Old Photographs Argyll Motor Works Scotland

Old photograph of Argyll Motor Works in Alexandria, West Dunbartonshire, Scotland. Argyll Motors Ltd was established in Bridgeton, Glasgow, in 1899 as the Hozier Engineering Company. By 1905 the company was expanding production rapidly, and a new site at Alexandria, outside the city, was identified. Plans were drawn up by architect Charles James Halley, and the building was officially opened by John Douglas-Scott-Montagu, 2nd Baron Montagu of Beaulieu, on 26th of June 1906. By 1907 production had passed 800 per year, but a series of technical experiments, and increasing competition, led to the company's decline. The high running costs of the huge factory, and the failure to adopt mass-production, may also have contributed to the company's troubles. The final blow came in 1914 following a lawsuit brought by Daimler, which Argyll won, but the costs led to bankruptcy and production ceased. The works, and its employees, were taken over by the Admiralty as a munitions factory during the First World War. The future of the building was secured in the 1990s with its renovation as a shopping centre, opened in 1997 by Princess Anne as Loch Lomond Factory Outlets. It now trades as Lomond Galleries.

Old photograph of Argyll Motor Works in Alexandria, West Dunbartonshire, Scotland.

All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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