Joseph Bamford was born into a recusant Catholic family in Uttoxeter, Staffordshire, which owned Bamfords Ltd, an agricultural engineering business.
12 Facts About Joseph Bamford
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Joseph Bamford's great-grandfather Henry Bamford was born in Yoxall and had built up his own ironmongers business, which by 1881 employed 50 men, 10 boys and 3 women.
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Joseph Bamford returned home in 1938 to join the family firm, but in 1941 was called up by the RAF to serve in World War II.
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JCB won seven Queen's Awards for Exports as its sales spread to more than 130 countries around the world, while Joseph Bamford himself was appointed a CBE for Services to Export in 1969.
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Joseph Bamford personally demanded to know daily from his staff how many "JCB Yellow" vehicles were off the road awaiting spares.
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Joseph Bamford conceived the "dancing diggers," whose 1999 display in Las Vegas stopped the gamblers.
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Joseph Bamford saw his role in life to be like the Nonconformist Cadbury and Lever families.
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Joseph Bamford built Rocester along the lines of Bournville and Port Sunlight into an effective marketing home for the company, and an efficient production centre and a virtual "home" for his employees.
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Joseph Bamford paid more than fair wages, which rose regularly, and annual bonuses based on reports of individual worth.
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In 1975, Joseph Bamford left his wife Marjorie, handed over the business to their two sons Anthony and Mark, and set up home with his secretary, Jayne Ellis, in Switzerland as tax exiles.
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Joseph Bamford continued to design both boats and diesel engines.
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Joseph Bamford was awarded the honorary degree of a Doctor of Technology from both Loughborough University in 1983 and Keele University in 2000.