Nameplates as Collectables

[Andy Kirkham]

I am wondering when locomotive nameplates automatically became objects of desire so that it became practically unthinkable that any should be scrapped. For instance, did every plate of all locomotives built by the Big Four find a buyer, or did the supply sometimes exceed the demand?

[Ian Smeeton]

There are several photos of steam locos in scrap yards/lines scattered throughout the forum where the nameplates are still in place. 

 

I suspect that most of those ended up being melted down.

 

Regards

 

Ian

[The Border Reiver]

I saw 62710 Lincolnshire with it's plates still on in Darlington North Road scrap yard in October 1960

[Bernard Lamb]

At school (Berkhamsted) there were several GWR nameplates on the wall in the woodwork shop.

That was back in the 1950s.

I cannot remember the names but they had been there a long time even at that date.

I presume that there was a connection with certain people and or places.

Bernard

 

[Steamport Southport]

2 hours ago, Ian Smeeton said:

There are several photos of steam locos in scrap yards/lines scattered throughout the forum where the nameplates are still in place. 

 

I suspect that most of those ended up being melted down.

 

Regards

 

Ian

 

ISTR that most nameplates have been accounted for. I think they were down to double figures of missing ones, including the fact that engines had two or three (some had a spare or one that had been given to the person/organisation it was named after).

 

There was a list of missing ones a few years ago published in one of the magazines. Steam Railway or Railway Magazine?

 

They were definitely being sold off as souvenirs pre 1923. I remember reading that somebody bought broad gauge plates directly from the GWR to be sold as keepsakes for enthusiasts in the 1890s.

 

 

Jason

[jonny777]

4 minutes ago, Steamport Southport said:

 

ISTR that most nameplates have been accounted for. I think they were down to double figures of missing ones, including the fact that engines had two or three (some had a spare or one that had been given to the person/organisation it was named after).

 

 

 

 

There were three oval plaques made for Mallard, after its record run. The spare appeared on Antiques Roadshow a few weeks back. However, it was not valued as highly as I expected, because it had never been carried by the locomotive. 

 

[Steamport Southport]

17 minutes ago, jonny777 said:

 

 

There were three oval plaques made for Mallard, after its record run. The spare appeared on Antiques Roadshow a few weeks back. However, it was not valued as highly as I expected, because it had never been carried by the locomotive. 

 

 

Yes. I remember one of the football clubs had an unused plate and decided to sell it to raise funds. They got a fraction of the price at auction than what it would have made if it was off the locomotive.

 

Was it Darlington? Definitely one of the smaller teams that got a B17 name.

 

 

Jason

[Michael Hodgson]

One of the Shirenewton Hall nameplates was mounted as an archway over two stone pillars at a pedestrian entrance to the grounds of the big house in the village when my parents first lived in the village.  However the plate disappeared after several years, presumably because it had become far too valuable to leave where it was.

[Wickham Green too]

Ah - but was it removed by the owners or by someone else who thought it too valuable to leave where it was ??!?

[Michael Hodgson]

I sometimes wondered ...  I just know it wasn't me !

The Hall was still in private ownership, and it did change hands a few times. 

One of those transactions might have been the reason.   

[Steamport Southport]

3 hours ago, Michael Hodgson said:

One of the Shirenewton Hall nameplates was mounted as an archway over two stone pillars at a pedestrian entrance to the grounds of the big house in the village when my parents first lived in the village.  However the plate disappeared after several years, presumably because it had become far too valuable to leave where it was.

 

West Ham's one was fixed to the wall outside the football ground for years with no vandalism or stealing even in the days before CCTV.

 

Sold by the current owners who seemingly have no sense of history as they sold lots of other things including many of the trophies they had won.

 

http://westhamauction.com/m/lot-details/index/catalog/1/lot/106/

 

Photo here with Bobby Moore.

 

[pH]

8 hours ago, Ian Smeeton said:

There are several photos of steam locos in scrap yards/lines scattered throughout the forum where the nameplates are still in place. 

 

I suspect that most of those ended up being melted down.

 

Regards

 

Ian

It depends if the scrapyard had realized they had a higher value than as scrap. Quite a few locos went to scrapyards still carrying smokebox plates, but they were removed and sold by the scrapyard. I have a couple bought from one scrapyard, and I know of at least one other yard that sold plates.

[kevinlms]

12 hours ago, Steamport Southport said:

 

West Ham's one was fixed to the wall outside the football ground for years with no vandalism or stealing even in the days before CCTV.

 

Sold by the current owners who seemingly have no sense of history as they sold lots of other things including many of the trophies they had won.

 

http://westhamauction.com/m/lot-details/index/catalog/1/lot/106/

 

Photo here with Bobby Moore.

 

Needed room in the Directors Lounge for the single malt whisky cabinet?

[Steamport Southport]

11 minutes ago, kevinlms said:

Needed room in the Directors Lounge for the single malt whisky cabinet?

