Thomas Tilling
Encyclopedia
Thomas Tilling Ltd, later known with its subsidiary companies as the Tilling Group, was one of the two huge groups which controlled almost all the major bus operators in the United Kingdom between the wars and until nationalisation in 1948.
Tilling, together with the other conglomerate, British Electric Traction
(BET), became the main constituents of the country's nationalised bus
industry in the late 1960s and was sufficiently well known to have entered popular culture
as part of London's cockney rhyming slang
(Thomas Tilling = shilling
).
The company continued as an industrial conglomerate
after nationalisation of its bus interests, and was acquired by BTR plc in 1983.
, Middlesex
, of parents who had moved there from Gloucestershire
. In 1846, at the age of 21, he went into the transport business in London
, as a "Jobmaster" in Walworth
using a horse and carriage which cost him £30. In January 1850 he purchased a horse bus together with the right to run four journeys a day between Peckham
and Oxford Street
. By 1856 he owned 70 horses which he used for bus and general carriage work. When the Metropolitan Fire Brigade
was formed in 1866, Thomas Tilling was contracted to train and supply horses to haul the fire engines; the horses were trained to respond quickly and, prior to handover to the fire brigade, were employed on bus services (primarily the Peckham route) to gain experience of heavy traffic. Tilling soon became the biggest supplier of horsepower and vehicles in London having a stable
of 4,000 horses by the time of his death in 1893. Thomas Tilling is buried at Nunhead Cemetery
.
Tilling's horse buses stopped at predetermined points and ran to a fixed timetable, making them more punctual and orderly than the other operators' buses. This was one of the reasons for his success with customers. Because his buses operated on time, they earned the nickname of 'Times' buses, and this became the fleet name painted on the side.
Walter Wolsey, formed a Limited company
, Thomas Tilling Ltd in 1897. In addition to bus work, carriages were still hired to individuals and to a range of public utilities. Richard's daughter Mabel Constanduros
, was an actress and play-writer.
The company put three Milnes-Daimler 24 hp motor buses into service in 1904. These were open top double-deckers
with 16 inside seats and 18 "outside" on the upper deck. These were the first double-decker motorbuses built for public service in London. By 1905 Tillings had 20 motor buses, but still owned 7,000 horses, kept in 500 stables to work their 250 horse buses and for hire to other companies and individuals for hauling goods vehicles, cabs and carriages. In 1907, Tilling began the first long-distance motor bus service, running 13 buses between Oxford Circus
and Sidcup
in Kent
.
In 1909 Tilling entered into an agreement with the London General Omnibus Company
(LGOC) which pooled their resources (and allowed Tilling to remain independent when LGOC led an amalgamation of most of London's bus companies) but which restricted their expansion in the capital. The LGOC and Tilling co-operated on a joint route from Peckham to Turnham Green via Oxford Circus. The LGOC had introduced numbers on all its routes, and this was route number 12. This service between Peckham and Oxford Circus still operates and is still the number 12. It may be the oldest operating bus route in London. In 1915, the first woman bus conductor in London worked on Tilling route No 37. Women were recruited to replace men who had joined the Armed Forces.
In 1911 Tilling introduced the Tilling-Stevens TTA1 petrol-electric bus into its fleet; despite some drawbacks of the technology, this type formed the mainstay of the fleet for some year; In 1914, just before the outbreak of the First World War, the last horse bus operated on the Tilling Honor Oak - Peckham Rye Station route, when the horses were requisitioned for war work.
BET had entered into a similar agreement with LGOC in London, and was also expanding outside London. Instead of destructive rivalry, the two companies agreed to work in close co-operation. By 1928 the BET subsidiary, British Automobile Traction Company (BAT) had interests in 19 bus companies, with Tilling being a co-owner in 11 of them, and at the same time was partly owned by Tilling itself. To simplify the arrangement BAT was reconstructed with the new title, Tilling & British Automobile Traction Ltd (TBAT), and Tilling exchanged its shares in the various operating companies for an increased shareholding in the new company...
The railways of Britain had grown significantly and many companies had developed bus services; in 1923 most of these "pre-grouping" companies merged to form four mainline companies; Great Western Railway
, Southern Railway, London, Midland and Scottish Railway
and London and North Eastern Railway
. During the 1920s the "Big Four
" divested itself of much of the operation their bus network by transferring their interests to Tilling and BET in exchange for shares.
