Grace's Guide To British Industrial History

Registered UK Charity (No. 115342)

Grace's Guide is the leading source of historical information on industry and manufacturing in Britain. This web publication contains 162,258 pages of information and 244,500 images on early companies, their products and the people who designed and built them.

Grace's Guide is the leading source of historical information on industry and manufacturing in Britain. This web publication contains 147,919 pages of information and 233,587 images on early companies, their products and the people who designed and built them.

F. C. Hibberd and Co

From Graces Guide
1929. 20 B.H.P. Planet Locomotive.
Hibberd locomotive 'Planet' at Bideford in 2011.
Hibberd locomotive 'Planet' (detail).

F. C. Hibberd and Co Ltd was a British locomotive-building company founded in 1927 to build industrial diesel locomotives.

In 1932 the company acquired the good will of James and Frederick Howard and the company moved to Park Royal and began manufacturing locomotives.

From 1956 Thomas Hill (Rotherham) Ltd, THR, sold Hibberd locomotives to non-Hibberd customers on an informal commission basis until 1960. The relationship ended because Hibberd were becoming worried that THR would sell their own locomotives to customers in preference to the Hibberd product.

The company was acquired by the Butterley Co in the early 1960s and in 1964 production was moved to Ripley.

The last locomotive built to a Hibberd design was delivered in 1968.

Hibberd used the name Planet for their locomotives but this should not be confused with the much earlier Planet steam locomotive.

Locations of preserved Hibberd "Planet" locomotives in the United Kingdom include:

  • East Lancashire Railway
  • Bridgend Valleys Railway
  • Buckinghamshire Railway Centre
  • Cholsey and Wallingford Railway
  • North Woolwich Old Station Museum
  • Ffestiniog Railway

See Also

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Sources of Information