1951 June
The last Shrewsbury built steam waggon left the works, the Pederyn Dumper (No 9502)

1951
Batch of 10 steam railcars supplied to Egyptian State Railways (No’s 9411 to 9420). One of these has survived at Quainton, near Aylesbury after being rescued in 1983 by the Sentinel Trust. Some 292 Railcars were built between 1924 and 1951.

1952
First post-war 200 hp loco built (No 9550)

1954
Steven Evans Alley, founder of The Sentinel Waggon Works, died aged 82 years.

1956 November
Rolls Royce Ltd. took over Sentinel. They continue to make
200 hp steam locos but stop production of diesel engined vehicles. Approx 1200 diesel lorries and 151 buses built from 1948 to 1956.

1958 January
Last Sentinel steam loco made by Rolls-Royce (No 9622).
Some 505 steam locos were built between 1924 and 1956.

1959 January
Rolls-Royce introduce new range of Diesel powered shunting locos using 12.17 & 16.2 litre Rolls engines.

1971
Last Rolls-Royce diesel locos built at Shrewsbury. Entire factory now devoted to manufacture of diesel engines. New range of ‘Eagle’ lorry engines added 1976 and a separate military engine division formed in 1975 and a new factory was built on Sentinel land across the railway, unused since 1915.

1985
Rolls-Royce sold their diesel engine division to Perkins Diesels Ltd of Peterborough.

1990
Part of old factory demolished to make way for a new supermarket and the remainder sold to Doncaster Engineering.

1997?
Perkins sell their Shrewsbury division to Caterpillar.

TONY THOMAS

 

 

 

 

 

HISTORY OF THE SENTINEL