John Marshall (1 May 1922 – 12 November 2008) was an English railway historian. He is best known for his three-volume history of the

Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway The Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (L&YR) was a major British railway company before the 1923 Grouping. It was incorporated in 1847 from an amalgamation of several existing railways. It was the third-largest railway system based in northern ...

'which he greatly disliked being described as "definitive"' and for compiling ''The Guinness Railway Book'' 'which, in its six editions, is arguably the best selling railway book of all time.' Born in

Nottingham Nottingham ( , locally ) is a city and unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east of Sheffield and north-east of Birmingham. Nottingham has links to the legend of Robi ...

, John Marshall was conscripted into the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

, serving as a wireless mechanic in India. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

he trained as a teacher at

Loughborough Loughborough ( ) is a market town in the Charnwood borough of Leicestershire, England, the seat of Charnwood Borough Council and Loughborough University. At the 2011 census the town's built-up area had a population of 59,932 , the second large ...

, where he met his wife, Ann, going on to teach woodwork in

Bolton Bolton (, locally ) is a large town in Greater Manchester in North West England, formerly a part of Lancashire. A former mill town, Bolton has been a production centre for textiles since Flemish weavers settled in the area in the 14th ...

. He retired to

Bewdley Bewdley ( pronunciation) is a town and civil parish in the Wyre Forest District in Worcestershire, England on the banks of the River Severn. It is in the Severn Valley west of Kidderminster and southwest of Birmingham. It lies on the Riv ...

where he worked as a volunteer on the

Severn Valley Railway The Severn Valley Railway is a heritage railway in Shropshire and Worcestershire, England. The heritage line runs along the Severn Valley from Bridgnorth to Kidderminster, following the course of the River Severn for much of its route, and c ...

. His sons, Simon and Andrew, and his daughter Jennifer inherited his enthusiasm for railways. He wrote many articles and books on railway history, his history of the L&YR being published by

David & Charles David & Charles Ltd is an English publishing company. It is the owner of the David & Charles imprint, which specialises in craft and lifestyle publishing. David and Charles Ltd acts as distributor for all David and Charles Ltd books and cont ...

in 1969–72, also travelling very widely in pursuit of his interest, as witnessed by his work on the metre gauge railways of Switzerland and his compendia of international railway facts for Guinness Publishing.

Selected publications by John Marshall

* * * * Preface dated 1972. * * * * * * *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marshall, John Royal Air Force personnel of World War II Royal Air Force airmen Military personnel from Nottingham People from Nottingham Rail transport writers 1922 births 2008 deaths British people in rail transport Alumni of Loughborough University Railway historians English male non-fiction writers 20th-century English historians 20th-century English male writers