Elliott Brothers (computer company) Facts for Kids

Elliott Brothers (London) Ltd was an important British company in the 1950s and 1960s. It started by making scientific tools and later became famous for building some of the earliest computers.

The company began in London around 1804, founded by William Elliott. Their research labs were set up in 1946 in Borehamwood. The very first computer they made, the Elliott 152, appeared in 1950.

Many smart people worked at Elliott Brothers. For example, Sir Tony Hoare, a famous computer scientist, worked there from 1960 to 1968. He even created a special program for the Elliott 803 computer. Dina St Johnston, who started the UK's first software company, also had her first job there.

In 1967, Elliott Automation joined with another company called English Electric. Then, in 1968, the computer part of Elliott Brothers became part of a new, bigger company called International Computers Limited (ICL).

How It Started
Elliott Automation's Journey
EASAMS
Computers Made by Elliott
Images for kids
See also

How It Started

William Elliott was born around 1780. He learned how to make instruments and then started his own company in 1804. They made drawing tools, measuring scales, and other scientific instruments.

His two sons, Charles and Fredrick, joined the business in 1850. The company grew and made many different tools for surveying and navigation. After William Elliott passed away in 1853, the company started making electrical instruments. These were even used by famous scientists like James Clerk Maxwell.

In 1876, the company got bigger and opened a new factory. They started making equipment for telegraphs and for the British Navy. They also made electrical switchboards for the growing power industry. Susan Elliott, William's daughter-in-law, became a partner with Willoughby Smith, who knew a lot about telegraphs. She was the last Elliott family member involved when she died in 1880.

Later, in 1893, another instrument company called Theilers joined Elliotts. One of the new managers, G. K. E. Elphinstone, had good connections with the British Navy. He was even knighted for helping Elliotts create better gunnery instruments during World War I.

In 1898, the company moved out of London to a new place in Kent. Here, they made "naval gunnery tables," which were like mechanical calculators for aiming naval guns. They made these until after World War II. As airplanes became more common, Elliott Brothers also started making important aircraft instruments like speedometers and altimeters. In 1916, the company officially changed its name to Elliott Brothers (London), Limited.

After World War II, the company faced challenges because the Navy contracts ended. A new director, Leon Bagrit, helped the company focus on new technologies. In 1946, John Flavell Coales started the Research Laboratories of Elliott Brothers. This lab developed radar systems and, in 1947, created an early digital computer. By 1950, the lab had 450 staff members and had developed the commercial Elliott 401 computer.

In 1957, the company changed its name again to Elliott Automation Ltd. By 1966, they even had their own factory in Scotland to make tiny electronic parts called semiconductors. The company had about 35,000 employees.

Elliott Automation's Journey

In 1967, Elliott Automation joined with English Electric. The part of the company that made computers for processing data then merged with another company called International Computers and Tabulators (ICT) in 1968. The British government wanted a strong national computer company, so this merger created International Computers Limited (ICL).

The part of Elliott Automation that made "real-time" computers (which process information instantly) stayed separate. It was renamed Marconi Elliott Computer Systems Limited in 1969 and then GEC Computers Limited in 1972. This part of the company stayed at the original research labs until the late 1990s. The rest of Elliott Automation, which made aircraft instruments and control systems, stayed with English Electric.

EASAMS

EASAMS was a company that helped with big projects, especially for military and space systems. The name stood for E A Space and Advanced Military Systems. It was based in Frimley, Surrey.

EASAMS created a special planning system called EMPRENT. This system helped manage large projects, like building North Sea oil platforms. It was also used for the BAC TSR-2 aircraft project. Ideas from the TSR-2 project, even though the aircraft was cancelled, were later used in the Panavia Tornado fighter jet.

EASAMS was an independent company within General Electric Company (GEC). It was started in 1962 to help with system design, figuring out how to make things work best, and managing projects. In the 1990s, EASAMS became part of Marconi Electronic Systems before it eventually lost its own name.

Computers Made by Elliott

Elliott Brothers made many different computer models. Here are some of them:

Elliott 152 (1950)
Elliott Nicholas (1952)
Elliott/NRDC 401 (1953) - This was a test computer.
Elliott 153 (DF computer) (1954)
Elliott/GCHQ OEDIPUS (311) (1954)
TRIDAC (1954) - A special analog computer system used for guided missile research.
Elliott 402 (1955)
Elliott 403 (WREDAC) (1955)
Elliott 405 (1956) - One of these was given to a school and named Nellie!
Elliott 802 (1958–1961) - Six of these were sold.
Elliott 803 (1959) - About 250 of these were sold, mostly the 803B model.
- The 803A had memory for 4 or 8 thousand words.
- The 803B was faster and could have an extra part for doing math with decimal numbers.
Elliott ARCH 1000 (1962)
Elliott 503 (1963) - This computer worked with the same programs as the 803.
Elliott 900 series (1963)
- For military customers, there were models like the 920A, 920B, 920M, and 920C. These were built to be strong and could be put in vehicles, ships, or planes.
- For regular customers, there were versions called Elliott 920A, 903, and 905. These looked like office desks.
- The 903 was a popular computer for universities and colleges to teach with. It was also used in labs and for controlling machines in factories. It often used paper tape to get information in and out.
Elliott 502 (1964)
- One 502 was used to create fake radar signals to train people who operated radar systems.
Elliott 4100 series (1966) - This was developed with another company, NCR Corporation. Elliott sold them for scientific uses, and NCR sold them for business uses. These computers could have a special screen with a light pen for drawing.