From temperance trips and nationalisation to the second largest leisure group in Europe

IN 1841, Thomas Cook, a former Baptist preacher, began devising new ways to solve the social problems of the Victorian age. He believed that most social issues were related to alcohol and that the lives of working people would be greatly improved if they drank less and became better educated.

As a result, Mr Cook decided to organise a railway excursion for temperance supporters, from his home town of Leicester to a meeting in Loughborough. He subsequently arranged further meetings between groups from different areas and found them to be a huge success.

His first commercial venture took place in the summer of 1845, when he organised a trip to Liverpool, for which he charged prices that were low enough to allow many people to experience rail travel for the first time.

Having already visited Wales, Scotland and Ireland in the 1850s, Mr Cook decided to expand his burgeoning empire. He began to contemplate foreign trips, to the Continent, the United States and the Holy Land. During the summer of 1855, he escorted his first tourists to Europe.

Forging strong personal relationships with hotel owners and restaurateurs, he branched out to North America in 1865, and in 1868 launched the hotel coupon, which travellers could use to pay for hotel accommodation and meals instead of using cash.

Thomas Cook retired in 1879, leaving the running of the company to his sons. He died in 1892.

After the outbreak of the Second World War, the company’s British assets were seized by the UK government and later sold to Britain’s four mainline railway companies.

Benefiting from the post-war boom in travel, the company’s net profits exceeded £1 million for the first time in 1965.

In 1972, Thomas Cook & Son returned to private ownership and a new logo was introduced. In 1999, the firm merged with Carlson Leisure Group’s UK travel interests. It is now the second largest leisure travel group in Europe.