Roy B

Thank you for the updates Carl 👍

Continued from above: We now arrive at the second ventilation shaft and meet a truly bizarre and weird creation the like of which wouldn’t be out of place in a horror film. It is a huge stack of rubbish that has been thrown down the vent for near on 60yrs. It has formed a solid column from floor to roof and looks like a giant vac bag. The lower levels of it contain items no longer manufactured. There’s part of the back lights of a caravan with the old triangular reflectors, a Sunlight washing up liquid bottle, a Sunblest bread tray etc, etc. The top of the vent has been closed off recently as a new housing estate has been built above. Little do the proud owners know that they have a vent buried under their newly laid back lawn. The vent would have had the ring of bricks removed to ground level and been capped off. There is obviously going to be a time when the stack collapses as a gap has started to appear at the top within the last twelve months. There is room to squeeze past it and around the far side is a mass of soil infill resembling a swollen tongue. This has been bulldozed in from the opposite end when the houses were built. It is possible to keep going through the tunnel on top of the infill but the gap to the roof reduces so we’d end up crawling along. With the numerous large fractures in the brickwork, and the possible imminent collapse of the stack it is not worth the risk of becoming entombed within. Heading back out into the brightness and the near tropical sight of the cutting with its vines and ferns draped everywhere is a marked contrast to the cloying heavy darkness of the tunnel. The tunnel and its surroundings are a truly outstanding place to spend a few hours soaking up the atmosphere. Plenty of pics in the gallery. Next time: F2’s from Hednesford last October Bring your walking boots as we take a journey through a deserted valley to see what industrial remains survive today.

Continued from above: Around refuge 15 is a particular highlight. The back wall of the refuge looks like an alien or a ghostly face. A rock pool with the appearance of whipped cream covers the floor. Close by also at ground level is the beginning of a treacle and custard formation. The unusual colour is caused by water coming through the roof and picking up soot and iron particles from the support rings. If left undisturbed it would eventually develop into a pillar reaching to the roof. Moving on from these magnificent displays we come to a solitary wooden marker post at 340yds, followed by the first ventilation shaft at 350yds. It is 200ft up to the surface here. Extinguishing all lights we can see a circular disc projected onto the tunnel floor like a searchlight from above. The tunnel swallows up the speck of light from the tunnel mouth, so it is pitch black in all directions apart from the vent disc. Who will be standing there when we re-illuminate the area though? Will there be somebody standing in front of us with an axe or a chainsaw? A web fingered Jethro perhaps – “Look, look mother me got me some fresh meat for the gene pool” Close to here is a buffer and spring which fell off a brake van 70yrs ago and bounced into the back of a refuge. Continues below:

Continued from above: The view inside As we move further into the tunnel we come to a section where water has been dripping through the brickwork. Over the last 60-70yrs the minerals in the rock and the cement have produced some wonderful calthermic formations. The side of the tunnel is covered with white, yellow and black calcite that is hard as iron. Continues below:

Continued from above: As it used to be The scene today The tunnel portal soon comes into view and we can very carefully walk onto the parapet high above the cutting. A number of coping stones have fallen down below so it’s a case of making sure you don’t do the same! As we make our way down the 70ft high embankment we enter the land that time forgot apart from the remains of an early 1980’s Ford Fiesta engine and suspension. As we get nearer to the portal an exposed part of the tunnel drainage appears. Accessed via catchpits an overworked 12” drain runs beneath the centreline. A side channel has collapsed with the corresponding centre catchment drain uncovered. A jungle and double fence are our next obstacles to overcome. No thorns or brambles this time though. This east portal is an imposing brick structure although it looks rather lost at the end of the vast cutting. It comprises two substantial buttresses either side of the entrance and an unusually high headwall. What remains of the copings are ashlar, as is the projecting keystone. At the arch face are ten brick rings, needed to withstand the ground forces being exerted on the tunnel. Immediately beyond the portal, the lining - which necessitated the manufacture and laying of five million bricks - is in a poor condition, with short sections of sidewall having collapsed. A 12-inch square beam - formerly one of three - still straddles the tunnel between its haunches. These were used to strengthen the portal. There are some big cracks in the tunnel roof in this area. The shape of the tunnel mouth is sagging slightly with subsidence and general age. As we enter the tunnel two of the three support beams are laying at our feet. The ends have rotted through and they’ve come crashing down. The decay to the brickwork of the tunnel sides is unimaginable in this area. Extensive spalling owing to water ingress has affected it to such an extent that a single row of bricks is all that is holding the lining in place. Let’s move further in away from the huge cracks in the roof. The crown of the tunnel has additional support in the way of iron ribs linked with poling boards. However, these are not in the best of condition either with the disintegrating wood and the corroded iron. Blue engineering brick has been used throughout with repairs in red brick. The roof is black with soot in places. There are plenty of refuges some of which reveal the exposed rock behind. 100yr old tool marks can be seen on the rock. Even these have suffered the ravages of time though with a few that are crumbling and collapsing. Continues below:

Continued from above: Before we make our way to the tunnel here’s some brief background info to the railway network around the area: In 1846 the Midland Railway (MR) opened a line along the Trent valley, between Nottingham and Lincoln. The stations at Carlton and Burton Joyce are still in use, although the original buildings have gone. MR built its Leen Valley line between Nottingham and Mansfield in 1849. The station at Linby closed in 1964 and was demolished soon afterwards. The station site at Newstead is still in use, but the original buildings have gone. The Leen Valley line closed to passengers in 1964 but was retained for coal traffic. After the mines closed, this route was reopened for passengers in 1993 and is now known as the Robin Hood Line, linking Nottingham to Worksop via Newstead. In 1855, the Great Northern Railway (GNR) adopted a branch line along the Trent valley, from Grantham to Nottingham. The site of the GNR station at Netherfield is still used, although without any of the original buildings. GNR constructed a line westward from Colwick, through the hilly countryside north of Nottingham towards Derby. This line, known as the Derbyshire Extension, opened in 1875. Heading westwards, there were stations at Gedling and Daybrook. In 1878 GNR reached an agreement with the London and North Western Railway (LNWR) allowing LNWR to share Colwick yards and access to Nottingham station. Construction of the Great Northern’s Derbyshire & Staffordshire Extension was driven by a desire to exploit local coal reserves without their competitiveness suffering due to the high transportation charges imposed by the mighty Midland Railway. Thus an Act of 1872 was passed which sanctioned a disruptive new line across the city, such was the eagerness in business circles to ensure speedy progress. The Midland’s leverage diminished when the Extension’s first section opened in 1875. The chosen route might have minimised capital costs but this was still a difficult endeavour involving numerous viaducts and tunnels. Richard Johnson, the GN’s chief engineer, designed the works whilst W H Stubbs patiently fulfilled the role of resident engineer. For construction purposes, the route was split into two contracts, Joseph Firbank fulfilling the western section whilst Benton & Woodiwiss delivered the east end. To give scale to the challenge, the line demanded the excavation of two-and-three-quarter million cubic yards of rock and earth; 30 million bricks were used as well as 1,400 tons of wrought and cast iron. Mapperley at 1,132 yards, the longest of the tunnels by some distance penetrated a ridge to the north-west of Gedling, approached through a cutting 70 feet in depth which was crossed by a brick aqueduct. It was constructed in the 1870’s by sinking six shafts and working in both directions underground. Steam engines were used at each for hoisting up the spoil. This was then taken away to form a nearby embankment. Three of the shafts were subsequently retained as ventilators. Track level was 210 feet below ground at its deepest point. On 23rd January 1925, a collapse triggered by mining subsidence brought down a 12-yard section of roof, blocking the line with around 150 tons of debris. Whilst repairs were carried out, traffic was diverted along the Nottingham Suburban Railway which took a roughly parallel course further to the west. The tunnel was repaired but the continuing effects of subsidence resulted in the imposition of speed restrictions during the 1950s. The Derbyshire Extension line fell into disuse after 1960, due to the poor state of the Mapperley tunnel which was closed at this time. However, Gedling station buildings and the short length of track-bed which served Gedling colliery have all survived. In 1882 GNR opened an additional branch line through the Leen valley, to capture some of the coal traffic. The station building constructed in Bestwood Village has survived, as a private house and, in Linby, the goods weigh-house is used as Linby Heritage Centre. In 1889, the Nottingham Suburban Railway was built to link Daybrook station, via Thorneywood station, where bricks were the main goods to be dispatched, to the GNR terminus on London Road in Nottingham. Although this was a shorter route from Daybrook to Nottingham, it was expensive to maintain with deep cuttings and tunnels. After the early years of the 20th century it competed for passengers with electric tram services and closed to passengers in 1916; it was abandoned altogether in 1951. The final railway construction project in the borough was the goods line linking Bestwood Park junction (Moorbridge) in the Leen valley to the colliery at Calverton. This line opened in 1952 when the first coal was brought to the surface, and the track was lifted in 2016. The substantial volume of coal traffic generated by the railway developments led the GNR to construct a locomotive maintenance depot and marshalling yards at Colwick in 1875. The sidings, sheds, and workshops on the site were continually expanded during the following 50 years. LNWR built its own shed and housing after 1881. Colwick yards and engine sheds closed in 1970 and the site has since been cleared for redevelopment. At Colwick Yard A few facts: The yard held over 1,000 wagons Housed up to 400 locomotives It was one of the largest in the UK Coal was the main freight to pass through the yard from the Nottinghamshire/Derbyshire coalfields, ready to be taken to London Almost straightaway the yard was handling over 900,000 tons of coal each year. Much of Netherfield was constructed to house the railway workers A thick yellow smog (mist mixed with engine smoke) frequently blanketed local houses By 1954, 100,000 wagons were handled each month; this then declined and after the closure of Mapperley tunnel (1960) the number halved. The yard played a major role in supporting the armed forces during WWII Okay, let’s head over to the tunnel now. We’re going to make for the far side of the park away from the main entrance. There is a path that goes right around the outer edge up against the fence. A new road is being constructed here which goes very close to the tunnel. It actually uses part of the old trackbed. On our left we’ll come to some woodland which we have to get through to reach the cutting. In here are various spoil heaps that have not become fully covered by vegetation yet. There are even some abandoned coal tubs lined up and rusting away in the undergrowth. Continues below:

