Week 7

After an initial 3 week's lockdown, here we are into week 7. Things are starting to get a bit restless amongst the natives, science is getting clearer about how you catch the virus, and indoors, proximity and duration clearly play a big part. On the other hand, being outdoors and avoiding close contact seems to be relatively low risk. Perhaps a targeted return to work could be envisaged? We await the government's next announcement on Sunday with great interest.

In the meantime we have 'outshopped' another item to improve Broadway's heritage looks.

Complete, prior to signwriting

Assembly in the workshop, back view

This is the timetable board, which is in the style of a GWR poster board with the same moulding around the outside, but painted black and white.

A text will be sign written on it in a heritage font, so that everything which is constant to the timetable - 'GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY', ' Broadway Station' , where the trains go, where they return to, steam or diesel etc - will be painted on the board, and everything that changes i.e. the actual times - will be on small boards which will be attached to the front on the day, also in a heritage script. On the day the booking clerk just has to select the colour of the timetable, and hang the appropriate little board with the times out.

This will be a test, and if it looks right and works operationally the board could be replicated for other stations. It looks a bit bare in the picture, but there's quite a lot of information to go on it, and it should look very old fashioned once complete. We'll show you a picture when it's ready.



In a similar heritage vein,  here is something that you may be able to help with. We would like to equip one stationmaster with a replica GWR stationmaster's hat. These are not commercially available, and that's why hardly anyone has one, but we have found a way of getting one from a theatrical costumier.

This is what they look like, this is one that sold at the GWRA auction a while back.

The stationmaster's uniform got less and less formal over the years and seemed to end in a simple dark suit, but the hat stayed the same right up to nationalisation. So with just the right hat and a dark suit, you could look reasonably representative today.

In this picture you can see the very hat we mean, the pillbox type, as worn by the last Winchcombe stationmaster Don Carver.

Don is standing outside the stationmaster's house at Winchcombe (now a B&B but still there) next to his son Peter, on leave from the navy.

The picture is part of our archives thanks to his daughter Helen.



Now where you can help is by lending us (or selling if that suits you better) a pillbox hat like this, so that we can pass it on to the theatrical costumier to work from as a model. Without an original, she can't make the replica. We need an original, to borrow or buy.

Can you help?  Please send an email to breva2011(at)hotmail.co.uk. We'd love to hear from you.




History Corner

Two more pictures from Brian Parsons, a WR fireman at Worcester who used to live at Broadway.

This one is dated 27th September 1960, so about 6 months after Broadway station closed, but long distance and freight trains were still charging through.

Here we have the up Cornishman (so an afternoon train) headed by 4929 and 5088.

Brian says:

Goytrey Hall and Llantony Abbey head the up Cornishman towards the Childswickham Road bridge at Broadway 27^th September 1960.

They are passing the intermediate block signal (IBS) which, together with one on the down line at Springfield Lane, meant the closure of the Broadway signal box shortly after this photo was taken. 

... and whoooosh, it's past! This is 7026 Tenby Castle on the down Cornishman, so a morning shot. The sun is broadside to the train, from the Cotswolds side. The advanced starter has lost its signal arm, things are winding down at Broadway. You can imagine that this train is doing 60 - 70mph, while we today are just accelerating past the 10mph speed limit here for station limits.

Brian was standing on the Childswickham road. On the left is the site of Titchmarsh the seed merchant, that burned down in a fire and was later rebuilt as a printers. Today it's a small office. The fence on the right encloses a footpath leading over Broadway brook.






Answers to last week's quiz ' NEXT STATION'

Did you know the answers? Scribbled them down? Here are the right ones:

