WESTBURY man David Edgington has been awarded an OBE in the New Year’s Honours list.
David, from Hawkeridge, received the award for services to the Industrial Heritage of the Stationary Engine after more than three decades of work to preserve and sing the praises of fixed engines.
“It is all very humbling to receive such a prestigious award for a pastime which has provided forty years of enjoyment,” David told White Horse News. “It was a complete surprise but obviously a very pleasant one!
David has researched and written a number of definitive histories of stationary engines, republished numerous handbooks and instruction booklets and launched Stationary Engine magazine in 1976 which he edited up to 1990. He is still a regular contributor.
According to David Edgington, the hobby of collecting old stationary engines is eminently contagious, as it offers something for everyone, people of all ages, and from all walks of life.
“It revolves around finding (or buying) an old engine, stripping and rebuilding it, for the sheer pleasure of seeing it work again,” he said. “The end result can be either put back to work or exhibited at some of the many shows around the country.
“Then there is the historical side requiring a little detective work, to find as much as possible about the firm which manufactured the engine, if it still exists — if it doesn’t, what became of it. How old is the engine, is it particularly rare, what colour should it be painted; questions that are asked by many in order to add that extra enjoyment to the hobby.”
In the 1960s David met someone, who had not only restored a couple of old Lister stationary engines, but was prepared to talk about them with endless enthusiasm. This introduction to stationary engines proved to be infectious and within a matter of weeks a small Lister engine had been found on a local farm and purchased for about £2; David was well and truly hooked!
This simple act was the first of two events destined to change not only David’s life, but also that of his family, and possibly many collectors of old engines, because another engine soon arrived, and another, and so it went on as the nucleus of a collection was formed.
While engines were readily available it soon became apparent that literature and information about them was becoming scarcer, by the minute,” added David. “Furthermore it was impossible to locate other like-minded enthusiasts in order to exchange parts, information, or even complete engines. The answer seemed to lie in the production of some kind of magazine, which could draw enthusiasts together, while at the same time, gather as much information as possible.
In 1974 David, along with his wife Doreen, launched Stationary Engine a magazine especially for the enjoyment of stationary engine collectors and enthusiasts, worldwide. David remained editor of this magazine until 1990 when he retired in order to devote more time to delve into the history of some of the popular engine makers like Lister, Petter and Wolseley.
Since then he has been a regular contributor to Stationary Engine, as well as author and publisher of 15 extensively researched books on various makes of engine and their manufacturers — books which have become the accepted reference for preservationists worldwide.
