Jump to content

Alan Pegler: Difference between revisions

Edit links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
comma in wrong place
Trident13 (talk | contribs)
103,559 edits
add better refs
Line 1: Line 1:
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2012}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2012}}
'''Alan Francis Pegler''' [[Order of the British Empire|OBE]], [[Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts|FRSA]] (16 April 1920 &ndash; 18 March 2012)<ref>{{cite news|title=Alan Pegler|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/9156363/Alan-Pegler.html|newspaper=The Telegraph|date=20 March 2012}}</ref> was a [[United Kingdom|British]] railway preservationist, best known for saving [[LNER Class A3]] [[LNER Class A3 4472 Flying Scotsman|4472 ''Flying Scotsman'']]<ref>{{Cite book
'''Alan Francis Pegler''' [[Order of the British Empire|OBE]], [[Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts|FRSA]] (16 April 1920 &ndash; 18 March 2012)<ref>{{cite news|title=Alan Pegler|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/9156363/Alan-Pegler.html|newspaper=The Telegraph|date=20 March 2012}}</ref> was a [[United Kingdom|British]] industrialist and later railway preservationist.<ref name=Herring>{{Cite book
|last=Herring |first=Peter
|last=Herring |first=Peter
|title=Yesterday's Railways
|title=Yesterday's Railways
Line 6: Line 6:
|year=2002
|year=2002
|page=130
|page=130
⚫
}}</ref>
}}</ref> and his involvement with the [[Ffestiniog Railway]]. He was educated at [[Jesus College, Cambridge]].

==Early life==
Born in [[London]] on 16 April 1920, he was the son of Francis Pegler, the then Mangaing Director of the family-owned [[Northern Rubber Company]] based in [[Retford]]; and his wife Enid, herself the daughter of amateur golfer [[F.S. Ireland]] who was written about by [[Bernard Darwin]] in his book ''[[Green Memories]]''.<ref name=TelgObit/>

==Career==
Peglar gained his [[Private Pilots License]] aged 17, and spent much of his time chasing [[LNER]] expresses along the [[East Coast Mainline]]. Commissioned into the [[Fleet Air Arm]] in 1939, he was trained to fly torpedo bombers. However, a serious illness resulted in his being invalided out to join the [[Royal Observer Corps]]. Upset outside active duty, he applied to become an inteligence oficer for the [[Royal Air Force]], where he accepted that as his Fleet Air Arm commission was not recognised, he started again in the ranks. By the end of [[World War II]], he was again a commissioned officer.<ref name=TelgObit/>

Post war he was accepted into [[Jesus College, Cambridge]], but after a year his father became ill, and he returned home to run the family business.<ref name=TelgObit/>

==Railways==
In 1962, [[British Railways]] proposed to scrap the former [[LNER Class A3]] [[LNER Class A3 4472 Flying Scotsman|4472 ''Flying Scotsman'']].<ref name=Herring/> Proposed to be saved by a group called "Save Our Scotsman", they were unable to raise the required £3,000, the scrap value of the locomotive. Peglar stepped in and bought the locomotive outright, with the political support of [[Harold Wilson]].<ref name=TelgObit/> He spent the next few years spending large amounts of money having the locomotive restored, and then persuaded the [[British Railways Board]] to let him run enthusiasts specials, then the only steam locomotive running on mainline British Railways.<ref name=TelgObit/>

In 1969, then [[Prime Minister]] Willson agreed to support Peglar running the locomotive in the [[United States]] to support British exports. To comply with local railway regulations, it was fitted with a [[cowcatcher]], bell, [[buckeye coupling]]s and an American-style whistle. The tour ran into immediate problems, with some states seeing the locomotive as a fire-hazard, and there-by raising costs through the need for diesel-headed-haulage through them. With the locomotive having spent the winter in storage in [[San Francisco]], in 1970 [[Ted Heath]]'s Conservatives ousted Willson's Labour Party, and withdrew financial support from the tour. However, Peglar decided to return for the 1970 season. By the end of that seasons tour, the money had run out and Peglar was penniless, with the locomotive back in storage in San Francisco held by unpaid creditors. In 1973 she was sold to [[Sir Bill McAlpine]].<ref name=TelgObit/>