Richard Tilling died in 1929 and the family association with the company ended. In 1931, Tilling acquired the Bristol Tramways and Carriage Company
, along with Eastern Counties Omnibus Company, whose bodybuilding activities were re-named the Eastern Coach Works
Ltd (ECW) in 1936
In 1933, the new London Passenger Transport Board
compulsorily acquired the 328 buses that made up Tilling's South London services. In 1935, Tilling took over Royal Blue
, which was the premier express coach company in the South and West of England with a network of routes stretching from Penzance to Margate and Bournemouth to London, having developed tours and local services around Bournemouth and the New Forest in the horse drawn era and express coach services after the First World War.
Tilling and TBAT continued to trade successfully but internal disagreements resulted in TBAT being wound-up in 1942. The companies in TBAT were split between Tilling and BET, and the two groups continued to operate independently until nationalisation first reared its head in the late 1940s. Tilling Motor Services Ltd was formed from the breakup.
resulted in formation of the British Transport Commission
(BTC). The railway companies were nationalised from 1 January 1948 with the result that their major stake in the Tilling and BET bus companies passed into public ownership from that date. Tilling sold its remaining holdings to the BTC at the beginning of 1949, as did the Scottish Motor Traction
group.
Thomas Tilling (BTC) Ltd. was set up as a BTC subsidiary to run Tilling's London private hire business which continued under nationalisation
BET retained its independence but the BTC ultimately gained up to a 50% holding in 17 of its companies so, from 1949 there were still two major bus groups, the nationalised BTC (formerly Tilling) and BET (part owned by the BTC). The ex-Tilling companies continued to be commonly referred to as the "Tilling Group" long after nationalisation and normally carried one of two standard liveries - a crimson red or a deep green (often referred to as Tilling red and Tilling green), each with cream relief. These liveries remained the standard after formation of the National Bus Company until a new corporate livery of NBC Poppy Red/White or NBC Leaf Green/White was introduced from late 1972. The 1930s acquisition of Bristol and ECW resulted in Bristol chassis and ECW bodywork remaining standard amongst former Tilling Group fleets through to the 1970s.
As a postscript, on 1 January 1963, a new body, the Transport Holding Company
(THC) took over the bus assets of the BTC and, in 1967 BET sold its remaining bus interests to THC and the National Bus Company
was formed a year later, mainly from former Tilling and BET subsidiaries.
*via Balfour Beatty
and Midland Counties Electric Supply Company as a result of nationalisation of the electricity supply industry, 1 April 1948.
Companies comprising Tilling Group post 1948 included
Tilling, together with the other conglomerate, British Electric Traction
British Electric Traction
British Electric Traction Company Limited, renamed BET plc in 1985, was a large British industrial conglomerate. It was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index but was acquired by Rentokil in 1996, and the merged company is now known as Rentokil Initial.- Early history :The company was founded as...
(BET), became the main constituents of the country's nationalised bus
Bus
A bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. Buses can have a capacity as high as 300 passengers. The most common type of bus is the single-decker bus, with larger loads carried by double-decker buses and articulated buses, and smaller loads carried by midibuses and minibuses; coaches are...
industry in the late 1960s and was sufficiently well known to have entered popular culture
Popular culture
Popular culture is the totality of ideas, perspectives, attitudes, memes, images and other phenomena that are deemed preferred per an informal consensus within the mainstream of a given culture, especially Western culture of the early to mid 20th century and the emerging global mainstream of the...
as part of London's cockney rhyming slang
Cockney rhyming slang
Rhyming slang is a form of phrase construction in the English language and is especially prevalent in dialectal British English from the East End of London; hence the alternative name, Cockney rhyming slang...
(Thomas Tilling = shilling
Shilling
The shilling is a unit of currency used in some current and former British Commonwealth countries. The word shilling comes from scilling, an accounting term that dates back to Anglo-Saxon times where it was deemed to be the value of a cow in Kent or a sheep elsewhere. The word is thought to derive...
).
The company continued as an industrial conglomerate
Conglomerate (company)
A conglomerate is a combination of two or more corporations engaged in entirely different businesses that fall under one corporate structure , usually involving a parent company and several subsidiaries. Often, a conglomerate is a multi-industry company...
after nationalisation of its bus interests, and was acquired by BTR plc in 1983.
