A & C Wigmore of Dinnington

The operator of this fine normal control vehicle was A & C Wigmore of Dinnington near Sheffield. Beyond that I can tell you very little as my fleet records for Wigmore only show four normal control PSVs, none of which seem to be this! For the record the ones I know about were a Peerless lorry-bus in 1921-23, an ex-Sheffield Corpy Daimler with 27 seat Dodson bodywork (acquired to replace the Peerless), a 14 seat Chevrolet bought new from a Rotherham dealer in 1928, and a 20 seat REO - presumably a Pullman Junior - bought new in 1928 and registered WE 1296.
The REO is probably the closest match but the radiator is completely wrong for the Pullman range Can anybody supply less iffy information on this bus?
Also, can anybody tell me anything about the founders of the firm? I know that the"A" was Arthur who occasionally spoke to the local press, but who was "C" Wigmore and what was his relationship to Arthur? Any other family details or Wigmore anecdotes would be more than welcome.
(Photographer unknown, Image courtesy of Paul Fox)

Neville Mercer

10/05/14 - 12:33

Can't help you, Neville, but it was a part of my Sheffield boyhood - and the only independent to operate out of Pond Street Bus Station. At the time they were operating a fleet of Bedford VAL/Willowbrook buses. They were also kind and sympathetic to a young enthusiast. They allowed me free travel to and from Dinnington and welcomed me to the depot one busy Saturday morning. Only a service bus operator, the local coach operator was Excelsior (run by another member of the Wigmore family). A & C Wigmore morphed into Northern Bus - famous for operating Bristol REs - and the remnants of that operation became MASS (which I believe now operates out of the former Leon of Finningley base).

David Oldfield

11/05/14 - 08:16

The bodywork is by Strachan and Brown - the bodymakers badge is the white oval on the very front end of the waistrail - and it features the patented Strachan and Brown 'roll top' roof, produced from about 1923 - 1926. A & C Wigmore are surprisingly not listed - even as minor operators - in the 1929 Motor Transport Yearbook. However, in the Sheffield Evening Telegraph for April 1918 is an advert for a "Motor Char-a-banc for sale. 25-seater. 32/5-h.p.; nearly new; drivers called up for military service; price £650. - Apply C. Wigmore. Dinnington, Rotherham." The 1911 census includes two brothers living in Barley Croft Lane, Dinnington - Cuthbert and Arthur (aged 19 and 17 respectively) who give 'Carter' as their occupation - who just *might* be the A & C Wigmores concerned. (Barley Croft lane leads off Laughton Road, which was for years Wigmores base).
I suspect, by the way, that this is a Leyland chassis - either a reconditioned RAF Subsidy type, or one of the derivatives such as the GH (with the high radiator and bonnet) and as there is only a single row of louvers on the bonnet side, probably new pre 1925.

Peter Delaney

11/05/14 - 17:33

The Daimler with Dodson body may have been from the 1913 onwards input. The Reo was from an independent taken over by the Corporation, but was of no use to them so they sold it.
Chas C Halls book, Sheffield Transport, will have details of the buses you mention. Sheffield Libraries has 2 copies of the book, but David Oldfield & others on this site have this book so may be able to help more quickly.

Andy Fisher

12/05/14 - 13:58

Yes, David, I too first encountered Wigmores during the VAL days and what terrible machines they were! Thanks for the snippets on the family and the Strachan & Brown identification, Peter, that really helps. I've been trying to find information on the early days of Wigmores for more than a year and getting nowhere. If anybody's interested the other vehicles I mentioned above were Peerless C 2668 (reported in most sources as in use from 1921-23, but the excerpt from the local paper makes me wonder), Daimler/Dodson B27R W3203 (acq from Sheffield Corp in 1923), 14-seat Chevrolet ET 5135 (new in 1928 according to CC Hall's book), and REO 20-seater WE 1296 (reported by Hall as new in 1928). After that Wigmore started buying forward control Leylands. Any more opinions on whether the pictured vehicle is definitely a Leyland? There's some kind of mascot on top of the radiator, but in profile I can't make out what it's supposed to represent.
Incidentally, while we're in South Yorkshire, does anybody know anything about the family members involved with H Wray & Sons of Hoyle Mill (Ideal Service)? The Wray family seems to use the same first names in each new generation which is making research on line rather difficult!

