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11 Facts About Eric Tonks

1.

Eric Tonks was an English writer and historian of British industrial railways.

2.

Eric Tonks is regarded as one of the pioneers of the industrial archaeology of railways and quarrying.

3.

In 1949, Tonks was one of the founders of the Birmingham Locomotive Club and he was the club's president for 25 years.

4.

Eric Tonks set up the club's Industrial Locomotive Section, which later became the Industrial Railway Society.

5.

Eric Tonks compiled a well-regarded study of the development of British preserved railways.

6.

Eric Tonks was a prolific author on the related subjects of industrial history and industrial railways.

7.

Eric Tonks began his writing career with a book on the Edge Hill Light Railway, and he was an acknowledged expert in the history of that railway.

8.

Eric Tonks is particularly known for his "magnum opus" 9-volume series of books on the ironstone industry of The Midlands, which is considered the standard work on the subject.

9.

Eric Tonks began work on this series with the publication of a single volume in 1959.

10.

Eric Tonks was a founding member of the Motor Registration Circuit, a club based in the Midlands for car license plate spotting enthusiasts.

11.

Eric Tonks was a well-known Jazz aficionado, who wrote a regular column for Discography magazine and was considered an expert in the field of Jazz discographies.