==Later life==
Peglar worked his passage home to Engalnd on a [[P&O]] cruise ship, giving lectures about trains and travel. Declared [[bankrupt]] in the [[High Court]] 1972, he rented a room above a [[fish and chips]] shop opposite [[Paddington Station]]. From 1973, Peglar was again employed by P&O for two seasons giving his popular lectures. Peglar then took up acting, and after 700 performances of [[King Henry VIII]] at the [[Tower of London]], obtained a discharge from his bankruptcy.<ref name=TelgObit/>

When [[James Sherwood|Sir James Sherwood's]] [[Sea Containers]] company began collecting [[Pullman Company]] carriages to relaunch an [[Orient Express]], Peglar introduced himself as a useful railway contact, as well as an expert lecturer. Sherwood employed Peglar as a lecturer six days a week, and whn the trains were not running he performed the same role on British Rail’s luxury Highland rail cruises.<ref name=TelgObit/>


==Personal life==
Pegler bought the famous Flying Scotsman for £3000 in 1961, saving it from destruction and receiving much publicity. By 1968 it was the only steam engine running on the British railway system. Pegler toured with the train. In 1972 he took the train to the United States, but the venture bankrupted him.<ref>{{cite news|last=Johnson|first=Peter|title=Alan Pegler obituary|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/theguardian/2012/mar/25/alan-pegler-obituary|newspaper=The Guardian|date=25 March 2012}}</ref>
Peglar married four times:<ref name=TelgObit/>
*Susan Bendell (1940-unknown, divorced), with whom he had a son
*Lois Reith (1946-1948, her death)
*Pamela Marshall (1952-1956, her death), with whom he had a daughter Penny
*Pauline Graves (1957-unknown, divorced)


He was awarded an OBE in the [[2006 New Year Honours]] list.<ref>{{Cite book
Peglar was awarded an OBE in the [[2006 New Year Honours]] list.<ref>{{Cite book
|last=le Vay |first=Benedict
|last=le Vay |first=Benedict
|title=Britain from the Rails: A Window Gazer's Guide
|title=Britain from the Rails: A Window Gazer's Guide
Line 16: Line 39:
|year=2008
|year=2008
|page=15
|page=15
}}</ref> He died on 18 March 2012 at the age of 91, after a short illness.<ref name=TelgObit>{{cite web|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/9156363/Alan-Pegler.html|title=Obituray - Alan Peglar|publisher=[[Daily Telegraph]]|date=25 March 2012|accessdate=25 May 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Johnson|first=Peter|title=Alan Pegler obituary|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/theguardian/2012/mar/25/alan-pegler-obituary|newspaper=The Guardian|date=25 March 2012}}</ref><ref>[http://www.festrail.co.uk/content/publish/news/Alan_Francis_Pegler_OBE.shtml Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railways - Alan Francis Pegler OBE<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
⚫
}}</ref>

Pegler died on 18 March 2012 at the age of 91, after a short illness.<ref>[http://www.festrail.co.uk/content/publish/news/Alan_Francis_Pegler_OBE.shtml Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railways - Alan Francis Pegler OBE<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>


==Notes==
==Notes==
{{reflist}}
{{reflist}}


{{Authority control|VIAF=90584350}}
{{Authority control|VIAF=90584350}}
{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. -->
{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. -->
Line 40: Line 59:
[[Category:1920 births]]
[[Category:1920 births]]
[[Category:2012 deaths]]
[[Category:2012 deaths]]

{{UK-bio-stub}}

Revision as of 19:20, 27 May 2013

Alan Francis Pegler OBE, FRSA (16 April 1920 – 18 March 2012)[1] was a British industrialist and later railway preservationist.[2]