Neville Mercer

13/05/14 - 06:24

Neville, I think that Peter D is correct in his identification of the vehicle as a Leyland of the 'G' family. I was a bit distracted by the style of the radiator side tank with its Straker Squire style embellishment, but this picture seems to confirm the matter: www.leylandsociety.co.uk/publications

Roger Cox

13/05/14 - 13:04

Thanks for that confirmation Roger, I must admit that I'm rubbish at identifying the radiators on normal control buses of the early 1920s! My identification skills start with the low-frame types of the later 1920s. So, it's a Leyland G type with Strachan & Brown bodywork - now all we need is a registration number. With the number of Yorkshire folk on this site (definitely an asset) somebody must know...

Neville Mercer

08/11/15 - 07:02

My father, Gordon Buckroyd was the garage mechanic for Wigmores from 1948 until around 1955. You are right, the A stood for Arthur and the C stood for his brother,Cuthbert. I think I am right in saying that they were twins. Arthur died around 1949/50. I never met Cuthbert and so cannot tell you anything else about him. Arthur's wife was called Zenobia but she was called "Zennie". They lived in the second house on the right at the beginning of Nursery Road. It was called "Shannon House" and I don't know if there was a connection to Ireland.
We lived in a company house at 55 Lidget Lane. Next door was one of their sons, his name was either Walt or Mike. His wife was Kath and they had two children, Arthur and Sharon. In the white bungalow over the road the other brother called Ted, I think, lived with his wife Jessie. He came out of the army and only worked in the firm for a short time. Zennie's mother, called "Bammi" for some reason, and her sister Connie lived in another company house at 77 Swinston Hill Road and after my father left the company, we swapped houses with them.
Connie had a shop in Barley croft Lane and Zennie bought me a doll from there one Christmas. She was a very kind lady and sent me a letter of congratulations when I passed the eleven plus exam.
My father was very experienced as a mechanic. He used to talk about one particular favourite which was the "Old Lion". It was a Leyland. I think the Sentinel they bought replaced the Lion and my father hated it. The engine was under the floor inside the bus. It was cream when it first came. Next door to the garage in the Main Street called Laughton Road,was Foster's bus company. They did trips and school runs. They had some reconditioned buses after the war and of course everyone thought they were rather smart. My father was quite scathing about them. There was a bit of friendly rivalry between the two companies.
He also used to do some driving at the weekends. If there were spaces my mother and I could go with him. We went to Chatsworth, Matlock Bath illuminations, and Cleethorpes. Not many people had cars in those days and on a nice day in the summer lots used to catch a bus to Laughton and walk to Roche Abbey.
Whilst he worked there,a very young child was run over in what was called the Barracks ( not sure if it still exists). My father had the task of going to tell the driver's wife. He was not working for them but I do remember a bus going into a tree on Royds Moor.
They used to transport Bevan boys,as they were known, to go to train at some of the pits and Dad told the story of driving along near Whiston when he got three bells from the conductress. That meant she was in trouble. He stopped the bus and went to see what was the problem. The conductress said that the Bevan boys at the back were causing a nuisance,one in particular. My father walked to the back,and told the boy to get off the bus. Dad was not a tall man but when the boy stood up, he was well over six feet tall!! He could have easily have knocked Dad over but instead he very meekly got off the bus and the rest of the passengers clapped.
I hope that you have found this of some interest. I am sorry, but I have no photos whatsoever.

Christine Wise

08/11/15 - 09:59

It is always good to read the recollections of the people who were directly connected with the operators and the contribution from Christine Wise is an excellent example of this. Christine has provided some 'meat on the bones' for us all. The Sentinel to which you refer, Christine, was JWW 316, delivered new in April 1950 but gone (to Enterprise, Somerset) less than four years later.
As a boy I spent many hours in Sheffield's Pond Street bus station and my earliest memory of a Wigmore bus at its stand on platform A was the rather clumsy-looking Duple Roadmaster JWO 980. Like Neville and David, I saw many Bedford VALs come and go over the years. This was always a functional fleet, never a pretty one.
I have a list of about seventy-five of the buses operated. The list is by no means a complete fleet list and is quite sketchy in parts. Apart from what I actually saw for myself, much of the information was gleaned from the many publications in my possession such as Buses Illustrated, PSV Circle lists etc.
It would be great to see someone more knowledgeable than myself put the story of this former operator on the shelves. This is a story waiting to be told!

