The problem with any information about the past is that the value of money reduces with inflation so it’s difficult to get a feel of how much things cost. It’s particularly noticeable in recent history because inflation has been higher in the past few decades. For instance, in the 1974 I earned £25 a week which sounds impossibly little - and it wasn’t a great sum but you could live on it. However, when you factor in inflation, which averaged about 5.4% between 1974 and 2019, it amounts to £262.51 today.

You can look up your own comparisons at the ‘Bank of England Inflation Checker’ here

When we go further back in history, it becomes more difficult, so when you read that the inside coach fare from London to Edinburgh in 1830 was about £12, it’s difficult for us to see it as expensive … but it was.

In 1830, £1 was worth about £115 in 2019 values, so the coach fare is actually £1,380, an eye-watering sum. Travelling inside was the equivalent of first class and when you consider that a 1st class advance ticket on LNER today is about £60, you can see just how expensive coach travel was. 

Next: Accidents

A one penny coin 1825. King George IV was on the throne and this penny was worth about 50p in 2019 values
(there were 240 pre-decimal pence in one pound)

The Value of Money

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3 - Portrait tablets

2 - PC/landscape tablets

4 - L/scape smartphone

5 - Portrait smartphone

Section 2:

The Age of Coaching

Introduction


The world of long-distance coach travel

An Early Advertisement

A coach advertisement from 1706

Beginning to End
How long did the Great Age of Coaching Last?

Two Coaching Periods
The age of coach travel falls into two distinct phases

The First Coaching Period
Coaches in the early period were uncomfortable, slow and dangerous

Highwaymen
The scourge of the early coaching industry, these robbers eventually disappeared

Transition
The change from the early period to the late happened because life in Britain was altering

The Second Coaching Period
This is the Great Age of Coach Travel - surprisingly familiar; just slower and wetter

Facts and Figures
A look at prices, costs and numbers involved in coaching

Different Ways to Travel
There were stagecoaches and mail coaches, and more besides

Destinations

The list of places you could go to is remarkably familiar to the modern traveller

London Coaching Inns

We’re familiar with railway termini but what were the departure points like in the Age of Coaching?

Famous London Coaching Inns


Here are most of the coaching departure points in London, together withe here you could travel to from each one

Inns and Politics

An example of how politics influenced attitudes in some inns along the road

The Battle of Barnet

Not a war, just passengers trying to grab a bite to eat on the road

The Coachmen


Coach drivers were an elite group, but as the coaching age declined, they lost their importance

An Industry at Full Gallop


The first half of the 19th century saw coaching at its peak

Inns, Drivers & Passengers


Who were the travellers and who owned the horses and coaches? Find out here

One Coach Proprietor

William Chaplin was one of the most successful coach proprietors - and he survived the move to railways

Swan With Two Necks

One of Chaplin’s Inn has an unusual name which comes from history

The Cost of Coach Travel

We complain about rail fares but coach fares were far higher

Cost to Proprietors

What did it cost to run a coaching business?

The Value of Money

To understand coaching prices you must compare them with present day values

Accidents

Coach travel was not without risk. Here are some reported  coach accidents

The Post Office

This is the story of the Mail Coaches, how the mail evolved and what mailcoaches were like

Itineraries

A set of possible journeys that you might wish to make

Death by Steam

The railways effectively killed the coaching industry very quickly. Here’s what happened 

Inns Become Booking Offices

City inns had to change when the coaching trade dried up. Here’s how they coped


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Part 1: Living Memories

Anecdotes written by people who actually travelled on the coaches

Part 2: The Age of Coaching

The coachmen, the inns, the coach proprietors - they’re all here. Come in and meet them

Part 3: The Roads

Britain’s roads were pretty impassable for most of our history.  Coach travel was very difficult until they improved

Part 4: The Coaches

Wheeled transport evolved over many years. Find out how coaches developed

Background

Sources and information about how I came to create this website

Home Page

Home Page of the Coaching Website