Sheila’s archive reveals forgotten history at taxi firm

A unique archive of photographs offering a window into the wartime activities of one of Coventry’s most famous companies has been handed over by a former worker.

Though Sheila Hill was the managing director’s secretary at Carbodies – now LTI Vehicles – in the 1970s and 1980s, her responsibilities stretched far beyond the typewriter, also taking control of publicity work among other things.

Through this, she was made custodian of a collection of historic pictures of the taxi firm showing wartime damage to the factory and details of a special mobile command post built for the famous Field Marshall Montgomery.

Last week she returned to company’s Holyhead Road base to hand over the photographs.

While there, she was given a factory tour by Andrew Overton, now LTI Market Development Consultant but who worked for LTI Vehicles dealer Mann & Overton in London when Sheila was in office and whom she remembers well.

“I worked at Carbodies, as it was then called, for about 12 years during he 1970s and 80s,” said Sheila, of Binley.

“I was secretary for Bill Lucas, the MD, but the role quickly took in lots more things than just typing. One of these things was doing publicity work. I used to write the press releases and take them to the press desk at the shows.

“As part of this, I was given a lot of old photographs to hold on to. A lot were from the war.

“I have had these things for years and thought it was time to come back and hand them on.

“It has been fantastic to come back. I remember some things but there are such a lot of changes with all the machines. It is wonderful.

“It was lovely seeing Andrew as well.”

Many of the pictures show wartime damage to the factory. An old memo also reveals the diversity of products manufactured at the factory during and soon after the war. As well as Monty’s trailer, these included Commer and Austin vans, Rolls Royce body shells, panels for tanks and field kitchen trailers.

Andrew Overton said: “It has been lovely to see Sheila again.

“The management of Carbodies was very different back then. The whole factory was run from Bill Lucas’s office. It was quite a job for Sheila to control all the people who wanted to see him at all hours of the day but I remember her as always being very kind and helpful.

“We are delighted she has held on to this unique archive of photographs and would like to thank her for bringing them to us.”