Are they still about?

UK PROFESSIONAL DRIVERS FORUMS OLD TIME LORRIES, COMPANIES AND DRIVERS (INTERACT
21

Well here’s a few for now. :smiley:
William Dobson,Edinburgh.
Russell of Bathgate.
Dalkeith Transport.
Pollock,Musselburgh.
Smith of Denny.
D.&J. Sibbald,Whitburn.
A.Wishart,Kirkcaldy.
Allisons Freightlines,Dundee.
Murrays Motorway Express,Grangemouth.
Danskin - from Fife I think.
J.B.Mcbean,Mid Calder.
Peter Halley,Crieff.
Thompson of Alloa.
Shore Porters Society,Aberdeen.
Patterson,Aberdeen.
Charles Alexander and Partners,Aberdeen.
Lawson of Dyce.
McPherson,Aberlour.
James Kelman,Turrif.
William Briggs,Dundee.
Popeye of Scotland-not sure where he was based.
Highland Haulage,Inverness.
Mckelvie,Anderson,Strathclyde,Smillie and D M Smith already mentioned earlier.

I suppose some of these are still going.
I’ll put some more on if,I can think of any to add to this by no means exhausted list.

Does Hull and Glasgow count Malc? :laughing:

22

Forgot James Kemp of Leslie. :laughing:

23

Chris
John Russell, Grangemouth…Now TDG and still at Grangemouth doing tank work.
Smith of Drumclog…still on the go, (Quick history lesson, Drumclog is the site of a famous battle during the time of the Covenanters, June 1st 1679) they used to do a lot of milk work but my friend, Frank MacDougall of Moscow, Ayrshire, that is, tells me they lost that to Bibby. Last week I passed a Hino tipper in Smiths livery, on the A77, I didn’t know they did tipper work or maybe thats what they have turned their hand too now. I believe the Smiths were related to the DM Smith family.
Dobsons of Edinburgh, now gone. As are Wullie Russells (Bathgate)Allisons of Dundee, Murrays Motorway Express at Grangemouth. This is the son of one of the ‘Smith’s of Maddiston’,( who I worked for), he did not last long after the United Group stopped him subbing from Smith’s.
Danskin of Strathkinness, Fife, Peter Halley, Crieff,Paterson & Charlie’ Alexander, Kelman of Turiff, McKelvie, Strathclyde, Smillie, DM Smith are gone.
Popeye (Wullie Dryburgh) of Armadale is now driving for Salvesen at the Morrisons RDC Bellshill. Their was another Popeye in Glasgow many years ago, I think his name was Hobson or something like that, from Penrith.
Lawson of Dyce, this was bought by Walls and is now only a label on some products. The factory at Dyce was open the last time I was round that way, cant remember the name of the outfit, still making sausages!
Still on the go…Dalkeith Transport, Pollock, now no longer at Mussellburgh, now at Bathgate, Smith of Denny, D & J Sibbald, Whitburn, I think they are now at Bathgate, A Wishart, Kirkcaldy, J B McBean, Shore Porters, McPherson of Aberlour, Highland Haulage. There is a tale to this, it seems when HH was sold to the TDG , the guy that owned it kept title to the name. HH was amalgamated into Connals of Glasgow. When this closed, HH was resurected by the original owner and is now thriving,
William Briggs at Dundee is now NYAS. They dont operate their own vehicles any longer, most, if not all the work is done by Harry Lawson. I sit down there next to the refinery often. (dont tell anyone, its a secret!)
Chris, if you e-mail me at alexsavillescotland@hotmail.co.uk I will send you a photo I took at the Ayrshire Road Run at Ayr on Saturday
Alex

24

Chris
That last footnote should read a photo of a D M Smith Atkinson rigid.
Alex

25

Also, Chris, I forgot, James Kemp of Leslie. This is long gone as is Jimmy! His son Brian Kemp owned United Freight Distribution which was taken over not that long ago (after they went bust) by Ramage of Glespin, now bust themselves!. I worked for UFD at Cambuslang, Glasgow about 18 months ago.
I called them Useless Fife D*******s as they couldn’t organise the proverbial in a brewery.
Alex

26

Who was the other strange sounding name from Armadale?

