David Brown

David Brown is a tractor company that was founded in 1936 and was involved in manufacturing farm machinery. The company teamed up with Mr. Harry Ferguson in the manufacture of the legendary Ferguson-Brown Tractor. In 1937, David Brown manufactured the world’s first farm tractor equipped with a hydraulic lift and converging 3-point linkage, and the first tractor model was exhibited at the Royal Show. In 1949, the company made high-speed direct injection diesel engine for farm tractors. In 1958 and 1966, six and twelve speed gearboxes were developed by the company respectively. David Brown was renowned for its quality and inventive designs, and went on to acquire Harrison, McGregor and Guest Ltd. of Leigh, Lancashire in 1955.

In the 1970s, David Brown had earned the reputation of being Britain’s third largest farm tractor manufacturer. In 1972, the international conglomerate, Tenneco Inc. of Houston, Texas, acquired David Brown Tractors Ltd. The company won numerous Queens’ Awards for export achievement and also held the Royal Warrant. The unique Hydra-Shift semi-automatic transmission won the Design Council Award in 1976. Many selected machines from the David Brown Tractors Ltd. were offered in the UK and in several parts of Europe. David Brown tractor spare parts are still available online.