Les Dickinson

08/11/15 - 15:29

My thanks to Christine for the additional information. I just wish that I'd established a link to her before my book on Western Yorkshire independents came out. Wigmore's history - as much of it as I was able to ascertain from other sources, including fairly comprehensive fleet details - is included in the book which might be of interest to both Christine and Les. It's called "Independent Bus Operators in Western Yorkshire" and is still available from Venture Publications through the MDS Books website.

Neville Mercer

11/11/15 - 08:53

David and Neville both made mention of the Bedford VALs operated by this operator and as was said, this was the only independent to operate into the Pond Street terminus where one of their buses is shown at its stand on platform A. Two of at least fifteen VALs over the years, HWU 402C and sister HWU 403C were bought new in August 1965. Chassis numbers were 1858 and 1874 and both had this rather staid, workmanlike bodywork by Willowbrook. Similar new buses were bought each and every year from 1964 until 1971 and these were joined in 1967 by the only second-hand one, as far as my records show, that was AJS 110B which came from Mitchell, Stornaway at just three years old.

Les Dickinson

11/11/15 - 08:53

Although these two brothers mainly operated stage carriage services they had sometimes bought coaches such as FWW 569, one of at least half a dozen Leyland Tigers bought new in the 1940s. Three, like the one pictured in The Square, Dinnington, carried Duple C35F bodies, three others had Burlingham coachwork.The superb inscription on the rear of the coach shows A&C Wigmore. Other family members, F & A Wigmore also operated from Dinnington as Excelsior. Some early records show new vehicles first registered simply to Wigmore which could cause confusion amongst enthusiasts, there is, however, no doubt about this one!
The other bus in the picture is Rotherham's FET 817, a Bristol L5G of 1950 with East Lancs (Bridlington) thirty-two-seat centre-entrance body.

Les Dickinson

23/11/15 - 11:37

Neville, CC Hall's book on Sheffield Transport also shows Daimler W 6402 (fleet number 17) as being sold to Wigmore. An interesting bus indeed as he also says that it went from single-deck to double, back to single and eventually back to double whilst with Sheffield. The withdrawals column shows this as withdrawn 1926 however, the notes at the bottom show it as having gone to Wigmore in 1922. I think 1926 is probably correct and would suggest that it might have been bought by Wigmore to replace W3202 perhaps?
On a different issue, may I congratulate Nevile on his excellent book covering this and other West Yorkshire Independents. I recommend this to all Yorkshire enthusiasts. An additional vehicle to include in the second issue of this book is the Dennis Mace DUA 16 which was sold by Wigmore to Hodder, Stainburn, in August 1951. Sadly I don't have details of its arrival with Wigmore. My own list of acquisitions includes Bedford SBG PAA 200 and 3538 WU - a Bedford SB1 though I now wonder if these were reported in my source reading as Wigmore meaning the related family who ran Excelsior Coaches.

Les Dickinson

25/11/15 - 07:18

Thank you Christine for that very interesting information. I have fond memories of "Wiggies" and used then regularly whilst growing up in Dinnington during the 50's and 60's. There was always confusion between A & C Wigmore and Wigmore's Excelsior Coaches which was also established by two brothers, Frank and Arnold Wigmore (I don't know what the family connection was) round about 1936. You are right Les in thinking that you may have been confused as Dennis Mace DUA 16 (bought 6/36)and Bedfords PAA 200 and 3538 WU were part of Excelsior's fleet. Thank you for the information on the book "Western Yorkshire Independents" which I will now seek out.

David Abbott

20/03/16 - 13:07

Further to previous comments, the family link between A&C Wigmore and F&A Wigmore (Excelsior) would seem to be as follows;- Arthur (b1894) and Cuthbert (b1892)were sons of William Cuthbert Wigmore and Sarah Jane Wigmore (nee Osborne).
Francis James (b1905) and Arnold (b1909)were two sons of Levi and Florence Wigmore (nee Shaw)and had eight siblings.
Presumably Francis James is the one that Christine recalls as Frank?
The four boys were cousins as William Cuthbert and Levi were brothers.
The 1911 census shows Levi's family living at 43 Laughton Road so presumably this was the garage of Excelsior in due course as Christine remembers Fosters having their competing business next door in that road.
Question for Christine, do you remember whether Fosters were at 41 or 45 please, and where was the garage of A&C at the time your father was a mechanic there?
This level of success was not bad for a mining family from Gloucestershire eh?