Something of Armadale :question:

27

Wheel Nut:
Who was the other strange sounding name from Armadale?

Something of Armadale :question:

I can’t think of the Armadale haulier Malc and I can’t remember the one from Maybole,Ayrshire. I have just thought of Morris Young of Hillyland,Perth,Tullis Russell(something to do with paper manufacturing I think),Tayforth Group,Caledonian Road Services,Blue Band Motors Lockerbie,T & M Catto Aberdeen(ran Marathons :smiley: ),V.G.Mathers and Mckintosh all three meat hauliers.There was a firm from Fife who ran wet fish on ERF rigids,dark blue IIRC something David or David something :confused: and they were either from St.Monance,Pitenweem or Crail.

Any ideas Alex?

I heard Highland Haulage are still going but I didn’t know they went in with Connals, and nice to see some of the others I listed haven’t pulled t’pin yet.The Popeye I recall ran Scania 111s and I used to see them on the A66 when I was on Carlisle/Lockerbie/Penrith trunk in the early 80s.
I understand “Lofty Peak” flour of Chancelot Mill,Leith fame are no longer.They ran to Gateshead on nights with ERFs and also AEC twin-steer Mammoth Minors.Are Curries of Dumfries still going?

28

There was also the oriental sounding one :wink: someone from Banknock.

me owld memories going!

29

Wheel Nut:
There was also the oriental sounding one :wink: someone from Banknock.

me owld memories going!

Nice avatar Malc,mind you that giraffe looked knackered :smiley: .
Aye,the Thai haulier from Banknock,can’t think of his name.Meet me in the cafe at Elvanfoot and I’ll buy you a tea and we can think of his name. I once stood with me back to the fire in there and got me Bannocks burnt. :laughing:

Sorry.

Two more well known hauliers from N.E.Scotland were Sutherlands of Peterhead-seen all over the UK,and Alec Ayre from Fraserburgh - “Send your goods by Ayre” was the slogan.

30

Just remembered Stewart Cameron and Duncan Adams - one of them had a depot in Widnes - and Billy Walker from Turriff.

Nurse is coming,time for bed. :laughing:

31

Chris Webb:
Just remembered Stewart Cameron and Duncan Adams - one of them had a depot in Widnes - and Billy Walker from Turriff.

Nurse is coming,time for bed. :laughing:

At least you blokes are remembering the names, I recognise every single one of them but couldn’t have recalled them unaided to save my life.
Was John Russell the one with purple motors? I think I met him one day at an FTA do, he was into road/rail transfers I think.
My connections with Pollocks of Musselburgh are mixed. When my brother and I first started our company in the 70s we had a transit van and trailer and used to load back from Pollocks with industrial pumps. This would be during or just after the time when they were taken over by HTS (Hilton Transport Services - another rapidly rising ■■■■■■■ star who fell to earth spectacularly :unamused: ) and when the latter went bust we didn’t get paid. The admistrator wrote to me 20 odd years later to say that they’d finally sorted out 2p in the pound or something for me, but by that time our firm was long gone and I couldn’t get even that. :cry: Ironic that the Pollock family bought their company back after HTS went bust but of course they weren’t liable for the debts being a seperate new company (Pollock Scotrans).
Has anyone mentioned Munro’s of Aberdeen? They had those nice looking Atkis with the curly chrome lines on the front and carried reels of paper.

32

Spardo:

Chris Webb:
Just remembered Stewart Cameron and Duncan Adams - one of them had a depot in Widnes - and Billy Walker from Turriff.

