Richard Hornsby & Sons

Richard Hornsby & Sons
Company typePrivate
IndustryAgricultural engineering
Founded1828
FounderRichard Hornsby
Defunct1918
FateTaken over
SuccessorRuston & Hornsby
HeadquartersGrantham, Lincolnshire
ProductsEngines, traction engines
Number of employees
3000

Richard Hornsby & Sons was an engine and machinery manufacturer in Grantham, Lincolnshire, England from 1828 until 1918. The company was a pioneer in the manufacture of the oil engine developed by Herbert Akroyd Stuart, which was marketed under the Hornsby-Akroyd name. The company developed an early track system for vehicles, selling the patent to Holt & Co. (predecessor to Caterpillar Inc.) in America. In 1918, Richard Hornsby & Sons became a subsidiary of the neighbouring engineering firm Rustons of Lincoln, to create Ruston & Hornsby.