Les Dickinson

20/03/16 - 13:39

1911 census shows Francis Wigmore at 41 and Levi Wigmore at 43.
There is no reference to Foster between 37 and 47 BUT 39 doesn't have any record showing. Could that have been a garage without a residence attached?
Another point is that in 1911 there is no mention of bus or coach operations.
Levi was a coal miner as were George and Cecil while Francis is shown as a Retired Gentleman

John Lomas

20/03/16 - 15:18

All good stuff John. Although the 1911 census is before F&A started Excelsior, A&C were already shown as 'Carters' in Barley Croft Lane and Neville Mercer's superb book tells us that they were offering a char-a-banc for sale in 1918 as its regular driver 'has gone to war'. The same book tells that Fosters had also entered the passenger carrying service by 1915 and kept their trusty Ford in a blacksmith's yard in Laughton Road, sadly the street number is not shown.

Les Dickinson

24/03/16 - 16:58

Both Wigmore's and Foster's garages were on the west side of Laughton Road adjacent to each other. Foster's was just north of No.26 and had a long frontage with a large forecourt. This can be seen on some of the photos in the article on Fosters in "Buses Extra 60" of Aug/Sept 1989. It also has a photo of Guy charabanc of the 1920's which shows an address of 87 Laughton Road. This is on the opposite side to the garage site and further north and maybe the blacksmith's yard referred to. A&C Wigmore was immediately north of Foster's and had a very narrow entrance (which was shared with the public conveniences). The old garage building is now a snooker club and numbered as No.32 Laughton Road.
Wigmore's Excelsior Coaches started in the late 30's and their first garage was in Clarence Street. They moved to a larger site in Doe Quarry Lane in the 50's. There was also an East Midland Motor Services garage in the village but this was blown down in the 50's.

David Abbott

03/05/16 - 08:48

From late 1943 till mid 1946 I worked as a Bevin boy at Dinnington Main mostly on night shift maintenance with a man called Lol. Gregory. I lived for a short while with Mrs Cornwell in the Barracks before moving to 24 Western Avenue and Mrs Heywood I seem to remember a Doctor Wigmore? For a short while I worked for Wigmores delivery services driving a five ton short wheelbase Bedford truck, delivering sand from a quarry at Worksop to foundries at Barnsley Penistone and Huddersfield before signing on for nights at the pit {I needed the extra cash). My home was in the Peak District near Buxton so I was able to get away every 2 or 3 weeks, taking a Wigmores bus to Sheffield station from the Lordons hotel but I didn't get a discount (you have two jobs) so don,t ask.

Eric Livesley

16/09/16 - 07:15

A surviving Wigmores VAL

Russell Price

14/10/16 - 05:05

Both the Wigmores and Fosters lived down Swinston Hill Road. It was Worksop Lane till I was coming home from school one day and they had taken down the Worksop Lane sign and put up Swinston Hill Road sign. The young Mrs. Wigmore taught at Dinnington Secondary Modern School in the art room. She was my form tutor. They lived in a bungalow at the top of the road. Fosters lived about half way down the road. Fosters was on the site to the front of Aldi now where the café and wool shop is. There were public toilets between the two bus firms. The gents was to the left and the ladies to the right. You had to be careful coming out of the ladies so that any Wigmores buses coming into the narrow entrance did not knock you down! They ran buses to Rotherham down a very steep hill and one day the brakes failed!
Next to Wigmores was a drinking club and then the open Market which was held on a Friday till quite late in the afternoon. I used to look round on my way home from school when they were packing up. I was Pam Darkin and lived down Worksop Lane and still have a book posted to my mother with the old address on.

Pam Cook

12/02/17 - 07:34

In 1953 I started work at the pit in the next village to Dinnington called (Thurcroft Colliery) I was 15 and an apprentice electrician. One of the older electricians was called George Clarke and he worked days regular underground. In the afternoons he used to drive Wigmores buses some times late into the evening, he did this for years and he used to give the conductor a wink and you didn't have to pay for your ticket. The conductors were always ladies and had smart thick navy blue uniforms and a peak hat, they had a ticket machine and a money bag and the straps went across their chest. One other thing that I remember was you never saw a dirty Wigmores bus, what ever the weather?

David Page

14/01/22 - 07:26

Wigmores lived at the top of Swinston Hill Road (formerly Worksop Lane). One of their busses was coming down a steep hill going towards Rotherham. It was icy and it crashed. May be in local newspapers.
Their garage was on Doe Quarry Lane.

Pamela Cook

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