Origins
The company traced its origins to 1846, when Thomas Tilling started in business. Thomas Tilling was born in 1825 at Gutter's Hedge Farm, HendonHendon
Hendon is a London suburb situated northwest of Charing Cross.-History:Hendon was historically a civil parish in the county of Middlesex. The manor is described in Domesday , but the name, 'Hendun' meaning 'at the highest hill', is earlier...
, Middlesex
Middlesex
Middlesex is one of the historic counties of England and the second smallest by area. The low-lying county contained the wealthy and politically independent City of London on its southern boundary and was dominated by it from a very early time...
, of parents who had moved there from Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean....
. In 1846, at the age of 21, he went into the transport business in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, as a "Jobmaster" in Walworth
Walworth, London
Walworth is an inner-city district in the London Borough of Southwark. Walworth probably derives its name from the Old English "Wealhworth" which meant Welsh farm. It is located south east of Charing Cross and near to Camberwell and Elephant and Castle.The major streets in Walworth are the Old...
using a horse and carriage which cost him £30. In January 1850 he purchased a horse bus together with the right to run four journeys a day between Peckham
Peckham
Peckham is a district in south London, England, located in the London Borough of Southwark. It is situated south-east of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London...
and Oxford Street
Oxford Street
Oxford Street is a major thoroughfare in the City of Westminster in the West End of London, United Kingdom. It is Europe's busiest shopping street, as well as its most dense, and currently has approximately 300 shops. The street was formerly part of the London-Oxford road which began at Newgate,...
. By 1856 he owned 70 horses which he used for bus and general carriage work. When the Metropolitan Fire Brigade
London Fire Brigade
The London Fire Brigade is the statutory fire and rescue service for London.Founded in 1865, it is the largest of the fire services in the United Kingdom and the fourth-largest in the world with nearly 7,000 staff, including 5,800 operational firefighters based in 112 fire...
was formed in 1866, Thomas Tilling was contracted to train and supply horses to haul the fire engines; the horses were trained to respond quickly and, prior to handover to the fire brigade, were employed on bus services (primarily the Peckham route) to gain experience of heavy traffic. Tilling soon became the biggest supplier of horsepower and vehicles in London having a stable
Stable
A stable is a building in which livestock, especially horses, are kept. It most commonly means a building that is divided into separate stalls for individual animals...
of 4,000 horses by the time of his death in 1893. Thomas Tilling is buried at Nunhead Cemetery
Nunhead Cemetery
Nunhead Cemetery is one of the Magnificent Seven cemeteries in London, England. It is perhaps the least famous and celebrated of them.. The cemetery is located in the Nunhead area of southern London and was originally known as All Saints' Cemetery. Nunhead Cemetery was consecrated in 1840 and...
.
Tilling's horse buses stopped at predetermined points and ran to a fixed timetable, making them more punctual and orderly than the other operators' buses. This was one of the reasons for his success with customers. Because his buses operated on time, they earned the nickname of 'Times' buses, and this became the fleet name painted on the side.
Early history
The business passed to his sons Richard and Edward who, with Thomas's son-in-lawSon-in-Law
Son-in-Law was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and an influential sire, especially for sport horses.The National Horseracing Museum says that Son-in-Law is "probably the best and most distinguished stayer this country has ever known." Described as "one of the principal influences for stamina in...
Walter Wolsey, formed a Limited company
Limited company
A limited company is a company in which the liability of the members or subscribers of the company is limited to what they have invested or guaranteed to the company. Limited companies may be limited by shares or by guarantee. And the former of these, a limited company limited by shares, may be...
, Thomas Tilling Ltd in 1897. In addition to bus work, carriages were still hired to individuals and to a range of public utilities. Richard's daughter Mabel Constanduros
Mabel Constanduros
Mabel Constanduros , birth name Mabel Tilling, was an English actress and screenwriter. She achieved fame playing Mrs.Buggins on the radio programme The Buggins Family, which ran from 1928 to 1948. She played Earthy Mangold in the popular Worzel Gummidge radio serial on the BBC Children's Hour...
, was an actress and play-writer.
