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Eric Treacy
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Eric Treacy, although born in London, had a special affinity for northern England and Scotland. Most of his photographs were taken on northern lines. As a busy cleric, at first Treacy could only devote a few minutes a day to his hobby. Many of his early photographs were taken near his Merseyside parish, mainly at Edge Hill, where trains climbed through a murky cutting on their way from Lime Street station.
After the Second World War Treacy moved to Yorkshire, where he began to photograph the railways of the mill towns and moors of the West Riding. He also regularly travelled north to capture the main line expresses as they ascended the steep gradient at Shap Fell, or to Carlisle, where many different classes of locomotive congregated in the busy station.
Royal Scot locomotive Argyll & Sutherland Highlander with a goods train at Beattock in the 1950's.
© National Railway Museum / Science & Society Picture Library
Treacy's favourite location was the line from Settle to Carlisle, and he returned again and again to photograph locomotives set amidst the magnificent scenery of the bleak dales. North of the border he usually favoured Beattock bank or Edinburgh station, although he believed the most beautiful route in Britain was the West Highland line and regretted that he had few opportunities to visit it.
An engine change at Carlisle in July 1953. Coronation Class locomotive No 46231 Duchess of Atholl takes over from No 46244 King George VI.
© National Railway Museum / Science & Society Picture Library
Treacy was equally happy photographing in his local stations, spending his lunch breaks in the signal box at Leeds or creating evocative studies in the engine sheds of Yorkshire. He rarely photographed on southern or western lines, and even when he slipped away from church meetings in London he preferred to photograph northern bound locomotives as they left Euston, St Pancras and King's Cross.
Patriot Class locomotive No 5523 at Edge Hill engine shed in 1938.
© National Railway Museum / Science & Society Picture Library