (bouncing bomb) as used in the so called Dam-busters raid. This remained on the official secrets list into the 1960’s, sometime after the war had ended. You can read about it here.
During the war years and into the early 1950's threshing with steam declined and much of Lainchbury's threshing equipment was laid idle; some in the works yard and others in various yards and storage areas around Kingham, most of it never to be used again.
Several traction engines were parked in a small yard alongside the village school and as children we often played on them quite happily, In the 1950's there were no health and safety laws to worry about. in fact as a youngster I adored those engines.
Their work finished for ever these poor tired old engines, with no one to want them, were left in various places around Kingham to rot away.
After Lainchburys discontinued the manufacture of elevators they turned their attention to other agricultural equipment including grain cleaners such as the Warden and Don models. They also produced bucket grain elevators and chain elevators as shown below.
Sadly the end came for Lainchburys in 1987, Charles Lainchbury's son David did his best to keep the business going but changes in agricultural practices made the company no longer viable. For over 100 years the Factory had provided employment for many people in and around Kingham, at times over 100 people worked for the company.
The Lainchbury family were well respected and pillars of the community in Kingham, it would not be wrong to say that they played a big part in making Kingham the lovely village it is today. Hopefully the company Lainchbury and sons will be long remembered.