Harper and Company

Founded around 1857 by brothers Hugh and John Harper, this is one of Aberdeen's best known engineering businesses.

Begun as 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.

Hugh continued in business of wire-manufacture after his brother formed Harpers Ltd.

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