Hi there, well well well there’s a name from the past, and I mean W H Holmes before it was Safeguard, I worked with Dalkeith Transport from the mid 70’s on the livestock and remember Holmes coming to Edinburgh Markets for lambs for Tadworth and Hastings, as Doug Clay from Sussex came to Edinburgh to buy sheep for export, Dalkeith Tpt was asked if they would also do the other scotch market’s of St Boswell’s, Lanark, Stirling, Perth, Edinburgh, and Berwick, so got into that same work and we ran nightly trunks, changing over at Katie’s Cabin on A1 (older member’s will know were I mean), anyway Jimmy ■■? a really nice chap, was the Holmes driver and we got to know him really well as he was in Edinburgh most weeks. Sadly Holmes gave up livestock as in later years did Dalkeith Tpt.
As an after thought, Dalkeith Tpt had done pigs to the many bacon factory’s in the Brum area, also on a trunk basis with a change over at Preston, the scotch driver’s would refuel at the Esso Stn at Garstang on the old A6, When I started the M6 was open all the way from Carlisle to the smoke, wagon got loaded in Edinburgh area with 5-6 or so pick up’s, an usually left about lunch time and went right through to Brum and emptied an back to the digs at the Sunset Penkridge. Eric and Jean Easter, who ran the Stn at Garstang, Eric is deceased but I am still in contact with Jean who is in her 98th year, and grand people they were too, always a cuppa tea never mind what time of day was on offer and a wee chat. and woo betide if you said no. Hope this has been of some interest to you. Bobs