Thomas Harrington & Sons

Thomas Harrington & Sons was an English coachbuilding company that operated from 1897 until 1966. It began in Brighton making horse-drawn carriages, then adapted to the rise of the motor vehicle by constructing bodies on passenger-car and commercial-vehicle chassis. Before the First World War the business increasingly concentrated on commercial vehicles, buses and coaches. After the war it became especially associated with luxury and touring coaches, while continuing to undertake bus bodies, special-purpose bodies and other forms of coachbuilding. The company moved into a purpose-built factory on Old Shoreham Road in Hove in 1930. The Art Deco building became an important part of the company's visual identity: an image of the factory appeared on Harrington transfers and promotional material. In a crowded British coachbuilding market, management pursued two complementary advantages. It cultivated long-term relationships with established operators and developed a recognizable Harrington styling language rather than producing entirely anonymous bodies to individual customer patterns. Important customers included Southdown Motor Services, Grey-Green, North Western Road Car Company, Devon General, Silver Star and Charlies Cars. Harrington's styling became particularly distinctive during the 1930s. Its designs commonly used a flowing window line and a half-cab arrangement without a canopy over the engine. The company also developed and patented the dorsal fin, a truncated fin-like structure at the rear of a coach. Besides contributing to the streamlined appearance of the body, the feature was intended to improve ventilation by helping extract stale air from the saloon as the vehicle moved. During the Second World War, civilian coach production was curtailed by government controls. Harrington was allocated work on the Westland Lysander aircraft, a short-take-off-and-landing machine later associated with covert operations in occupied Europe. Aircraft production introduced the workforce to new methods, including jig construction and the handling of lightweight alloy sections and extrusions. After 1945, the company benefited from accumulated demand for buses and coaches and developed an export business, particularly in South America and British African colonies. Its post-war bodies combined steel-reinforced hardwood framing with increasingly extensive use of aluminium and glass-reinforced plastic. The Wayfarer, produced from 1951 to 1961, was Harrington's longest-running named design. Intended for underfloor-engined chassis from manufacturers including AEC and Leyland, it was also fitted to selected Foden chassis. Other important products included the Contender integral bus and coach range, the Crusader lightweight coach body introduced in 1958, and the later Cavalier and Grenadier luxury coach bodies. The Cavalier and Grenadier are particularly celebrated by bus enthusiasts and jointly won a Classic Bus reader poll as the most stylish coach of all time. The company also pursued smaller and unusual vehicle projects. It built bodies for a portion of a series of quarter-scale, road-legal model coaches used to provide children's rides, and from the late 1950s supplied the Rootes Group's in-house public-service-vehicle conversion of the Commer 1500 minibus. Harrington's engineering approach combined alloy framing, aluminium panels, glass-reinforced plastic mouldings and modern interior laminates such as Formica and Wareite. The company maintained an international outlook and exchanged design ideas with the Italian coachbuilder Orlandi. By the early 1960s, competition, consolidation and a contracting coachbuilding market placed pressure on independent and specialist bodybuilders. In 1965 the decision was made to close the Hove factory. Production ended in April 1966. Plaxton subsequently acquired Harrington's spare parts, stock in trade and goodwill. Although the company disappeared as a manufacturing business, many Harrington-bodied vehicles survived in preservation, and the marque remains the subject of enthusiast activity and gatherings.

Thomas Harrington & Sons entered business in 1897 in Brighton as a maker of horse-drawn carriages. Motorisation changed the company's direction, and it moved into bodies for motor vehicles before the First World War. Its emphasis shifted toward commercial vehicles, buses and coaches, and the company later developed a particularly strong reputation for luxury touring coaches. A major organizational and visual development came in 1930, when Harrington moved from Brighton to a purpose-built Art Deco factory on Old Shoreham Road in Hove. The company competed in a fragmented market containing many small coachbuilders. Its response was to combine dependable customer relationships with a recognizable design identity. Operators such as Southdown Motor Services, Grey-Green, North Western Road Car Company, Devon General and Silver Star provided important continuity, while Harrington's distinctive flowing forms helped its bodies stand apart from more interchangeable competitors. In the 1930s the Harrington appearance included a characteristic half-cab, stepped glazing and curved body lines. The company patented the dorsal fin, a rear aerodynamic and ventilation feature that allowed a curved rear dome without obstructing the rear passenger seat. The outbreak of the Second World War brought an end to normal civilian coach production. Harrington was assigned production of Westland Lysander aircraft for the War Ministry. This work broadened its capabilities in lightweight alloy construction, jig-making and aircraft-influenced production methods. Post-war demand for replacement buses and coaches created opportunities, although export requirements and national economic pressures shaped the market. Harrington established sales in South America and British African colonies while continuing to serve British operators. Its bodies used steel-reinforced hardwood in many domestic applications, alongside more advanced aluminium and glass-reinforced plastic construction. The company also experimented with interior laminates and maintained contact with continental manufacturers, including the Italian firm Orlandi. The Wayfarer, introduced in 1951 for the emerging underfloor-engined chassis market, remained in production until 1961 and became the company's longest-lived named design. Harrington also produced the Contender integral bus and coach range during the 1950s. One notable Contender variant was built for British Overseas Airways Corporation, while the range was also used by operators including Maidstone & District. Small coaches on Karrier and Commer van chassis broadened the product range, and Harrington became responsible for the Rootes Group's Commer 1500 minibus conversion during the late 1950s and early 1960s. The Crusader, launched in 1958, used substantial glass-fibre front and rear mouldings and went through four marks. The company subsequently produced increasingly admired luxury designs, including the Cavalier and Grenadier for underfloor-engined chassis. These bodies became emblematic of the marque's final classic period. Harrington continued to build selected single-deck bus bodies and other special work, but the market was becoming more concentrated and competitive. Large firms such as Duple and Plaxton had substantial scale, while changing operator preferences and ownership structures reduced the room available to smaller specialists. A Rootes family investment company owned the operations, although Harrington was not itself part of the Rootes Group. In 1965 the closure of the Hove factory was decided, and production ceased in April 1966. Plaxton acquired the remaining spares, stock in trade and goodwill. The manufacturing business therefore ended, but preserved Harrington vehicles and enthusiast gatherings continue to sustain the marque's historical profile.

