Ernest F Carter

[kevinlms]

On 22/01/2023 at 04:44, Old Gringo said:

Until Andy Kirkham posted the list of titles he had discovered on the internet, I hadn't realised just how many books Ernest Frank Carter (1899 - 1964?) had written.  It also came as a surprise to find

 

Perhaps, it may also come as a surprise, that EFC wrote a letter which appeared in Model Railway Constructor for 1975 December (the 500th issue)! He wrote about how the MRC almost didn't come to be.

 

He wrote that he had to write and compile the whole issue himself and it took 2 days and nights without sleep on the hand typeset, which he almost dropped off the bench. He only just retrieved it, otherwise there would have been no MRC, as too tired to start again from scratch! Must have been very close, with only one arm.

[Old Gringo]

On 23/01/2023 at 00:44, kevinlms said:

Perhaps, it may also come as a surprise, that EFC wrote a letter which appeared in Model Railway Constructor for 1975 December (the 500th issue)! He wrote about how the MRC almost didn't come to be.

 

He wrote that he had to write and compile the whole issue himself and it took 2 days and nights without sleep on the hand typeset, which he almost dropped off the bench. He only just retrieved it, otherwise there would have been no MRC, as too tired to start again from scratch! Must have been very close, with only one arm.

 

Thank you very much for this information, Kevin (lms). 

It is a surprise to find that out - and maybe I can explain why I had made the assumption that Ernest had died in 1964 ? (and hence the question-mark).

 

Unfortunately, I have been unable to obtain a copy of "the professional biography published in the Train Collectors Society Journal" (referred to by Kevin (Nearholmer) in post number 2), which no doubt would have given Ernest's age when he died, plus a lot more useful information.

 

In the time since I started reviewing how many of E.F. Carter's books I actually had on my book-shelves and then deciding to post about some of them, I've yet to find a book published after 1964 (by which date Ernest would have been 65 years old).

 

In my last post about a book, I had reached those I had found published before 1959 and I've got a couple more posts roughed out following the next books by Ernest F.Carter up to 1964. 

 

The years of effort that he must have devoted to his 'magnum opus' published by Cassell in 1959 and then what happened to the railways of Britain during 1963 / 1964, might explain why (AFAIK) it appears that he never wrote another book after that date?

 

I really would like to read that biography of Ernest Frank Carter published in the TCS Journal.  If there is anyone reading this who has a copy, please PM me?

 

Thanks again for the note. 

All the very best,

John

Edited January 24, 2023 by Old Gringo
grammar (probably still poor)

[Old Gringo]

Possibly driven by 'the post WW2 baby boom', I wonder if the 1950s might have been a golden-era for books aimed at young people wanting to learn about their world (viz: Ladybird books, Observers pocket-books, The Globe series, The True books, etc.) and Ernest Frank Carter was just one of the authors helping to inform and educate. 

Nowadays, of course, we have Wiki and Twitter-truths and old-geezers typing stuff on RMWeb.

 

But, just for anyone interested in what more of the 'Globe' series of books by Muller were about: the other eleven titles published by 1959 were:

Bridges and Tunnels, by H.A. Hartley;  Racing Cars, by Dennis May; 

Airships, by Captain J.A. Sinclair;  Air-Routes, by Harold Champion;  Airports, by John Stroud;

River Craft , by F.E. Dean;  Harbours, by Lieut.-Commander, Peter Kemp; 

Ships, by Lt.-C., Peter Kemp;  Sailing Ships, by Commander, D.P. Capper; 

Battleships, also by Commander Capper and Waterways, by Keith Bean.

 

And, following on from the 'Globe' series books by Muller Publishing, Ernest Carter also wrote Number 72 in the 'True Book' series for Muller - 'The True Book About Railways' published in 1959.  This is another little book packed full of facts and figures, with illustrations by Kenneth Carter.  There are 17 ink drawings and a map among the 142 pages of information on the history of railways all around the world.  Surprisingly, my ex-school library copy (costing just 10p at a jumble sale) is in remarkably good condition and still fun to read.  BTW, John Thomas, the Scots author of many books on Scottish railway subjects also wrote three of the 'True Book' series.

 

Back to Ernest F. Carter's 1950s output: Later in 1959, another very useful book for serious railway enthusiasts and historians was published by Cassell & Company Limited, entitled, 'An Historical Geography of the Railways of the British Isles'. 

