Furry's fat and long bikes

[strike]I believe it wasn't even a case of moving from the UK, but instead that the original company folded, and the name was bought by another company?[/strike]

lmost all English 3-speeds have Sturmey-Archer rear hubs, and there have been many different models since the company started in 1902. Sturmey-Archer was a division of Raleigh Industries until autumn, 2000, when the parent company ran into financial difficulties. Sturmey-Archer (U.K.) was rendered homeless by various corporate maneuvers. For a while it appeared that it would disappear entirely into bankruptcy. The land the factory stood on was sold, and Sturmey-Archer was nearly liquidated by a corporate raider. Fortunately, a Taiwanese company called SunRace came to the rescue, and bought the company assets more or less intact. The machinery and stock were moved to Taiwan. SunRace resumed production of Sturmey-Archer hubs -- some pre-existing models, many new ones.
AASHTA

http://sheldonbrown.com/sturmey-archer.html
Apparently the new Taiwanese stuff is better than the more recent >1970's stuff, but not earlier