Description and History of Site:-
The former works of Mann's Patent Steam Cart and Wagon Co Ltd where first steam carts and then steam wagons were produced.
The first works in 1894, when the company was founded as Mann and Charlesworth, was in Canning Street, off Dewsbury Road in Leeds.
When Charlesworth left the partnership in 1898, the company changed its name and was registered as Mann's Patent Steam Cart and Wagon Company. The company was so successful with their steam carts that a new works was built here at Pepper Road, with the move completed by 1901. The large modern well equipped works was very successful and the period up to, and including, the First World war was the heyday of the company. (See also WYK02323).

The 1912 visit by The Iron And Steel Institute to the works reported ''These works were specially built about eleven years ago for the manufacture of steam carts and wagons. There are five bays all under one roof, viz. fitting, machine, erecting, smiths', and boiler shops, forming one large shed. There is also a separate joiners' shop for making trailers, steam wagon bodies, &c. The works are electrically driven from a power plant in the centre of the ground by 20-horse-power motors on each line of shafting. This plant also supplies current for electric light, cranes, &c. The boiler shop is equipped with hydraulic press, rivetters, plate-edge planers, and the usual run of boilermakers' tools, and the fitting shop is fitted with gear cutters, special crank and vertical lathes, and other machine tools suitable for this class of work. Besides steam carts and wagons, patching rollers, road tractors, and agricultural tractors are made''. January 1894 the company Mann and Charlesworth was formed by James Mann and Sidney Charlesworth, both of who were trained and met at nearby J & H McLaren's works.
At first the company produced traditional traction engines but in 1898, Mann and Charlesworth built their first steam cart for Philip Parmiter of Tisbury. This was a very important development as it was Britain's first load carrying overtype machine.
Overtype describes the location of the engine in relation to the boiler and chassis, an overtype had the engine and boiler over the chassis, conversely, an undertype had the engine under the boiler and chassis. They produced this agricultural steam cart using the front end of a conventional traction engine and a roller at the rear. This was one of the first practical self-powered load-carrying road vehicles. From this Mann went on to develop it into his Patent Steam Cart.
One of the companies notable inventions was the single-eccentric reversing gear which allowed the sequence of valve opening in a steam engine to be changed, both in relation to 'cut-off' and direction, without the associated links and levers.
The companies main products were 3 and 5 ton wagons which were produced in a whole range of configurations such as Gully Cleaners, Brewers wagon, Bus Bodied, Dustcart, Street Watering wagon, Tar Sprayer and Tipper amongst others.
In 1924 the company introduced their Mann Express wagon with shaft drive, high speed engine and enclosed cab. This however was not a commercial success and this, along with a failure to invest in the internal combustion engine, lead to the company closing and being sold off in 1929 to Atkinson Walker Wagons Ltd of Preston who also produced steam wagons.
They later sold Mann's in 1930 to Scammell and Nephew of London.

Scammell produced a few Mann wagons largely from the spares they had acquired.

Further Reading and References:-
http://www.leedsengine.info/leeds/histmann.asp
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mann%27s_Patent_Steam_Cart_and_Wagon_Company
http://www.gracesguide.co.uk/1912_Iron_and_Steel_Institute:_Visits_to_Works#MANN.27S_PATENT_STEAM_CART_AND_WAGON_COMPANY.2C_LIMITED

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Key Words :- engineers steam cart wagon

Viewing the Site :- Public footpath alongside road.

Address :- Pepper Road, Hunslet, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS10 2NJ
Grid Ref :- SE 31603 30915
Co-ordinates :- Lat 53.773620 , Long -1.521967
Local Authority :- Leeds Council
Pre 1974 County :- Yorkshire - West Riding
Site Status :- Site extant - Protected status unknown
Site Condition :- Site in alternative industrial use
Site Dates :- 1901 - 1929
Contributor :- Andrew Garford - 8 April 2019

Copyright :- cc-by-nc-sa 4.0 © Andrew Garford