David Brown

David Brown Ltd, a Huddersfield gear-making firm, entered tractor manufacturing in 1936 by partnering with Harry Ferguson to build the Ferguson-Brown, the first production tractor with a hydraulic three-point linkage. After splitting from Ferguson, David Brown Tractors Ltd was established at the Meltham Mills site in 1939 and built its own line of tractors known for rugged gearing and, later, distinctive styling. Tenneco, owner of the J.I. Case tractor company, acquired David Brown's tractor operations in 1972; the David Brown name persisted on UK models into the early 1980s before being replaced by the Case badge, and the Meltham factory closed in 1988.