 

I think more a case of them knowing the price of things but not the "value".

 

They got a brand new massive stadium, mostly paid for by the taxpayer. I think they contributed something like £15 million which would pay a players wages for a few weeks. Whilst at the same time selling off the old ground for redevelopment worth over £40 million and all the fixtures and fittings.

 

The new stadium is familiar to those around the world as the 2012 Olympic Stadium.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London_Stadium

 

I've done the stadium tours at a few clubs and many of them still had their nameplates on display. Liverpool, Everton and Man United also have pretty good museum sections, that even if you aren't a fan of that team are an excellent day out. Worth doing if anyone gets the chance.

 

 

Jason

[adb968008]

A Class 91 went to Sims metals with nameplates still attached a few weeks ago… seems the scrappy realised they shouldnt be chucked in the slow boat to China though.

Edited August 11, 2021 by adb968008

[Rugd1022]

Back in 1962 my other half's Dad was on one of his regular visits to Swindon Works (he supplied the drawing office with photographic materials) and came across several 'King' name and number plates propped up against a wall inside 'A' Shop, a nearby fitter saw him looking at them and told him that they were available to anyone who had £15 going spare. He didn't take up the offer at the time but always wished he had!

 

To this day I'm still kicking myself that I didn't bag a set of plates from D1022 'Western Sentinel' when I had the chance back in 1983, I'd popped into Collector's Corner at Euston and should have put a deposit on them, I went back a few days later and they'd gone. It was the very last Thousand I had a cab ride on, just a week before it was withdrawn.

[Davexoc]

1 hour ago, Rugd1022 said:

Back in 1962 my other half's Dad was on one of his regular visits to Swindon Works (he supplied the drawing office with photographic materials) and came across several 'King' name and number plates propped up against a wall inside 'A' Shop, a nearby fitter saw him looking at them and told him that they were available to anyone who had £15 going spare. He didn't take up the offer at the time but always wished he had!

 

As an apprentice in the Training School we toured the Works, and I remember being shown the Pattern Shop. Full of the wooden patterns for casting all sorts of plaques, builders plates and nameplates. That was 1980, I wonder what happened to those in 1985 ???

[TravisM]

6 hours ago, adb968008 said:

A Class 91 went to Sims metals with nameplates still attached a few weeks ago… seems the scrappy realised they shouldnt be chucked in the slow boat to China though.

They were handed back to the leasing company.  They didn’t have time to remove them at Doncaster before their one way trip, so Sims were told to remove them and representative would collect them.

[adb968008]

2 hours ago, Davexoc said:

 

As an apprentice in the Training School we toured the Works, and I remember being shown the Pattern Shop. Full of the wooden patterns for casting all sorts of plaques, builders plates and nameplates. That was 1980, I wonder what happened to those in 1985 ???

I thought a huge number (thousands) of patterns were saved from Swindon, and are in store at the Science Museums “hangar”. Someone showed me pictures once, many are mundane items like patterns for GWR door handles, and newer ones like mk1 door handles etc.

Edited August 11, 2021 by adb968008

[Johann Marsbar]

12 hours ago, Rugd1022 said:

To this day I'm still kicking myself that I didn't bag a set of plates from D1022 'Western Sentinel' when I had the chance back in 1983, I'd popped into Collector's Corner at Euston and should have put a deposit on them, I went back a few days later and they'd gone. It was the very last Thousand I had a cab ride on, just a week before it was withdrawn.

 

You might like this photo I took at Old Oak in April 1977 then....(rather bereft of nameplates..)

 

 

 

[The Stationmaster]

A number of North British worksplates were officialy (but badly) removed at Old oak and languished in the factory for some years - which is where mine (officially) came from.  I'm surprised Nidge missed them as they were definitely there when he was at Old Oak;

[Rugd1022]

1 hour ago, The Stationmaster said:

A number of North British worksplates were officialy (but badly) removed at Old oak and languished in the factory for some years - which is where mine (officially) came from.  I'm surprised Nidge missed them as they were definitely there when he was at Old Oak;

 

They must have been well Hidden Mike, lord knows I mooched around in the Factory enough times! I did manage to bag a load of 1968 and 1973 style blue and white Old Oak depot stickers from the stores though.

[The Stationmaster]

8 minutes ago, Rugd1022 said:

 

They must have been well Hidden Mike, lord knows I mooched around in the Factory enough times! I did manage to bag a load of 1968 and 1973 style blue and white Old Oak depot stickers from the stores though.

They were kept in a cupboard in a particular individual's office - and the distrustful sort that he was he always locked the door when he wasn't in the office.

[Michael Hodgson]

2 hours ago, The Stationmaster said:

They were kept in a cupboard in a particular individual's office - and the distrustful sort that he was he always locked the door when he wasn't in the office.

You make it sound as though he needed to!  

[The Stationmaster]

7 hours ago, Michael Hodgson said:

You make it sound as though he needed to!  

He probably did - he was not a particularly popular character.