Pre British Rail Diesel Locomotive photographs

The English Electric Company was formed on 14th December 1918 and over the following year acquired Dick, Kerr & Company of Preston, Willans & Robinson of Rugby, the Phoenix Dynamo Manufacturing Company of Bradford, and Coventry Ordnance Works. After the First World War the various German owned Siemens works were distributed to different UK companies and in November 1919 English Electric acquired the Siemens Brothers Dynamo Works at Stafford, which became the company headquarters in 1931.

Coventry Ordnance, primary output naval guns, did not feature in the gradual product rationalisation which took place between the First World and Second world Wars. Willans & Robinson’s Rugby works specialised in prime movers, steam, hydro and internal combustion, and their Stafford works on power station and distribution electrics, including transformers and large electric machines for applications such as mining and steel works. Dick Kerr & Company continued building equipment and vehicles for bus, tram and railway applications with the Phoenix Dynamo Manufacturing Company concentrating on medium and small electrical machines. Involvement with aircraft continued a small scale. By 1929 the company was in financial trouble and an American syndicate fronted by Lazard Bros. put in new capital. In 1930 Westinghouse of Pittsburgh entered into an agreement with the company for the exchange of technical information relating to steam turbines and electrical apparatus. This cooperation continued into the 1950s.

1930 saw the closure of Preston West works and the transfer of traction electrical design and manufacture to the Phoenix Dynamo Manufacturing works. The Westinghouse influence included top management changes with Sir H Mensforth becoming chairman and George Nelson managing director. Both had been with British Westinghouse at Trafford Park. The early 1930s saw a remarkable improvement in the company’s finances and domestic appliance manufacture was started at Bradford and Stafford. In 1936 they began production of diesel locomotives at Preston and were later involved in the production of the Deltic locomotive for British Rail, presaging the end of steam traction in the UK.

Extensive shadow factory building for war production commenced in the late 1930’s, including at Preston East works and Salmesbury for aircraft production and at East Lancashire Road, Liverpool for D. Napier aero engines. A large variety of military equipment built during the war included thousands of Cromwell tanks from Stafford and over 3000 Handley Page Hampden and Halifax bombers from Preston and Salmesbury. After the war manufacture of smaller products from Bradford and Stafford moved to the large Liverpool works. This included electrical distribution transformers, switchgear, fuse gear, fractional horsepower motors and domestic appliances. Napier’s continued engine manufacture with the development of the ’Deltic’ diesel engine, mainly for marine applications. The nearby Netherton works took over the manufacture of large hydro-electric turbines and generators from Willans and Stafford.

In 1942 English Electric acquired D. Napier & Son Ltd and Marconi in 1946. The company went on to extend their railway interests with the acquisition of the Vulcan Foundry and Robert Stephenson and Hawthorn Ltd in 1955. The company tried to take over The General Electric Company (GEC) in 1960 but failed.

Traction manufacture, but not the offices, moved back to Preston East works and ‘K’, ‘RK’ and ‘V’ engine design and manufacture moved from Willans to Preston West works which was now also used for locomotive building. Kidsgrove works in Stafford made industrial controls and for a while was a major player in the UK computer industry, merging with Leo Computers and then into ICL. Train performance calculations were an early user of the mid-fifties ‘Deuce’ computer. Preston also became a major player in the aircraft industry taking over the wartime RAF/USAF base at Warton aerodrome - major design and manufacture contracts included Canberra bombers and Lightning fighters. Rationalisation in the 1960s resulted in English Electric Aviation becoming 40% of the new British Aircraft Corporation.

In 1961 English Electric took over Dorman Diesels Ltd which in turn had acquired W. G. Bagnall Ltd. In 1966 English Electric Diesels merged with Ruston and Hornsby which already included Paxmans. This company eventually became GEC Diesels. Elliott Automation was acquired in 1967. The following year GEC took over English Electric, ending its independent existence.

In 1959 Associated Electrical Industries (AEI) created a self-contained company named AEI Traction Division to control the railway activities of both Metropolitan Vickers Electrical Company Ltd and British Thomson-Houston (BTH). Included in this company were the interests of the Metropolitan-Vickers General Railway Signal Co., (later to become GEC General Railway Signal). The newly formed company established its headquarters, at Trafford Park, Manchester, and operated from three other sites, Attercliffe Common in Sheffield, Rugby Works, and Stockton Works supplying traction motors, machines, control gear and mechanical parts of locomotives. AEI Traction Limited’s product range encompassed electric and diesel-electric locomotives; electrical equipment for tramcars, trolley buses, trolley mining locomotives, traction motors and gears. In 1969 AEI Traction Division merged with English Electric Traction to form English Electric-AEI Traction Division.

