Talk:William McNaught (Glasgow)

William v William

There has been considerable confusion over the years as to which William did what. Sources are quoted on the Talk:William McNaught (Rochdale). They appear to be cousins, but they both were engineers, both working on aspects of steam engines in and around Manchester at the same time. There is a substantial article on this William in the ODNB, by Hills but it doesn't name his sons, or the firm he founded in 1858 or 60, or what the firm did. It is likely they were consultant engineers and instrument makers. It is likely that it was the Rochdale William who founded J& W McNaught, who build steam engines- J& W McNaught Ltd was taken over by Petries, the Petries who had originally made Rochdale William. About the same time in Australia another McNaught (who maybe had inventions relating wool cleaning) married a Petrie.

Many usually reliable sources put infomation into their books that assigns events to the wrong William. Many sources, if you follow them back, just refer to the work of Hills, sometimes wrongly.