Charles S. Lake and his background
In the dark and desperate days of World War II, it is hard to envisage some aspects of life continuing with a semblance of normality. Our experience of living through the recent lockdowns perhaps enables us to have some understanding. The venerable institution of the Railway Magazine at first continued much as it had pre-war. But as the ‘Phoney War’ of late 1939 and early 1940 was soon forgotten with the fall of France, Dunkirk, the Battle of Britain and the Blitz, the atmosphere must have felt very different. The whole economy became geared to the war effort, and the Railway Magazine played its part by becoming bimonthly starting with the May/June edition in 1942.
The present writer's occasional perusal of a random selection of magazines from this period led to the discovery of articles of interest such as an obituary of Sir Nigel Gresley, features on Bulleid's brand-new ‘Merchant Navy’ Pacifics, his Q1 0-6-0s and reports of prodigious feats of wartime haulage. However, what was really striking was a series of articles by Charles S. Lake entitled ‘Some CMEs I have known’ – Francis William Webb, Sir Henry Fowler, C. J. Bowen Cooke, H. A. Ivatt, J. F. McIntosh, R. W. Urie and Dugald Drummond. It is with some hesitation that I employ the rather over-used term ‘legends’ to describe these people, but to me, and probably others like me, who spent their free time at school in the library reading the Observer's Book of Railway Locomotives, this description seems deserved. Even the name Dugald Drummond inspired awe!
Charles S. Lake enjoyed a rather privileged position as the son of Henry H. Lake, one of the principal partners in the firm of Haseltine, Lake & Co., Chartered Patent Agents and Consulting Engineers. One of the firm's clients was Francis William Webb of the London & North Western Railway who registered with them the patents, totalling as many as 80 covering an eclectic range of inventions. Thus it was that as a relatively young man Lake wroterequest a visit to Camden to get an idea of the work involved in a busy running shed. He was quite surprised to receive a reply inviting him to Crewe Works to show him “one or two things of interest”. Webb was evidently concerned for Lake's safety at Camden in a busy environment. Lake's visit is described below.