The company put three Milnes-Daimler 24 hp motor buses into service in 1904. These were open top double-deckers
Double-decker bus
A double-decker bus is a bus that has two storeys or 'decks'. Global usage of this type of bus is more common in outer touring than in its intra-urban transportion role. Double-decker buses are also commonly found in certain parts of Europe, Asia, and former British colonies and protectorates...
with 16 inside seats and 18 "outside" on the upper deck. These were the first double-decker motorbuses built for public service in London. By 1905 Tillings had 20 motor buses, but still owned 7,000 horses, kept in 500 stables to work their 250 horse buses and for hire to other companies and individuals for hauling goods vehicles, cabs and carriages. In 1907, Tilling began the first long-distance motor bus service, running 13 buses between Oxford Circus
Oxford Circus
Oxford Circus is the area of London at the busy intersection of Regent Street and Oxford Street, in the West End. It is served by Oxford Circus tube station, which is directly beneath the junction itself.- History :...
and Sidcup
Sidcup
Sidcup is a district in South East London in the London Borough of Bexley and small parts of the district in the London Borough of Greenwich.Located south east of Charing Cross, Sidcup is bordered by the London Boroughs of Greenwich and Bromley and Kent County Council, and whilst now part of...
in Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
.
In 1909 Tilling entered into an agreement with the London General Omnibus Company
London General Omnibus Company
The London General Omnibus Company or LGOC, was the principal bus operator in London between 1855 and 1933. It was also, for a short period between 1909 and 1912, a motor bus manufacturer.- Overview :...
(LGOC) which pooled their resources (and allowed Tilling to remain independent when LGOC led an amalgamation of most of London's bus companies) but which restricted their expansion in the capital. The LGOC and Tilling co-operated on a joint route from Peckham to Turnham Green via Oxford Circus. The LGOC had introduced numbers on all its routes, and this was route number 12. This service between Peckham and Oxford Circus still operates and is still the number 12. It may be the oldest operating bus route in London. In 1915, the first woman bus conductor in London worked on Tilling route No 37. Women were recruited to replace men who had joined the Armed Forces.
In 1911 Tilling introduced the Tilling-Stevens TTA1 petrol-electric bus into its fleet; despite some drawbacks of the technology, this type formed the mainstay of the fleet for some year; In 1914, just before the outbreak of the First World War, the last horse bus operated on the Tilling Honor Oak - Peckham Rye Station route, when the horses were requisitioned for war work.
National expansion
From 1914, with the LGOC dominant in London, the company looked to the rest of Britain outside of London for growth. Tilling started to seek new markets in the provinces. The company began operating in Folkestone in 1914, Brighton in 1916, and Ipswich in 1919.BET had entered into a similar agreement with LGOC in London, and was also expanding outside London. Instead of destructive rivalry, the two companies agreed to work in close co-operation. By 1928 the BET subsidiary, British Automobile Traction Company (BAT) had interests in 19 bus companies, with Tilling being a co-owner in 11 of them, and at the same time was partly owned by Tilling itself. To simplify the arrangement BAT was reconstructed with the new title, Tilling & British Automobile Traction Ltd (TBAT), and Tilling exchanged its shares in the various operating companies for an increased shareholding in the new company...
The railways of Britain had grown significantly and many companies had developed bus services; in 1923 most of these "pre-grouping" companies merged to form four mainline companies; Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
, Southern Railway, London, Midland and Scottish Railway
London, Midland and Scottish Railway
The London Midland and Scottish Railway was a British railway company. It was formed on 1 January 1923 under the Railways Act of 1921, which required the grouping of over 120 separate railway companies into just four...
and London and North Eastern Railway
London and North Eastern Railway
The London and North Eastern Railway was the second-largest of the "Big Four" railway companies created by the Railways Act 1921 in Britain...
. During the 1920s the "Big Four
Big Four British railway companies
The Big Four was a name used to describe the four largest railway companies in the United Kingdom in the period 1923-1947. The name was coined by the Railway Magazine in its issue of February 1923: "The Big Four of the New Railway Era".The Big Four were:...
" divested itself of much of the operation their bus network by transferring their interests to Tilling and BET in exchange for shares.
Richard Tilling died in 1929 and the family association with the company ended. In 1931, Tilling acquired the Bristol Tramways and Carriage Company
Bristol Omnibus Company
The Bristol Omnibus Company is the former name of the dominant bus operator in Bristol, one of the oldest bus companies in the United Kingdom. The company once ran buses over a wide area of Gloucestershire, Somerset, Wiltshire and neighbouring counties. The name was in operational use until 1985...
