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they had been involved in at the LCDR ruined their reputations. The new management of the resurrected LCDR resolved to pursue the partnership and Peto and Betts personally, eventually making a claim against them for a "staggering" £6,661,941 19s 1d. (equivalent to £779,550,000 in 2023). The LCDR later reduced their claim, their solicitor declaring, “Whether my clients had a proof upon the proceedings of £360,000 or for £6,600,000, the result would, unfortunately be the same – in neither case would there be any dividend."
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Peto and Betts optimism was misplaced. In the ensuing crisis, railway stocks were particularly badly affected and the London, Chatham and Dover
Railway (LCDR) became insolvent Consequently, the shares that the partnership had been paid in became worthless. Furthermore, the illegal loan schemes that
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In a public statement Peto and Betts declared, "We much regret to find ourselves under the painful necessity of allowing our acceptances to be returned, owing wholly to the disappointment of the arrangements we have made for their provision, which have been defeated by the unexpected turn which has
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Peto and Betts themselves were amenable to major risky speculation; for example, to expedite the building of the London, Tilbury and
Southend Railway, the partnership undertook to lease it as operators for twenty-one years from the opening in 1854, a speculation said in 1863 to be losing £24,000 a
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Neither Peto nor Betts' reputations for financial propriety recovered from the LCDR debacle. Both died in obscurity, Betts in 1872 and Peto in 1889. The partnership insolvency rumbled on with the final dividend meeting, making payments to their creditors being held on 6 June 1898, over 30 years
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taken place in the money market within the last few days." The statement went on to say that Peto and Betts thought the cash shortfall of the partnership was temporary and given a little time they would be able to liquidate sufficient assets and be able to pay off their debts.
193:(LCDR) and to be paid entirely in the company's shares and debentures. To raise the funding for the construction they became involved in complicated finance-raising schemes, and with their overseas operations hindered by war, they overstretched themselves.
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The collapse of
Overend, Gurney and Company was disastrous for the partnership and the next day the partnership suspended trading. Indeed, the partnership was probably the most prominent casualty of the collapse of the bank and the ensuing
211:. As a consequence of a run on the bank caused by persistent rumours and speculation in the London financial markets, the bank closed its doors and ceased trading at 3pm, 10 May 1866.
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Betts' father, William Betts, was a successful contractor's agent and railway contractor. On
William's retirement, Betts assumed full responsibility for the business.
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went into partnership as railway contractors. However, Grissell became increasingly nervous of the risks taken by Peto, and in 1846 dissolved the partnership.
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Peto and Betts had known each other for some time and, indeed, Betts was married to Peto's sister, Ann. They had also worked together on part of the
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138:, possibly the greatest enterprise of this trio. Betts undertook the actual management of the venture which included the
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Either on their own account, or in partnership with Thomas
Crampton, they carried out most of the construction of the
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Between 1846 and 1855 the partnership carried out many large railway contracts both at home and abroad, including the
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In 1848, they established a formal partnership and together they were to work on a large number of railway contracts.
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Other railways were built by the
Partnership in Denmark, Russia, Algeria, South America and Australia.
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In the late 1850s the partnership helped to build the first railway in
Algeria. Peto accompanied
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In the 1860s, the partnership agreed to build a line between London Bridge and
Victoria for the
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The partnership was unable to pay their creditors and became insolvent in the following year.
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224:. At the time the partnership was suspended there were 20,000 men in their employment.
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that was mainly involved with the construction of railways in the UK and abroad.
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395:"The Annual RPI and Average Earnings for Britain, 1209 to Present (New Series)"
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For particular projects, Peto and Betts frequently joined in partnership with
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Initially, the cash shortfall was thought to be "not above half a million"
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At times, for particular projects, they joined in partnership with
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was a civil engineering partnership formed in 1848 between
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119:of France to the official opening of the line.
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459:, 21 December 1866, p. 8; Issue 25687; col E.
176:year (equivalent to £2,900,000 in 2023).
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324:(online ed.). Oxford University Press.
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86:, Peto and Betts joined in partnership with
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519:1848 establishments in the United Kingdom
391:inflation figures are based on data from
321:Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
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207:The partnership's principal bank was
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286:Sir Morton Peto: A Memorial Sketch
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241:London, Chatham and Dover Railway
235:London, Chatham and Dover Railway
191:London, Chatham and Dover Railway
84:London, Chatham and Dover Railway
315:"Betts, Edward Ladd (1815-1872)"
258:after the insolvency commenced.
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514:Companies established in 1848
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162:Grand Crimean Central Railway
46:In 1834, Peto and his cousin
42:Background to the partnership
353:UK public library membership
345:UK public library membership
283:Sir Bart Henry Peto (1893).
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155:London, Tilbury and Southend
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209:Overend, Gurney and Company
203:Overend, Gurney and Company
197:Overend, Gurney and Company
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289:. London: Stock. pp.
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126:they built the following:
82:For extensive work on the
486:, 17 July 1868, page 203.
215:Effect on the partnership
107:London, Chatham and Dover
445:The Worcester Chronicle
393:Clark, Gregory (2017).
77:Peto, Brassey and Betts
330:10.1093/ref:odnb/49433
58:Great Northern Railway
484:The Pall Mall Gazette
421:The Stirling Observer
90:, the LCDR engineer.
312:Port, M. H. (2004).
144:Saint Lawrence River
122:In partnership with
472:Worcester Chronicle
273:Faith, pp. 103-104.
132:Grand Trunk Railway
447:, 16 October 1867.
433:Birmingham Journal
389:Retail Price Index
100:South Eastern Line
67:Other partnerships
474:, 16 October 1867
351:(subscription or
343:(Subscription or
25:Edward Ladd Betts
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435:, 12 May 1866.
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375:Helps. p. 109.
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366:Faith, p. 105.
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17:Peto and Betts
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142:across the
21:Morton Peto
508:Categories
347:required.)
262:References
185:Background
180:Insolvency
170:Sevastopol
457:The Times
355:required)
250:Aftermath
166:Balaklava
335:30 March
299:42693089
164:between
148:Montreal
109:lines.
406:May 7,
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136:Canada
293:–19.
157:line.
408:2024
337:2013
295:OCLC
168:and
160:the
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134:in
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