The East Coast Main Line 1939-1959

The book takes an in-depth look at the East Coast Main Line-King's Cross to Edinburgh-between 1939 and 1959. This is carried out in a series of chapters. In the first one a picture is painted of the state of the network in the late 1930s. It is followed by an account of the historical context of the changes on the ECML over the subject years. This includes wartime 1939-1945 and the fortunes of British Railways in the post-war period until the end of the 1950s; then follows an account of passenger services on the ECML in the summer of 1939 and in the war and changes thereafter. Towards the end of the book there are smaller chapters of specific interest. Amongst these are military and other government installations served by the ECML during WWII; specific wartime locomotive workings; the impact of war on the ECML at various locations along the line; accidents on the ECML September-December 1959 and snow and floods on the ECML in the 1940s and 1950s. The period covered is a crucial one in the history of the line and it is presented in an erudite yet readable manner.

Peter Tuffrey was born in Doncaster in 1953 and studied Fine Art at Doncaster College of Art from 1970 to 1971. He held the position of Keeper of Fine and Decorative Arts at Doncaster Museum and Art Gallery. Tuffrey was the PR Media Consultant for Doncaster Rovers and in his spare time, has built up a massive photographic archive of the region's towns and villages. With this, he has produced over fifty publications including Doncaster's Electric Transport and Rotherham from the Scrivens Collection. He has also written many articles for local and regional newspapers.