During the First World War the government had taken control of the railways to co-ordinate the war effort. After the war ended it was decided that the railway companies could not competitively return to their prior state, and so the 120 existing railway companies were combined into four companies, which became known as the ‘Big Four’’.

The London Midland and Scottish Railway, also known as the LMS, was founded on 1 January 1923. The London and North Western Railway (LNWR), Midland Railway (MR), Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (LYR), North Staffordshire Railway (NSR), Highland Railway (HR), Furness Railway (FR), Glasgow and South Western Railway (G&SWR) and Caledonian Railway (CR) were merged. These eight large constituent companies were joined by 27 other smaller subsidiary railways. The LMS covered the Western half of the country, stretching from the London and the Midlands, through Yorkshire, Lancashire, and up to Scotland. In all the LMS had a total of 7,790 miles of track, which made it the largest railway of the Big Four.

The London termini of the LMS were St. Pancras and Euston stations and it had works at Crewe, Horwich, Wolverton and Derby amongst other locations. In 1934 the LMS moved into a new headquarters at Euston House on Seymour Street (later renamed Eversholt Street) in London.

Charles Napier Lawrence, 1st Baron Lawrence of Kingsgate was the first appointed chairman of LMS, he had previously been the chairman of the LNWR between 1921-1923. He was chairman of the LMS for one year, and was succeeded by Sir Guy Granet. The management structure was headed by a chairman and a deputy chairman, there was a board of directors that had initially had 20 members, made of men who previously worked for the constituent companies. The first General Manager was Arthur Watson from the LYR. There was a Deputy General Manager for Scotland, a post first held by D.A. Matthieson, formerly of the CR. J.H. Follows, from the Midland Railway, was the first Chief General Superintendent and S.H. Hunt, formerly of the LNWR, was the first Chief Goods Manager. The post of Chief Engineer was initially held by E.F.C. Trench, formerly employed by the LNWR. The first Chief Mechanical Engineer was G. Hughes from the LYR and his deputy was Sir Henry Fowler, from the Midland Railway. The management structure was re-organised from January 1926 and an Executive was set up, Sir Josiah Stamp was the first President of the Executive. From January 1927 four Vice-Presidents were appointed to replace the general managers on the Executive committee. The line was divided up for operational management into three geographical divisions, which were called Western, Midland and Northern. Each division was overseen by a General Superintendent who reported to the Chief General Superintendent.

The main line of the LMS ran from London Euston to Wick over 729 miles. The LMS ran a number of joint railways with the London & North Eastern Railway and the Southern Railway. It ran the Cheshire Lines Committee, the Midland and Great Northern line between Peterborough, the Norwich and Lowestoft and the Manchester, South Junction and Altrincham suburban line with the London & North Eastern Railway. It also joined forces with the Southern Railway to run the Somerset and Dorset line between Bath, Burnham and Bournemouth.

The LMS undertook a limited programme of electrification, mainly focusing on suburban lines in London and Manchester. The LMS owned many hotels, including the Queen’s Hotel in Leeds and the iconic Art Deco Midland Hotel at Morecombe Bay. The LMS also ran passenger steamers from Holyhead, Heysham and Stranraer over the Irish Sea to Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

Following the 1947 Transport Act which nationalised the railways, the concerns of the LMS were taken over by the Railway Executive as part of the British Transport Committee. Within the Railway Executive, British Rail: London Midland Region assumed responsibility for the LMS’s former area of operations.

During the First World War the government took control of the railways to co-ordinate the war effort. After the war it was decided that the railway companies could not competitively return to their prior state, and so the 1921 Railways Act merged the 120 existing railway companies into four companies, which became known as the ‘Big Four’’. Founded in 1923, the Southern Railway took over the railways of South-East England and came to consist of five major railway companies and 14 small ones. The Southern Railway had works at Ashford, Brighton, Lancing and Eastleigh.

