Chasewater Railway Museum – Recent Addition – Railway Heritage Designated Signal Box Sign

 

Chasewater Railway Museum 

recent Addition, Dec 2015

Railway Heritage Designated Signal Box Sign

The Railway Heritage Committee has the function of designating records and artefacts (or classes of record and artefact) which are historically significant and should be permanently preserved.

This enamelled sign came from Stafford No.5 signal box, and was given to the Museum by Network Rail – our thanks to the Company.

Photo:  tillyweb.biz

The sign can be seen set into the signal box.  On one end is a white patch with a red arrow, and on the other, a clear white patch to balance up the sign.

It may be of interest to Chasewater Railway members that the Station Hotel, Stafford, where the inaugural meeting of the Railway Preservation Society, fore-runner of Chasewater Railway, was held in 1959, was approximately 150 yards from the signal box!

Some Early Lines – Old Railway Companies – Rhymney Railway

Some Early Lines

Old Railway Companies

Rhymney Railway

The Company was incorporated on 24 July 1854 to build a 9.5 mile line from Rhymney Ironworks to a junction with the Newport, Abergavenny & Hereford Railway at Hengoed. Powers to extend to the Taff Vale Railway at Taff’s Well were obtained in 1855, and a line from Crockherbstown to Bute E. Dock. Lack of capital and escalating costs made early years difficult – the Dock line opened in September 1857, but was not linked with the main line, which opened on 25 February 1858 (goods), 31 March (passengers). Trouble flared with the Taff’s Vale Railway over the shared Crockherbstown line, and on 25 July 1864 the Company obtained powers for a direct Cardiff – Caerphilly route and granted running powers to the London & North Western Railway – it opened officially on 5 September 1871, and to the public on 2 October. The 9-mile Taff – Bargoed line, built jointly with the Great Western Railway, opened for goods on 20 December 1875, and to passengers on 2 February 1876. The Company went to the GWR as a constituent in 1922, and the former loco works at Caerphilly was  the home of the Caerphilly Railway Society. The Society is now based at the Gwili Railway in Carmarthen, having moved due to continuing vandalism.

Llanbradach Footbridge Plate, Rhymney Railway

On display in the Chasewater Railway Museum

Llanbradach Station

Looking north along platform 2 at Llanbradach railway station
This view suggests that there is only one platform at Llanbradach station.
This is not so – the opposite platform is located beyond the connecting footbridge Link about 100 metres away.
© Copyright Jaggery and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.

More Recent Chasewater Railway Museum Activity

A couple of Thursdays in August have seen Chasewater Railway and the Aston Manor Road Transport Museum put on a joint project including children’s activities at each venue and a train and bus ride. This is one of the buses used.

We found this picture of an LMS horse-drawn parcels van – very similar to the one owned by Chasewater Railway and currently on loan at Shugborough.

Another item bought by Barry Bull.  A Rhymney Railway Company Coat-of-Arms.  The Rhymney Railway was virtually a single stretch of main line, some fifty miles in length, by which the Rhymney Valley was connected to the docks at Cardiff in the county of Glamorgan, South Wales.

The final item at the moment (27-8-2013) is this life-size fibre-glass model of a pit pony.  It was given to Chasewater Railway Museum by the Museum of Cannock Chase, who are re-designing their mining display, after having been seen offered on the Staffordshire Museums’  Development Officer’s weekly update email.  A couple of quick emails and some phone calls made sure of a good home for the pony! Our thanks to Nick Bullock  for the use of his van.

Museum News – New loan entries to the Chasewater Railway Museum.

Museum News

New loan entries to the Chasewater Railway Museum.

The photograph was taken by Bob Anderson.

During their visit to Chasewater Railway the Industrial Railway Society placed three loco nameplates and two worksplates on loan to join their other 18 items already in the museum. The nameplates are ‘Dreadnought’, ‘Pioneer’ and Lamport. The worksplates are from ‘Pioneer’ and ‘Lamport’.
The museum is most appreciative of this further loan as it demonstrates the confidence that the Industrial Railway Society has in the Chasewater Railway Museum.

Museum News – New Acquisitions

Museum News

New Acquisitions

An opportunity presented itself  recently to acquire by way of private purchase half a dozen items of local colliery railway interest.  Not since the 1960s and early 1970s, when in that period a good relationship existed between the Railway Preservation Society and local National Coal Board management and which resulted in several donations of interest has the chance to obtain in bulk such star items for the museum collection.

