J. and G. Rennie
| Industry | Engineering |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1821 |
| Headquarters | Millwall, London |
|
Key people
|
George Rennie |
| Products | Marine steam engines |
J. and G. Rennie was a British engineering company based in Millwall, London, England. They were involved in manufacture of marine engines, and some complete ships, as well as other diverse onshore engineering projects. An association with railway engines is usually attributed to G. and J. Rennie, which may suggest they used a second company to keep the books separate, and there was also George Rennie & Sons, which is associated with the development and patents of the steam disc engine. All three companies appear to have been in existence at the same time.
The company was founded by John Rennie and his brother George Rennie after the death of their father John Rennie (senior) in 1821, who at that time was engaged in the building of London Bridge, an activity which the younger John Rennie took over, and on completion in 1831 he was knighted. George Rennie was an equally distinguished civil engineer with many academic publications, and was made a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1822. Both brothers continued their civil and hydraulic engineering interests, with their joint company participating in diverse ways. Their hydraulic engineering interest involved them with work on docks, canals and bridges, and apart from civil engineering the company specialised in building marine steam engines such as those for the SS Archimedes in 1838, which was the worlds first steamship driven by screw propellor. This side of the business being a particular interest of George Rennie.
Apart from marine engines, Messrs Rennie were listed with Boulton and Watt as one of two suppliers commissioned in 1845 to make engines to create the vacuum for the South Devon atmospheric railway.
In an advert of 1882 the company listed the following among their products :
More of the products of the Rennie company can be deduced from a catalogue of exhibits from the 1876 exhibition at the South Kensington Museum, which records a number of models exhibited :
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