Midland Railway Carriage and Wagon Co
of Washwood Heath, Birmingham and Shrewsbury
1853 The Midland Wagon company was established by William Alexander Adams and others at Rotherham to make railway wagons; eventually it moved to Birmingham.
1867 Dissolution of the Partnership between William Alexander Adams and Henry Griffiths, of Birmingham, in the county of Warwick, Railway Carriage Manufacturers[1]. The business was incorporated in the Midland Wagon Co, presumably becoming Midland Railway Carriage and Wagon Co.
In addition to building stock for practically all the British railways, the firm completed contracts for many countries world-wide.
1881 The company was registered as limited on 12 September. [2]
1894 The company (of Shrewsbury) constructed a fleet of new Two-Horse Forty-Seat Tramcars for Glasgow Corporation Tramways. Article and illustrations in 'The Engineer'. [3]
1896/7 Directory: Listed for Railway Equipment. [4]
1902 Rationalisation of the rolling stock industry began when the Metropolitan Amalgamated Railway Carriage and Wagon Co was formed, incorporating Joseph Wright's old firm with other well known companies such as Ashbury, Brown, Marshalls and Co, Oldbury and Lancaster railway carriage companies.
1912 Moved from Landor Street to new works at Washwood Heath in Birmingham.
1913 One of 15 established companies involved in manufacture and hiring-out of railway rolling stock[5]
WWI Hosted a National Shell Factory
1918 Wagon Repairs was established to acquire the wagon-repairing business of various wagon-building firms including the Midland Railway Carriage and Wagon Co.
By 1924 was an associate company of Cammell, Laird and Co
1926 Received an order from the London and North-Eastern Railway for four articulated trains comprising thirty-two coaches in all.[6]
1929 Vickers, after acquiring the shares of the Metropolitan Co, came together with Cammell, Laird and Co and each merged their rolling stock interests to form Metro Cammell.
1932 The preference shares in the company were acquired by Metro Cammell[7]
See Also
Sources of Information
- [1] Wikipedia
- Birmingham’s Industrial Heritage by Ray Shill. Published by Sutton Publishing 2002. ISBN 0-7509-2593-0
- ↑ London Gazette 8 January, 1867
- ↑ The Stock Exchange Year Book 1908
- ↑ The Engineer 1894/03/23 p239 & p242
- ↑ Peck's Trades Directory of Birmingham, 1896-97:Railway Equipment
- ↑ The Times, Sep 20, 1913
- ↑ The Engineer 1926/07/16
- ↑ The Times, Oct 13, 1932