Search results for ""Author Paul Hurley""

This book covers tragic happenings within the boundaries of the historic county of Cheshire from the eighteenth to the twentieth century. The tragedies cover a wide range of human and natural disasters, from accidents in carts, cars, trains and aircraft to the devastating effects of fire and floods. Some of the misfortunes that individuals suffered were caused by others, including their own family members, while others were industrial accidents or sheer bad luck. Crime also intruded on everyday life in this period, and others suffered through mental illness and self-harm.This collection of tragic stories of misfortune and disaster gives a vivid insight into life in Cheshire in the eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth centuries. This book will fascinate anyone who wants to know more about the unfortunate history of this area in the north-west of England.

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The railways of Britain were battered and bruised after the First World War. Over 20,000 miles of track were owned and operated by 120 companies, and the government decided the country could no longer support so many inefficient, diverse and, in some cases, overlapping operations. To stem the mounting losses and regulate the system, the 1921 Railways Act, also known as the Grouping Act, became law on 1 January 1923. Just four large companies remained, nicknamed the ‘Big Four’: the LMS (London, Midland and Scottish Railway); the LNER (London and North Eastern Railway); the SR (Southern Railway); and the GWR (Great Western Railway). Remembering the Big Four looks back at the Big Four railway companies, 100 years after they were drawn together. Complete with contemporary images of the locomotives inherited and built by each company, it is essential reading for any railway enthusiast.

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In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries Cheshire was a thriving part of the north-west of England. Bordered by Liverpool and Manchester to the north, much of the county was rural and agricultural, centred on the historic county city of Chester, the market towns of Macclesfield, Winsford and Northwich and also the industrial towns of Warrington, Crewe, Widnes, Runcorn and Ellesmere Port. It was a period of great social change as people from all walks of life moved with their families in search of work. Deprivation and poverty could often be found cheek by jowl with more affluent sections of society, and crime, as always, knew no boundaries. The stories were often chronicled in detail in local press at the time and in this book authors Paul and Rose Hurley have delved into the historical records to reveal the dark side of life of everyday people of Cheshire, which could turn to murder and death by execution. This collection of true-life crime stories gives a vivid insight into life in Cheshire in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. This book will fascinate anyone with an interest in the history of crime, as well as those who want to know more about the history of this area of the North West.

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After steam finished on the main line on 11 August 1968, something had to take its place; something modern, less difficult to maintain, and that was a natural progression. ‘Modernisation’ was the word. British Railways – and later privatised companies – developed other methods of providing power. In the follow-up to Remembering Steam, Paul Hurley and Phil Braithwaite take the reader back down memory lane, exploring traction from the very first locomotive to the latest colourful multiple units, and of course the preserved locomotives, lovingly restored to their former glory and working heritage lines across the country. With over 200 never-before-seen photographs, paired with fond and nostalgic captions, The Changing Railways of Britain is a book not to be missed.

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Fifty years ago, main line steam in Britain ceased to exist, the last official date being 11 August 1968. At the time, British Railways’ plan was that after this there would be no more steam traction – although a special dispensation was given for Britannia Class 4-6-2 No. 70013 Oliver Cromwell to travel under its own steam into preservation on the 12th and 13th of that month. We now know that this was not quite the case, and that steam locomotives would eventually return to the main lines on highly popular ‘specials’. With over 200 never-before-seen photographs, paired with fond and often amusing captions, this evocative book takes a look back at those days and years that led up to the end of steam on Britain’s railways.

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