HORWICH
Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway Company manufactured locomotives at Horwich. The most famous being the Horwich 'Crab'. In 1884 the L&YR purchased land for a new works and in 1889 the first engine was completed. In 1983 the works closed.
The L&YR merged under the name of the London & North Western Railway in 1922 just before the larger amalgamation that formed the London, Midland and Scottish Region in 1923.
Although the first Chief Engineer of the LMS was George Hughes of the L&YR his tenure was brief and in 1925 he retired and was replaced by Henry Fowler, ex-Midland Region. This gave Derby a prominence so that Horwich became less in stature particularly with Crewe being another power axis. The good old 'Crab' was doctored with Midland design features. Although the Midland was considered old fashioned and conservative and the Crab was an eclectic design, borrowing bits from around the globe.
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