[2] In 1901 Frank Hornby, a clerk from Liverpool, England, invented a new construction toy called "Mechanics Made Easy", which soon became known as Meccano.

A factory was acquired in West Derby Road in Liverpool and the company began producing Meccano sets for sale across the UK.

In 1922, Meccano Ltd opened a factory in Elizabeth, New Jersey where it produced its building sets for the North American market.

[4] In 1938 Meccano Ltd launched the 00 gauge Hornby Dublo model railway system, comprising both clockwork and electric train sets.

[4] In 1942 the production of all toys ceased due to wartime legislation and the company switched to manufacturing for the war effort.

[2] In 1971 the Lines Brothers Tri-ang group went into voluntary liquidation and 'Meccano-Tri-ang' was eventually sold to Airfix industries in 1972, the company name reverting to "Meccano Ltd".

At the same time, General Mills, a United States toy manufacturer, purchased the majority of shares of Meccano France S.A., renaming the French company "Miro-Meccano".

[2] With competition from other manufacturers from around the world and the increasing popularity of television, Meccano Ltd's dominance of the toy market diminished sharply.

To cut their losses, Airfix closed Meccano Ltd's flagship Binns Road factory in Liverpool in November 1979, bringing to an end three-quarters of a century of British toy making.