The LNER Encyclopedia

There has been some discussions recently regarding the history of specific Gresley Non Vestibule coaches as branded by Hornby in respect of which region they were allocated to (or transferred to) and when they were withdrawn from service.

Where in the official records is this information recorded, especially regarding any changes during BR ownership?

As an aside from this what official records exist?

I am aware that the LNER kept a diagram book which as the title suggests includes weight diagrams of each coach type. Associated with these there are the carriage registers which list for each diagram, the running numbers of the vehicles, when built etc. Pages in the register also show a specific number against a region, but do not recall any inter region transfer dates being included.

The nature of these is that a master was held somewhere and updates pushed out to published copies when they occurred. How reliably these were pushed out and copies maintained may never be known.

I don't recall ever seeing information relating the dates of transfer between region or withdrawal, but clearly this information does exist somewhere for Michael Harris, and others, to have access to it.

I wonder if there were records of when vehicles visited the shops to be revarnished, lifted, relettered, rebranded etc. If not how could any form of maintenance schedule be managed?

I have the same question but with regard to Snowploughs.
If anyone can help I would be grateful.

Mike

There are two threads which might help you. Firstly the RCH kept records of all prenationalisation rolling stock on Hellerith punched cards. These cards were 'liberated' from Eversholt Street in the late 60s and the cards were 'read' by a modern card reader and the contents printed out on a modern line printer. This source info was passed to the LNER Society (as it was then) but I am not sure what happened to it. I do have a copy (somewhere!) of the printout. The infromation may have gone to the late Steven Graddidge.

In 1946 when the LNER standard carriage stock was renumbered, a list was prepared showing the original pre 1946 number, diagram no and new standard stock number. I imagine that if one compared that list with the numbers in the carriage list in Harris, it would show up any inter area transfers. Personally I think they were few, and those that were transferred were ex ECJS.

Nick

Thanks Nick.

Any idea where withdrawals were recorded?

Mike,

Withdrawals were recorded on the cards. Chris Bishop's set of Monographs on LNER Passenger Train Vehicles, has used the information from these cards and the vast majority of withdrawal dates are recorded in that set.

Chris states the set of cards he had access to are in the possession of John Crawley.

Transfers are clearly more difficult to follow after the LNER renumbering.

Bishop records only a few transfers after this. In theory the BR regional prefix letter would have been changed on any permanent transfer to another Region, I do not know whether this information was recorded on the cards. It must have been recorded somewhere at the time.

If you have any specific enquires on withdrawal dates contact me or 65447.

John