York NER / LNER Printing Works

[tkthistory]

I am trying to find information on the NER / LNER Printing works in York. I understand that it printed both edmondson tickets and luggage labels. I cannot however find any information on its operation, what machinery it used, when it commenced operations, when it ceased operation and where was it housed in York.
All I do know is that in 1932 it was producing all NER; NBR; GNoS; LOR and some GC section tickets. Ticket output in 1931 was 52,331,626 tickets at a cost of GBP4,453 with 17 staff employed as at 31 Dec 1931.
Any information would be very welcome.

[Dave]

I understand it was in the grounds of the Station Hotel in the small building opposite the GPO sorting office and next to Marble Arch, the tunnel that takes Leeman Rd under the railway on the way to the NRM.

A friend of mine was involved in doing work on the building in the early 1980's converting it to somthing to do with the hotel (I believe), and gave me lots of bits of LNER printed material that was left scattered on the floor.

[65447]

The LNER Printing Works was at Stratford, although there may have been a residual printing facility formerly belonging to the NER at York and possibly on other constituent's premises. Stratford definitely did the Edmondson ticket printing as there are numerous written references to it doing so.

I have made a quick search of the LNER Magazine and the only obvious references to ticket printing in the NE Area are to new ticket printing machines installed in Newcastle Booking Office. That is not to say that some printing was not done there, just that it was definitively not the LNER Printing Works.

[tkthistory]

Thanks Dave for the information. I will check photos and maps for its location.

[tkthistory]

Thanks 65447. Stratford certainly was a large printing works for LNER however in December 1932 a report was prepared for the LNER Board on whether to concentrate ticket printing at Stratford. At the time of the report Stratford were producing 61 million tickets and York 52 million tickets, therefore the effort was shared between the two sites. Previously GNR tickets had been produced at a facility at Holloway and this work was transferred to Stratford in 1923. In 1924 the production of GNoSR tickets was moved from Paton's in Edinburgh to the York printing works. According to the report, by 1932 ticket printing was divided between Stratford and York as follows:
- Stratford - all GE, GN, and excursion tickets for stations south of Woodhouse and Lincoln
- York - all NER, NBR, GNoSR, LOR and all other GC section tickets.
I am trying to source a full copy of this report for more information. When to hand I will post more details, however up to 1932 the ticket printing work appears to have been jointly undertaken by facilities at York and Stratford and at some time after 1932 was centralised at Stratford.
The big question is when?

[Dave]

I'm going to the NRM on Wednesday, so if I remember I will take a photo of the building as it is now.

[Dave]

Tkthistory.

Here are the pics of the building as it is today, the date over the door is 1912. The top floor above the parapet is the later addition when it was refurbished and became part of the hotel.