Early life

Born in London on 16 April 1920, he was the son of Francis Pegler, the then Mangaing Director of the family-owned Northern Rubber Company based in Retford; and his wife Enid, herself the daughter of amateur golfer F.S. Ireland who was written about by Bernard Darwin in his book Green Memories.[3]

Career

Peglar gained his Private Pilots License aged 17, and spent much of his time chasing LNER expresses along the East Coast Mainline. Commissioned into the Fleet Air Arm in 1939, he was trained to fly torpedo bombers. However, a serious illness resulted in his being invalided out to join the Royal Observer Corps. Upset outside active duty, he applied to become an inteligence oficer for the Royal Air Force, where he accepted that as his Fleet Air Arm commission was not recognised, he started again in the ranks. By the end of World War II, he was again a commissioned officer.[3]

Post war he was accepted into Jesus College, Cambridge, but after a year his father became ill, and he returned home to run the family business.[3]

Railways

In 1962, British Railways proposed to scrap the former LNER Class A3 4472 Flying Scotsman.[2] Proposed to be saved by a group called "Save Our Scotsman", they were unable to raise the required £3,000, the scrap value of the locomotive. Peglar stepped in and bought the locomotive outright, with the political support of Harold Wilson.[3] He spent the next few years spending large amounts of money having the locomotive restored, and then persuaded the British Railways Board to let him run enthusiasts specials, then the only steam locomotive running on mainline British Railways.[3]

In 1969, then Prime Minister Willson agreed to support Peglar running the locomotive in the United States to support British exports. To comply with local railway regulations, it was fitted with a cowcatcher, bell, buckeye couplings and an American-style whistle. The tour ran into immediate problems, with some states seeing the locomotive as a fire-hazard, and there-by raising costs through the need for diesel-headed-haulage through them. With the locomotive having spent the winter in storage in San Francisco, in 1970 Ted Heath's Conservatives ousted Willson's Labour Party, and withdrew financial support from the tour. However, Peglar decided to return for the 1970 season. By the end of that seasons tour, the money had run out and Peglar was penniless, with the locomotive back in storage in San Francisco held by unpaid creditors. In 1973 she was sold to Sir Bill McAlpine.[3]

Later life

Peglar worked his passage home to Engalnd on a P&O cruise ship, giving lectures about trains and travel. Declared bankrupt in the High Court 1972, he rented a room above a fish and chips shop opposite Paddington Station. From 1973, Peglar was again employed by P&O for two seasons giving his popular lectures. Peglar then took up acting, and after 700 performances of King Henry VIII at the Tower of London, obtained a discharge from his bankruptcy.[3]

When Sir James Sherwood's Sea Containers company began collecting Pullman Company carriages to relaunch an Orient Express, Peglar introduced himself as a useful railway contact, as well as an expert lecturer. Sherwood employed Peglar as a lecturer six days a week, and whn the trains were not running he performed the same role on British Rail’s luxury Highland rail cruises.[3]

Personal life

Peglar married four times:[3]

  • Susan Bendell (1940-unknown, divorced), with whom he had a son
  • Lois Reith (1946-1948, her death)
  • Pamela Marshall (1952-1956, her death), with whom he had a daughter Penny
  • Pauline Graves (1957-unknown, divorced)

Peglar was awarded an OBE in the 2006 New Year Honours list.[4] He died on 18 March 2012 at the age of 91, after a short illness.[3][5][6]

Notes

  1. ^ "Alan Pegler". The Telegraph. 20 March 2012.
  2. ^ a b Herring, Peter (2002). Yesterday's Railways. David & Charles. p. 130.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Obituray - Alan Peglar". Daily Telegraph. 25 March 2012. Retrieved 25 May 2013.
  4. ^ le Vay, Benedict (2008). Britain from the Rails: A Window Gazer's Guide. Bradt Travel Guides. p. 15.
  5. ^ Johnson, Peter (25 March 2012). "Alan Pegler obituary". The Guardian.
  6. ^ Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railways - Alan Francis Pegler OBE

Template:Persondata

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Alan_Pegler&oldid=557059183"