Continued from above: Let’s all make our way now to the East Midlands. We’ll meet up at the Gedling Country Park, which is five miles north-east of the city of Nottingham. The park is on the site of the former Gedling Colliery which shut down in 1991. In a while we’ll head for the park’s outer boundary where we’ll find the abandoned Mapperley Tunnel. Inside here is a sight that has to be seen to be believed. Before that delight though we’ll have a look at the history of both the site, and the railway that ran alongside. The story of mining in Gedling starts in the 17th Century more than 250 years before the sinking of the first shaft at Gedling Colliery. In 1630 it is documented that the Common Council of Nottingham undertook to sink a pit in the town’s woods (the two coppices; Near and Far, or Upper and Lower, located near to where Ransom Road (formerly known as Coppice Road) is now). No mention is made of the results of this dig, but it is presumed to be a failure as 19 years later it was decided to sink a second pit. This pit was started on 7th May 1650, but was stopped on the 6th September due to lack of success and was filled in on 7th November 1650. Ironically, had the pit been dug 400 yards deeper, they would have hit the coal seam. The story then moves on to January 1881 when the rector of Gedling had tried to revive the hosiery trade in the parish, but also suggested that due to a great demand for iron, there would be a need for coal. It took until 1899 for work to begin on Gedling Colliery, by the Digby Colliery Company. Sinking of the first and second shafts commenced in 1900. No1 shaft had 110ft of concrete lining and both shafts then had 290ft of cast-iron tubing through the water-bearing rocks then brickwork below to the sumps. There were 27 seams of coal varying from a few inches to 3’ 9” before the 5’ 2” thick Top Hard was reached at 1405ft. In 1902 Gedling Colliery first started to produce coal. Originally two seams were worked, Top Hard and Main Bright (1000ft deep). Top Hard produced coal of a similar quality to neighbouring collieries (different collieries working the same seam often produced coal of differing quality), and was worked until 1961 when the seam was abandoned due to being uneconomical to mine further. The Main Bright seam was unworked during World War I and was abandoned in 1918. It was re-entered in 1933 to the south west of the old workings from the Top Hard. Main Bright was worked until 7th November 1991. The High Hazels (sometimes spelled High Hazles) seam was first developed in 1927 at 1100ft deep. The coal was noted for its clean burning properties and high heat. High Hazels was worked until August 1961 when it was abandoned. At the start coal was “hand got”,each miner was expected to work a seam nine yards long and five feet deep each day, producing 16 tons of coal during an eight hour shift. A ganger was sacked on 1 March 1917 and the rest of the boy gangers went on strike forcing the company to reinstate him on the following day. Around 1,500 tons of coal production was lost through their action and all the strikers had to appear at Nottingham Shire Hall on Saturday 17 April 1917 so that the pit production would not be affected such as on a week day. They were charged with being absent from work without notice. It was stated by Digby Co that this was the sixth such incident since August amounting to a total loss in production of 5,000 tons of coal. The boys were all found guilty and those out for one day were fined 10s (50p) each and 3s (15p) costs and 34 boys who had been out on strike for 2 days were fined £1 and 3s (15p) costs. The fines were deducted out of their wages. There was further unrest when a National strike was called from 18 October to 4 November 1920. During the further 1921 strike hundreds of men were employed on the pit bank cleaning up the huge heap of smudge or coal dust. It was loaded up and sent to various destinations such as public institutions, food manufacturing factories and flour mills. The police were in attendance but there were no problems. Sir Henry Dennis Bayley the Managing Director of the Digby Colliery Co Ltd had food and liquid refreshments supplied to those who were working. The Gedling site From 1927 the seams were undercut with a “Samson Coal Cutter”. Coal was sold from the Top and Bottom Wharves: The Top Wharf was at the top of the colliery site and was the main selling point for domestic sales to local firms. The Bottom Wharf was closer to Gedling Village and was where coal was sold directly from the weighbridge. In 1937, Digby Colliery Company, Bestwood Colliery Company and Babbington Colliery Company merged to become the Bestwood Amalgamated Collieries Ltd. In 1947, the pit was nationalised and become part of the National Coal Board South Nottinghamshire Area from 1967. Some facts and figures: The main period of operation for Gedling Colliery was between 1902 and 1991. Of the coal produced, 20% was steam coal and 80% was household lump coal. Nearly 70 million tons of coal was produced from the three seams during this time, and the pit exceeded 1 million tons in a year 16 times between 1952 and 1969. However, the amount of dirt produced was in the region of 40% per mine-car/skip resulting in one of the largest dirt tips in the country. Unlike many colliery companies no houses were built for the workforce other than a few for management and officials as the Digby Colliery Co thought that the pit being near to Nottingham was adequate and sufficient housing was available. Post Second World War it was realised that housing had to be made available for the workforce and an estate was built opposite the pit on the steep slope using the quick building method with concrete sections leading to its name 'Concrete Canyon'. In January 1953 a bakery was established in an extension to the pit canteen and bread and pies were supplied to around 11,000 customers. There were no underground connections to any other mine. Ponies were used for transport of coal and materials in the past and there were two sets of stables underground. About a dozen ponies were still being used in 1970 on materials and it was one of the last pits in the South Nottinghamshire area along with Bentinck and New Hucknall to dispense with them. The last 3 to be released from underground work were Blackie, Short and Starr around the end of 1970. The modern equivalent of the horses At its deepest the mine was over 1,200 feet with mine tunnels that stretched out five miles in either direction. At its widest, the mine faces were 250 yards wide and there were 35 miles of roadway below ground. In 1924 at its height of productivity, there were more than 3,884 men working there of which 3,257 were underground. After World War II, there were men from over 20 different nations working at the pit earning it the names “UN pit” or “the pit of all nations”. In 1942, a wet canteen or licenced pub opened near the lamp cabin, possibly the only one in the country. This closed in 1960. New offices, canteen and pithead baths opened in 1959 with personal lockers for clean and dirty side replaced the old fashioned one opened in 1942 where clothes were hoisted into the roof space by a rope. The old bath house was used as a store place afterwards. A new self-service lamp room was opened in 1960. During the years the pit was operating 130 miners lost their lives, which was more than in any other colliery in Nottinghamshire. Below are a number of accidents which show how dangerous colliery work could be: Henry Edward Cutler (36) collier, lowering tub into Top Hard stall and pinned his head to a prop 23/11/1907. Walter Brookes (18), a knocker off of tubs on an endless rope. He was caught by a tub and his chest and back were crushed by tubs, 13/2/1908. Died from pulmonary tuberculosis 21/6/1911. Frank Cresswell (49) collier, falling coal knocked out a prop causing a roof fall that crushed his head, in No 10 stall 31/1/1913. Henry Harviston Flood (33), Ostler, there was an outbreak of glanders in High Hazel pit bottom stables, and he contracted the rare contagious disease from a pony 17/7/1919. George Stevenson (60) shunter, crushed between buffers of moving wagons on surface sidings 11/2/1918 died 13/2/1918. Cyril Hardy (16) screen picker, surface screens, touched a faulty switch that was not earthed and was electrocuted 11/11/1919. Henry (Harry) Morris (62) haulage worker, hesitated whilst crossing railway lines going to work and was knocked down and then run over by coal wagons cutting him in two 9/3/1920. Herbert Smith (38) horsekeeper, No1 pit bottom stables, choked on his snap (lunch) 18/9/1924. Thomas Radford (21) Top Hard dayman collier loader, slipped in his stall and hit his head on a tub whilst putting a lock in a wheel on 21/8/1924. The accident only caused a scratch to his face and lip and looked trivial. He continued to work and on 1/9/1924 a piece of coal fell upon his pick shaft and it flew up and hit him on the body. However the cut on his lip from before did not heal and began to swell, cellulitis and toxaemia developed, died on 18/10/1924, death being attributed to the accident on 21/8/1924. Edward Frederick Wheatley (55) chargeman surface worker on the Mapperley dirt tip, hit by the aerial tip haulage steel cable which became dislodged from a dolly 5/10/1929. Rowland Taylor (40), shunter moved the pug loco ‘Queen’ without consent and it ran into a train of stationary wagons on the siding crushing himself. He was also scalded with hot steam which escaped from the loco after the crash 6/5/1936. Edward George Syson (56) Deputy, fell down the 490 yards deep No1 shaft from the low landing. It was calculated that he reached a maximum speed of 360mph. 6/2/1938. Willie Dobbs (46), W12s Loader, electrician, working on gate end loader mending a broken chain when the power was switched on and he was trapped in the moving chain 27/3/1939, died 5/4/1939. Frederick George Strange (54) packer, crushed by the return end of the face conveyor when it jack-knifed and pinned him to the roof 13/8/1943, died 15/8/1943. Albert Charles Griffinshed pony ganger suffered from a fracture of the spine and was paralysed in both legs and arms after hitting his head on the roof whilst unofficially riding on the draw bar of a tub 8/2/1950. James Richard Horwood (49) a greaser, trapped in a scoop bucket on the washery plant whilst attempting to grease the bearings 15/2/1950. George William Dale (25) right stable in the Top Hard seam, threw some timber into the cutter jib which then swung out and caught him. He was found shortly afterwards with his arm caught around the sprocket of the cutting machine jib and his body over the jib, 3/3/1954. Derek Cramp (20) power loader man, crushed by the shearer coal cutting machine when an illegal 9ft long wooden split bar sent along the panzer conveyor made the machine jump up and the deceased died from lacerations of the brain and multiple fractures of the skull 8/9/1955. Alan Cant (23) electrician Low Hazel Head, trapped by the neck between a door frame in battery charging station and a battery loco, breaking his neck 24/1/1956. Roman Gierczak (49) on a power loading at Low Hazel Face was removing a 7” x 20” lip of coal left by the cutting machine when a piece of coal fell, bounced off the machine haulage rope and by a chance in a million pinned him to a prop supporting the roof and he died of shock and multiple abdominal injuries, 18/1/1957. William Ernest Saywell (22) cutter driver High Hazel, operating a conveyor mounted machine which he left in gear when he stopped it. When he re-started the machine it jerked forward and dragged him along the floor trapping him underneath it. He died instantly from a fractured skull and multiple injuries 8/4/1957. Eric Percival Preston (38) road layer Low Hazel, run over by a set of 7 runaway mine cars 20/2/1958. Frank Edwin Smith (19) power loader man, Low Hazel, his head was crushed between 2 roof supports when the revolving turret of the trepanner machine hit the beam of a face chock support and struck him 18/6/1958 Percy Edward Maddison (60) ganger, roadway Low Hazel, re-railing a derailed tub without uncoupling when the pit pony bolted and pulled the tub over him 16/12/1960, died 18/12/1960 Michael Howard Hearson (28) diesel loco driver, Main Road Low Hazel, tried to stop a runaway mine car and careered 500 yards down an incline hanging on to the brake lever before crashing into roadside where he was crushed 31/3/1962 Frank Walton (55) Surface workman, suffocated by slack coal when he slipped and fell into the bunker whilst shovelling 1/10/1964 John Leslie Blackham (37) power loader man High Hazel Face, helping to turn a coal cutter when he got his foot caught in a stage loader and was drawn along it ‘like a piece of coal’ but was trapped by a link bar lying across the stage loader 7/1/1965. Owing to subsidence damage to Mapperley railway tunnel, the Great Northern’s Derbyshire & Staffordshire Extension line which ran alongside the colliery was closed in 1960. This resulted in all coal traffic having to go south to the main line connections at Netherfield. Gedling Colliery, 6th August 1999 at 08:05. Loaded with coal for blending, and about to work the 6Z61 Gedling - Oxcroft. In 1991 the colliery was closed and the mine infrastructure de-constructed. The Winding Wheels and other materials were relocated. An emotional moment for this man witnessing the demolition In 2012 “Gedling Energy Park” – a methane extraction plant on a small part of the site was developed. Methane is a gas formed as part of the process of coal formation and coal mining releases methane from the coal seam and the surrounding disturbed rock. In 2013 Gedling Borough Council acquired a 25 year lease from the site owners to develop Gedling Country Park. This lease excluded the land which has since been developed into a solar farm. In March 2014 Gedling Borough Council began the work on the site which consisted of several stages of development. To date, this has involved removing the remaining mining infrastructure, laying and covering an extensive network of drains on site, fencing, laying footpaths, installation of park benches and bins, and construction of the top car park and access road from Spring Lane. On 28 March 2015, Gedling Country Park officially opened to the community. The current landscape of the park was created from the colliery waste. Once the colliery spoil was deposited, the 'spoil heaps' were then covered with top soil. The current hills within the park are a result of 92 years’ worth of mining extracts. Continues below:

Hi there folks, Whilst the long term future of Birmingham Wheels remains uncertain it was good to see Brisca racing back there. It was a very welcome return on October 17th 2020 for the F2’s. One change was in the car park where parts of it now form a drift track. With assistance from the Mendips Raceway entries were capped at 40 cars owing to the large number of domestic formulas scheduled to appear. The meeting was advertised as a 2pm start, then when everyone was assembled ready it was announced it was now going to be a 3pm start! The first race was led for a long way by William Adams (544). He has raced once at Taunton before lockdown and put in some fast laps here. He was only passed by Reece Winch (411). Result: 411, 544, 183, 488, 578, 844, 10, 992, 817 and 538. The star men were up front for the majority of Heat 2 which was won by Brad McKinstry (NI747). Result: NI747, 801, 581, 184, 828, 210, 200, 532, 732 and 920, 19 cars for the Consolation which saw a win for Jordon Thackra (324) Result: 324, 24, 91, 915, 359, 731, 903, 42, 976 and 736. The Final was a near repeat of Ht. 1 with Adams breaking away from a fast moving pack of low graders. He held on from Winch this time for a great victory after passing Jamie Jones (915) at halfway. His win earns him a promotion to the yellow grade. Result: 544, 411, 581, 24, 828, 324, 183, NI747, 184 and 801. There were thirty cars on track for the GN with saw plenty of action. A fall out in the star grade between Charlie Guinchard (183) and McKinstry livened up proceedings no end with some big hits being traded between them. Whilst this was going on Jack Prosser (844) had got a lead he wasn’t to relinquish. A good drive from white top 915 saw him finish 3rd behind 324. Result: 844, 324, 915, 564, 903, 801, 411, 828, 881 and 581. Owing to the multitude of domestic races it did make for a lengthy meeting, but it was good to be back. Pics in the gallery. Next day was the second half of the Midlands double-header at Hednesford. We’ll have a look at that one next time. Continues below:

What a great interview! Joff's a top lad, and i'm so pleased to see him back 👍

Continued from above: Life in the mill Moscow Mill workers In the early 1800’s, hundreds of workers would stream through the doors of Moscow Mill into the clattering atmosphere of what is now the Weavers Court. Inside the mill The large spinning mill was established in 1824-5 by Benjamin and Robert Walmsley of Rough Hey. The loomshop was added in 1828, and the entire factory was lit by gas. The factory was damaged by fire in 1831 and the upper part of the building, comprising four stories and an attic was entirely destroyed. Damage was estimated at £6,000. A major enlargement of the spinning mill occurred in 1842. Further spinning rooms were erected in 1860 by George Walmsley. Buildings comprised a large two-storey boiler house/spinning room, the lower portion of the original spinning mill (south bay converted to weaving shed), blowing and mixing rooms, weaving shed, twisting in room/office with cloth warehouse above, and mechanics shop and smithy. In 1871-2 a separate weaving mill was constructed to the rear of the original buildings. About 600 people were employed during the 1870’s. Plant in the old mill included 42,208 mule spindles, 1,970 ring spindles (installed 1885) and 470 looms powered by two 16hp beam engines, a 36hp beam engine and a 40hp beam engine. In 1891 the original old mill closed following the death of George Walmsley and the machinery was sold. The buildings were divided into separate units and in 1894 were converted to an iron foundry by W Lancaster & Co of Accrington. Weaving was carried out continuously at Moscow Mills for more than 150 years until the early 1990’s when the globalisation of manufacturing caused the last weaving shed to close and Oswaldtwistle Mills to be born. There is a photo in their archives showing excited mill workers climbing onto ‘charabancs’ to take them on annual trips - the mill and the community were closely linked and the owners keen to offer their workers fun times. History has come full circle; modern day Oswaldtwistle Mills now welcomes thousands of coaches in a non-Covid year. In the last year of normal trading 1,500,000 visitors poured through the doors! The world famous confectionary company of Stockley’s have a Victorian Sweet Shop in the complex. Stockley’s Sweets have been made the traditional way since 1918. It was from humble beginnings in a shed in High Street, Rileys Hill that the name of Stockley’s first became recognised as quality sweet manufacturers. Famous classics such as Coltsfoot Rock, Pear Drops and Barley Sugar made Stockley’s one of the most recognised sweet manufacturers in the industry. The name was first seen in many different places, from market stalls in Lancashire to retail stands at Blackpool Pleasure Beach, and from England to America, where Stockley’s proudly exhibited their goods at the World Exhibition in San Francisco in 1939. The largest pear drop in the world is in the Oswaldtwistle Mills shop. All that’s left of another in Oswaldtwistle. Ryddings Mill was a former cotton weaving mill. Elmfield Hall, Gatty Park Frederick Albert Gatty was born in Alsace, France, in 1819. He became a pioneer of new calico (cotton) dyeing techniques within the region. His work attracted the attention of Frederick Steiner, who invited Gatty to Lancashire in 1842. They formed a partnership and Gatty became well known for his work in improving the dyeing technique of Turkey Red. He used garancin, a pigment made from the madder plant, in his patented method. The colour became known as Gatty Red. Gatty was to have even greater success for his improvements in dyeing army uniforms with the colour khaki. (Khaki means ‘dust colour’ in Hindustani). This enabled him to gain a contract supplying the whole of the British army, which changed its traditional red coloured uniform to the more camouflaged khaki around the time of the Boer War. This made both the company and himself a fortune. In 1855, Gatty and his wife moved into the newly built Elmfield Hall. The building was designed by a Mr Green, the architect who also created the Peel Institute (which is now Accrington Town Hall). Elmfield Hall was later extended and a new wing added with a classical facade to the front. Gatty would stay there for the rest of his life, dying in 1888. In the First World War, the house was equipped for wounded soldiers by the Gatty family and converted to a military hospital. On 26th June 1920, the grounds were opened as a park by Miss M.C.E. Gatty. Eight years later the hall and grounds were donated by the family to Church/Oswaldtwistle Urban District Council with the intention of it becoming a museum and art gallery, along with £500 for maintenance of the park. During the Second World War, the hall was used for storing civil defence equipment. In 1948 part of the building was converted into flats. Visitors to the park today can see that much of the layout of the beds and borders remain from the time when it was the Gattys’ home. The original boundary wall still surrounds the park, which gives a sense of how big the family garden area was. The later addition of the dramatic grade II war memorial stands before the house. It commemorates both world wars and was created by sculpture Walter Marsden, who received a civil pension in recognition for his services to sculpture from the Queen. The café is named Mr Gatty’s Tearoom and is in one of the front rooms of the hall. It is normally open every weekday for meals and drinks. The interior of it is well worth seeing and it has further commemorative plaques from both wars on its walls. Sport is very much in focus here, for this is the home of Church and Oswaldtwistle Cricket Club. The club's history began in 1858 on land behind a pub called the Pickup Arms. It later moved to its present location in West End, Oswaldtwistle. Since then it has managed to acquire the ground from its owners - the Dunkenhalgh Estate, adding to its buildings and facilities, making it one of the foremost grounds in the Lancashire Cricket League. The club has spawned both test and international players, has won the League Championship on five occasions and the Cup competition once. Pics in the gallery of a short walk through the area. Next time: The F2’s were on the bill last October at the first Brisca event since the re-opening of Birmingham Wheels. This was followed by Hednesford the next day. We’ll have a look at both meetings. Who's up for going inside an abandoned railway tunnel with a difference? Join me as we come face to face with the strangest of things. No ghosts this time, but if we’re really unlucky we could end up as one!

