Massey Ferguson tractor factory artwork unveiled

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An artwork remembering the former Massey Ferguson tractor factory in Coventry has been unveiled.


Andy Peters, of Persimmon Homes South Midlands, Coventry Lord Mayor Hazel Noonan and Richard Markwell, of Massey Ferguson

The plaque depicts the first and last tractors at the Banner Lane site where more than 3.3 million machines were manufactured from 1946 to 2003.

Owners Agco stopped production at the plant, which had employed more than 5,000 people in the 1970s.

The artwork was unveiled at 11:00 BST at Bannerbrook Park in Tile Hill on the site of the former factory.

The unveiling was chosen for 6 July as this marked the date the first tractor left the assembly line 68 years ago.

A portrait of Harry Ferguson, co-founder of the Massey Ferguson brand, is included in the plaque.

Grandson Jamie Sheldon, 57, who came from the Isle of Wight for the ceremony, said: "The portrait is very much like most of the portraits of him - he's peering through his glasses in his very focussed way.

"The monument is a great credit to all the people who worked there."

The 7ft (2.1m) wide plaque, commissioned by Massey Ferguson and Agco, was made over six months by sculptor Jemma Pearson.

The plant in Tile Hill made more than 3.3 million Ferguson and Massey Ferguson tractors.

Agco fully vacated the Banner Lane site in 2006 and established a European Office facility at Abbey Park, Stoneleigh, eight miles away, where it employs 500 people.

Homes have been built on the 97-acre site.

Professor David Bailey, from Aston Business School in Birmingham, said: "It was a symbol of Coventry's heyday in terms of manufacturing vehicles.

"It's a much more diverse city than it was 30 years ago economically but that means the city is much more resilient because it's more diverse. We're not dependent on the one sector - the auto sector.

"It's benefiting from more research and development and more work for the supply chain for vehicles in recent years."

See also: Demand for permanent memorial for Coventry's demolished Massey Ferguson factory

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Massey Ferguson memorial given seal of approval



THE FAMILY of one of the longest serving workers at the city's historic Massey Ferguson plant have given their seal of approval to a memorial statue unveiled last month.

More than 3.3million tractors were built at the Tile Hill site by thousands of workers between 1946 and 2003 but it has since been swallowed up by housing.

One of those workers was toolmaker Tom Nicholson who was there when the first tractor rolled off the production line and the last 11 years ago.

Mr Nicholson joined Massey Ferguson as a 14-year-old apprentice and remained loyal to the company for over 50 years.

After his retirement in 1997 he stayed on for an extra six years offering his services as tour guide until the site was closed.

He died in January 2010 but his widow Freda said he would have been proud of the memorial statue put in place last month as permanent reminder of the factory.

“Massey Ferguson meant the world to Tom, he couldn't keep away,” said Mrs Nicholson, who he met in Massey Ferguson's ballroom.

“He always seemed at his happiest when he was at work, that's where he loved to be. He seemed to get a great satisfaction from fixing things.

“He was devastated when when he heard the factory was closing across the loud speaker when he was giving a tour, it was heartbreaking for him.

“He could have been Mr Massey Ferguson! He enjoyed his job so much it was a very special place to him.”

A bronze and granite plaque was unveiled last month and sits in the Bannerbrook Park development as a symbol of its past. It is more than two metres wide and depicts the first and last tractors to be manufactured there as well as a portrait of company co-founder Harry Ferguson.

“He'll be very pleased that a statue has been built in memory of all of those workers who did their part over the many years,” Mrs Nicholson added.

“Tom was on the very first and very last tractor at Massey Ferguson so I feel it's quite fitting really.

“I think he'd be quite tearful if he saw it. He was a good all-rounder and very proud of the fact that he worked at the factory as am I, his two children Linda and Judith, his five grand-children and three great grandchildren.”