Edinburgh Roperie and Sailcloth Company

Edinburgh Roperie and Sailcloth Company, Limited, Leith, David Pringle, Manager.
The Glasgow Stores & Offices are at 56, Broomielaw & 5, Oswald Street. Watson Bros. Local Managers.—

    This company was established at Leith in the year 1750 for the manufacture of sailcloth and cordage. The works have been carried on there with great success during all these years, and at present are doing a large and increasing trade in all sorts of canvas and ropes, the output last year in ropes alone being about two thousand tons. Trawl warps and other requisites for fishing smacks are a speciality. As the machinery is of the most modern description, and only the best qualities of material are used — the hemp and flax being imported direct from Manilla, Baltic ports, Holland, and Ireland — this company takes a first place among the manufacturers of this class of goods.

    The sailcloths for which they are noted are — “Storm Extra”, “Star Extra”, “Castle Extra”, “ Merchant”, and “Atlas”. These are made of carefully selected flax, and thoroughly boiled to prevent mildew. They are thus famous for their strength and durability.

    About fifty-five years ago they opened a, branch establishment in Glasgow, and erected works specially adapted for the manufacture of fishing lines, net twines, shop twines, packing cords, &c. These works have been renewed and extended from time to time, the present premises — the Dennistown Ropeworks — being the largest of their kind in the country. Many of the machines are of their own design, giving great speed combined with excellent results.

    These goods are widely known, and in high repute in Canada, New Brunswick, West Indies, Cape of Good Hope, Iceland, and home fisheries. Besides doing a large trade in Great Britain, where they have stores and representatives in Leith, Glasgow, London, Liverpool, Hull, Dundee, Aberdeen, Peterhead, &c., a large export trade is done to the Continent, where they are represented, in Hamburg and Copenhagen by Canel & Son, Hamburg ; in Bremen by Francis Tecklenborg, Bremen ; in Holland by Johs. Meijjes & Son, Amsterdam ; in Sweden by Gustav Altschwager, Hamburg ; in Norway by Mantels & Co., Hamburg ; in Copenhagen (for fishing lines, ropes, &c) by F. Hjorth & Co., Copenhagen.

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