Ray Smyth:
Hi Dennis, I found this picture on the Interweb yesterday. I remember seeing Hudsons when I was
going to Kendal, Carlisle, and Glasgow for Robert Baillie. In early 1970, when the M6 was still
being built, I used to pass through Milnthorpe in the wee small hours. Now then, I have a question,
Before “■■■■■■■■ was invented, was Milnthorpe at the top end of Lancashire, or was it at the
bottom end of Westmorland ■■. Kind Regards, Ray.
Hiya Ray,
Milnthorpe was always in south Westmorland albeit only about a mile or so from the Lancs border ! So if you were travelling from the main Lancs area to the Furness area of Lancs you had to run through the southern part of Westmorland and turning left at Levens Bridge lights off the A6 onto the A590 then on for a few miles until you crossed Winster beck at Lindale and you were then back in Lancashire. The original firm was J. B. Hudson who were the main repair and recovery operator from about Carnforth to Shap summit on the A6. In 1960 on the death of Maggie Bowman ( ne Hudson) their “A” Licenced haulage business, which comprised of 5 Octopus 8 wheelers and one ERF 4 wheeler along with the name was sold to Athersmith Bros of Barrow-in-Furness. Raymond Bowman, Maggie’s Son, then carried on with the repair and recovery part of the firm which was then renamed Hudson Engineers Ltd.
This a 1976 shot of the last two J.B.Hudson liveried motors which I acquired along with the K. Fell & Co operation from Davy & Co ( Grange)Ltd. Davy’s having bought the J. B. Hudson Ltd. haulage firm from Athersmith’s in 1966. Cheers Dennis.
