Massey Ferguson is an agricultural machinery manufacturer, established in through the merger of farm equipment makers Massey-Harris of Canada and the Ferguson Company of the United Kingdom. It was based in Coventry then moved to Beauvais in when the Coventry factory was shut down.
In , the company moved to Toronto [ 4 ] and it soon became one of the city's leading employers. The huge complex of factories, consisting of a 4. The company expanded further and began to sell its products internationally. A labor shortage throughout the country also helped to make the firm's mechanized equipment very attractive. In , the Massey Manufacturing Co. Harris, Son and Company to form Massey-Harris Limited , [ 3 ] [ 5 ] which became the largest agricultural equipment maker in the British Empire.
Massey-Harris made threshing machines and reapers , as well as safety bicycles , introducing a shaft-driven model in Hart Massey's sons Charles , Walter , Chester and Fred became closely involved in the business and eventually took over its operations.
They were the last generation of Masseys to run Massey-Harris. President Vincent Massey left to become a minister in the Mackenzie King government. In , an unsolicited takeover offer from an unnamed US purchaser precipitated a power struggle for control of the firm. Gundy of Toronto. Vincent Massey later became Governor General of Canada. Raymond Massey became a noted actor in American films. Grain harvesting was revolutionized by Massey engineer Tom Carroll in , with the world's first affordable, mass-produced, self-propelled combine β the No.
The Massey-Harris No. Taylor , one of C. Howe 's dollar-a-year men , joined the board of directors in , and Eric Phillips joined management in The company became one of the prime jewels of the Argus Corporation. The final generation of Massey-Harris tractors , introduced immediately after World War II , included the horsepower M-H 22 series, [ 12 ] the 35 horsepower M-H 33 series, [ 13 ] the 45 horsepower M-H 44 series [ 14 ] and the 55 horsepower M-H 55 series.
