British Railways Pre-Nationalisation Coaching Stock

Following nationalisation in 1948, the newly created British Railways continued to construct coaching stock based upon the designs of the 'Big Four' railways until 1951. The Pre-Nationalisation coaching stock built by the four constituent railway companies at the Grouping in 1923 - the Southern Railway, the Great Western Railway, the London, Midland & Scottish Railway and the London and North Eastern Railway - continued to feature in the BR fleet through the 1950s to the mid-1960s, as well as some coaching stock built before 1923 by the precursor railway companies to the 'Big Four'. A number of these pre-Nationalisation coaches are preserved today on various heritage railways around the country or in railway museums. This is a complete list of the coaching stock inherited by British Railways from the Great Western Railway and London & North Eastern Railway including any pre-Grouping stock still in use when the railways were nationalised in 1948. The book covers passenger as well as non-passenger coaches, including corridor and non-corridor stock, sleepers, buffet and restaurant cars, horse boxes and other non-passenger vans, griddle cars, milk tanks, etc. Conversions to departmental stock are also listed. The information in the book is organised by 'Big Four' company and each individual coach is listed, with details of when it was built, introduction and withdrawal dates. Alongside the tabular material will be a line drawing of each carriage type and a selection of mono photographs illustrating examples of the various types of coach being described. Encyclopaedic in coverage, this new volume in the Hugh Longworth library continues in the same style as previous volumes with completely comprehensive detail combined with reference illustrations and photographs. An essential addition to the railway enthusiast's library. A companion volume of the coaching stock inherited by British Railways from the Southern Railway and London, Midland & Scottish Railway will be published in 2018.