Edward Terence MacDermot: historian of the Great Western Railway
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Historian of the Great Western Railway: biography and assessment by Jack Simmons in Oxford Companion (page 302) who states that he was educated at Downside and Magdalen College, Oxford, was born in 1873 and died in 1950. He trained as a barrister, but did not practice. In 1911 his much-admired History of the Forest of Exmoor was published. This was followed between 1927 and 1931 by his History of the Great Western Railway published by the Great Western Railway in 2 volumes as 3: it is thus one of the very few "official histories". It was splendidly produced and is described in glowing terms by Simmons. This was followed by a revised version by C.R. Clinker published by Ian Allan in 1964. Sadly, the Breckland Library service only has Volume 2 (presumably the complete works of Shakespeare lacks Hamlet in this bibliographical desert). Strangely Ottley's entry for MacDermot (5958) is also incomplete: see also Volume 3 written by Nock

History of' the Great Western Railway. 1927. 2v.
An official history of the company and its constitutuents from 1833 to 1921. Locomotives and rolling stock are surveyed by E.L. Ahrons for the period 1833-l863, whilst A.C.W. Lowe covers the remaining period. Tabulated chronology of opening dates. Illustrations (including portraits), maps (some folding). Reviewed Locomotive Mag., 1928, 34, 101. Revised edition by C.R. Clinker published by Ian Allan in 1964. The Clinker revision was reviewed by "RR" in Rly Wld, 1964, 25, 233 and the second volume by HS in Rly Wld, 1965, 26, 79.

See rather complicated letter by Geoff Sheppard in Rly Arch., 2009 (23) 58 which accuses MacDermot of errors in the text relating to the Lostwithiel & Fowey Railway.

2017-11-24