The first chairman of the Southern Railway was Brigadier-General Sir Hugh Drummond. Initially the general managers of the three main constituent companies, namely the London & South Western Railway (LSWR), London, Brighton & South Coast Railway (LBSCR) and South Eastern and Chatham Railway (SECR) worked together to lead the Southern Railway during its first year of operation. From 1 January 1924 it was decided that railway would be led by one general manager and one chief mechanical engineer. The first holders of these posts were Sir Herbert Ashcombe Walker, formerly manager of the LSWR and Richard Maunsell previously the Chief Mechanical Engineer of the SECR. Walker was succeeded by Gilbert Szlumper, then Sir Eustace Missenden and the last general manager prior to nationalisation was Sir John Elliott.

The Southern Railway's operating structure was based on geographical divisions, initially these were London (East), London (West), Eastern (Dover) Southern (Brighton), Central (Southampton), and Western (Exeter).

The Southern Railway was the smallest of the Big Four, and it relied primarily on passenger traffic. The Southern Railway’s predecessors had begun the process of electrification around suburban London where there was a high volume of passenger traffic. This programme was continued by the Southern Railway and was approved by its first AGM in March 1924. A rolling programme of electrification continued throughout Southern Railway’s operation, and on 30 December 1932 the newly electrified line to Brighton was opened. Despite Southern Railway’s increasing use of electric trains, steam locomotives continued to be used, especially for goods trains, until the nationalisation of the railways in 1948.

As well as operating rail traffic, the Southern Railway owned and operated docks and harbours along the South Coast, the most important of which was Southampton Docks. It also ran passenger steamers across the English Channel to France. The Southern Railway operated air services to the Channel Islands from a number of airfields in the South-East and had stations at these airfields to allow passengers to transfer.

The 1947 Transport Act nationalised the railways, and the Southern Railway came to be run by the Railway Executive as part of the new British Transport Commission. The Southern Railway’s rail operations were taken over by the Southern Region of British Railways.

The London and North Eastern Railway (LNER) was one of the four railway companies that were formed in 1923 due to the amalgamation of 1921. During the First World War the government had taken control of the railways for the purpose of the war effort. After the war ended it was decided that the railway companies could not competitively return to their prior state, and so the decision was made to combine the 120 existing railway companies into four companies, which became known as ‘the big four’. Smaller railway companies were merged together to form LNER, these previous companies consisted of; Great Central Railway, Great Eastern Railway, Great Northern Railway, Great North of Scotland Railway, Hull and Barnsley Railway, North British Railway and the North Eastern Railway. LNER was the second largest company of the ‘Big Four’ in terms of route miles (total route mileage amounted to 6700) and became famous for its prestigious high speed trains, including the Flying Scotsman and the Mallard, which reached speeds of 126mph (breaking the world record for steam).

William Whitelaw, who was a public figure in Scotland, was appointed the first chairman of LNER operating mainly from the London headquarters. The management of LNER was decentralised as much as possible and one of Whitelaw’s main responsibilities became scrutinising proposals of expenditure, due to the shortage of investments. It was decided that the head of management should be Sir Lewis Wedgewood and it was under his management that three main headquarters should be created to best oversee the company. These areas were; Southern, North-Eastern, with offices being situated in York, and Scotland, which was then divided into Northern and Southern Scotland. By 1928 organisation in LNER had stabilised with the chairman being based in Marylebone, Chief General Manager being based in Kings Cross and the Southern headquarters being based in Liverpool.

Sir Nigel Gresley became the first Chief Mechanical Engineer of the company. Each of the big four had a Chief Mechanical and Electrical Engineering department which was formed in 1923 with the creation of each company and after nationalisation in 1948, one CM&EE department was created. Gresley became very influential in the company, not only due to his designs of the Flying Scotsman and the Mallard, but also his Pacific designs and long-distance locomotives with the ability to overcome difficult operating conditions. Gresley died in office in 1941 and was succeeded by Edward Thompson, who remained CME until 1946. Arthur Peppercorn, a student of Gresley’s, succeeded Thompson but remained CME for just 18 months, as nationalisation cut short his career.

After the Second World War all four railway companies were in financial trouble. The growth of road transport and the effects of the war had meant that each company was in need of severe maintenance work (LMS calculated it would have to spend £40 million on maintenance). Investors of the railways were also at a loss, the LNER’s investors had received no dividend since 1941. With the arrival of a new labour government in 1945, the decision to nationalise all public transport was put forward and in 1948 the ‘Big Four’ were replaced with the British Transport Commission, which separated LNER into Eastern and North Eastern Regions, as well as surrendering the Scottish territory.

