Steam Lorries

Titans of the road, steam lorries were a key part of the road haulage scene before the Second World War. They eventually lost out to diesel, but their romance lives on. This is their story.

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Steam power led the transport revolution in England throughout the nineteenth century, but was crippled on the road network by punitive legislation. As the century turned, the laws were altered in such a way that the development of the English Steam Lorry or Wagon became a viable transport proposition.

For the best part of four decades, the steam lorry was a major player on the transport scene, being developed into a highly technical machine designed to beat competition from the petrol and diesel lorry. The most advanced machines were efficient and very fast. Made by a variety of builders, including the famous Sentinel company of Shrewsbury, who built waggons with a double ‘g’, and Foden, of Sandbach, steam lorries came in many shapes and sizes. This book looks at their birth, and the operation and engineering that set them aside from the traction engine and steam roller.

This book is part of the Britain’s Heritage series, which provides definitive introductions to the riches of Britain’s past, and is the perfect way to get acquainted with steam lorries in all their variety.