1. Cheltenham Race Course: Gotherington: Winchcombe:       Hayles Abbey.…..

2. Camborne: Hayle: St Erth:                                                    Penzance (or Lelant Sidings)....

3. Penrhynn: Minffordd: Boston Lodge Halt:                           Portmadoc….

4. Great Malvern: Colwall: Ledbury                                         Hereford  …………

5. Summerseat: Ramsbottom: Irwell Vale:                                Rawtenstall  …..…

6. Stonehouse: Stroud: Kemble:                                                Swindon   ……..……

7. Beasdale: Arisaig: Morar:                                                      Mallaig…………….….

8. Highley: Arley: Bewdley:                                                      Kidderminster………..

9. Totnes: Newton Abbot: Teignmouth:                                     Dawlish………..……

10. Goathland: Newton Dale Halt: Levisham:                           Pickering…………..

11. Barnt Green: Bromsgrove: Worcs Parkway:                         Ashchurch…………..

12. Corfe Castle: Harmans Cross: Herston:                                Swanage…………..

13. Darlington: Durham: Chester-le-Street:                                 Newcastle……..……

14. Goodrington Sands: Churston: Greenway:                           Kingswear…………

15. Settle: Horton-in-Ribblesdale: Ribblehead                           Dent…………………

16. Southall: Hayes & Harlington: Heathrow Terminals 1-3:     Heathrow terminal 4

17. Ashford International: Ebbsfleet Int: Stratford Int:               St Pancras International…..

18. Worcester Shrub Hill: Pershore: Evesham:                            Honeybourne………..

19. Aberystwyth: Capel Bangor: Aberffrwd:                                Devils Bridge……….

20. Goodge Street: Warren Street: Euston:                                   Mornington Crescent…. 

And now for this week's quiz - sharpen your pencils:

 (this dates from Christmas 2017)

 

1. What do the initials GUV stand for?                                                        

2. Between 1866 and 1895, Patrick Stirling was the CME of which railway?                                                                                                                  

3. What was significant to the GWSR Heritage Gang about 6 June 2017?                             

4. Where’s the highest railway elevation in the UK?                                                        

5. On 7 August 2017, a landmark was reached when Dinmore Manor had travelled how many miles in preservation?                                                                                                                 

6. What’s the voltage used on the third rail electrified lines south of London?

7. By moving the southern turnout at Winchcombe Station, trains of how many coaches can now pass and be held in either platform?                                                                                     

8. What’s the name of loco 60022 by which it is more famously known?                             

9. When working on the running line, what does the display of a yellow flag signify?                                                                       

10. What does GSWR stand for?                                                         

11. N/A - an in joke. Sorry!

                                                                                                                                            

12. In the 2018 timetable, what’s the usual scheduled journey time for trains departing Cheltenham Race Course to arrival at Broadway?                                           

13. Isambard Kingdom Brunel died in 1859, but in what year was the Royal Albert Bridge at Saltash opened?                                                         

14. In the blue corner, weighing in at 135 tonnes, what loco was used to check that the track had been adequately packed in Road 6 of the Steam Shed at Toddington?

15. In September 1932, the GWR introduced the fastest scheduled train in the world which ran the 65 miles from Swindon to Paddington at what average speed?                            

16. Which of the following was a genuine reason for missing our Wednesday lunch: (a) I’m washing my hair; (b) I’m watching paint dry; or (c) I’ve got to listen live to the Chancellor of the Exchequer’s budget speech?                                                                                                   

17. Our 2-8-0 GWR tank, 4270, was, according to the 1962 Ian Allan Shed Code Directory, allocated to 88A. Where was 88A (it’s not the same as that shown on its buffer beam in current GWR livery)?                                                                                                   

18. Which railway station was the location for the film Brief Encounter?                             

19. The gate security code used to be 7018 and we would remember this by its name, even if we couldn't pronounce it. What was that name?

20. What, the first in the world, was introduced in 1860 at Mochdre, Conway by the LNWR?                                                                                                                                            

Funding update

A few days ago, we were at £208.000. It's creeping up, but we're not there yet. Our board is hoping for a good response and with great faith in our supporters they have taken the decision to resume work at Gotherington on the slip. The contractors will start again next Monday 11th May. Of course they're going to make sure that they stay apart and respect social distancing, not too difficult out there along the line.

If we wait any longer there is a real risk that the slip will degrade further, and it could even damage what has been repaired already. So we must do it now, even though we haven't got all the money yet.

https://www.gwsr.com/Emergency_Embankment_Appeal.html

For easy reference, here are the details of the appeal again, so do please help us reach, dare we say, even exceed the target. Who knows when we can start trading again. Our appeal was just to pay for the slip repair works when we thought lockdown was for a couple of weeks. Thank you for any help you can give.

And finally....

It's the end of slide box No.4 from John Lees' collection of early GWSR and PWay pictures. We're now up to early 2014.

The first new picture is this one:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/73536293@N02/49851266722/in/dateposted-public/

If you've never looked at John's pictures before, this is his album:

Early GWSR - John Lees

So far there are 1671 photographs, all scanned in from slides. They've had over 11.000 views, and John mentioned this morning just how proud he was of that! Thanks for your interest in those that rebuilt the complete GWSR line from one end to the other. 

What a PWay gang!