 

IMO, this is Carter's 'magnum opus' and must have been the result of years of painstaking research.  A hefty 638 page book containing a year by year account of the development of the railway network across Great Britain and Ireland, from 1801 to 1947, with comprehensive Appendices of lapsed Acts and a detailed Index.

 

This is an exceptional and often over-looked ** reference work, which after over six decades is not often seen with a dust-wrapper, hence the photo of just the spine of my copy!  I find that it's a good starting point for further detailed research into what's left of our islands' railway networks, although unfortunately it lacks a lot of references, which are generally found in this style of academic research (cf: Jack Simmons, Railways of Britain, An Historical Introduction, 1961, Routledge and Kegan Paul, London).

 

However, unless you can navigate Britain via a phone-app., Ernest's weighty tome is best consulted with an Atlas of the British Isles to hand.  Why? because it is a book about 'geography' which lacks any maps (!) and a general fold-out map of the British Isles would be especially useful when discovering where a line was projected and later built.  Whishaw's Railways of Britain in 1842 and Bradshaw's Timetables had fold-out maps, so why not this book?  Anyway, if I'm going to open Carter's book, I always have my battered British Railways Pre-Grouping Atlas and Gazetteer (Ian Allan, 1959 / 5th edition 1976) to hand, plus the Railway Clearing House map of Ireland's railways in 1927 (an excellent paper reprint by the Irish Railway Society).

 

**  Overlooked perhaps, because it appeared in book-shops at the same time as Part 2 of Hamilton Ellis's superb British Railway History, Volume 2 1877-1947, published by George Allen & Unwin Ltd., 1959.  (Volume 1 1830-1876 had been published in 1954 and reprinted in 1956).  Could it be worth a topic on Cuthbert Hamilton Ellis (1909-1987)?

 

[Oldddudders]

2 hours ago, Old Gringo said:

 Could it be worth a topic on Cuthbert Hamilton Ellis (1909-1987)?

Since he grew up in Dorking, as did Sherry and I a few years later, and wrote a delightful history of the LBSCR, he already commands exalted status..... 

[Nearholmer]

CH-E wrote some truly readable books, as well as the odd dud, always entertaining, but he seems to remember a fair few things that happened before he was born, or was old enough to credibly recall them, which makes me a tad suspicious that accuracy might occasionally have played second fiddle to a good story.

[melmoth]

18 minutes ago, Nearholmer said:

CH-E wrote some truly readable books, as well as the odd dud, always entertaining, but he seems to remember a fair few things that happened before he was born, or was old enough to credibly recall them, which makes me a tad suspicious that accuracy might occasionally have played second fiddle to a good story.

 

Yes, his 'memories' of Victoria station before the Great War always seemed somewhat precocious. 

[2mm Andy]

1 hour ago, Oldddudders said:

Since he grew up in Dorking, as did Sherry and I a few years later, and wrote a delightful history of the LBSCR, he already commands exalted status..... 

Cuthbert Hamilton-Ellis was the subject of three interesting blog posts by Robert Humm (the Stamford railway book-seller);

 

https://www.roberthummbooks.co.uk/blog/?p=600

 

Andy

[kevinlms]

9 hours ago, Old Gringo said:

 

Thank you very much for this information, Kevin (lms). 

It is a surprise to find that out - and maybe I can explain why I had made the assumption that Ernest had died in 1964 ? (and hence the question-mark).

 

Unfortunately, I have been unable to obtain a copy of "the professional biography published in the Train Collectors Society Journal" (referred to by Kevin (Nearholmer) in post number 2), which no doubt would have given Ernest's age when he died, plus a lot more useful information.

 

In the time since I started reviewing how many of E.F. Carter's books I actually had on my book-shelves and then deciding to post about some of them, I've yet to find a book published after 1964 (by which date Ernest would have been 65 years old).

 

In my last post about a book, I had reached those I had found published before 1959 and I've got a couple more posts roughed out following the next books by Ernest F.Carter up to 1964. 

 

The years of effort that he must have devoted to his 'magnum opus' published by Cassell in 1959 and then what happened to the railways of Britain during 1963 / 1964, might explain why (AFAIK) it appears that he never wrote another book after that date?