Continued from above: Church & Oswaldtwistle station Oswaldtwistle was on the 1844-1859 East Lancashire Railway network which became amalgamated into the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway. The station in the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway days As it is today. The station buildings having been demolished. Under BR ownership Stanhill / Knuzden WW2 POW Camp Lancashire had its fair share of POW and Internment Camps, some in the most unlikely places. The Internment Camps were a dark part of the war, whose story is rarely told. Thousands of Italian and German POWs and Internees passed through Lancashire during the war and afterwards during repatriation. Some even stayed on afterwards and settled down here. These camps could be anywhere - sometimes in old disused cotton mills requisitioned by the Government. They were often not fit for purpose and many innocent people suffered great hardship in these places. Stanhill Camp, between Stanhill and Knuzden, started as an anti-aircraft gun battery before expanding to become a purpose built POW camp made of wooden huts. Various sources say that this was an Italian POW camp, which after the war housed German POW's waiting for repatriation (1946-47). It could have been an Internment Camp for Italian nationals who lived in the UK at the outbreak of the war. Continues below:

Continued from above: Aspen Colliery Aspen Colliery Cabin Surviving here are the remains of the colliery, a group of beehive coking ovens known locally as Fairy Caves, and the associated canal basin from where coal and coke were transported. It is located on the north side of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal at Blackburn Road. Coal mining at Aspen is thought to have commenced in the early 19th century and continued until the colliery closed in 1930. The upstanding remains of the colliery include two stone-built engine beds situated in the northern part of the site, and the buried remains of two capped mineshafts in the eastern part of the site. To the west are 24 well preserved brick and stone-built beehive coking ovens arranged back to back in three rows or banks with central brick flue systems. The central and eastern row are the earliest, with the western row having been added at some time between 1893- 1910. Adjacent to the canal towpath, on the south side of the coking ovens is a stone wall which functioned both as a retaining wall and a boundary wall. Between the coking ovens and the southern of the two capped mine shafts is a stone-lined canal basin, measuring approximately 100ft long by 25ft wide, and to the east of the basin the ground is paved with original stone setts. The canal basin originally had direct access to the adjacent canal. The coking ovens in particular survive well and are recognised as being the most complete and best preserved examples of 19th century banks of beehive coking ovens in north-west England. The coke ovens today Others in the hills to the south include: Broadfield Colliery, which in the 1840s had a surface tramroad connected to the printworks at Foxhill Bank via Moscow Mills; Sough Lane Colliery which had a tramroad connecting it to Knuzden; and Town Bent Colliery. The Leeds and Liverpool Canal played an important role in the development of Oswaldtwistle as an industrial centre. The halfway point of the canal is situated here. The halfway marker Continues below:

Continued from above: From Taunton we now head for the Lancashire town of Oswaldtwistle. The town is situated three miles east south east of Blackburn, and adjoins Accrington and Church. It is known for having a rich industrial heritage that has been passed down through the generations. Come along with me as we see what the town has to offer: The name is said to originate from the two words, ‘Oswald’ and ‘Twistle’. The word ‘twistle’ means the place where brooks meet. Saint Oswald , the King of Northumbria from 634 until 642, is said to have given the area its title of Oswald’s Twistle when he passed through. James Hargreaves was born here in 1720. He was the inventor of the spinning jenny, the first practical application of multiple spinning by a machine. At the time he devised the machine, he was a poor, uneducated spinner and weaver living at Stanhill, Lancashire. In 1764 Hargreaves is said to have conceived the idea for his hand-powered multiple spinning machine when he observed a spinning wheel that had been accidentally overturned by his young daughter Jenny. As the spindle continued to revolve in an upright rather than a horizontal position, Hargreaves reasoned that many spindles could be so turned. He constructed a machine with which one individual could spin several threads at one time. After he began to sell the machines to help support his large family, hand spinners, fearing unemployment, broke into his house and destroyed a number of jennies. Hargreaves was given a hammer and made to smash his own machine. Smashing the machines Following this Hargreaves moved to Nottingham in 1768. With a partner, Thomas James, he built a small mill in which they used jennies to spin yarn for hosiers. He received a patent for the jenny on July 12, 1770. Until his death, he worked at the mill, which proved moderately successful. Periodically East Lancashire, the heartland of the textile industry, was subject to serious outbreaks of violence directed primarily at the growth of the factory system. Mobs made up of handloom weavers, who saw their very way of life threatened, attacked and destroyed hundreds of looms - and the mills that housed them - in short but violent outbursts of fury, fed by fear and desperation. The ‘golden age’ of the independent handloom weaver lasted roughly from 1790 to 1812. For most of this period entire families were involved with the trade. Many men who had once worked the land turned to weaving, and immediately prospered. With a four- day week, high status as skilled craftsmen, and a wage that allowed them to live in comfort, the weavers were the elite of the burgeoning working class. However, things were changing. Almost from the start of this period a series of inventions followed one upon the other that at first assisted the weavers, allowing for the production of larger quantities of finished cloth. Ultimately, of course, these innovations would actually lead to the destruction of the weavers way of life. On Friday April 24th 1812 a mob 60-100 strong attacked the mill of Thomas Rowe and James Duncough at West Houghton. Trouble had been expected for some time and the military had maintained a presence at the mill for much of the week. However, by Friday they had gone and the mill, which housed 180 powerlooms, was left undefended except for 12 workers armed with borrowed guns. At about 4 p.m. the mob arrived at the mill. The Superintendent, Joseph Kay, rode to Bolton to fetch help, but by the time he returned the mill had been destroyed. The events had been witnessed by many workers and people who lived nearby, and this was to prove crucial when the cases came to trial. Several arrests were made and a Special Assize was convened at Lancaster Castle on May 23rd to try those accused, not only in this riot, but also in others in and around Manchester. Also up for trial were a number of men accused of ‘Administering Illegal Oaths.’ The evidence presented against the rioters was damning by the standards of the times. The accused had been seen setting the fire that destroyed the mill, and one had even mentioned being “Ludd’s man.” Little more was needed and four men were found guilty and sentenced to death for their part in the West Houghton riot. They were Job Fletcher, Thomas Kerfoot, James Smith and Abraham Charleson , who was officially listed as being 16, but who may have been as young as 13. Also condemned at the same assize were Hannah Smith for the theft of butter and potatoes in Manchester, and three men, John Howarth, John Lee and Thomas Hoyle who were all convicted of stealing food from a house in Deansgate. Those accused of “Administering Illegal Oaths” were sentenced to terms of imprisonment, or else transported to Australia. The effect this must have had on their starving families can only be guessed. After a period of prosperity in the 1810’s the textile industry suffered a serious slump in 1825. Weavers who had been employed to supplement production at local factories were the first to be hit, and by the spring of 1826 there was, once again, real hardship in the county. Pleas to the government for a minimum wage had fallen on deaf ears, and attempts by the workers to better their own lot had been met with repression and even, as witnessed in Manchester in 1819, with appalling violence (the so-called “Peterloo Massacre”) The average earnings for weavers had nearly halved, and unemployment was running, in some areas, at a staggering 60%. On Monday April 24th 1826 a mob some 1,000 strong gathered on Whinney Hill, near Accrington. The mob split into two groups, one marching to Sykes Higher Grange Mill, where they smashed 60 looms, the other making for Oswaldtwistle where Brookside Mill was attacked and a total of 154 looms destroyed. The mob had encountered troops on the way, but the soldiers did nothing to stop them, indeed some gave the rioters their own rations, leading the mob to believe that the army was on their side. The attacks continued all that day and into the next, with mills destroyed in Over Darwen, Helmshore and Blackburn, among other places. At Chatterton the army finally made a stand. They fired into the crowd, killing 4 people - one a woman who was merely waiting for a coach to Manchester. By Thursday 27th April the riots had run their course, and over 1,100 looms had been destroyed at an estimated cost of £16,000. Over the next few weeks a number of suspected rioters were arrested and sent to prison in Preston and Lancaster. There had been government agents in the mobs, and these men were damning witnesses when the cases came to trial in August. In total 53 men and 12 women were tried for their part in the riots in Lancaster Castle. Of those convicted, 35 men and 6 women received the death penalty. In the end all of these people were reprieved, with some receiving short prison sentences or fines. However 8 men and 2 women (Ann Entwistle, and Mary Hindle, the only female rioters to ever receive such a sentence) were transported for life to Australia. Mary Hindle’s case was tragic. She had gone to find her small daughter who had run off to watch the riot at Helmshore. A spy in the crowd had cut a piece of material from her skirt to prove she had been there, and on this evidence she was convicted. Despite pleas from her vicar, and William Turner, the mill-owner, she was sent to Australia. For many years her fate remained unknown until the recent discovery of a letter in a family Bible which suggests that, unable to accept her fate, she may well have taken her own life while in the female factory at Paramatta. Ironically, the mill-owners fared very well as a result of the riots. Compensation (levied on the rates) enabled them to re-stock their mills with new machinery, and most of them became very wealthy indeed. Despite a charity fund set up to aid them, the weavers had a terrible time following the riots. In Haslingden between May and September 1826, 35 children under 4 died. Between December 1826 and March 1827 a total of 107 people were buried in the churchyard. The handloom weavers never recovered. All that remained was the factory, a 78 hour week and the end of everything they had fought so hard to defend. After some deliberation, the government put up funds for public works with the aim of providing employment for those put out of work by the power looms. The construction of Blackburn Road was funded in this way and was completed in 1827. Another family associated with the area are the Peels. The Peels are said to have come to Blackburn from Craven about 1600 and engaged in the cloth trade. In 1731 Robert Peel purchased an estate in Oswaldtwistle, known then as Oldham's Cross, and since as Peel Fold. His grandson Robert “Parsley Peel” (1723-1795), invented the Calico Printing Process. In 1750 he set up business with his brother-in-law as a calico printer, renting a factory and a warehouse, and invented a process of block-printing; he made other improvements and greatly extended the business. Calico came originally from Calcutta and was a plain, unbleached closely woven cotton. It was usually woven in Lancashire and sent to London for printing. Robert Peel's interest lay in the printing of calico - then a comparatively unknown art. He conducted experiments at home to find out how to apply pattern to the cloth. Having sketched a figure or pattern onto a pewter dinner plate, he thought that he would be able to reverse print the design. He shortly perfected his process, and the first pattern he brought out was a single parsley leaf printed in diagonal rows. It was a huge commercial success and Robert became known as "Parsley Peel.” After riots during which his factory was smashed by discontented weavers, Parsley Peel moved to Burton-on-Trent and continued to print calico and weave cotton there. He amassed 23 mills by 1795, and became very wealthy, employing many people and printing cloth which was sent all over the world. His innovation and energy set the Peel dynasty on the path to fortune and fame. In 1794, Parsley Peel obtained the grant of a coat of arms which include a shuttle held by a lion, a bee signifying business, and the family motto Industria, meaning industrious, hard working. Robert Peel (1750 – 1830), Son of Parsley Peel Robert’s son, also called Robert built on his father’s success in the textile industry. He amassed a huge fortune for the time (£1.5m), becoming an MP and a baronet. His achievements paved the way for his son to become Prime Minister. Sir Robert Peel (1788-1850), Grandson of Parsley Peel He became an MP aged just 21 years and went on to be the 29th Prime Minister of Great Britain. He is best known for establishing the modern police force. They were nicknamed “bobbies” or “peelers” after him. This achievement took place during his tenure as Home Secretary (not Prime Minister). As Prime Minister he introduced laws which forbade women and children working underground in mines, and limited their working hours in factories. The descendants of his eldest son William still own Peel Fold. Oswaldtwistle is part of the Burnley Coalfield and had a number of coal mines such as Aspen Colliery situated next to the canal and the East Lancashire railway line. An advantage of this location was having both a canal basin and railway siding alongside. Aspen Colliery far left, in a heavily industrialised area The Leeds & Liverpool Canal alongside the coke ovens, with the colliery and a skyline of chimneys behind Continues below:

