Tours in the North of Ireland : official guide to the Northern Counties Section of the Midland Railway : Belfast : 1905 : cover

            A wonderful example of Edwardian lithographic printing on the covers of this 1905 guide to the services and destinations of the Northern Counties section of the English Midland Railway that served parts of the North of England. It printed in Belfast by the printing company of R. Carswell and Sons.

The "Northern Counties Section" of the Midland Railway was better known as the Northern Counties Committee and was the product of the acquistion in 1903 of the Belfast and Northern Counties Railway that had grown out of the Belfast & Ballymena Railway the first section of which had opened in 1841. The BNCR was active in the development and operation of steamer ferry services across the Irish Sea and of the tourist potential of the North of Ireland. They proved to be a natural fit for the Midland Railway who had been developing cross-channel services through their new harbour at Heysham, Lancashire, and desired a foothold in Ireland.

The Northern Counties Section survived the Grouping of 1923 when it became part of the London, Midland & Scottish Railway as the Northern Counties Committee and until the Nationalisation of Britian's railways in 1948 when the Committee and its assets passed to the British Transport Commission and it was run as part of the London Midland Region. However it was seen as an outlier and in 1949 it was sold to the Northern Ireland Government and so it passed to the Ulster Transport Authority. The UTA became notorious for an anti-railway and pro-road transport policy; however much of the NCC's lines, such as to Larne, Portrush and Londonderry/Derry are still in use as part of Northern Ireland Railways.

The back cover shows the grand suite of railway hotels that the Midland Railway owned or operated across their system. These included some of the best known including those at St. Pancras, Manchester, Leeds and Manchester. In Ireland they had acquired with the B&NCR the establishments in Belfast and Portrush.

The cover design is in a marvellous contemporary style, with much use of the Shamrock and the Belfast city coat of arms, interwoven and with a slight 'Nouveau' or Arts and Crafts style of lettering.

Taken on: October 28, 2024

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Mike Ashworth Collection

transport

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railway publicity

railway ephemera

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guide book

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North of Ireland

Northern Ireland

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Northern Counties Section of the Midland Railway

Midland Railway

1905

R. Carswell & Son. Belfast

lithography

printing

graphic design

shamrock

Belfast coat of Arms

railway hotels

Midland Railway hotels

Giant's Causeway

Antrim Coast

Belfast & Northern Counties Railway

Northern Counties Committee

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railways in Ireland

Guide to the Northern Counties Section of the Midland Railway

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Sets appears in: • Tours in the North of Ireland : Guide to the Northern Counties Section of the Midland Railway : 1905 • Ireland - both North & South more » • Travel! • Some old advertising « less

Groups appears in: • Typography and Lettering • Vintage Advertising more » • That Old Timey Feeling • Typophile // typography, lettering and design • Transport in Ireland • Old Belfast and Northern Ireland - Photographs taken before 2000 • Font of All Wisdom - Unique lettering in design [VINTAGE] • Advertising through the years • PLANET EARTH BACK IN THE DAY • Vintage Railway Publicity, pre-1980 • UK Railway Memorabilia • Travellers' Tails « less

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