 

I really would like to read that biography of Ernest Frank Carter published in the TCS Journal.  If there is anyone reading this who has a copy, please PM me?

 

Thanks again for the note. 

All the very best,

John

Thanks for your comments, John.

 

I do remember reading EFC's letter from years ago. Just a matter of finding it! Actually my index made that relatively simple since it was included.

 

As far as why did he stop writing apparently in 1964, at age 65.

 

I'll put forward a suggestion, of which I have no knowledge either way.

 

Maybe on reaching retirement age, he simply retired - read as more likely pushed, by a wife, who insisted. I put forward that, because I remember a former boss, where exactly that happened to him. Perhaps not entirely surprising, is that he died not long after retirement!

 

Another bloke I knew on his retirement, used to make his lunch in the morning and went out to his workshop and re-entered the house at his 'normal' pre-retirement time. One way of getting things done and out from under the feet of his wife.

He lived into his late 80s and was the last Victorian Railways boiler inspector. He outlived his contemporaries by a long margin, who had transferred to making suburban trains and they all died of asbestos related illness.

[The Stationmaster]

12 hours ago, melmoth said:

 

Yes, his 'memories' of Victoria station before the Great War always see'med somewhat precocious. 

He was 5 years old when the Great War broke out and with a father who 'took an interest' he might well have acquired some sort of knowledge or had things explained to him beyond what the normal casual observer would have noticed.  When I talked to him that day at Norwich he spoke about the Great eastern and made it very clear that he had never encountered engines in Great Eastern blue saying that 'to learn about them you really need to talk to Cecil J Allen'.   So if nothing else he certainly wasn't inventing any memories that despite being firmly on GE territory.

[Nearholmer]

We’ve talked about this before, and to be fair to him it is possible to have “snapshot” memories from a very early age. Waterloo is a good case, it must always have impressed small boys, because I have very clear memories of the place from a very early age. If you read what Mr Humm has to say, he mentions that CH-E could convey in writing the impression that he “actually been there” without claiming to have been.

 

Branch line alert. It would be interesting to hear Robert Humm’s memories of other well-known authors. I went to fetch some books from him a few years back and was surprised when he regaled me with tales of the author of one of them who he had known quite well, a pretty obscure volume about the history of electric locos in Europe, which was really interesting/useful because it gave me a good feel for what sort of source the author constituted.

Edited January 25, 2023 by Nearholmer

[Oldddudders]

19 minutes ago, Nearholmer said:

Branch line alert. It would be interesting to hear Robert Humm’s memories of other well-known authors. I went to fetch some books from him a few years back and was surprised when he regaled me with tales of the author of one of them who he had known quite well, a pretty obscure volume about the history of electric locos in Europe, which was really interesting/useful because it gave me a good feel for what sort of source the author constituted.

F Hauck?

[Nearholmer]

Nearly. It is ‘Haut’.

 

Did you know him too?

 

He wrote a “pictorial history” in English, but the one I wanted, and obtained from Mr Humm, is a what I understand to be a more detailed book (i don’t have the English one, and this one is certainly very rich with engineering  drawings) in German.

 

 

 

 

Edited January 25, 2023 by Nearholmer

[Old Gringo]

17 hours ago, 2mm Andy said:

Cuthbert Hamilton-Ellis was the subject of three interesting blog posts by Robert Humm (the Stamford railway book-seller);

 

https://www.roberthummbooks.co.uk/blog/?p=600

 

Andy

 

Thanks very much indeed, Andy,

for posting the link regarding Cuthbert Hamilton Ellis.

 

What a super read the three blog-posts are. 

And just what you would expect from Robert Humm, all the books pictured have perfect dust-wrappers! 

 

I had always wondered what the dust-jackets on the two novels, 'Grey Men' and 'Dandy Hart' looked like, because the book illustrations for The Grey Men (published by Oxford University Press) are by Gilbert Dunlop and Dandy Hart is purely text.  The three novels that Terence Cuneo illustrated are super little books and used to be sought after by those that follow Cuneo's illustrious painting career.

 

Strange to relate but I also read my school's reference library copy of 'The Trains We Loved' and was hooked from the first twelve words, "Surely it was always summer when we made our first railway journeys!" (something I've written before on RMWeb,  perhaps in the 'Which is your favourite railway book? topic).  And how about that last line of the book, ". . . and they were the days when the steam locomotive, unchallenged, bestrode the world like a friendly giant." Published in 1947, first read by me in 1962 and you'll have to work hard to beat those first and last lines.

