Fred Stingemore (1890-1954)
London Underground Railways Pocket Map
January 1927
Lithograph, linen-based card
Bi-fold pocket map
12.5 x 15 cm (unfolded)
Stingemore spent forty years in the London Transport drawing office, but is best known as the artist behind the map that preceded Harry Beck’s famous and iconic 1933 new design – the circuit diagram version.
The 1927 edition is identical to that of 1926, but features a yellow – rather than green – cover. The twelve editions of Stingemore’s map featured different coloured covers. A broadly topographical map, he nevertheless distorted the central London area to make it clearer. His greatest claim to fame is of encouraging Harry Beck to resubmit his own design to London Transport.
Beck was a technical draughtsman who worked for the London Metro Signal Office. Following being fired, he created the first diagrammatic Tube map in 1931. Having submitted it to the Publicity Office at London Transport, it was rejected. However an updated proposal was accepted, being published in January 1933 in an edition of 700,000 pocket maps – most of which were consigned to the dustbin within hours, days or weeks. Those that survive are rare. Immediately popular it was adoped and similar maps have been used ever since by London Transport – and indeed many other rail systems worldwide.
Beck was inspired whilst creating an electrical circuit diagram to apply the same concept to the Underground system, in the understanding that passengers on the network were more interested in how the lines related to each other, than in how they related to the topography of the city. Beck worked on the map in his spare time, and was – depending on the story you believe – either not paid for his work, or was paid a mere five or ten guineas. These days his work is acknowledged on all published London Tranport maps.