• 1966

  Production ends

  [1]Thomas Harrington & Sonsen.wikipedia.org

  Manufacturing ceased in April; Plaxton later acquired Harrington's spares, stock in trade and goodwill.

• 1965

  Factory closure decided

  [1]Thomas Harrington & Sonsen.wikipedia.org

  The company decided to close its Hove factory amid a difficult and increasingly concentrated coachbuilding market.

• 1958

  Crusader launched

  [1]Thomas Harrington & Sonsen.wikipedia.org

  The Crusader became Harrington's named lightweight coach body and used large glass-fibre front and rear mouldings.

• 1951

  Wayfarer introduced

  [1]Thomas Harrington & Sonsen.wikipedia.org

  Harrington launched the Wayfarer for underfloor-engined chassis; the design remained in production until 1961.

• 1940

  War production begins

  [1]Thomas Harrington & Sonsen.wikipedia.org

  The company was allocated production of Westland Lysander aircraft after civilian vehicle manufacture was restricted.

• 1930

  Move to the Hove factory

  [1]Thomas Harrington & Sonsen.wikipedia.org

  The company moved to a purpose-built Art Deco factory on Old Shoreham Road, Hove.

• 1930

  Dorsal fin development

  [1]Thomas Harrington & Sonsen.wikipedia.org

  Harrington developed and patented its distinctive dorsal-fin rear treatment, intended to support both streamlining and saloon ventilation.

• 1897

  Business founded

  [1]Thomas Harrington & Sonsen.wikipedia.org

  Thomas Harrington & Sons began operations in Brighton as a builder of horse-drawn carriages.

A specialist British coachbuilder positioned around distinctive styling, premium touring-coach bodies, long-term operator relationships and practical innovation in materials and vehicle design.

• Luxury and touring coach body · 1951

  Wayfarer

  Introduced in 1951, the Wayfarer was developed for the new generation of underfloor-engined chassis from AEC and Leyland and was also fitted to selected Foden chassis. It ran through four marks and remained in production until 1961, giving it the longest production life of any named Harrington design. The model was used by operators including Grey-Green, Silver Star, Southdown, North Western and Charlies Cars.

• Integral bus and coach · 1950

  Contender

  The Contender was a mid-1950s integral bus and coach range using mechanical units associated with the Commer Avenger and TS3 engine family. Bodies were produced in more than one visual form, including a special straight-waistline, multi-pane design supplied to British Overseas Airways Corporation. The range demonstrated Harrington's interest in integrated vehicle design, although it was less commercially successful than some competing integral products.

• Lightweight coach body · 1958

  Crusader

  Launched in 1958, the Crusader was built for lightweight chassis including Bedford SB, Commer Avenger and Ford Thames applications. Its front and rear panels made extensive use of glass-reinforced plastic. The Mark 2 established a more successful appearance, while later marks enlarged the side and rear glazing. Customers included Northern General, Garelochhead, Southdown, Barton Transport and Thames Valley Traction.

• Luxury coach body · 1959

  Cavalier

  The Cavalier was one of Harrington's best-known late-period luxury coach bodies, designed for underfloor-engined chassis. Produced from 1959 to 1964, it became associated with the company's refined styling and is remembered alongside the Grenadier as one of the marque's classic designs.

• Luxury coach body · 1962

  Grenadier

  Produced from 1962 to 1966, the Grenadier was a late Harrington luxury coach body for underfloor-engined chassis. It is particularly associated with Barton Transport, which operated a notable fleet of Grenadier-bodied Reliances. Together with the Cavalier, it later received strong recognition from classic-bus enthusiasts for its styling.

• Minibus conversion · 1950

  Commer 1500 minibus conversion

  From the late 1950s until the factory closed, Harrington produced the Rootes Group's in-house public-service-vehicle conversion of the Commer 1500 minibus. The work extended the company's reach into smaller passenger vehicles and was used by operators including Crosville. After Harrington closed, the work moved to the former Tilling-Stevens works in Maidstone.

• 1965

  Close the Hove factoryStrategy

  Background

  The company operated in a coachbuilding sector facing consolidation, intense competition and weakening prospects for smaller specialist manufacturers.

  Action taken

  Management decided to close the Hove factory, bringing the manufacturing business toward an end.

  Aftermath

  Production stopped in April 1966, and Plaxton acquired the remaining spares, stock in trade and goodwill.

  Source

1. 1Thomas Harrington & Sonsen.wikipedia.org