A photograph of one of the first trucks used by Synthetic Ammonia and Nitrate Ltd, Billingham. By 1926 Brunner Mond, the company that took over the site in 1917 and other major chemical manufacturers merged to form Imperial Chemical Industries Ltd also known as ICI.
Picture Stockton Archive 
I wonder if this gentleman ever knew the enormous debt of gratitude that the people of Teesside would eventually owe to the company that employed him at that time? How many local families had a member, or relative, employed at ICI Billingham, or Wilton during the major part of the 20th century? How many people were trained, had apprenticeships, or even University places funded over that period, for both men and women? This whilst being paid an above average wage, that also accrued many staff-benefits, including share-holdings, pension-plans and subsidised social-clubs available to almost every employee. A company that also kept many ‘satellite’ concerns in business throughout the area, from fabrication-work to stationery supplies. Truly a golden-era,.. possibly never to be seen again.
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