1930s
A decade which is remembered for economic and political crisis that culminated in the Second World War. After the Wall Street Crash in the previous decade, the ‘Great Depression’ began which had terrible social effects worldwide, causing widespread poverty and unemployment.
It was during this tumultuous era that Turnbull & Scott were formed. Well that’s not entirely true as the company was originally called Turnbull & Aitken, named after founders James Turnbull and Adam Aitken. Both men had previously worked for engineering company James Melrose & Sons, where other employees would later join Turnbull & Aitken from. The company was officially formed in 1933 thanks to the founders and other people who backed the inception of the business with their own money. One of these backers was a man called Charlie Scott.
Turnbull & Aitken therefore set up a large purpose-built engineering works in Hawick on Commercial Road, a bold step in a time of depression for the country. The original premises contained two overhead cranes, ten units of heavy and light machinery, a forge, a millwright section, and its own diesel electric power plant.
Turnbull & Scott record profits of £50 in first financial year
Once staff and apprentices were in place, Turnbull & Aitken began providing a maintenance service for the Border mills which involved new parts to be machined or fabricated. A regular customer in the 1930s was the Rayon works in Jedburgh. Former Turnbull & Aitken employee Robert Cairns described work for this customer as “varied and interesting”.
Following the floods of 1938 where the Victoria and Mansfield bridges were washed away, pictured below, T&A were given the project of replacing them. The replacement bridges were built in three sections in our factory mainly by apprentices who by now had grown in number.
Hawick Floods of 1938
A 1930s Milling Machine
Even as far back as the 1930s we were committed to the development and learning of our staff. Robert Cairns cites that, “After a period of time, if a lad appeared to realise what it was all about and takes an interest, they were encouraged and given the opportunity to use his initiative and accept responsibility. The result… a well-rounded young engineer familiar with the elements of practical engineering and able to meet any challenge.” This appetite for learning and development is one of our key values today.
Later, amid controversial circumstances, Adam Aitken resigned from his position and financial backer Charlie Scott took over. This led to the name becoming the iconic Turnbull & Scott.
Charles Scott gets involved with Turnbull & Scott
Much of our knowledge of the 1930s came from Robert Cairns. If you have any stories or pictures which you can share about us from this decade please do not hesitate to get in touch by clicking the button below. Please enjoy some of the photos below which showcase key moments in our history throughout the 1930s.