The firm was founded by Leonard Fairclough, a stonemason in Adlington who established his business in 1883. Leonard's son, Leonard Miller Fairclough, joined the company and continued to run it during the First World War. From 1917, the company traded as Leonard Fairclough Limited. In 1927, Leonard Miller Fairclough became chairman of the company, and retained this position until he retired in 1965. Sir Leonard was succeeded by Oswald Davies, who took Fairclough from being a regional contractor to one of the most successful national contractors. Davies bought a number of well known construction businesses, including CV Buchan, Fram Group and Sir Lindsay Parkinson. Also in the 1960s, Fairclough entered the private housebuilding market with the acquisition of the Lancashire firm of RJ Barton and Tarrant Builders. Fairclough Homes continued to trade under its own name after the formation of AMEC. In 1982, Fairclough and William Press Group merged to form AMEC.
Projects
The company specialised in bridge building. During the 1950s, the company built thirty one bridges in the Manchester area, and bridges on the Preston bypass, which was the first motorway in England, later part of the M6. During this decade they laid the foundations for the Silver Jubilee Bridge between Runcorn and Widnes and constructed its carriageway. During the 1960s the company built parts of the M6 and M62 in consortium with Alfred McAlpine. Fairclough built the bridges, and McAlpine the roads.. With C V Buchan, they also built part of the M56 Motorway from Manchester to the Wirral, also called the Wirral spinal motorway, together with the various spurs off to Birkenhead, Moreton, New Brighton and Wallasey Docks. During 1972 to 1978, Fairclough built the Liverpool Link Line, partly underground and now called Merseyrail Northern Line, connecting Liverpool City Centre with Hunt's Cross and Southport to Kirkby, and the low levelCentral Station in Liverpool City Centre. All the concrete segments for the Northern Line and for the Loop Line were supplied by C V Buchan & Sons.
