Rankin & Blackmore, Eagle Foundry, Greenock

In 1862, the same  year in which the Inglis Brothers took over the Pointhouse shipyard in Glasgow, Daniel Rankin and Edward Blackmore formed a partnership to take over the operation of the Eagle Foundry in the town of Greenock.

Previous to their ownership the foundry had been engaged in the manufacture of refinery machinery for Greenock’s extensive sugar industry which was founded by the local Lyle family. Under Rankin & Blackmore Ltd the foundry began building marine engines and boilers to serve the many Clyde shipyards. Daniel Rankin was an innovative engineer and introduced a number of patents and improvements to marine engines and the firm was credited with building the first ever set of triple expansion engines for a twin screw steamer. They were not unlike the engine in WAVERLEY but would be mounted  vertically in the hull to drive the propeller shafts - the classic ‘up and downer’ arrangement. In the 1890s the firm supplied a number of triple expansion engines for paddle steamers employed along the Australian coast.

In 1923 Rankin & Blackmore became part of the Lithgow shipbuilding group, supplying machinery to their five yards in Port Glasgow and to the famous Fairfield yard at Govan it was taken over by Sir James Lithgow in 1935.