This BOLD bar table has a remarkable history. Made of a Hofherr machine, it is based on the same technology used in the aircraft that shot down the Red Baron!
We start our story in 1842, in Lincoln, England. Nathaniel Clayton formed a partnership with his brother-in-law, Joseph Shuttleworth. They established an engineering company ‘Clayton & Shuttleworth’. In 1845 the company built its first portable steam engine, and in 1849 their first threshing machine. Clayton & Shuttleworth became one of the leading manufacturers in the country at the time. A branch in Vienna (Austria) was established early on, and other branches followed at Pest (Hungary), Prague (now Czech Republic), Cracow (Poland) and Lemberg (now Ukraine).
The Hungarian branch was acquired by the “Hofherr-Schrantz Machine Factory” in 1912 creating “Hofherr-Schrantz-Clayton-Shuttleworth Hungarian Machine Factory” (ed. a mouthful).
In 1916 Clayton & Shuttleworth made parts for the Submarine Scout airship for the Admiralty. One of the most notable aircraft built by the company was the Sopwith Camel B7270. It was this kind of aircraft that was flown by Canadian pilot Roy Brown. And it was Roy Brown who was officially credited with shooting down the legendary Red Baron, Manfred von Richthofen. (ed. the Red Baron had its HQ in the castle of Marke, a stone's throw from our house – our house that used to be the gatehouse of that same castle)
Unlike its English counterpart, the Hungarian Hofherr survived the Great Depression and the Second World War. The factory became state property in 1948 and was renamed to Vörös Csillag Traktorgyár (Red Star Tractor Factory) in 1951. Its independent operation ceased in 1973 when it was attached to Rába. The factory was finally closed in 2010.
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RAF Sopwith Camel
Roy Brown
