Welcome to our Website!
This website is dedicated to the Mechanical Horse and the associated vehicles that made the British Railways and private industry a byword in the delivery of goods throughout the town and country and, to some extent, the world. Please take the time to view the contents of the website which may, if you are of a certain age, invoke memories of a past way of life, or if not, simply amaze you with the innovation at the time to get the job done.
By the late 1960's the days of
the specialized local delivery vehicle were coming to an end. The principal
users, British Railways, were changing the way they handled their parcel traffic and
various new regulations relating to braking requirements also contributed to the demise of
the Mechanical Horse. Larger weights would mean more use would be made of the 5th
wheel coupling, Many of the
Mechanical Horses were taken off the road; some were retained for shunting in
the yards and others went out to farms as trailer tugs, but the vast majority were
scrapped.
Alas, with the demise of British Rail, yet another chapter in the history of commercial transport has been written off. Approximately 30,000 Mechanical Horses were produced by Scammell Lorries but only around 30 original Mechanical Horses, 60 Scarabs, and 30 Townsman are known to survive, together with 3 Karrier Cobs and 2 Jen Tugs.
Those of you who are of that 'certain age' and remember seeing these vehicles on our roads, or even to have driven them, will no doubt feel a tinge of excitement when you visit the rallies and shows and see the vehicles of yesterday, lovingly restored to their former glory.