 

It seems that the 'blogs' were written and posted in September 2017 and it says "to be concluded".  I wonder why it hasn't been completed, as there's still more of Hamilton Ellis's published work not included in the previous three episodes.  For example 'King Steam' (Limited Edition), 'The Splendour of Steam' and 'The Lore of Steam' are three larger format books that I know of.

 

Anyway, good to see that there is a well written and comprehensive book-by-book biography of Cuthbert Hamilton Ellis and thanks again for posting the link.

All the very best,

John

[Oldddudders]

2 hours ago, Nearholmer said:

Nearly. It is ‘Haut’.

 

Did you know him too?

 

He wrote a “pictorial history” in English, but the one I wanted, and obtained from Mr Humm, is a what I understand to be a more detailed book (i don’t have the English one, and this one is certainly very rich with engineering  drawings) in German.

A gricer friend 40 years ago had a large library and the volume stood out for some reason. I didn't examine it - far too technical for me! 

[Nearholmer]

He lived in Purley, which doesn’t seem the sort of place where emigre engineering experts might settle.

[VIA185]

On 22/01/2023 at 11:42, The Stationmaster said:

'Old Gringo's  mention of LTC Rolt reminds me of a chap who lived round the corner from us.  His surname was Rolt-Hammond, an engineer, and he knew Tom Rolt quite well.  Apparently they used to wonder if they were in fact related because both of them - according to Rolt-Hammond - had been adopted at an early age and they shared similar interests apart from the similarity in surnames.  This was of course back before the days when it became much easier for adopted folk to trace back to their natural parents.

 

I actually met and spoke to Hamilton Ellis - on Norwich station platform when taking a day trip on a 'GE Progress Chasers' special excursion.  Give him his due he was more than happy to talk to a spotty teenager and as I had (and still have) a number of his books I found it very interesting to talk to him.  One thing perhaps not often realised is that various of his pictures were used at one time by BR for the pictures included in some compartment stock.

When I moved, with Ian Allan Ltd, to Shepperton in 1964, Cuthbert Hamilton-Ellis paid us a visit, one day. IA had just taken over 'Modern Transport' and moved its office from Fleet Street to Shepperton. Hamilton-Ellis had apparently worked (or freelanced) for MT, as had John Parke, the Editor of Buses Illustrated. John was a wonderful story-teller and recounted to me how one day the basement of the Fleet Street office had flooded. (Readers may remember how it was built over the Fleet river, which from time to time put in an appearance in the buildings). Anyway, according to John, Hamilton-Ellis stripped to his underpants and waded into the basement in order to rescue the bound volumes of Modern Transport and sundry other publications stored down there. I recall IA's art collection had a number of Hamilton-Ellis's superb paintings of pre-Grouping trains, renowned for the authenticity of the liveries. (CJL)

[melmoth]

1 hour ago, Nearholmer said:

He lived in Purley, which doesn’t seem the sort of place where emigre engineering experts might settle.

 

Well, the French Emperor Napoleon III lived his last years in exile at Chiselhurst and is buried at Farnborough.

[kevinlms]

5 hours ago, Nearholmer said:

He lived in Purley, which doesn’t seem the sort of place where emigre engineering experts might settle.

'Say no more, Purley eh'.

 

https://getyarn.io/yarn-clip/f9245bad-cf72-49d9-a5c5-cf7defcddad8

[St Enodoc]

7 hours ago, Nearholmer said:

He lived in Purley, which doesn’t seem the sort of place where emigre engineering experts might settle.

Not far from "LBSC" though.

[Old Gringo]

Anyone still following this topic will no doubt be happy to know that, I've only found six more books written by Ernest F. Carter !

 

In 1960, it appears that E. F. C. turned his attention again to worldwide railways, with 'The Boys Book of World Railways' (144 pages) first published in 1960 by Burke Publishing Limited.  A similar size (10" x 8") to the previously noted, 'Boy's Book of Model Railways' (1958), the 'World's Railways' book was reprinted in 1961 and the dust-jacket photograph (of this second edition) is by Broncard; titled, "Luminous signals at the Gare de Lyon, Paris".

