John Harper Sr.

1823 - 1906

About MeJohn Harper co-founded one Aberdeen's best known engineering businesses, Harper and Company, with his brother Hugh. They were brought up in Turriff, at the Mill of Laithers.

About 1857 (when they were in their twenties) they opened an iron gate and wire manufacturing business in Aberdeen. Their wire was to be found throughout the North East of Scotland: supplying wire with cast iron posts and iron gates to large estates such as Glentanar and the Great North of Scotland Railway.

From this the brothers went on to manufacture suspension bridges, set up their own foundry and machine shops and began to specialise in the manufacture of power transmission systems.

John went on to found Harper's Limited, whilst his brother continued in the wire manufacture business. Upon retiring in 1876, he passed the business to his son John Haper (Junior) and retired to Seafield House. His younger son, Louis Harper continued the suspension bridge work of the business.

John Harper (Snr) represented the First Ward on the Town council from 1868 to 1871 and was also a Justice of the Peace.

John Harper died on 24th December 1906, aged 73.

For more information, see "River, Railway and Ravine: Foot Suspension Bridges for Empire" by Douglas Harper (The History Press, 2015).