Memory is probably playing tricks on me since it was over 40 years ago, but I was recovered into the AEC dealer when the clutch failed on the Mercury I was driving. ISTR that their premises were next door to Smith of Eccles. Would that have been Lex Tillotson?
I used to go into their yard in Taylor Road in Urmston in the late 60s and early 70s. I think your photo looks like it was taken in Salford Docks ?
These old photos of well used working lorries bring back so many memories. This one especially as I spent a lot of my driving days around Manchester, much of it in the Trafford Park area.
I like your photo so much, I thought it deserved " a bit of a tidy-up ". I hope you don’t mind.
Regards John.
cav551:
Memory is probably playing tricks on me since it was over 40 years ago, but I was recovered into the AEC dealer when the clutch failed on the Mercury I was driving. ISTR that their premises were next door to Smith of Eccles. Would that have been Lex Tillotson?
Hi
You are spot on memory wise - it then became a Tankfreight Depot then a utility company.
Cheers
Ken B
Kenb:
0
Smiths of Eccles was purchased out of Nationalisation be a Mr Rouse in the 1950’s
It specialised in movement of engineering machinery and had a continental dept involved with exhibitions in Hanover. The company purchased Harry Evers a well known local tipper company handing large shipments being unloaded of ships on the Manchester Ship Canal. They also purchased Walter Denton a well known heavy Haulage business.
It was sold to Transport Development Group in the 1960’s and continued under management of Mr Rouse until he retired. Don Parkin then took over as MD.
The company was merged into Harris Road Services in 1982 and the Trafford Park Depot became Harris’s Head office- the business operated as Harris Road Services morning until 1990 when TDG broke the company up and renamed the Powder Tanker business Nexus.
Ken b
I remember back sometime in 1980 when I was on nights and running from Maltby to Altrincham via Arndale Centre Manchester.It was just around 2300 hrs on Middlewood Road in Sheffield and a bloke stuck up a log book so of course I stopped.He worked for Smiths of Eccles and had a big fall out ont phone with his gaffer in Manchester when he was somewhere in East Anglia.I’m a bit hazy about the circumstances but I think he’d asked for Friday and Saturday off,maybe for a wedding or summat and he’d been told to backload from somewhere in London area which would have meant running into depot on the Saturday morning.Seeing as it was a Thursday night when I picked him up,he’d left t’wagon around Newark or Grantham where he’d run out of hours and told his gaffer to stick the job,tractor trailer job lot.
I dropped him off at Ardwick Green where he bid me goodnight and vanished into the gloom for a night service bus. 
Smiths of Eccles used to warehouse Tea for the Coop, I used load back from them in the 60/70s, Back to Newcastle, Then Birtley when the Coop opened their new depot, Mind you had to have good sheets otherwise they wouldnt load you, Happy long gone days, Regards Larry.
Back in the mists of time ( 60s ) I recall a one lorry garage on the Knutsford/Warrington road about a couple of miles from the Poplars . There always seemed to be Smith of Eccles 4 wheelers there being repaired or serviced . Could have been an outbased driver or a subbie maybe , such a long time ago now , M6 wasn’t even built then .
rigsby:
Back in the mists of time ( 60s ) I recall a one lorry garage on the Knutsford/Warrington road about a couple of miles from the Poplars . There always seemed to be Smith of Eccles 4 wheelers there being repaired or serviced . Could have been an outbased driver or a subbie maybe , such a long time ago now , M6 wasn’t even built then .
How interesting you raise this point!! That location was a cousin of the original owner of the company and it was a way of looking after his poorer relatives, they carried out very good servicing work, however this carried on after the business was sold to TDG and wasn’t dclared!! Then when it was merged into Harris Road Service and discovered it didn’t make sense in gave a large workshop in a Trafford Park and dub work out. So we canceled the arrangements - youcan image the iritation this caused including letters being written to Sir James Duncan Chairman of a TDG who supported the actions taken.
So there you have it - from the horses mouth
Kenb
I worked for Smiths of Eccles for a short while in the late 1960s driving a Bedford artic delivering black oil. Later had an ERF A series plenty of roping and sheeting, remember I had back loaded from their yard think it was at Wolverhampton or that area. I did a few weeks working out of Distillers CO2 Pollard Street Manchester driving a ridged Bedford TK delivering CO2 cylinders top Lancashire area. One occasion my vehicle was in for service and was given a replacement. It was an ERF A series with a short think 28 footer trailer. It was not suitable for Distillers work as cylinders in them days they were loaded sideways on stillages and the Bedford’s were lower to the ground for handballing off. The slope on the replacement trailer was severe and made it hard for 1960s forklifts to unload. Most of the drops were Foundries and breweries and the Bedford rigids had side panels but were useless if load was not anchored down. At this time late 1960s the Smiths of Eccles traffic manager was Sammy Neil and assistant manager was think Eddy? Griffiths both top notch bosses. Later years I worked for Smith and Robinsons (Rothwell Leeds) working out of their yard at Urmston on the same estate as Smiths of Eccles on Taylor Road.
Regards KEV
Where was there yard in London? I remember my uncle shunting for these.
Steve.