, along with Eastern Counties Omnibus Company, whose bodybuilding activities were re-named the Eastern Coach Works
Eastern Coach Works
Eastern Coach Works Ltd was a bus and railbus body building company based in Lowestoft, England.-History:The company can trace its roots back to 1912, when United Automobile Services was founded in the town to run bus services. United began a coach building business at the Lowestoft site in 1920...
Ltd (ECW) in 1936
In 1933, the new London Passenger Transport Board
London Passenger Transport Board
The London Passenger Transport Board was the organisation responsible for public transport in London, UK, and its environs from 1933 to 1948...
compulsorily acquired the 328 buses that made up Tilling's South London services. In 1935, Tilling took over Royal Blue
Royal Blue Coach Services
Royal Blue Coach Services was a coach operator in the south and west of England from 1880 until 1986.-Origins:The Royal Blue business was started in 1880 by Thomas Elliott in Bournemouth. The business, at first known as Royal Blue and Branksome Mews, included the hire of every kind of horse-drawn...
, which was the premier express coach company in the South and West of England with a network of routes stretching from Penzance to Margate and Bournemouth to London, having developed tours and local services around Bournemouth and the New Forest in the horse drawn era and express coach services after the First World War.
Tilling and TBAT continued to trade successfully but internal disagreements resulted in TBAT being wound-up in 1942. The companies in TBAT were split between Tilling and BET, and the two groups continued to operate independently until nationalisation first reared its head in the late 1940s. Tilling Motor Services Ltd was formed from the breakup.
Nationalisation
As part of the government's moves toward nationalisation of the transport industry, the Transport Act 1947Transport Act 1947
The Transport Act 1947 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Under it the railways, long-distance road haulage and various other types of transport were acquired by the state and handed over to a new British Transport Commission for operation...
resulted in formation of the British Transport Commission
British Transport Commission
The British Transport Commission was created by Clement Attlee's post-war Labour government as a part of its nationalisation programme, to oversee railways, canals and road freight transport in Great Britain...
(BTC). The railway companies were nationalised from 1 January 1948 with the result that their major stake in the Tilling and BET bus companies passed into public ownership from that date. Tilling sold its remaining holdings to the BTC at the beginning of 1949, as did the Scottish Motor Traction
Scottish Motor Traction
Scottish Motor Traction was founded in Edinburgh in 1905. It operated buses in much of central Scotland. Aside from its traditional bus operations, it operated an air taxi service with a De Havilland Fox Moth between July 18 and October 31, 1932 and for many years owned Dryburgh Abbey Hotel...
group.
Thomas Tilling (BTC) Ltd. was set up as a BTC subsidiary to run Tilling's London private hire business which continued under nationalisation
BET retained its independence but the BTC ultimately gained up to a 50% holding in 17 of its companies so, from 1949 there were still two major bus groups, the nationalised BTC (formerly Tilling) and BET (part owned by the BTC). The ex-Tilling companies continued to be commonly referred to as the "Tilling Group" long after nationalisation and normally carried one of two standard liveries - a crimson red or a deep green (often referred to as Tilling red and Tilling green), each with cream relief. These liveries remained the standard after formation of the National Bus Company until a new corporate livery of NBC Poppy Red/White or NBC Leaf Green/White was introduced from late 1972. The 1930s acquisition of Bristol and ECW resulted in Bristol chassis and ECW bodywork remaining standard amongst former Tilling Group fleets through to the 1970s.
As a postscript, on 1 January 1963, a new body, the Transport Holding Company
Transport Holding Company
The Transport Holding Company was a British Government owned company created by the Transport Act 1962 to administer a range of state-owned transport, travel and engineering companies that were previously managed by the British Transport Commission ; it came into existence on 1 January...
(THC) took over the bus assets of the BTC and, in 1967 BET sold its remaining bus interests to THC and the National Bus Company
National Bus Company UK
The National Bus Company was, from 1969 to 1988, a nationalised bus company in England and Wales. NBC did not run buses itself, but was the owner of a number of regional subsidiary bus operating companies.-History:-Background:...
was formed a year later, mainly from former Tilling and BET subsidiaries.
The "Tilling Group" - Tilling subsidiary bus companies taken over by the BTC
- Brighton, Hove and District
- Bristol TramwaysBristol Omnibus CompanyThe Bristol Omnibus Company is the former name of the dominant bus operator in Bristol, one of the oldest bus companies in the United Kingdom. The company once ran buses over a wide area of Gloucestershire, Somerset, Wiltshire and neighbouring counties. The name was in operational use until 1985...