McClean

First and arguably the finest piece from the Chasewater Railway point of view is the nameplate McClean from the 1856 built Beyer Peacock, the first of five similar locomotives delivered between 1856 and 1872. McClean lasted one hundred years before scrapping and in her later years was considered to be the oldest loco in the country still at work. The name McClean was bestowed in honour of John Robinson McClean who first came on the local scene as engineer in the construction of the South Staffordshire Railway before later, together with Richard Chawner leased land to mine coal forming the Cannock Chase Colliery.

Marquis
The second of the three locomotive nameplates to arrive is Marquis. The name originates from the first Marquis of Anglesey, a title awarded to the Earl of Uxbridge who fought along side Wellington at the Battle of Waterloo. Carried by the Lilleshall Company built 0-6-0 saddle tank new to the Cannock and Rugeley Collieries as their first loco in 1867, she or is it he lasted until cut up at the NCB Cannock Central Workshops during May 1964.

Beaudesert
The third nameplate is that of Beaudesert from the little 0-6-0 saddle tank built by Fox Walker, works number 266 of 1875 supplied new to Cannock and Rugeley Collieries as their number 5. Beaudesert was the ancestral home of the Paget family who became Earls of Uxbridge before being given the title and Estate Marquis of Anglesey. Finally cut up in 1964 the other nameplate of the loco survives and is on display in Kidderminster Railway Museum.

Two locomotive worksplates comprising of a cast iron Robert Stephenson and Hawthorns Ltd, 7292 of 1953 and Hunslet 3789 of 1953 have come as part of the deal.
Both locomotives were of the Austerity type, the RSH coming to Littleton Colliery from its previous owner the War Department, in May 1947, originally WD 71483 she became number 6 at Littleton being cut up there in Oct. 1970.
The Hunslet was delivered to Chasetown numbered 3 and was a replacement for the aged fleet of Victorian locos, she later saw service at Cannock Wood and Granville where she met her end after a life of just 16 years.

Finally a possibly unique cast iron sign headed The Littleton Collieries Ltd. with the wording.

The Littleton Collieries Ltd
Notice No Road
all persons found trespassing
upon or damaging any property
belonging to the above company
will be prosecuted.

Quite where the above sign was fixed is not yet known, but enquiries are being made.
It may be a little while before all of the above items are incorporated into our permanent display but the intention is to make arrangements to put them on view as soon as possible.

Barry Bull
Museum Curator
Chasewater Railway Museum

My thanks to Barry Bull for the information and Bob Anderson for the typing! CWS

Some Early Lines – Plus a museum item

Some Early Lines

Plus a museum item

Amongst the items still in the stores is this station nameplate from Radstock on the Great Western Railway (not the Somerset & Dorset).  Here is some information about its earlier location

Bristol and North Somerset Railway

The Bristol and North Somerset Railway was a railway line in the West of England that connected Bristol with towns in the Somerset coalfield. The line ran almost due south from Bristol and was 16 miles long.

The main railway

The line was opened in 1873 between Bristol and Radstock, where it joined with an earlier freight only line from Frome to Radstock that had been built in 1854 as part of the Wilts, Somerset and Weymouth Railway. Through services between Bristol and Frome began two years later, in 1875, at which point the line was formally taken into ownership by the Great Western Railway, which had absorbed the WS&WR in 1850.

Phil C.Ford – Radstock stn 4656

 The Last Train to Frome ran on Sad Saturday

With a huff and a puff and a nostalgic whistle, The Last Train on the old North Somerset branch line chugged out of Temple Meads Station on Saturday. Groups of train-lovers leaned out of every carriage window, some waving, some looking sad, some apprehensive, and some just excited.

The ancient engine – British Railways 5532 – wobbled slightly as it neared the platform end, chuffed billows of steam, recovered breath and settled down for the journey to Frome. ‘Keep right on to the end of the line’ it seemed to say. ‘Keep right on, Keep right on’ – as it had done for many a year.

It was Sad Saturday for the 110 train enthusiasts aboard, for it saw the end of another branch line – Bristol – Radstock – Frome. To many enthusiasts the end of a branch line is a tragedy. Too many are folding, they say. They look upon the Diabolical Diesel with animosity. This was a route that began in 1873 and for Driver F. Herring, who has driven on it for more than 40 years, it was an even more sad occasion.

“IT’S A SHAME”

Polishing a gleam into the green engine, Driver Herring of Avenue Road, Frome, declared: “It’s a shame. I wish it didn’t have to happen, but there it is. Modern times. After 40 years on the line you’re bound to feel sad, aren’t you?”

Mr Herring who is going on to the Cheddar Valley line, picked up a polishing rag, climbed into the cab with his fireman, Mr E Edwards of Butts Hill, Frome, and let off steam.

