John Toulson Bulk Haulage Middleton in Teesdale

At 14 John started his first paying job as a milkman. He ran from door to door in Sedgefield working out of the back of a Morris Commercial with sliding doors. It was in the same Morris Commercial van that John passed his driving test at the first attempt. His mother recalled him driving past his home without even thinking of slowing down - waving his test paper at her in celebration. When work was over John would head for the sidings and as more and more wagons started to collect tarmacadem he would persuade the drivers to let him go out with them for rides. As John himself admits he was wagon mad and even used to dream about wagons.

However, everything was to change as John's Father moved the family to Middleton in Teesdale and opened a butchers shop. John served his time as a butcher but became frustrated having to wait for customers to come to him - he wanted to get out and find his own customers. As a result John left the family business and found work with Wimpy's as a pile driver on the motorway. John worked hard and progressed to driving machinery on the motorways.

Working at the garage brought John back into contact with wagons working out of the local quarry. He would often see the same wagon 5 or 6 times a day and he thought to himself "that guy looks busy". John had always wanted a wagon so he went to see his bank manager. Despite warning him that everyone was getting out of wagons John's bank manager did acknowledge that John had worked hard for the last four years at the garage and lent him the money for his wagon.

John's work took him all over the country but now with a family he wanted something more settled. John being John simply packed in his job and moved on to his next challenge which was a garage in Middleton in Teesdale where he sold petrol, tyres, batteries and worked on cars. John also began to spray cars and sold a few.

The first wagon to start off John Toulson Haulage was a Thames Trader. Over the next few years John tried out various types of wagons before settling on Volvo. The Volvos formed the main part of John's fleet up until four years ago when John introduced Scania wagons.

So after fulfilling so many ambitions and achieving so many dreams what does John Toulson get a kick out of today? His show - Barnard Castle Truck Show - as John himself says "the icing on the cake for me was having people come up to me at the end of the show and say it was the best show they'd been to - that was music to my ears!"