Merryweather Sandringham fire engine of the 1930s.

GORDON THACKRAH, BORN 1916
MECHANICAL ENGINEER

At the age of twelve Gordon Thackrah was taken to a London Fire Brigade open day and decided to become a fireman. In this spirit he joined as an apprentice, at the age of 16, the UK’s leading manufacturer of fire engines - Merryweather & Sons of Greenwich. Here he worked on the factory floor and in the drawing office. In 1936 he visited German factories on a group visit organised by the Instiution of E;lectrical Engineers. He was impressed by how clean and well organised the factories were. Conversely, he was depressed to observe discrimination against the Jews. Thackrah moved to Pulsometer Engineering in Reading, and served in the Home Guard thoughout World War II. A subsequent engineering job took him to Ilkley in Yorkshire, and he settled in the north east for the rest of his life. In 1977 Thackrah entered an active retirement. This included tending his colllection of several thousand stamps, water colour painting, illustration, and photography.