Two minutes to go … one … zero … and engine 5532 pulled out of the station dead on time. Driver Herring put on a brave face, smiled and gave a wave. The old train called at Brislington, Whitchurch, Pensford, Clutton, Hallatrow, Farrington Gurney, Midsomer Norton, Radstock, Mells Road and Frome.

BOYISH INTEREST

Why do train-lovers turn up on such occasions? What prompts their boyish interest in locomotives?

Mr H. B. Warburton, vice-Chairman of Bristol and district branch Railway Correspondence and Travel Society told me: “All our members go on branch line engines within reasonable distance of Bristol. They go on the last train mainly for sentimental reasons, and of course we all like travelling on trains.” “The train will stop at all stations down the line,” he said, dragging me into the refreshment room to escape the noisy steaming of engine 5532. “ The train will be about half an hour late. We get off at stations to take last photographs”. He added sadly “ If any line closes we all feel a nostalgia. Let’s say we like to be in at the kill”.

http://www.gwsbristol.org

Radstock Railway Station

© Copyright Tudor Williams and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.

Chasewater Railway Museum Exhibits – Time to show another selection of our latest museum items.

Chasewater Railway Museum Exhibits

 Time to show another selection of our latest museum items.

Last Sunday, February 17^th, the museum was given a framed photograph of what looks like a group of P way workers.  The photo is marked: H.W.Davies – Brownhills, but unfortunately we have no real idea of the location, apart from guessing the local sidings, so if anyone has any suggestions as to the whereabouts of the location, we would be very happy to hear from you.

This wagon plate is one of a number of items loaned to the museum by one of our occasional visitors from his private collection, some 19 at the moment.  He is pleased with the care taken of his objects, especially since we achieved the Accredited Museum standard.  On February 17^th he happily agreed to extend the loan on all of his objects for a further two years.

A nice booklet for our reference library, about the Maryport and Carlisle Railway.  Of particular interest as we have a 6-wheel coach from the line in the Heritage Centre, donated by the Cannock & Rugeley Colliery Co.  Built in 1875.

We have another local history book for our collection, this time about Great Wyrley.  This was donated by David Bathurst, and we also have two signs from the old Great Wyrley station.

Lastly for now and biggest, is this 7-lever signal frame from Hemyock station on the Culm Valley Railway, Devon, closed in 1965.  It came to Chasewater from the National Railway Museum at York.

Chasewater Railway’s Hudswell Clarke 431 – 1895

In my last post a Hudswell Clarke loco was mentioned as possibly being in steam on the next open Day.  This was  No.431 of 1895, which arrived at Chasewater shortly before ‘Asbestos’.  Sadly, this did not happen, and as far as I am aware, this loco still has not steamed at Chasewater Railway, over 40 years later!

‘On Saturday 2^nd December, 1967, a long-awaited member of our loco stud arrived – by road – a Hudswell Clarke 0-6-0ST, used until December, 1966, in the Ironstone Quarries at Desborough.  This locomotive was steamed by Mr. Civil and Mr. Luker (our expert loco-fitters) before purchase, and ran for some little while before they declared it a good purchase.

It was built by Hudswell Clarke & Co., Leeds in 1895, works number 431 and spent most of its life in the hands of the Sheepbridge Coal & Iron Company in whose fleet she became No.15.  It was allocated the name ‘Sheepbridge No.25’, but this was never carried and with the removal of its official number and works plates ran its last years without any identification at all.

It has on two occasions been rebuilt, first in 1928 and secondly in 1944, by the Sheepbridge Company themselves.’

‘The engine was first suggested as a suitable candidate for preservation some two years ago when it was one of several locomotives at work at Desborough Warren Quarry near Kettering.  One by one its companions were withdrawn leaving No.15 as the only workable source of motive power.  After closure of the quarry it assisted with the lifting of the track, until the early part of 1967 when it too was withdrawn and stored in the engine shed at Desborough in company with an Avonside 0-6-0T.

The RPS then stepped in and after pleasing, successful negotiations with Stewarts and Lloyds Ltd., the locomotive was purchased.  The firm kindly allowed us to steam the engine before purchase.’

‘Steamy’ pics by Rob Duffill

At the moment, ‘Asbestos ‘ is in the Heritage Centre awaiting a major overhaul, as, indeed, is 431.

