LNWR colours.

[HUY2ROB]

Did the old pre grouping LNWR have standard colours for the station name signs on platforms?

 

[Rescars]

I don't know the answer for certain, but three thoughts:

1. My guess is that the norm would have been white lettering on a black background. A simple and cost-effective approach feels like it would have appealed when Sir Richard Moon chaired the board.
2. The silly answer is that in all period photographs they will appear as sepia and cream!
3. Your query raises the question as to when smaller (eg totem style) platform name boards came into general use. Were there many pre WW1, or was reliance placed on large running-in boards and porters calling out the name of the station? Quite a number of stations had their names illuminated on their platform lamp glasses. IIRC the letters were often coloured blue. I don't know if LNWR followed this trend or did something different.

 

[HUY2ROB]

I don't know the answer for certain, but three thoughts:

1. My guess is that the norm would have been white lettering on a black background. A simple and cost-effective approach feels like it would have appealed when Sir Richard Moon chaired the board.
2. The silly answer is that in all period photographs they will appear as sepia and cream!
3. Your query raises the question as to when smaller (eg totem style) platform name boards came into general use. Were there many pre WW1, or was reliance placed on large running-in boards and porters calling out the name of the station? Quite a number of stations had their names illuminated on their platform lamp glasses. IIRC the letters were often coloured blue. I don't know if LNWR followed this trend or did something different.

Thanks for that. I saw an AI-coloured version of an old photo of a local station with a maroon name board which I thought was wrong.

 

[Merle Haggard]

There's been some discussion of this very subject on an L.N.W.R. interest Face book page. The signs were changed from enamel to wood/cast letters or one piece cast iron. The enamel signs were the dark blue of early enamel (?cobalt) background and white letters, and when the change was made there was an instruction that the new signs were to be painted blue with white letters. At some stage later they probably went to white on black.Which colour they should be is a source of debate amongst collectors of that Company's cast-iron! (as is why a few line side signs were black with white letters/numerals, the reverse of most).

 

[randyrippley]

The first image on this one page PDF file is interesting

https://communityraillancashire.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Lancaster-History-Panel.pdf

It's a history of Lancaster Castle station, and the first image shows one of the old electric units at platform six, next to a station nameplate. Is the nameplate LMS or LNWR? The noticeboards are branded LMS, and the coaches appear to have LMS lettering.
But is that an old LNWR station sign?

I've cropped and expanded the photo below

PS - before anyone starts complaining, attempting to copy and paste an extract of the text from the original pdf isn't feasible nor would it be relevant

 

[Merle Haggard]

The first image on this one page PDF file is interesting

https://communityraillancashire.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Lancaster-History-Panel.pdf

It's a history of Lancaster Castle station, and the first image shows one of the old electric units at platform six, next to a station nameplate. Is the nameplate LMS or LNWR? The noticeboards are branded LMS, and the coaches appear to have LMS lettering.
But is that an old LNWR station sign?

I've cropped and expanded the photo below
View attachment 146139
PS - before anyone starts complaining, attempting to copy and paste an extract of the text from the original pdf isn't feasible nor would it be relevant

The station name board ('running-in board) is an LMS 'Hawkseye' one. Hawkseye was the maker's name and they were cast aluminium alloy with the background area on the sign itself coated in small glass beads to make it reflective. The ali. sign was the part within the outline that included the arcs, the outer rectangular area was wood. The colour scheme was bright yellow with black lettering.
The L-M-H stock was originally L.N.W.R., d.c. but converted to o.h a.c.; the route itself was ex Midland railway.