Catalogue description The Reason Manufacturing Co, later Allen West and Co, Brighton, 1897-1993; the Kingston Fire Committee, 1941

For the Home Guard records relating to Allen West during the Second World War see HGD 5/14, 19-21 and AMS6283/26

The Reason Manufacturing Co

Allen West and Co, Brighton

Items in this catalogue are closed to public inspection for 30 years from the last date of a document

Documents deposited 2 Feb 1993 (ACC 6027), 2 Feb and 11 Apr 1995, 10 Jun 1996 (ACC 6570)

• East Sussex
• Electrical engineering
• Military engineering
• Fire protection

The Reason Manufacturing Company was established in the late 19th century with premises in Gloucester Road, Brighton. The Directories of Sussex list H Reason, manufacturer and publisher, at 112 Gloucester Road in 1891 and the Reason Manufacturing Co Ltd, toy and fancy goods manufacturers, at 111 and 112 Gloucester Road in 1895. Earlier entries record Henry Reason, toy repository, at 150 Western Road in 1887 and Henry Fletcher Reason, fancy repository, and William Reason, insurance agent, at 43½ Ship Street in 1878. By 1896 the firm had expanded into several other premises including Sydney Street, Robert Street and later into 95 Queens Road. By 1910 the company was established as an electrical engineering firm at Lewes Road, Brighton. A detailed account of the origins and early history of the company by Herbert F Reason was published in The Allen West Magazine vol II, nos 5 and 6, Nov-Dec 1925 (23/17, 18)

Allen West served in the Boer War before becoming involved in the manufacture of electric motor control and switch gear. In 1910 he founded the firm of Allen West and leased part of the Reason Co premises in Lewes Road, Brighton. By 1915 he had taken over the Reason Co. During the First World War Allen West manufactured armaments and other military items in addition to their electric motor control business. In 1926 the company took over the South Factory in Coombe Road and subsequently bought the Woolston factory in Southampton. They acquired subsidiary companies in France and S Africa in 1927. A new factory at East Moulsecombe was completed just before the Second World War when the Woolston works were relinquished

During the war the staff of Allen West grew from approximately 2000 to 4500 employees, many of whom were women working part-time. The Company became involved in the manufacture of radio transmitters and receivers and the development of radar equipment. They also supplied parts for the pre-fabricated invasion harbour, code-named 'Mulberry', which was assembled off Selsey prior to D Day in June 1944. After the war new factory buildings were erected at Moulsecombe and around 1960 a new office block was built behind the old Lewes Road premises. During the 1960s the firm fell into decline and went into receivership. A rescue bid was effected, the Lewes Road premises were sold and the business carried on at Moulsecombe. However, the firm continued to decline and to date all of the original buildings have been sold or demolished. Allen West continued to exist in Brighton as a very small firm near to the original Moulsecombe complex under the management of an electrical firm in Ayr, Scotland. However, this year (1993) the firm seems to have been closed down by its Scottish owner, although the firm of Allenwest Brentford, Eastergate Road, Brighton was still in existence in 1995

Allen West gave up the managing directorship of the firm in 1933 but remained a director on the board until 1953. He died on 19 Jan 1957 aged 80 years. Both the depositor, Mr J E H Jones, and his father, Mr Percy C Jones were employed at Allen West for many years, the latter as the company's sales director

Mr Jones senior lived at Kingston and became the provisional secretary of the Kingston Fire Committee set up in August 1941 to remedy the deficiencies in the local fire service. Victor Breeze, the then managing director of Allen West, was the chairman of the committee