Nurse is coming,time for bed. :laughing:

At least you blokes are remembering the names, I recognise every single one of them but couldn’t have recalled them unaided to save my life.
Was John Russell the one with purple motors? I think I met him one day at an FTA do, he was into road/rail transfers I think.
My connections with Pollocks of Musselburgh are mixed. When my brother and I first started our company in the 70s we had a transit van and trailer and used to load back from Pollocks with industrial pumps. This would be during or just after the time when they were taken over by HTS (Hilton Transport Services - another rapidly rising ■■■■■■■ star who fell to earth spectacularly :unamused: ) and when the latter went bust we didn’t get paid. The admistrator wrote to me 20 odd years later to say that they’d finally sorted out 2p in the pound or something for me, but by that time our firm was long gone and I couldn’t get even that. :cry: Ironic that the Pollock family bought their company back after HTS went bust but of course they weren’t liable for the debts being a seperate new company (Pollock Scotrans).
Has anyone mentioned Munro’s of Aberdeen? They had those nice looking Atkis with the curly chrome lines on the front and carried reels of paper.

Forgot all about Munro David,another one you could see all over the UK.I think it was John Russell with the pink wagons,Russell of Bathgate were blue.

33

You guys are certainly keeping me busy!
Firstly, Wheel Nut…You are keeping me awake at night!!!
I can see in my minds eye the lorries of the firm in Armadale you mention, but I am damned if I can remember their name! I think it began with a G.
The other one you mention is the ‘oriental’ one’, you say ‘Thai’, dont have a clue who that might be. The only one up there I can think about is Denny Tipper Transport.
Spardo…Purple John, or as he calls himself, John G Russell, is still about and prospering, he also owns Carntyne Transport which does a lot of whisky work in vans & tankers, NOT the finished product but all the stuff from Distilleries and Bonds. He was one of Wullie Russell’s sons and started in transport in pre ‘O’ lic days by buying Clyde Garage in Whitefield Rd Govan Glasgow to get the ‘A’ lic’s. He bought over the Norfrost refrigerator business up in Thurso which exports household and commercial fridges world wide (they went bust so John G stepped in)
Wullie had several sons who started up but they mostly took work from TDG who bought their fathers business. One of the sons flung himself off the Forth Road Bridge, poor soul.
Wullie had three daughters who had a storage busines in Leith called Three Sisters Storage, if I remember right.
Munros of Aberdeen went bust, I seem to remember that the man who ran that died , shortly after, it went to the wall.
Chris, I remembered the company in Dyce who took over Lawsons old factory, it was MacIntosh of Dyce.
Morris Young , Duncan Adams, Curries of Dumfries are all still on the go.
Stewart Cameron of Croftamie is long gone, I pass their yard at Croftamie often and always expect to see his lorries parked their, old habits die hard!
Billy Walker, the commisioners put him out of the game, he pushed his luck once too often1
Tayforth, Blueband Motors, T & M Catto (they were taken over by Fridge Freight Fyfie who themselves are gone) Gibbs of Fraserburgh (one you did not mention) Alex Ayre, , all gone!
Tullis Russell paper is still in business at Glenrothes, they only have a few old lorries(no livery) they use internally,
Lofty Peak, this was originally the Scottish Cooperative Wholesale Society, with whom I started my ‘Career’ ), when the Junction mill in Edinburgh and the Chancelot Mill in Leith (both SCWS) closed, the SCWS and Rank flour set up a joint venture at Leith Docks with a new Chancelot mill. I believe the mill is owned by ADM nowadays.
Yesterday I passed D J Dunabies yard in Maybole Ayrshire and was surprised to see it completely empty! They did a bit of airfreight and also had a depot at Newbury in the south. I suspect they are gone!!!

Alex

34

Alex,can’t remember if I mentioned James McBride,Dalkeith and Smith of Whiteinch.I also spelt Alec Ayre wrong-should have been Eyre :laughing:
So Billy Walker fell out with the Commisioners,eh?

