The Old Lawnmower Club
Collection, Preservation and Display of Old Lawn Mowers

The Brockville - another forgotten lawnmower

Enter a word or two to search the forum section and click the Search Forum button.
stonethemows

Just come across another lawnmower unknown to me and probably largely forgotten.

The '' Brockville '' was advertised in 1900 and sold by G. Harding and Sons of Borough, Lon.SE. It is not clear however if the machine was manufactured by this Company or just sold. They certainly were manufacturers,  though The Brockville may be a Canadian import. At the same time Hardings' were selling the '' Enterprise '', an American side-wheel mower manufactured by The Enterprise Manufacturing Company of Philadelphia USA. Also Ransomes Anglo-Paris.

Forums

Clive1997 Thu, 29/01/2026

Interesting, here's some more information...

Earliest reference I have come across 1895 in Hamilton News paper in Canada, an early manufacturer in that area of Ontario was David Maxwell & Sons, approx 100km from Hamilton, although 'Brockville' was the other end of Lake Ontario 350km away (not far in Canada), it was an important port of entry with steam boats travelling across the lake to Hamilton, also Brockville became Ontario's first incorporated self-governing town on January 28, 1832, two years before the town of Toronto, so although small it did have great significance & surely warranted a mower to be named after it.

The Brockville Lawn Mower in standard & High-wheel was advertised in Canada from 1895 to 1924.

Earliest reference I have found in UK 1899 through to 1905, in 1900 being described as Canadian mower in the Pennsylvania pattern. By 1905 British manufacture was quoted.

No doubt in Canada they are as common as as the Ransomes Lion is in UK.!

1895 Advertisement Hamilton, Canada

David Maxwell & Sons 1897

 

Ewings Seed Catalogue 1908

 

Newspaper Advertisement Canada 1907

Advertisement by Glasgow ironmonger 1899

stonethemows Fri, 30/01/2026

Excellent expansion Clive, thank you. We should add this to the Directory.

I had a suspicion it might be Canadian as it reminded me of the Grays Inn machine from the Ontario area and I was vaguely aware that Brockville was a local place name.

Bearing in mind it's popularity, production run and the fact that it was apparently manufactured here for a while it is perhaps a little surprising that we haven't come across one in the flesh.