Hi there folks, We start this week with a review of the last Taunton weekday meeting of season 2020. Following two back to back wet meetings it was thankfully dry for this one. After a break of eleven days the F2’s were back in action at Smeatharpe. It was Monday 28th September when they were last here and essentially that was one meeting too far for them. After a very busy spell the F2 fraternity simply ran out of steam. The plan to pair St.Day on the Sunday with here on the Monday actually proved detrimental to both meetings. If there had just been the one date in Cornwall a larger car turnout would have resulted. Tonight’s meeting was the first in a run of three nationwide fixtures over the weekend. Skegness followed on Saturday, with Buxton on Sunday. Amongst those planning on doing the triple were Northern Ireland’s Graham Fegan (NI998), and Ben Spence (903) from Basingstoke. Joining these two were the north-west based trio of Liam Bentham (488), Aaron Vaight (184) and Tristan Claydon (210) who all had a superb attendance record at the Autospeed tracks last year. John Brereton had a damaging practice session A healthy 31 car turnout allowed for a full-format meeting. As mentioned above former European Champion Graham Fegan was a welcome addition. It was his first visit to the south-west in eight years. Taunton – Friday 9th October 2020 The meeting began with the White and Yellow grade series final. There were nine brand new tyres to be won, and an increase to the prize money. There was around £1000 of cash and bonuses on this one race. From the front of the yellow grade Julian Coombes (828) got into the lead in three laps and claimed the top prize. He had also won the equivalent race at St.Day a fortnight earlier. He must have had a plentiful stock of new tyres from these two race wins. Tristan Claydon ran in second for a long time until having to pull off with a broken rear-wheel guard. Josh Weare (736) who was second-on-the-road also lost out after a rear axle infringement caused him to fail post-race scrutineering. One of the favourites for the race was Dave Sansom (352) who had been battering his way through the pack in customary fashion before hooking on to John Brereton (948). They both ended up whacking the home straight wall as a result. Coupled with his practice crash/repair Brereton took no further part in the meeting. Result: 828, 35, 903, 820, 663, 526, 572 and 222. Heat 1: One-time world champion James Rygor (783) charged through the field to win this one. He was helped by the other blues and reds becoming held up by a crash involving Steve Hartnett (539) and Ben Goddard (895) who had thundered into the Honiton bend wall. Jamie Ward-Scott (881) had initially got the jump from the white grade but gradually fell back as Aaron Vaight and Chevy Mills (538) followed Rygor across the line. Result: 783, 184, 538, 418, 998, 828, 881 and 542. First eight to the Final. Heat 2: Tristan Claydon took the lead before half-distance and held it to win from Matt Stoneman (127) and Dale Moon (302). Result: 210, 127, 302, 24, 352, 522, 890 and 903 Consolation: After winning this race by holding off a determined challenge by the 895 car, Matt Hatch (320) suffered an altercation with James Lindsay (572) who was excluded from the rest of the meeting for deliberate infield contact. Result: 320, 895, 539, 820, 736, 920, 35, 663 and 128. Final: Anybody who expected Rygor to walk this after his dominant heat win were to see him tangle with Ben Borthwick (418) entering the pit bend immediately after the start. Caution flags were brought out for a coming together between Sansom and Chris Hatch (820) on the home straight. Spence led from Coombes and Goddard at this stage but already up to fourth from the red grade came the 302 car. The St.Day track champ easily reeled those in ahead of him with Jon Palmer (24) keeping a watching brief in 2nd. With Palmer not in range for a last-bender Moon took his first main event win for three years, and his first at Smeatharpe for seven years. “Makes a change to finish a Final around here!” he laughed. Vaight ended up the victor in a scrap with Chris Mikulla for 3rd, whilst Coombes claimed 5th from Fegan in a last bend sort-out. Result: 302, 24, 184, 522, 828, 998, 538, 539 and 127. GN: Dayne Pritlove (540) brought out the caution flags in this one after becoming stranded across the back straight. Moon took advantage to erase most of his lap handicap as Coombes set off in front on the restart. Palmer again charged through and soon took the lead to the finish. Borthwick held off Vaight’s last lap attack for second, while Moon got up to fourth (after Coombes was docked) with a last-bend lunge on Hartnett. Result: 24, 418, 24, 302, 539, 828, 522, 538, 210 and 998. Pics in the gallery. Continues below:

A golden oldie A superb pic of Tony Neal at Brafield taken by M.C.Kilby. I like Tony's determined stance at the wheel. There's so much to see in the great background crowd shot as well. A number of drivers spectating.Is that Mick Noden stood behind the white triangular sign? A few lads wearing ties! A chap taking a photo with an old school camera. The Brafield tree is looking down on the scene.

A couple of stunners! Jon Palmer's new tar car Guinchy's new shale car

Continued from above: A new apartment block for the university is being constructed above it so Network Rail have had pumps running to drain it out. A series of laser sensors to detect movement have been installed throughout the tunnel by Bowmer and Kirkland who are the company responsible for the construction site. A string of lights on the far wall, with a star-scape of lasers in the roof, and reasonably dry underfoot. As we leave this tunnel we come out onto the approach to the old Maudland yard. The line crosses over a disused part of the Lancaster Canal and this area was used as a transfer point. Coal for the works along the Longridge line, and for Whittingham Hospital would be unloaded from the barges and replaced by loads of stone from the quarries at Longridge. The stone itself was used to build the town halls at Lancaster, Preston and Bolton, plus the construction of Liverpool Docks. The line became multi-track directly after this point and went under three bridges into the Maudland Curve to join the busy main line section at the Preston and Wyre Junction. Even though the bridges look identical there are subtle differences in the steelwork. One was manufactured by J Clayton/J Foster at the Soho foundry, Preston in 1847. They manufactured the wrought iron gates for the deep water dock at Tilbury, and the boilers for heating the Houses of Parliament. Soho Works The other two bridges and the canal bridge were made at the Dallam Forge in Warrington. Originally a wrought iron works it had become a rolling mill and fabrication plant manufacturing railway equipment. A Dallam Steam Crane In 1851 they were awarded a gold medal at the Great Exhibition "for excellence of iron, and of railway plant". They became part of the Lancashire Steel Corporation in 1930. Some specialised steelwork rolling stock had been built there at various times. Close to the main line there is still a signal remaining in the bushes. Maudland Yard is now the site of Roeburn Hall which is student accommodation linked to the University of Central Lancashire. Plenty of pics in the gallery. An excellent book that covers the full history of the PLR is: ‘All Stations To Longridge’ by David John Hindle. 225 pages with lots of photographs. Well worth purchasing. Finally, to finish off this week we have another tale from beyond the grave. The story of Dorothy, the Bannister Doll, is very rarely spoken of as many of the good people of Preston believe that even mentioning her name will bring back her tormented spirit. During the early 19th century Mayor Bannister lived in an old tenement building in Snow Hill – near the town’s Walker Street. Bannister’s beautiful daughter was called Dorothy and was known locally as Bannister Doll due to her beauty. Being so attractive, there were many young men vying for her favours. It was therefore with some trepidation that Dorothy was faced with having to confess to her father that she was pregnant. Dorothy was fully aware that her father was a very strict man, but even she could not have foreseen the punishment that he meted out to her. Quite beyond himself in a fit of untold rage, he dragged her out of the house and tied her to a tree in the garden. He then proceeded to whip her until there was no more breath left in her. She was thought a disgrace to the family. As the years rolled by new houses were built. A memorial stone was laid at the corner of Ladywell Street and Heatly Street, which was thought to be the place where ‘Dolly’ had been so brutally flogged to death. In order to instil in their daughters the virtues of being chaste, mothers would take their daughters to the spot and recount the legend of the Bannister Doll. It is thought that Dorothy was buried in the grounds of Holy Trinity Church in Trinity Square, Preston, but there is some dispute about this. It was sometime after Dorothy had been laid to rest that the corpse of a young man was found near to the centre of Preston. The circumstances surrounding his death were a mystery to the authorities; his skull and ribcage had been crushed to pulp. Just two weeks after this dreadful event another young man’s body was found, and he, too, had died in a similar manner. Later still there was a third body found. By now there were all kinds of rumours spreading throughout the town. Many held to the belief that the Bannister Doll had returned to the scene of her brutal murder to seek vengeance for the cruel and heartless way her father had murdered her. Although the spate of vicious deaths came to an end the many sightings of the Bannister Doll continued, with many people claiming to have seen the ghost of a young maiden floating up Snow Hill. When Mayor Bannister eventually died another family moved into the house in which he had lived. On their very first night, they were accosted by the Banister Doll. They stayed for a second night and were once again subjected to the haunting presence of the ghost. They fled the house, never to return. The next family to move in stayed for three nights, but then they, too, fled the scene, having witnessed similar sightings. Although the Bannister Doll is still seen on occasions, it is hard to reconcile the truly malevolent character that still haunts the town with the carefree Dorothy who walked those same streets so many years ago. Next time: A rare Friday night Taunton meeting back in October. We have a look at a Lancashire town that was graced by the presence of the King of Northumbria.