35

Bannerman - Still about?
CPC Paisley - Black & White Tankers
William Nicol - Still Running,
Barbour European - Giraud now, was it DHL Securicor for a while?
Andrew Wishart - Still in pallet network
Morris Young - ?
Charles W Michie Ltd
Cadzow Heavy Haulage Ltd
Clark & Rose Ltd
■■■■ Of Throsk Ltd - Made up name? Come on Simon, it is your quarter
M R Clark And Sons Ltd - ICI Groupage
Maxi Haulage Ltd -
Reid’s Transport Co Ltd - Tippers on King George V Dock

TP Niven

Mcpherson Gallery

Mcpherson Timeline

Sorry if you already mentioned them, :wink:

36

The one from Maybole I couldn’t think of was McGawn Bothers.
■■■■ of Throsk,not made up I remember seeing him about.And I forgot about Clark and Rose,Aberdeen,Maxi Haulage,Bannermans.
Was CPC Paisley short for Corn Products who had a place in Trafford Park (I think)?

37

Chris Webb:
Was CPC Paisley short for Corn Products who had a place in Trafford Park (I think)?

Think it was Corn Products, it became Knorr soups before it closed down. I dont know who the haulier was or whether it was own account, but they ran little elliptical tanks like spirit barrels

38

Corn Products (CPC) at Paisley, was originally Brown & Polson, just off Neilston Rd. They had a ‘C’ Lic fleet at one time but like all the best jobs, lost out to hauliers cutting the rate!(I think the first one was Pickfords)
I think McGawns are gone, ■■■■ of Throsk (near Stirling) was a farmer who thought there was a fortune in haulage. Found out there wasn’t!
Clark & Rose, Bannermans, Maxi, Wiliam Nichol (used to be at Stonehaven as well as Aberdeen, now based at Portlethan), Morris Young, Perth, Michie, Cadzow, Reids of Minishant, all on the go.
Barbour been at Stirling (still there, now Giraud)since the haulage side was taken over by the Clyde Port Authority (Long gone)
Anyone remember these Glasgow firms?
Glasgow Hiring Company and subsiduary, Duntocher Haulage. J & R Wright (Rutherglen), John McNeils (used to do local work, usually Kelloggs, as they were owned by Arbuckle Smith, a well known warehousing company) then expanded and ran to the Middle East. A & J McLellan (who I worked for ), John Barries, Issac Barrie, Ritchies. Thos Craig at Barrhead, used to do all Manchester Liners work in Scotland, ran trunks to Ryton for Rootes from Linwood.
Alex

39

Wheel Nut:
Who was the other strange sounding name from Armadale?

Something of Armadale :question:

Would that have been Marshalls of Armadale?

I remember seeing a Purple / Burgundy Volvo F10 / 12 wagon and drag doing the rounds at Truckfest Peterborough a few years ago.

40

alexsaville:
Corn Products (CPC) at Paisley, was originally Brown & Polson, just off Neilston Rd. They had a ‘C’ Lic fleet at one time but like all the best jobs, lost out to hauliers cutting the rate!(I think the first one was Pickfords)
I think McGawns are gone, ■■■■ of Throsk (near Stirling) was a farmer who thought there was a fortune in haulage. Found out there wasn’t!
Clark & Rose, Bannermans, Maxi, Wiliam Nichol (used to be at Stonehaven as well as Aberdeen, now based at Portlethan), Morris Young, Perth, Michie, Cadzow, Reids of Minishant, all on the go.
Barbour been at Stirling (still there, now Giraud)since the haulage side was taken over by the Clyde Port Authority (Long gone)
Anyone remember these Glasgow firms?
Glasgow Hiring Company and subsiduary, Duntocher Haulage. J & R Wright (Rutherglen), John McNeils (used to do local work, usually Kelloggs, as they were owned by Arbuckle Smith, a well known warehousing company) then expanded and ran to the Middle East. A & J McLellan (who I worked for ), John Barries, Issac Barrie, Ritchies. Thos Craig at Barrhead, used to do all Manchester Liners work in Scotland, ran trunks to Ryton for Rootes from Linwood.
Alex

McGawns still on the go have around ten old Scanias

Arbuckle Smith had red Volvos, I think a french company bought them

Glasgow Hiring Company merged with mc kelvie then
inter city transport