 

Although perhaps frowned upon, I'll speculate that this book possibly demonstrates the beginning of a tiny shift in attitudes and marketing by the publishing industry, as the 'Swinging Sixties' was about to open up new opportunities for all those youngsters who had "never had it so good" (to use a phrase uttered by a well-known and well-heeled politician of the period).

 

To illustrate this possible change,  here's the second sentence (of seven) from the dust-jacket fly of the 1961 edition of The Boys' Book of World Railways, "Train-spotting has never been more popular and the modern boy is eager to add to his knowledge of trains, both British and foreign."  And then the last sentence, "Ernest F. Carter, author of the best-selling books on model railways - The Boy's Book of Model Railways and The Model Railway Encyclopaedia - has now written a work, which no boy, OR GIRL, interested in trains will want to be without".

 

There are 32 titles are advertised on the rear of the dust-jacket, and it surprised me that in this list you can still see the expectations for the majority of young people in Britain, fifteen years after WW2.

 

There's 22 Books for Boys' and only 8 for Girls', plus just one for Boys' and Girls' (Book of Films and Television by Mary Field and Maud Miller).  Then there's 'The Young Collector's Book'  - maybe the first ever to include everyone in society?!   I also found it amusing that in the list, there was 'The Winter Book for Boys' and then 'The Winter Book for Girls' !  Surely snow and ice didn't discriminate between boys and girls, dressed in skirts and short trousers!

 

Anyway, Four books in the Boys' series are credited to Ernest and two to Patrick Moore (The Boys' Book of Astronomy and The Boys' Book of Space!).  Everything to stretch the mind is there somewhere for Boys', from Scotland Yard to Motors,  Medical Science to Magic, etc., whilst Girls' can thrill to Ballet, Ballroom Dancing, Skating and of course Cooking!  Fast forward to 2023 and to stretch a lot more than the mind, xx% of Britain are clinically obese and one of the most popular TV programmes is 'Bake Off'?

 

Back to Ernest; Later in 1960 the Boys' Book was followed by 'Unusual Locomotives'; another World-wide survey of 222 pages, measuring 9" x 6" and published by Muller with an eye-catching dust-wrapper covered in engines.  For 10 shillings and six-pence (52.5p), an interesting selection of locomotives is presented and illustrated with lots of black & white photographs and a few line drawings; from Trevithick's Penydarren engine to the Pennsylvania Railroad's stream-lined T/1, 4-4-4-4 express locomotive.

 

[Old Gringo]

After the world-wide surveys, it appears that as the Sixties' got underway, E.F.C. turned his Prototype focus back to 'British Steam Locomotives'; compiling one of Foyles Handbooks - a series of which there were over 200 titles.  Published in 1962, this is a handy pocket-sized (7.25" x 5") overview, with a useful glossary and appendices; 92 pages and well worth the original price of four shillings (20p).

 

The last paragraph on page 79 is a poignant reminder of how naive almost all British railway enthusiasts, authors and especially short-trousered, train-spotters were in 1962:

"Fortunately, the steam locomotive still enjoys unchallenged pride of place in the hearts of tens of thousands of present-day railway engine devotees - and why?  Maybe it is because each engine has an individual personality and is self-sufficient - a power station on wheels.  Maybe it is because it has 'life', and has to be 'nursed' by driver and fireman to give of its best.  Or maybe it is only our imagination.  Who knows?  But, whatever the reason for their overwhelming popularity, it is a cheering thought that the 12,676 steam locomotives still running will be with us for many years to come - although in steadily decreasing numbers."

 

Of course, when Ernest wrote that final paragraph to the book, he wouldn't know that December 1962 would see the largest number of steam locomotives ever condemned in a single month.  Britain also began experiencing the worst winter in living memory* and this was before any of 'Doctor Beeching's medicinal cures were even published.  From the late Spring of 1963 the network was slashed by closures of many lines, after the publication of the infamous 're-shaping' report.

 

* Many people could also remember the winter of 1947 and generally agreed 1963 was worse (because the extreme weather lasted for a longer period  - continuously from the last week of December until the end of March).

 

[Nearholmer]

Well, that was a nostalgiefest, because I remember the winter of 62-63 quite clearly, although I was only a small boy, and some kind relative bought me that book, one which I’d entirely forgotten until I saw the photo.

