ALEX MOULTON CENTENARY 2020
April 9th 2020 marks the centenary of the birth of Dr. Alex Moulton CBE, RDI, FREng, often described as the last of the great Victorian gentleman engineers. Indeed, few 20th century engineers have made such a contribution to the modern world – particularly in the transportation field – as Alex Moulton. In World War II he worked on the Bristol Centaurus, one of the most powerful piston engines ever to see service in the air. Later he developed rubber suspension systems; his rubber cone units and interconnected Hydrolastic and Hydragas systems were fitted on 12 million cars from 1959 to 2002 - from the iconic Mini to the mid-engined MGF sports car. In the 1960s, over one-third of the cars sold in the UK were riding on Moulton suspension systems.
The Moulton Bicycle – aside from being a total advance over the conventional in road-holding and ride – revitalised the cycle market to such an extent that by 1970, one-third of bicycles sold in the UK were Moulton-inspired. Today the Moulton bicycle is highly sought-after worldwide; it is both competitive and comfortable, and an acknowledged design icon. Manufacture of the Moulton bicycle continues to this day in the grounds of The Hall, Alex’s Jacobean mansion in Bradford on Avon (see the Moulton Bicycle Company).
The Alex Moulton Charitable Trust are marking this centenary with a series of new publications – initially online via moultontrust.org. You can read a short biography here and the first installment of the Trust’s Life and Works series is here. is also inviting those who knew Alex and/or his designs to contribute “100 words on Alex Moulton” to help to build a collection of informative and insightful literary sketches of this remarkable man and his creations.
By chance, Alex Moulton shared his birthday with one of his engineering heroes, Isambard Kingdom Brunel. Brunel was an early customer of the Moulton Rubber Company in 1859 and his railway still runs past The Hall Estate in Bradford on Avon where Alex spent almost all of his life. You can read more about April 9th being a birthday for engineers here.
Alex Moulton with the ultimate arbiter of measurement, the caliper. This splendid image was taken by his friend, George Llewellyn.
This portrait of Alex Moulton was taken for his 40th birthday in 1960.
Alex Moulton in his Museum in the Oak Room in The Hall.