Brighton Tram 53 Society

Proposal to Brighton Corporation to set up a Horse drawn Tramway but rejected because of public opposition.

Discussions held about creating an Electric Tramway for the town.

The Longhurst Brewery site at Preston Circus (now Brighton Fire Station) was purchased for laying of track, a new Tram HQ and Depot but after demolishing the building an underground stream deemed it not suitable ground for a building or tram sheds because of the weight of the trams.

Brighton Corporation apply for a Parliamentary Bill to use the town’s roads to construct and establish a public passenger tramway. A Commisioner was appointed by Brighton Corporation to oversee the setup of Brighton Corporation Tramways and the installation of the street tramway. A horse omnibus was used to plan the 8 Trial routes. Initially London Road was left of the routes due to heavy horse vehicle usage and crowded pavements. But because of a second opinion as to why it should be left out was sort, it won the day and it was included in the routes.

The new Commisioner and committee visit Boulogne, Rouen, Paris and Brussels to research the trams used and how they ran their Tramways. On return to Brighton they decided additionally to visit Tramways in: Dover, Leeds, Blackpool, Sheffield and Halifax. The findings from the research tours decided how the town would operate a day to day use of Electric Trams, supplied by overhead cables for power and what would be the best design of tram for the narrow steets of the town. Brighton Corporation Tramways was formerly commissioned offering a Public transport network.

A Brighton Corporation Act was made into law to install and operate a corporation run Tramway. Purchase of land, formally a traveller’s site to build the Lewes Road Head office / 6 track Tram Sheds + 1 track paint shed / Workshop-Garage / Exterior Yard, 30 Tramcars (Numbers 1 - 30) purchased.

The Lewes Road building was started and finished by November, using 300,000 bricks and labour from Corporation employees. The first Tram route (Route L) was completed in November travelling from the original start terminus being the southern end of Victoria Gardens travelling to Preston Barracks (Lewes Road). On November 25th, the Tramway was offically opened with the first tramcar driven ceremonially by John Stafford, the then Brighton Mayor to Lewes road army barracks. The same day, the public service started at 1.15pm running 20 trams; by the end of the day on the Route L, ticket price 1d (one penny), the trams had carried 19,074 individual passenger journeys with total ticket sales of £79 9s 6d (2026 £79,475.00p

Completion of the full tramway network, including laying track at the Old Steine for the new permanent terminus called the Aquarium extending Route L, now being a total track coverage of 9.5 miles, using 9 routes with a “next tram arriving waiting time” at the majority of tram stops of just 4 - 5 minutes. Start of minor refurbishing of all trams as deemed necessary because the quality of workmanship and features on the trams purchased was deemed poor.

Brighton Corporation Tramways have 232 staff – 74 Motormen, 68 Conductors.

Brighton Corporation Tramways Brass Band formed consisting of 12 members eventually rising to over 20 members being of both Motormen and Conductors. The band would play during summer months in Preston Park, civic events and community gatherings.

Having now purchased a total of 80 trams from Milnes Co, which built the bodies and used Westinghouse trucks, the Corporation started a major rebuild/refurbish of the purchased trams, included was the saloon frames, using quality seasoned Oak wood to replace the unseasoned American timber. It was then decided that all future new trams would be built in-house at Lewes Road Depot because it was not being offered a quality-built tram.

In 1909 a group of Native American Indians visit Brighton and enjoy sight seeing on the top deck of a tram

Street Wooden Passenger shelters were built at the ends of each tram route with a few built mid routes

A parcel service was added, for example returning a book back to the library. A demonstration of the efficency of this new municipal run public transportation operation was shown in 1913 when 40 trams queued at the top of Elm Grove to convey 2,000 passengers away from the Race Course which was completed in under 20 minutes.