Continued from above: We soon come to the area of Deepdale Station. The platform edges are still visible here and on the east-bound side the tiled area for getting up to street level has survived well. There is even a wooden hand rail for the flight of steps. Above us is the Deepdale Road bridge. The station was situated on top of this and on either side of the bridge parapet are the bricked up entrance/exit points down to the platform. Some wooden posts even survive from an advertising hoarding that was bolted to the bridge. Deepdale Station (Credit to PDA) This back wall and the advertising hoarding post are all that’s left Moving on from here we leave humanity behind and encounter nature at last. A mixture of head high brambles, thorns, nettles and tangly things hinders forward progress. Rather this though than what was earlier. The tunnel comes into view a short distance ahead. Now, it’s pot luck whether you can get in. There is a high steel fence with razor wire wrapped around the top but there is the occasional breach in the defences. It just depends if you’re in luck on the day. The tunnel was actually made up of a series of three. Deepdale No.1 Tunnel, 160 yards long and furthest west, runs below a terrace of houses on the south side of St Peter’s Square, with No.2 tunnel, which has a length of 272 yards, curving north with a short gap to No.3 tunnel. More on that gap later. Once inside the tunnel the ominous Victorian brickwork surges overhead. Within a short time it becomes very dark, and all parameters of size and position disappear. There is a definite unearthly chill drifting through the tunnel. The atmosphere is claustrophobic, and your footsteps echo off the walls deep within the void. Water drips from the brickwork above, and deep within the tunnel the air is numbingly cold. Suddenly, a sound from behind. Anything, or anyone could be waiting down here. Especially ghosts. However, this time it was only a rat scurrying about. I caught a glimpse of its long tail disappearing between the holes under the sleepers We are a third of the way along here and at this stage the tunnel originally had a short open stretch which acted as ventilation. The whole lot has now been sealed and the tunnel portals have been connected with massive concrete beams to support Preston police station built above. It makes for a rather unusual appearance as the original masonry arches of both tunnel portals are still intact as built. Moving on from here a fair distance the air suddenly took on a damp cloying feeling. This is the point where I did experience a nerve-wracking and inexplicable happening. Illuminated in the beam of my light was a strange drifting mist, and the temperature dropped even lower quite considerably. The ever-present breeze blowing against my back had not changed since entering the tunnel. The heart-stopping thing was the fact that the mist was drifting towards me unaffected by the breeze blowing against it! My immediate thought was the Grey Lady. Surely I was done for, and destined to never leave this macabre place. I was rooted to the spot and could hear the beat of my heart. The mist enveloped me completely, accompanied by a hideous musty smell. After what seemed like an age it disappeared and the temperature rose noticeably. I carry a high-powered spot light so was able to illuminate the surrounding tunnel walls and ceiling. There were no cracks, holes or anything to allow a temperature change or mist to form. The whole area was bone dry which also indicates a consistent temperature and airflow. The thing that didn’t add up was the mist not being affected by a strong breeze blowing against it. Other people have seen a blue light in this area wandering across the tunnel. The Grey Lady shares her domain with the spirits of a number of Victorian children who died during labouring on the tunnel excavation. The entrance to the Miley Tunnel has also been the site of several accidents in recent years. Two young men were injured in separate incidents in 1998 and 2000, each falling over 30 feet into the tunnel off a wall near Moor Lane. On Christmas Day 2002, a drunken youth fell to his death at the same point. In October 2003 another drunken man fell onto the disused line at Maudland Bank but escaped serious injury. Right let’s get out of here. I can see daylight ahead. In places the tunnel roof has the beautiful brick vaulted construction so typical of the Victorian era. A lot of soot is apparent throughout. As we come out into the daylight we enter a vertical walled cutting. Wooden spreader beams were used to strengthen the sides and these have lasted well. The more recent concrete beams which have been added have failed in places. We just have the short stretch of No.1 tunnel to go through now. This has always been very badly flooded and waders would be required to get through it until recently. This section was notorious for holding water. (Credit to Dingle) Continues below:

Continued from above: Let’s take a walk and see if the Grey Lady appears walking towards us from the depths. We‘ve got to stay close as she is reputed to pick off any stragglers. Now, this walk to the tunnel is not one to be savoured. We start off by having to climb over a high wall in the middle of a housing estate in Deepdale. The residents don’t seem overly concerned at this but it is off-putting knowing that the curtains are twitching. On the other side of the wall is a steep muddy embankment down to the trackbed. The eastbound rail is still in situ. The first part of the walk along here is horrendous. The householders appear to have chucked everything over their back fence which has rolled down the embankment into the bottom. It resembles a council tip in places. Fridges, freezers, tv’s, chairs, food waste, the lot’s down here. You come across piles of cable (minus the copper obviously), push bikes and wheels, needles, stained and stinking old mattresses. It’s grim for sure. The bike section underneath St.Paul's Road The same place years ago on the approach to Deepdale Station. (Credit to PDA) Continues below:

Hi there folks, Join me this week as we hopefully avoid the cold embraces of the Grey Lady and the Bannister Doll. We’ll have a look at the tragic circumstances that has led to the Grey Lady’s restless spirit wandering the claustrophobic confines of the Miley Tunnel deep under the streets of Preston. Don’t think you’ll be safe above ground however as the Bannister Doll could be waiting after dark around the next corner! The Miley Tunnel (officially named as the Maudland Tunnel) was part of the Preston to Longridge Railway line. This was a classic example of an English country branch line. Before we get to the spooky stuff let’s go back in time to those days of yesteryear. The PLR was first considered in 1835 as a way of connecting the quarries of Lancashire’s Longridge Fell to a dispersal point at Deepdale Street near to the centre of Preston. The combined mineral and passenger line eventually opened in May 1840 linking the expanding town to the village of Longridge six and a half miles away to the north-east. The line originally formed part of ambitious plans to create a link between Yorkshire and the Lancashire coast. The route of the PLR Let’s jump on board and take a ride along the line. We’re headed by a Webb 2-4-2T which was the typical steam loco that worked the passenger service. After steaming north along the main line out of Preston we pass the site of Preston engine-shed and Preston No.5 Signal Box. We enter the branch on a sharp right-hand curve just after the soap works. The Maudland Curve between the L & NWR engine shed and the soap works We then pass St.Walburge’s Church which has the third highest spire in the country. In the construction of the lower part of the tower redundant limestone sleeper blocks from the original Lancaster and Preston Junction Railway were used. The spire was the last to be worked upon by steeplejack and TV personality Fred Dibnah. After passing under several bridges we enter the Maudland Tunnel where the occupants of the houses above suffered the vibrations of the steam engines far below. Leaving the tunnel we pass by the ‘House of Recovery’, (now Preston Royal Infirmary). Close to here was one of Preston’s earliest cinemas, the ‘Victory’, later to become the’ Rialto’. The passing of steam trains here would cause a severe shaking of the building with the result of a blurred picture on the screen until the train had got sufficiently clear. Deepdale Bridge Station is reached next, followed shortly by Deepdale Junction whereby the double-tracks become single. A short section of track heads backwards from here to reach the coal sidings where the original terminus was situated. From here to Longridge the single-line is worked using a round red staff to control the section. Blackpool Road bridge is passed under before a short siding to the left which served a brickworks, and latterly a Fyffes banana warehouse. Before Ribbleton Station is reached a large refrigerated building comes into view with its own sidings. This was constructed in WW2 for the storage of emergency rations. After leaving Ribbleton we come to the one mile branch line on the right which led to Courtaulds’ Red Scar Works. The site opened in 1938 and was the largest man-made rayon fibre plant in Europe. Soon we arrive at Grimsargh Station and can see two sets of sidings either side of the line. One was for the goods yard, and the other served the Whittingham Asylum and Hospital. A privately owned line left the PLR here. This was the Whittingham Hospital Railway. Coal and freight trains for the hospital from Preston’s industrial centre at Deepdale were conveyed to the station and shunted into sidings. They were then coupled up to the Whittingham train which also carried passengers for free. Upon arrival at the hospital the landscaped gardens could be explored, or a sporting event attended. The origins of the hospital were linked to the social conditions in Preston at the height of the Industrial Revolution, which led to the building of places such as Whittingham for the accommodation of paupers and the mentally ill. During the Victorian era Preston had been transformed into a town crammed with mills, terraced houses, and cobbled streets. This was the time when ‘King Cotton’ held sway although rewards for the workers were non-existent. Disease and infant deaths were high, and the town was without piped water, drains or sewers. Unemployment was at an all-time high which led to people having to labour at the workhouses. Young people were especially vulnerable. A report from 1865 says that, ”Gatherings of all sorts of men, women and children are gathered in the thief’s kitchen. In these places, lads, women, men, girls, beggars, thieves, tramps, vagabonds, cripples and prostitutes sleep together, huddled in poorly ventilated rooms, and taking off their clothing to try and prevent the vermin and fleas getting into the fabric.” It was decided to build a 1000 bed asylum at Whittingham to provide care for the most desperate paupers who had become mentally unwell owing to the living conditions. Bricks were manufactured on-site, and other materials were brought by road from Preston and Longridge. When completed the building could easily have been mistaken for one of the stately homes of England such was its grandeur. It even contained a ballroom. An average of 12,000 tons of coal were carried along the railway to the hospital as well as hundreds of tons of other goods. The passenger service was entirely free and carried more than 200 of the staff daily. It became known as ‘the nurses’ special’. Whittingham Hospital Station also served as the carriage shed and was basic to say the least. If you were lucky there was the opportunity to be attacked by a swan from the ornamental lake which used to loiter by the platform. The unfenced line ran through the hospital grounds and precautions had to be taken as patients quite often wandered onto the track. The two engine crews worked from 5 am to 1 pm, and 1 pm to 9 pm respectively. The morning crew used to stop the train at random places and jump off to gather mushrooms from the fields for their breakfast. The fireman would fry bacon, eggs and the mushrooms on the coal shovel in the firebox. They needed copious amounts of tea to wash it all down as it was liberally coated with coal dust! The carriages had wooden seats, and an old Calor Gas bottle to provide the heating. The hospital line closed in 1957 after one of the locomotives (a D1 built in 1886, and bought from Southern Railways) needed replacing. Loading was down to single figures on certain journeys and the cost to operate the railway had risen to £5000 per year. The haulage of coal direct to the hospital’s boilers by road was considered a more cost effective option. The remaining engine was a Sentinel 0-4-0 which had been picked up from Bolton Gas Works. This ended up being sold to Messrs G Stephenson, builders and contractors of Bishop Auckland.They in turn re-sold it in 1958 to the Tyne Tees Shipping Company of Stockton-on-Tees, where it worked at Vulcan Street Wharf in Middlesborough. It was scrapped in 1968. The last leg of the journey to Longridge sets off from Grimsargh on a gradual ascent past Grimsargh Reservoir, the first of the large reservoirs to be constructed for Preston in 1835. The steepest gradient of the line starts here and takes the single track through Stone Bridge Tunnel emerging to a view of terraced houses with grey slate roofs, interspersed with several mill chimneys. Upon entering the station double tracks lead to the goods yard, followed by a short extension branch into the quarries. Safety on the PLR was typical for the Victorian era. Accidents ranged from jumping or falling off wagons, brake and signal failure, to animals and inebriated men on the tracks. General advice to travellers was not to put your legs out of the door-less 2nd class carriages, and don’t be tempted to jump off to retrieve a dropped parcel or hat that has blown off. The first serious accident on the line occurred in January 1846 when a quarry worker was seated at the front of a stone wagon. At Ribbleton the stone gave way and he fell onto the line trapping his leg under the stone. A wagon wheel then crushed the limb before the wagon could be stopped. He was taken to the Ribbleton Bowling Green public house where a local surgeon performed an amputation. A fatal accident happened to a brakeman in 1859. He was on the front of three heavily loaded stone wagons from the quarry above Longridge. As they approached the station he attempted to slow the speed by applying the brake but was unable to have any effect on the wheels. He jumped to the wagon behind in order to use that brake, but slipped down between the wagons, fell under the wheels, and was completely torn to pieces. The wagons raced through Longridge picking up more speed on the descending track. On the approach to Grimsargh a boy saw them coming at a terrific speed and ran to alert the booking clerk. The clerk raced to the sidings and changed the points whereupon the carriages ran in at 60 mph colliding with some other wagons. The first wagon was smashed to pieces with the second and third seriously damaged, and the stones thrown in all directions. Shortly after this a passenger train from Preston came up and had it not been for the boy and clerk’s quick action a head on collision would have resulted with a large number of passengers killed or dreadfully injured. Light-hearted incidents were common however. The carriage of passengers seems to have been of secondary importance with at least one passenger scrambling into a first-class carriage to find a calf stretched out within the compartment. The practice was a common one as the directors of the railway were no respecters of persons clean, or unclean. The bleating of the calf, and the wheezing puffs of the old asthmatic engine made for a musical journey. Third-class carriages were prone to bad leaks and in wet weather passengers had to keep their umbrellas up inside the train as well as out. The engine driver had instructions to blow the locomotive’s whistle hard coming through the Stone Bridge Tunnel at Longridge. This was to waken the Secretary of the PLR, and often the train would have to come to a complete standstill until the official had got himself out of bed and boarded the train for his daily journey into Preston. In January 1936 an entire farm stock and animals were moved from Grimsargh to Swindon on an afternoon special. Resembling a Noah’s Ark the train comprised of thirteen trucks of farm implements and sectional cabins, with eleven trucks of livestock. On the train were six shires, a hunter, two foals, a Shetland pony, forty-five sheep, a bull, fifteen cows, twenty-seven stirks, eighteen yearlings and four calves. The cows were milked before leaving and were at their new farm in time for their next milking. The whole of the livestock were safely transported and were grazing in the fields of Wiltshire 200 miles away by 9 am the next day. A freight train working caused an amusing incident in the early 1960’s. It was running light with only a load of coal for Deepdale Sidings. Upon reaching Deepdale Junction the engine driver gave three blasts on the whistle as usual. This was to alert the signalman to operate the level crossing gates for the main road. After waiting for 5 minutes there was no sign of the gates closing so the engine driver went to investigate. In the signal box was a note from the signalman saying he had to pop out for a bit. The crew decided to operate the box and gates themselves and set the points and signal accordingly to enter the coal yard sidings. After swapping the loaded wagons for some empties they reversed the procedure and headed back to Preston. Whilst on their break they looked back on their achievement and both agreed it was a brilliant idea to operate the box themselves. A look of horror came over the face of the engine driver as he shouted, “I’ve forgotten to open the gates back up! The whole area had become grid-locked with traffic by the time they got back. Even the Maudland (Miley) Tunnel had a light-hearted tale to tell. The tunnel is on a slight up-hill gradient going away from Preston and on this particular day a fully loaded train with coal for Courtaulds had slowed to a crawl half-way through the tunnel. The heat and smoke were unbearable so with the fire on the locomotive well built up, steam on full pressure, and the boiler water level at three-quarters full the engine driver suggested to his fireman that he jump off and walk. He could climb back aboard once the engine emerged into the daylight. After walking for a few minutes he heard footsteps behind him and turned around with dread expecting to see the Grey Lady. What he saw was even worse. His mate had also got off! Seeing the look of horror on his face the engine driver calmly stated that they would wait in the fresh air and jump back on when it re-appeared. They could hear the beat of the engine working very hard within the tunnel but the sound appeared to be going away from them. The fireman remarked on this to the driver and his reply was,” Rubbish, it will come out at any second”, but it never did. The weight of the train had caused it to slip pulling it back out of the tunnel to its starting point in Maudland yard. Luckily, the guard realising the train was out of control applied the handbrake in his van averting what could have been a major incident. He had a real shock when he found no men on the footplate. His first thought was that the Grey Lady had got ‘em. The crew had a nerve wracking walk back through the mile long tunnel (hence its Miley name) without any light. The two of them managed to talk their way out of it somehow and nothing more was said on the matter. The line closed to passengers in 1930 with the exception of the Whittingham branch. However, goods continued for a further 64 years. The withdrawal of freight facilities at Grimsargh and Longridge in 1967 brought about the complete closure of the route beyond Courtaulds’ sidings. In 1980 Courtaulds’ factory closed and with it the section of line between their sidings and Deepdale Junction. Finally, the ending of coal trains serving Deepdale brought about the total closure of the remaining section of the line in 1994. The future remains uncertain as there was talk of a tram/train system for Preston. The plan was to use the disused line as a test bed for the system. However, with the change in the economy this may be put back or cancelled altogether. Okay folks, now we’ll have a look at the tragic story of the Grey Lady. We’re going back to Christmas 1866 and a chilling accident that occurred at Deepdale Bridge Station. Margaret Banks, a fifteen year old power loom weaver managed to get her Victorian crinoline tangled with a carriage door. Sadly, she was killed when she ended up under the wheels of a Preston-bound train. The 2 pm train from Longridge had arrived at Deepdale Bridge Station. Henry Whittaker, a wool-stapler of Haslingden held his hand out of the carriage window to a group of girls who thought that he wished to pass something. Mary Flynn got to him first, but Margaret pushed her to one side and said, “No let me have it”. Whether Banks got hold of Whittaker’s hand, or he seized hers, is not ascertained. When the train started to move Banks walked on by the side of the track but after a few yards screamed out, fell, and was run over by the carriages and instantly killed. Some of the girls who were with the deceased on the platform said that Whittaker held her hand, that he would not let her go, and that she screamed before she dropped between the platform and the carriages. One of the girls shouted to her to let go and tried to pull her back but could only watch as she saw her clothes getting caught and being pulled along the platform. P.C. John Bennett found her lying on the rails. “The train had gone over her head and also one of her legs and arms. She was quite dead at the time. I took her off the rails and into the station tavern and sent for a doctor”. A verdict of accidental death was recorded. At the inquest the crucial evidence focused on whether he had grabbed her hand first, in which he would be guilty of manslaughter. Conversely, if she had held his hand first then he would not. Was it unlawful killing or accidental death? It transpired there was insufficient evidence to commit Whittaker for trial. Enter the tunnel at your peril, for blood-curdling screams have been heard from the girl in the crinoline dress who is said to haunt the oppressive eerie blackness walking the line of the ‘Miley Tunnel’ way beneath the busy streets of Preston. 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Continued from above: The TD12 takes on a refill The tamping machine in action packing the ballast down After finishing tamping the southbound line an attempt was made to cross over onto the northbound side. However, it got stuck on the crossover due to its long wheelbase and fixed (non-bogie) wheel arrangement. In order to get it moved it needed to be transported on the low-loader. This consisted of the tamper raising itself onto its jacks, the trailer reversing underneath and then lowering the tamper’s jacks. The whole lot was then driven across to the northbound line and positioned appropriately. The same procedure as before, but in reverse, saw the tamper ready to go to work on this side. The tamper is ready to lower itself onto the northbound line. (All pics copyright to Alan Robson). An impressive bit of kit.