The Great Western Railway, also known as the GWR, was founded by Royal Assent on 31 August 1835. The idea of a railway from Bristol to London had first been mooted in 1824, and finally in 1833 a committee of four prominent Bristol businessmen, namely George Jones, John Harford, Thomas Richard Guppy and William Tothill, had joined together and provided impetus and capital for the project. It took two years to survey the line and push the necessary legislation through Parliament. The first train ran from Bristol to Bath on 31 August 1940, full services started in 1841 and in 1842 Swindon Locomotive Works started operation. The London terminus of the GWR was at Paddington station.

At its inception, the GWR had a board of 24 directors which was divided into two committees based in London and Bristol. The first chairman, who sat on the London committee, was Benjamin Shaw and the first deputy chairman was Robert Bright, a member of the Bristol committee. Sir Daniel Gooch was the first Locomotive Superintendent, a post that came later to be known as the Chief Mechanical Engineer. The GWR did not have the post of General Manager until 1863, when Charles Grierson was appointed. The first Secretary was Charles Saunders. Charles Russell became chairman in 1839. The GWR’s first Engineer (a post that would later be called the Chief Civil Engineer) was the renowned Isambard Kingdom Brunel, and he held the post from March 1835 to September 1859. The GWR was overseen by a Board of Directors.

At the turn of the century there were three departments under the General Manager. These were the General Department, New Works and Government Enquiries and Staff and Expenses. On the operational side of the GWR, the various different departments such as the Locomotive, Carriage and Superintendent, the Superintendent of the Line, the Goods Department and the Traffic Manager all used a similar administrative structure. These departments were headed by one manager and beneath this post responsibility was distributed into divisions based on geographical areas, which varied by department. The docks which were owned by the GWR were administrated separately from the railways under the control of the Chief Docks Manager. There were also facilitative administrative departments, as well as Hotels and Catering, Surveyor, Estate Agent, Stores departments and a Road Motor Engineer’s Department which operated the GWR’s road haulage service.

Brunel insisted on using a broad gauge track, which caused problems both in the civil engineering projects to build the railway and also during operation. A Gauge Commission had been appointed in 1846 and brought about the Gauge Act of 16 August 1846 which noted the systemic advantages of narrow gauge but did not compel the GWR to convert the full length of their track. From 1846 a standard gauge third rail was added to board gauge lines. From around 1868, led by then Chairman Sir Daniel Gooch, the GWR began to convert the entire system to standard gauge, and this was completed on 23 May 1892.

The main line of the Great Western Railway ran over the 118¼ miles between Bristol Temple Meads and Paddington station in London. The construction of the main line required several major engineering works. The chief among these was the two-mile long Box Tunnel between Bath and Chippenham. This challenging engineering work took around five years to complete, opening on 30 June 1841. Brunel also constructed viaducts and bridges, including the Maidenhead Bridge, opened on 1 July 1839 and the Royal Albert Bridge at Saltash which linked Devon and Cornwall across the River Tamar and which opened on 11 April 1859.

The GWR had a road haulage operation, which connected with its rail freight services. The GWR also owned and operated a number of docks and harbours, and after the Grouping in 1923 the GWR became the world’s largest dock-owning company. It wholly owned 16 docks, including Plymouth, Swansea and Cardiff, and jointly owned five other docks. The South Wales ports mainly handled minerals and food, whilst passenger ships used Plymouth and Fishguard. The GWR’s docks and harbours allowed goods and passengers to transfer between rail and sea with ease. The GWR also owned its own hotels, which numbered eight by 1923. The showpiece hotel was the Great Western Royal Hotel which was connected to Paddington station.

The Railways Act 1921 came into effect on 1 January 1923 and the multitude of smaller railway companies were consolidated in the Big Four. The GWR absorbed seven larger constituent companies as well as 26 smaller railways covering most of Wales, the Welsh Marches, Somerset, South Devon and Cornwall. It was third largest Big Four railway, with around 3,800 miles of track.

The Great Western Railway, along with all the other Big Four railway companies was nationalised and taken over by the Railway Executive, part of the British Transport Commission from 1 January 1948. The Western Region of British Railways took over responsibilty for GWR's sphere of operations.