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TOWER WAGONS

The December issue of Heritage Commercials is very good and nice to see so much Leyland content.

You may like to know that Leyland (then the Lancashire Steam Motor Co) built four very early tower wagons to serve Belfast’s extensive tramway network. They were based on the then new three-ton chassis with Crossley 22/30hp, four-cylinder engines, and were known as the Leyland-Crossley Y2. They entered service at the end of 1905/early 1906. I’ve included a photo of this first one.

I’m very intrigued by the Bradford tower wagon on pages 46-47, registered AK 49, and think it may be a second issue of that registration. It certainly doesn’t look like a Milnes-Daimler, especially being chain driven and it may have been built by the Corporation using various components. The PSV Circle history for Bradford says:

AK 49 Milnes-Daimler 6hp Tower Wagon 10/1901 AK 49(2) BCT-Ryknield 33/35hp Tower Wagon 10/09

Not much else to go on! As registrations came in in December 1903 the first AK 49 would be registered then. The photo of AK 49 shows a vehicle built later than 1903/04, it is certainly not a Milnes-Daimler.

So, it must be