Enginelines

Surviving Ransomes electric trucks

ON PAGE 87 of OG 363 there is a review of the book Electric Trucks by Kevin Desmond. Your reviewer mentions the Ransomes, Sims & Jeffries built ‘Orwell’ electric vehicles and opines that “it was a shame that none were preserved”.

In fact, at least three still exist, one of which (DX 1664) is the very lorry depicted with the review! This wagon (the prototype Orwell electric) is preserved in the Ipswich Transport Museum in the blue livery of Ipswich Industrial Co-Operative Society. The Ipswich Transport Society also have in their collection the fourth ‘Orwell’