Meccano Ltd
British toy maker of Meccano, Hornby Trains and Dinky Toys.
Meccano Ltd was a British toy manufacturer founded in 1908 by Frank Hornby in Liverpool, England. The company was created to produce and sell Meccano construction sets and other model toys and kits that Hornby had developed. By the 1920s and 1930s, it had grown into the largest toy maker in the United Kingdom, and it became known for three of the most iconic toy lines of the twentieth century: Meccano, Hornby Trains, and Dinky Toys.
The company ran into financial trouble in the early 1960s, and in 1964 it was taken over by Lines Bros Ltd.
Frank Hornby, a Liverpool clerk, invented a construction toy in 1901 called "Mechanics Made Easy," which soon became Meccano. To fund a factory and equipment, he raised capital and founded Meccano Ltd in 1908, with himself as the sole owner. A factory was set up on West Derby Road in Liverpool, and the company began selling Meccano sets across the UK.
In 1909, Meccano Ltd introduced the "Hornby System of Mechanical Demonstration," an educational set for schools that came with a 44-page manual using metric measurements. It didn't sell well and was dropped after five years. This was the first time the Hornby name appeared, later becoming famous for the Hornby Dublo 00 gauge model railway system.
By 1910, Meccano was being exported worldwide, and the company expanded. In 1912, Hornby and his son Roland set up Meccano (France) Ltd in Paris to manufacture there, and an office opened in Berlin, where Märklin produced Meccano under license. Factories also opened in Spain and Argentina. That same year, Hornby began importing clockwork motors from Märklin, but when World War I cut off German supplies in 1914, he started making his own clockwork motors in Liverpool.
The small West Derby Road factory couldn't keep up with demand, so in 1914 a new factory was built on Binns Road in Liverpool. This site became the company's headquarters for more than 60 years.
In 1920, the company began producing 0 gauge model railways, a line that continued into the 1960s. A factory in Elizabeth, New Jersey, opened in 1922 to make building sets for North America, and in 1927 it started producing clockwork lithographed tinplate 0 gauge trains there. But in 1929, Meccano Ltd sold its New Jersey business to the A. C. Gilbert Company, which made the similar Erector Set, and by 1930 Meccano's trains and construction sets were gone from the U.S.
Quick Facts
- Fate
- Taken over by Lines Bros in 1964
- Predecessor
- <!-- or
- Founded
- 1908
- Founder
- Frank Hornby
- Defunct
- 1964
- Hq Location Country
- U.K.
- Products
- Toys, scale model trains, cars
- Brands
- Meccano / Hornby / Dinky / Bayko
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Meccano Ltd originated from Frank Hornby's invention of a construction toy called 'Mechanics Made Easy' in 1901, later known as Meccano. To raise capital for manufacturing, Hornby established the company in 1908 as sole proprietor, acquiring a factory on West Derby Road in Liverpool. By 1910 Meccano was exported worldwide, leading to expansion: a French subsidiary in Paris (1912), a licensed manufacturer in Germany (Märklin), and factories in Spain and Argentina. A new factory on Binns Road, Liverpool, opened in 1914 and became the company headquarters for over 60 years.
In 1920 the company began producing 0 gauge model railways, and in 1931 introduced Modelled Miniatures, which became Dinky Toys in 1934. The 00 gauge Hornby Dublo model railway system launched in 1938. During World War II, production of all toys ceased and the company manufactured for the war effort; the Binns Road factory survived heavy bombing. Production resumed after 1945 but was interrupted again by the Korean War in 1950 due to metal shortages. In 1960 Meccano Ltd purchased Bayko, a Bakelite building toy, and moved its production to Speke, Liverpool.
Financial problems emerged in the early 1960s, and in 1964 Meccano Ltd was bought by Lines Bros Ltd (Tri-ang). The Hornby family was removed from office, and the company name changed to Meccano-Tri-ang in 1970. After Lines Bros went into voluntary liquidation in 1971, Meccano-Tri-ang was sold to Airfix industries in 1972, reverting to Meccano Ltd. Airfix closed the Binns Road factory in November 1979, ending British manufacturing. The Meccano brand continued in France, passing through several owners including General Mills, Marc Rebibo, Finamec, Nikko, and finally Spin Master in 2013.
Reader's Guide
Meccano Ltd's significance lies in its role as the dominant British toy manufacturer of the early to mid-20th century, producing three iconic toy lines that shaped generations of play: Meccano construction sets, Hornby model railways, and Dinky Toys die-cast vehicles. The company's Binns Road factory in Liverpool was a landmark of British industry for over 60 years. Its financial decline and takeover by Lines Bros in 1964 marked the end of the Hornby family's involvement. The eventual closure of the Binns Road factory in 1979 symbolized the decline of traditional British toy manufacturing amid global competition and changing markets. Despite this, the Meccano brand survived through French production and later ownership by Japanese and Canadian companies, demonstrating the enduring appeal of the original construction toy concept. The company's legacy includes not only its products but also its influence on the model-making hobby and the collectible market for vintage Dinky Toys and Hornby trains.
Did You Know?
- Meccano Ltd was established in 1908 by Frank Hornby, who had invented the construction toy 'Mechanics Made Easy' in 1901.
- The company's Binns Road factory in Liverpool became its headquarters for over 60 years, opening in 1914.
- Dinky Toys were introduced in 1934 as a line of die-cast miniature model cars and trucks.
- Meccano Ltd was taken over by its biggest competitor, Lines Bros Ltd (Tri-ang), in 1964.
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