 

EFC was truly up there with CJF and a few others as what would now be called “an influencer”.

[Old Gringo]

My previous post ended with the 'doom and gloom' of 60 years ago and the start of the drastic reduction of Britain's railway network, with a closure programme dictated by political dogma plus skewed economics and administered by perhaps the first 'corporate raider'* of British industry.

 

[* Corporate raider is a term used to describe a top executive (usually hired on an excessive salary compared to the previous incumbent), who after 'shaking things up' moves on leaving 'the task they were hired to solve' unfinished.  Apparently, being able to look dispassionately at anything should produce a better result, but it's very difficult to achieve the right balance in any industry regarded as a public service and especially so without accurate forecasts, or projections.  Often, the best 'raiders' have little working experience and even less empathy with the industry that they have been parachuted into to 'solve the immediate problem' - or maybe just balance the books.]

 

However, besides reductions and redundancies on the railways, the upside of 1963 would be the explosion of new revolutionary 'popular music' and also yet another excellent prototype reference book from Ernest Carter; 'The Railway Encyclopaedia', published by Harold Starke Limited.

 

An easy-to-use (5.75" x 8.75") comprehensive A to Z guide to Britain's (1962) railway network, in which nearly 5,000 entries run alphabetically and chronologically on 365 pages, with both technical and railwaymen's terms, historical and biographical notes.

Although obviously dated now (2023), it is a unique factual reference work and still useful 60 years later to help to discover details of many railway features shown on contemporary maps and atlases.

 

For example: "Queensbury Tunnel: On the former Great Northern Railway, built 1878.  2,500 yards long, 8 ventilating shafts, the deepest being 413 feet.  Located between Holmfield and Queensbury."  Precise information when following the route on a "one-inch" (or later 1:50,000 scale) Ordnance Survey map, or on pages 383 and 395 of 'The Railways of Great Britain, An Historical Atlas', by Colonel Michael Cobb, 2 Volumes first published by Ian Allan, 2003).

 

AFAIK, only four 'encyclopaedias' exist and the one that compares best with E.F.C's has its title spelt incorrectly:  'The Railway Enthusiast's Encyclopedia' by O.S. Nock (1904-1994) was published by Hutchinson in 1968.  Perhaps, one of Oswald Nock's better books: 342 pages and with the information presented under 14 headings, rather than in an A-Z format.  Another useful starting point for today's railway enthusiast, but with a weak chronology, a few errors and a now very dated bibliography.

 

Although there are a few railway subjects that have encyclopedias (Railway Companies, Locomotives, etc.), the other two general encyclopedias (that I know of) take on the greater scope of encompassing world-wide railway developments:  The Pictorial Encyclopedia of Railways, by Hamilton Ellis, (592 pages inc. index) Paul Hamlyn Publishing, 1968, and The Encyclopedia of Railways, O.S.Nock,  (480 pages, coffee-table sized) published by Octopus Books in 1977.

 

Another comparable encyclopaedic reference work (although overlooked now, because of the ease in using the web) is the 'Oxford Companion to British Railway History', edited by Jack Simmons & Gordon Biddle. Published by Oxford University Press in 1997.  590 pages including maps and dealing with information from 1603 to the 1990s, but without an index!

 

Here's a picture of Ernest Carter's encyclopaedic book, the one that started them all.

 

 

[Old Gringo]

This was nearly the last post from me about Ernest Frank Carter's books !

 

Did anyone get the link in Friday's post to the current award winning 'Happy Valley' TV series, which had an extremely dramatic ending last night?  In the penultimate episode, 'Tommy' was holed up (for one night) in a terraced house situated in Queensbury.  Thanks to Ernest's Encyclopaedia, we knew it was around 400 feet above the disused tunnel.  And Queensbury station (1879-1955) was also one of the few triangular stations with platforms on all three sides.  Not unique, but a feature that only an elite few possessed (and which may have been discussed on RMweb before?)

 

There were 12 books listed (by Andy in the OP) in which Ernest wrote about Prototype railways.  In this post we have reached (AFAIK) the final two hard-backed books about prototype railways and both were published in 1964.