Chasewater Railway’s ‘Asbestos’ Hawthorn Leslie 2780 of 1909

While clearing out the last of the first phase of cataloguing in the Chasewater Railway Museum, I came across an old video of Asbestos.  So after a little editing I put it on youtube and added some notes on this post, with the link to the video

Turner’s Asbestos Cement Co. Ltd ‘Asbestos’

Hawthorn Leslie 2780 of 1909

Asbestos in the old Brownhills West Station

 Hawthorn, Leslie 0-4-0ST, 2780 of 1909.  Built at the company’s Forth Bank Works, Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

The loco has outside cylinders 14” diameter x 22” stroke, 3’ 6” driving wheels with a fixed wheelbase of 5’ 6”.  Weight in working order 27.5 tons.

Delivered when new to Washington Chemical Company, County Durham, which became a subsidiary of the Turner and Newall Company Ltd. in 1920.

A large industrial complex served by sidings and a half mile branch just south of Washington station on the line between Pelaw and Penshaw, the locomotive working here until 1933, when transferred to Turner and Newall, Trafford Park Works, Manchester.

The locomotive came to Chasewater in 1968 from the Turner and Newall factory, Trafford Park, Manchester, where asbestos was produced – hence the name.  The company asked for £100 for the loco and was asked if they could wait while the Preservation Society could organize a raffle, being short of funds.  Upon realizing the situation, the company generously waived the fee and donated the loco.

Shortly after its arrival at Chasewater, Asbestos became the first locomotive to steam on the railway.

‘Asbestos’ Back in Harness

From the ‘Railway Forum’ Summer 1968

Steam open day started at 4.30am on June 29^th, 1968 with the lighting of the fire in ‘Asbestos’, the Hawthorn Leslie saddle tank presented to the Railway Preservation Society by Turner and Newall, Trafford Park, Manchester.  Steam was raised slowly at first, but soon, with the blower working at full blast, there were 80 lbs on the clock at 7.00am

‘Asbestos’ then moved off to have the tank filled with water, which was drawn from the lake at Chasewater.  The train consisted of the Midland full brake and the Great Western 16-ton brake van.

At about 1 o’clock passengers began to arrive and trains were operated continuously until 7 o’clock when the fire was dropped, the smokebox cleaned out and the ash pan raked.

Steam was soon raised on the Sunday and by 1 o’clock the visitors had exceeded Saturday’s figures.  During the weekend the locomotive behaved very well, was easy to handle and similar in many ways to the old Great Western locomotives but, of course, much smaller.

For the open day, trains were run with the one engine in steam principle, but for the next open day it is hoped to have a Hudswell Clarke locomotive also in steam and to be able to operate a more elaborate timetable.  The Maryport and Carlisle Railway saloon and the Society’s MS&L brake third coach will also be used on one of the trains.

It is hoped to operate again on Sunday and Monday, September 1^st and 2^nd.

Some Early Lines & Museum – Lytham St. Annes Corporation Tramways

Some Early Lines & Museum

 Lytham St. Annes Corporation Tramways

The Chasewater Railway Museum has been given a small wooden box with a copper lid, inscribed ‘Lytham St.Annes Corporation Tramways   1896 – 1037’

Inside the lid is the inscription ‘British Insulated Cables Ltd. Prescot, Lancs’  and ‘Manufactured from Empire Copper’

The handle is made from a piece of the tramway cable.

    Map of the Lytham St Annes Corporation Tramways

The Lytham St. Annes Corporation Tramways and its predecessor companies operated an electric tramway service in Lytham St Annes between 1903 and 1937.

lsacivic.org

History

Tramway schemes in Lytham St. Annes had been proposed since 1878, but no progress was made until The Blackpool, St. Annes and Lytham Tramway Order of 1896. Under this order, a tramway was constructed from the terminus of the Blackpool tramway at South Shore Railway Station. The new line opened on 11 July 1896, operated by the British Gas Traction Company. The extension to Lytham opened in February 1897, and the fleet of compressed coal gas trams eventually reached 20. The gas powered trams were not successful, and horse cars were also obtained. The scheme was eventually unsuccessful and the company sold out.

The Blackpool, St. Annes and Lytham Tramways Company purchased the assets of the former company for £115,000 (£9,227,226 as of 2012), and in 1900 an act authorised an electric tramway to rebuild the route. The newly electrified tramway was opened on 28 May 1903.

On 28 October 1920 St. Annes Council purchased the assets of the company for £132,279 (£3,939,484 as of 2012). The trams were rebranded with the inscription “St Annes Council Tramways”.

In 1922 the borough of Lytham St. Annes was incorporated. The trams were re-branded with “Lytham St. Annes” and later “Lytham St. Annes Corporation”

Closure

The last tram between Lytham and St Annes ran in 1936. The remainder of the system closed on 28 April 1937.

 lsacivic.org