- CaledonianCaledonianCaledonian is a geographical term used to refer to places, species, or items in or from Scotland, or particularly the Scottish Highlands. It derives from Caledonia, the Roman name for the area of modern Scotland...
- Crosville
- CumberlandCumberlandCumberland is a historic county of North West England, on the border with Scotland, from the 12th century until 1974. It formed an administrative county from 1889 to 1974 and now forms part of Cumbria....
- Eastern Counties
- Eastern NationalEastern National Omnibus CompanyEastern National was a bus operating company in south east England from 1929 to the 1990s.-Early history:Eastern National Omnibus Company Ltd started in 1929 as a joint venture between the London and North Eastern Railway, the London, Midland and Scottish Railway and the National Omnibus &...
- Hants and DorsetHants & Dorset Motor ServicesHants & Dorset Motor Services Ltd was a stage carriage bus service operator in southern England, between 1920 and 1983.-Early history:The Bournemouth & District Motor Services Ltd was incorporated in 1916. In 1920, a change of name to Hants & Dorset reflected the wider aspirations of its owners...
- Lincolnshire Road Car
- South Midland
- Southern NationalSouthern NationalSouthern National was a bus company operating in South West England from 1929 to 1969, and again from 1983 to 1999.-Original company :...
- Southern VectisSouthern VectisThe Southern Vectis Omnibus Company Limited is the dominant bus operator on the Isle of Wight. It was purchased by the Go-Ahead Group in 2005 and is a part of the company's Go South Coast division. The firm employs 299 staff, with 105 single deck, double deck and open-top buses and coaches...
- Thames ValleyThames Valley TractionThames Valley Traction Company Limited was a major bus company operating services to and from Reading, Bracknell, Maidenhead, Newbury, High Wycombe and Oxford and surrounding areas for over 50 years during the 20th century...
- United Automobile ServicesUnited Automobile ServicesUnited Automobile Services or United, as it was commonly known, was a major provider of bus services across the North East and North Yorkshire for 80 years or more...
- United CountiesUnited Counties OmnibusUnited Counties Omnibus is an English bus company, operating in Northamptonshire, Bedfordshire, and parts of surrounding counties. It was established in 1921 as the United Counties Omnibus & Road Transport Co Ltd, and from 1933 has been named the United Counties Omnibus Company Ltd...
- Western NationalWestern NationalWestern National was a bus operating company in South West England from 1929 to the 1990s.-Early history:Western National Omnibus Company Ltd started in 1929 as a joint venture between the Great Western Railway and the National Omnibus & Transport Company...
- West YorkshireWest YorkshireWest Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
- Wilts & DorsetWilts & DorsetWilts & Dorset is a bus company in England covering Poole, Bournemouth, East Dorset, South Wiltshire and West Hampshire. Its local headquarters is in Poole, but it is owned by the Go-Ahead Group, a major UK transport group....
- Mansfield and District*
- Midland General*
- Notts and Derby Traction*
*via Balfour Beatty
Balfour Beatty
Balfour Beatty plc is a British construction, engineering, military housing, rail and investment services company. It is one of the largest construction companies in the UK, and the 15th largest in the world...
and Midland Counties Electric Supply Company as a result of nationalisation of the electricity supply industry, 1 April 1948.
Non-nationalised Tilling Group
Following nationalisation of Thomas Tilling Ltd's bus interests, a number of subsidiaries continued under separate ownership as the Tilling Group. Tilling Group was taken over by BTR plc in 1983.Companies comprising Tilling Group post 1948 included
- Tilcon (formerly Tilling Construction Services Ltd), producer of aggregates and ready-mixed concrete - formed in 1970 by the merger of three existing subsidiaries, sold by BTR to Minorco, now part of Anglo American plc, in November 1995
- Selwood, Plant and pump manufacture, sales and hire - acquired 1972
- PASCON created by merging Palmers, Selwood & Croker within Tilling Group, 1982, sold by BTR in 1994 and now renamed Selwood Pumps
- Heinemann, a publisher acquired in 1961.
External links
- Thomas Tilling British Transport Films Resources: Thomas Tilling Ltd. - A Brief History by Howard Sprenger
- Thomas Tilling 1825-1893 and Thomas Tilling Ltd. 1897-1969 compiled by Peter Gould 1999-2005
- Exploring 20th Century London - Thomas Tilling Ltd, London's Oldest Bus Company