 

The first was 'Railways in War Time', published by Frederick Muller; 222 pages covering railway and military activities between 1846 and 1945.  This might well be the first book to tackle the complete history of this subject, with details of a century of conflicts using railways across three continents.

 

The Bibliography has references dating from 1833 to 1954 and includes all the Big Four's in house magazines.  It also references Wartime publications: e.g. 'It Can Now be Revealed', 1945 (one of the 64 page illustrated paperbacks published by The British Railways Press Office on behalf of the Big Four and London Transport), plus 'The LMS at War', by George Nash, published by the LMSR in 1946.  This is a superbly produced hardback with a striking illustration of three women cleaning a Saltley-based Black Five on the maroon-coloured dust-jacket and a book which includes 8 colour plates by the artist Norman Wilkinson, PRI (1878-1971) plus numerous photographs.

 

However, it was surprising not to find a reference to, 'Timetable for Victory', British Railways War History 1939-45, by Evan John (E.J. Simpson), published by The British Railways, London, in 1947.  A 268 page (8.75 x 5.75") hardback produced in complete conformity with the authorised economy standards, with 70 illustrations, including photographs, maps and diagrams and a fold-out map of Great Britain & Northern Ireland at the back.  If you're interested in WW2 events, all these books, including E.F. Carter's are worth browsing and maybe even adding to your collection.

 

The second book published in 1964 (and possibly Ernest Carter's last) was 'Let's Look at Trains' with an unusual treatment of graphite illustrations by Kenneth Carter.  One of the 'Let's look at' series published by Frederick Muller Limited, which had books on subjects including Trees and Prehistoric Animals - as opposed to 'Iron Dinosaurs!

 

For those interested in Muller's 'Let's Look at' series of books, by 1964 there were 16 titles listed in the series.   They follow another range of books marketed under a similar title, the 'Look Books' series, published by Hamish Hamilton and 'Look at Railways', by L.T.C. Rolt, (with ink illustrations by Thomas Godfrey) had appeared in 1959.

 

However, even if Rolt's writing about the early railways might be just that bit more accurate, Ernest's trains are much more exciting and bring the story of railways right into the modern electric era.  Along with, his son, Kenneth's bigger and better illustrations, Let's Look at Trains' is the book you really wanted.  And Ernest's life-long enthusiasm for railways shines through from the very first line of his attractive final 64 page children's book. "It's great fun going for a train ride," he says.

 

Well, it was back then, especially as the Beatles would soon release 'Ticket to Ride' to sing along too, as the steam from those iron dinosaurs drifted past the windows!

 

 

 

[Old Gringo]

As a final note regarding the output of Ernest Frank Carter, it seems that Andy Y. was right and I did have a few more of his books than I first thought.  Anyway, I hope that the posts have helped to illustrate some of the range of railway-connected subjects that he tackled.

 

Of course, as a railway 'book-nerd', I've found it interesting to follow his output of hard-backed books in the years between 1950 to 1964 - and in a few cases to compare their content with other authors' books on similar subject matter.  

 

A couple of Ernest's books covered areas of railway study not previously tackled (e.g. liveries) and over six decades later they can be criticised (unfairly IMO) for the lack of references, etc..  But, I believe we should take into consideration that without their starting point, would so much information be available now?  What I find surprising is that he wasn't just writing about railways at this time.  As we can see from Andy Kirkham's list in the OP, there are at least another eleven publications, on other transport subjects (from trams and buses, to motor cycles and veteran cars) which were also produced between 1950 and 1964.

 

However, I'm still at a loss as to why an extremely focussed, one-armed gentleman (a train-spotter from 1914, who had written so much about both prototype and model railways for thirty years, beginning with the Model Railway Constructor magazine in 1934) would appear not to have written another book after 'Let's Look at Trains' published in 1964.

 

Unless? . . . . after all the research for his penultimate book (how our railway network had been used and abused throughout the two World Wars), and then considering the miss-management by succession of British governments, which had happened throughout his literary career, he read the 'Re-shaping report' of 1963   . . . . . and then he just went to his model railway workshop and gently shut the door on all those chapters of his life?  Or, was it, as St Enodoc suggests, that he just put his pen down and retired?

 

I'm still left wondering and I'd also be interested to know if his son, Kenneth Carter (1931-2004), had any input into that biography of Ernest Frank Carter published in the TCS Journal?

 

All the very best,

John