Tongland works in Galloway and the women engineers

Abstract

• In 1916, a factory was established by William Beardmore and Thomas Pullinger at Tongland in south-west Scotland that was for much of the time that it was in operation staffed by women. Initially manufacturing aero engines, the women were being trained for a career in engineering, not simply as war workers. This continued post-war with manufacture of tractor engines and then Galloway motor cars. The factory was innovative for the time, being powered by a small hydroelectric scheme and built on the same principle as the Albert Kahn designed factories used by Henry Ford. By the late 1920s the building was being used for artificial silk production (Rayon) and staffed by less skilled women. The factory was used by the RAF during WWII and is still extant today. Although some articles have been written about aspects of this industrial site, this article covers the complete history from construction to the present day.