Having acquired the skilled work force necessary by 1914, the Corporation decided to implement its decision of 1908 to stop purchasing trams and started to build in house trams using their own superior designs which improved year on year, offering passengers increased comfort and a smoother ride. The Corporation built a total of 116 trams but had no choice in that all trams had to have an open top deck due to regulations of the 1900 Corporation Act. By the time of WW1 breaking out in 1914, Brighton Corporation Tramways had 273 employees. The War Mobilisation Order meant 114 were conscripted. As a result, all remaining employees worked 7 days a week for 11 hours a day. During 1914 Indian and British Soldiers injured were reurning from France and were sent to Brighton's newly setup superior medical facilities for treatment. They were sent by train from Dover/Southampton, and on arriving at Brighton, the military ambulances found they could not cope. The decision was made to use Trams to assist the transportation of the patients to the Royal Pavilion Hospital Estate (included the Corn Exchange & Dome) and the Lord Kitchener Hospital (the Workhouse – later Brighton General Hospital - Elm Grove). Around the Royal Pavillion Estate a high fence was erected for the indian soldiers dignity, the public used the trams travelling on the top deck to get a view.

To replace those conscripted for the war effort, it was decided to include 6 female employees as conductresses, and they proved more reliable than the new male employees. Brighton was the first town in the UK to employ conductresses.

The total conductresses employed was now 48 being 73% of all the conducting staff. Another 82 men left the tramway, conscipted for the war effort

Most conductress’s have now been replaced by returning male soldiers. A memorial board was put up at Lewes Road HQ/Depot to remember and honour the 24 employees killed in action who did not return.

The minimum 1d (penny) fare was abolished increasing to 2d (pence).

Having now rebuilt all the tramway track with better quality rails, the tram maximum speed was increased from 15 mph to a max of 20 mph.

The General Strike of 1926 had a massive effect on the Brighton Tramway. The strike called by the TUC over striking coal miners paralysed the UK, and in Brighton the strike was complete, with everything closed down, including the Tramway. On 11th May, 4,000 strikers from around the town thought there was an attempt to start the trams working when management tried to smuggle in workers for training. As a result, a battle outside the depot gates occurred, now recognised as ‘The Battle of Lewes Road’. 22 arrests were made, and many were injured. The General Strike started on 4th May and finished on 12th May..

The tram network now has all the superior trams built at the Lewes Road Corporation workshop running on the tramway, as all purchased trams have now been scrapped.

Trams 51, 52 & 53 were built by General manager/engineer William Marsh without specific authorisation from the Corporation. They were the very last open top trams built at the Brighton Workshop and the whole of the UK. The new 53 was the third tram to use this number.

In 1939, the Tramway network was scrapped, having carried a total of 629 million passengers over 52 million miles of passenger journeys, making a profit every year from 1905. The total profit over 38 years of operation was £54k (equivalent in 2026 to £4.6 million), paid back into Corporation coffers to help cover the cost of running the town. The tramway network never needed any subsidy and had a near-perfect safety record of only one major accident. Sadly, no one realised the environmentally friendly, non-polluting, energy-efficient, smooth-riding tram and tramway was/should have been the future of public transport.

December 2009 Guy Hall a model maker, hears a story that there is a forgotten Brighton tram on a farm in West Sussex. After searching and finding the farm, discussions with the farmer took place for this, the only survivor of the 38 years of Brighton’s Tramway. It was agreed he would start a full restoration program making it a fully working Heritage tram. A 16 year restoration period (2010-2026) for the former Brighton Corporation Tramway tramcar 53 starts. March 2010, at the "Hope" public house Brighton, the first ever meeting with 13 people in attendance, the "Brighton Tram 53 Society" is formed.

With restoration nearly complete, the Society formally asks Brighton & Hove City Council officers and Councillors to be given the use of two barns and courtyard at Home Farm, Stanmer Park. The business plan is to convert the two buildings to be the permanent home of Tram 53, being tram sheds and a museum. Followed by laying a permanent Tramway travelling down to the park entrance gate and back up stopping at Stanmer House, One Garden-a destination garden and terminating at the park’s Historic Barn in Stanmer Village.

BBC South TodayStanmer Park / Tram 53 news report — click to watch

First UK Horse Tramway opened by Surrey Iron Railway to be used for carrying freight.

The first in the world operating, fare paying Passenger Horse Tram running between Swansea & Mumbles, Wales — Oystermouth Railway.

The first UK street Passenger Horse Tramway, a distance of 1 1/2 miles, set up by an American Mr George Francis Train — The Birkenhead Railway, Birkenhead.

The First London Horse Tram introduced.

The First Tramways Act put in place by Parliament to provide protection for local authorities from Tramway proposals.

The First UK ELECTRIC Tramway, Volks Electrical Railway, opens in Brighton.