Massey Ferguson

Massey Ferguson Limited was an historically important Canadian agricultural equipment manufacturer. more...

The firm was founded in 1847 in Newcastle, Ontario by Daniel Massey as the Newcastle Foundry and Machine Manufactory. The company began making some of the world's first mechanical threshers, first by assembling parts from the United States and eventually designing and building their own equipment. The firm was taken over and expanded by his son Hart Massey who renamed it the Massey Manufacturing Co. and in 1879 moved the company to Toronto where it soon became one of the city's leading employers. The massive collections of factories on King St. W. became one of the best known features of the city. Massey expanded the company and began to sell its products internationally. Through extensive advertising campaigns he made it one of the most well known brands in Canada. The firm owed much of its success to Canadian tariffs that prevented the larger American firms from competing in Canada. A labour shortage throughout the country also made the firm's mechanized equipment very attractive.

In 1891 it merged with the A. Harris, Son & Co. Ltd. to become Massey-Harris Co. and became the largest agricultural equipment maker in the British Empire. In 1910 the company opened a factory in the United States, making it one of Canada's first multinational firms. In the 1930s it introduced the first self-propelled combine harvester. Hart Massey's sons, Charles, Chester, Walter, and Fred became closely involved in the business and eventually took over its operations. They were, however, the last generation of Massey's to run the company. Other members of the family went on to do other things: Vincent Massey became Governor General of Canada and Raymond Massey became a noted actor in American films. The Massey family used their fortune to improve the city of Toronto, and many institutions, such as the University of Toronto, Upper Canada College, Massey Hall and Metropolitan United Church, were financed partially with Massey money.

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