Thanks lads. Recently we had a couple of rare visitors to the Blackpool tramway. Thwaites TD12 Ballast Distributor Plasser 09/16 CAT/ZW Tamper During February 2021 there was the first major period of track maintenance since the system upgrade. Extensive permanent way work on the reserved track north of the Cabin took place. The work involved ballast renewal and some track replacement. Laying the new ballast along the open sleeper track Continues below:

Continued from above: Now onto a Leyland-MCW Olympian single deck bus. The Olympian was a lightweight version of the Leyland-MCW Olympic bus. It was built by Leyland and Metro Cammell Weymann (MCW). Leyland supplied running units derived from their Tiger Cub bus, and MCW built the bodies at Addlestone, Surrey. It was introduced at the 1954 Motor Show but was the least successful post-war bus. The Western Welsh Omnibus Company bought one of these buses in 1954, 40 in 1956, and another six in 1958. John Fishwick & Sons of Leyland took six in 1957. The 1954 Motor Show bus and the prototype went to the Jones bus company in Aberdeen, New South Wales, Australia. Trinidad Bus Services took four in 1956. One was exported to Ceylon, and a unique left-hand drive version was sold to the People’s Republic of China in 1958. This vehicle is one of only two or three left in the world. It was used in and around Leyland until 2015 when John Fishwick & Sons bus company folded after 108 years. It was found abandoned in Cannock Bus Station in Staffordshire. A couple of fire engines now. The first is an Albion fitted out by Merryweather & Sons of Greenwich, London. Merryweather and Sons were originally established around 1690 by a Nathaniel Hadley whose factory on Cross Street in London manufactured - among other things - pumps and fire-fighting apparatus. The first fire engine factory was built in 1738 at the corner of Bow Street and Long Acre and was used for the manufacture of hand engines and leather hose, and later for steam engines. For a time the company was called "Hadley - Simpkin" (after a master plumber who invented a kind of fire pump). In 1791 Henry Lott joined the firm and it became "Hadley, Simpkin and Lott". At some point Lott took over full control of the company and when he retired handed it over to his nephew by marriage, Moses Merryweather, who had apprenticed there in 1807. Merryweather had three sons who joined the company in the latter half of the 19th century including James, who was responsible for promoting its products internationally. In 1862 a new factory was built in York Street, Lambeth, for the manufacture of steam engines. In 1873 the Long Acre factory was destroyed by fire and a new building constructed to be used for offices and as a show room. In 1876 another factory was built in Greenwich Road and three years later the Lambeth factory was closed. As "Fire Engine Makers by Appointment to His Majesty the King", Merryweather and Sons sold fire-fighting apparatus to cities around the world. By 1913 its machines were being used across the UK, in South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Burma, Egypt, India, Singapore and China. No Merryweathers appear to have been sold in Canada, however. The standard Merryweather Petrol Motor Fire Engine in the years leading up to the First World War came with the choice of either a 50 or 60 horsepower, 4-cylinder water-cooled Aster motor, 3-speed transmission and a chain drive supplying power to the rear wheels. The whole unit could attain a speed of 30 mph "and upwards" on level ground, "with corresponding hill climbing capabilities". Merryweather fire engines were generally equipped with their patented "Hatfield" three-cylinder reciprocating water pumps driven off the engine through a clutch and drive-shaft. The recent history of the firm is a little murky. At some point the company moved to Wales, but its stock ceased being traded sometime in the early 1980's and reports suggest that the company's papers were destroyed at that time. Records show that in 1999 a company named Morris Merryweather Fire and Safety Equipment went into receivership. The vehicle here is fitted with a hugely powerful 5.65 litre Rolls-Royce engine. It was supplied to the Barking Fire Brigade in 1939, and fought fires during the London Blitz. It was famous for its turntable escape ladder which could reach up to 100ft high! The ladder had its own built-in telephone to call the firemen at the top. The second fire engine is a Leyland E IS 5. It is closely related to their RAF-type truck from the First World War. It has the same engine as the RAF type which is a 4-cylinder with two blocks of two @6.5 litres giving 55 HP. The engine could power either the water pump or the vehicle’s wheels. The water pump was made by Rees-Roturbo of Wolverhampton. They could pump 500 gallons of water every minute at high pressure. Two vertical spindle pumps Early in 1910 Leyland built its first fire engine. Leyland Motors supplied fire engine vehicles to towns and cities across the UK, the British Empire and the Commonwealth until the early 1960’s. For this vehicle, Leyland developed a more powerful engine with fast acceleration to 60mph. The chassis was built at the Leyland works in Kingston-upon-Thames, Surrey, which had been re-building ex-WD RAF types left over from the First World War. The chassis was then transported to Chorley works for completion. Its working life was spent at Church fire station, near Accrington. Our last vehicle is a magnificent Leyland Lioness from 1927, which i talked about in an earlier post from last April. It was originally supplied to Buckingham Palace and was used by King George V and Queen Mary for Royal Household use, and was based in the Royal Mews in London. As a result Leyland were rewarded with permission to use the Royal Crest. The engine is a 5.5 litre Leyland OHV 4 cylinder. The roof folds all the way back to the rear if needed, and the headlamps can be dipped by the driver pulling a short lever located near his seat. That completes our tour. All pics of the vehicles are in the gallery. Next time: Join me in a haunted railway tunnel where a tragedy from 160 years ago has left a presence you hope not to experience.

Continued from above: These steam driven trucks were very successful and were in production from 1911 until 1926, when steam power finally gave way to petrol powered vehicles. In spite of petrol power being used throughout the Great War steam hung on until the middle of the decade, at Leyland anyway. One big reason for the demise of steam was that insurance companies were becoming reluctant to insure steel boilers, especially when the vehicle would be used in towns. A steam locomotive would tend to be away from the general public, therefore would pose less risk to life if it blew up. Another reason for the demise of steam was the payload, some steamers could only carry a load that was less than the weight of the truck. Blackburn Crystal Ice Company on rubber tyres 1914 The third vehicle is a Thornycroft Steam Van built at Chiswick in 1896. Thornycroft was a renowned ship building firm based on the Thames. John Isaac Thornycroft, a naval engineer, built this experimental steam van for Fullers Brewery, London. It was remarkable because it featured front wheel drive and rear wheel steer.The marine heritage of its construction can be seen in its 25 HP engine. This type of coke fired power plant was used in river vessels. The van runs on wooden wheels complete with steel rims. Braking was by wooden blocks acting directly on the rims. Brakes were on the front only and operated by a handwheel. On January 2nd 1897 a Thornycroft Steam Van had the distinction of being the first means of mechanical transport to appear in Wales. On the same date it gained the dubious distinction of being the first motor vehicle to be involved in an accident in Wales. A Mr.William Duncan tried to board the van whilst it was moving. His foot slipped on the step and the wheel ran over his foot, crushing it which resulted in it being amputated. A 1934 6 ton Mechanical Horse is next, manufactured by Scammell at its Watford plant. The name arose because it was designed to get in and out of narrow twisty passages designed for a horse and cart. In the late 1920’s the railway companies were looking for a suitable vehicle to use on their town parcels delivery traffic, which was predominately horse drawn. The London Midland & Scottish Railway experimented with various ideas and in late 1930 announced, jointly with Karrier Motors, a tractor unit for this purpose. The vehicle, the Karrier Cob, was powered by a twin cylinder Jowett engine and utilized a mechanism to couple existing horse trailers to the tractor unit. Meanwhile the London and North Eastern Railway had approached Napier's, the quality car and aero-engine makers for an answer to the same problem. They came up with some ideas, but didn’t wish to develop the concept and sold the project to Scammell Lorries. Their designer, O. D. North, refined and further developed the concept of the three wheel tractor unit which automatically coupled and un-coupled trailers, and in 1934 announced the introduction of the Mechanical Horse. The Post Office had twelve of these in 1942. They are in wartime livery with headlamp covers and white edging. This was a very simple and sturdy vehicle which was constructed on a steel channel frame and fitted with a wooden cab, the early versions having canvas doors. The Mechanical Horse came in two sizes, capable of carrying loads of three tons and six tons. These were powered by Scammell's own side valve petrol engine of 1125cc (3-ton) and 2043cc (6-ton), the engine being offset to the left of the cab, which could cause stability problems in some circumstances. The vehicles are very manoeuvrable (with a 16 foot trailer they can turn through 360O in 19 feet), have a road speed of about 20 mph, and do between 10 and 20 mpg. They were built for innumerable applications both at home and overseas; more than 20,000 of them were built. The railways in particular used hundreds of them to haul parcel trailers. In addition to the railway companies, they were also used by breweries, quite a number of private companies and the armed forces where they were used in stores and on aircraft carriers. The 6-ton coupling was also fitted to popular makes of light trucks such as Bedfords. Very few remain today, and this particular 6-ton spent all its working life at the Scammell plant in Watford towing other chassis around the factory. Leyland also designed a tractor unit specifically to haul Scammell semi-trailers fitted with their automatically raising and lowering landing gear. This next exhibit is a 1957 Leyland Comet ECOS/6R developed to meet demand for forward control cabs. Forward control, also known in road vehicle design as cab forward, cab over, or Cab Over Engine ( COE) is a body style of truck, bus or van with a vertical front or ‘flat face’. The cabs sits above the front axle and this makes for a more compact vehicle design. Leyland first demonstrated this type at the 1954 Earls Court Motor Show. It proved popular with many manufacturers and haulage companies. The vehicle here is fitted with corresponding Scammell equipment, an arrangement which allows the drive to couple and uncouple the trailer without leaving the cab. The automatic coupling still works. The engine was originally a Leyland 0.600, but it was subsequently fitted with a Leyland 0.680. These Leyland engine numbers refer to the engine capacities in cubic inches. Converted to metric, 600 = 9.8 litres and 680 = 11.1 litres. The vehicle was operated by local manufacturer Leyland Paint and Varnish Company. Between 1948 and 1959 they bought seven Leyland Comets. Leyland Motors bought most of the primer paint for painting their truck/bus chassis and military vehicles from the Leyland Paint and Varnish Company. This fine pic shows a Leyland Comet Mark 2 which Leyland Paints bought in 1951. It took about 10 secs to deliver it as their factory and offices were right outside the entrance to the Leyland Farington Works gate in Northgate, off Golden Hill Lane, the original entrance to the Farington site. An unusual one next: Another truly British and slightly off-beat van conversion is this UHF television detector van. One of the most feared vehicles in 1970s and 1980s Britain. Allegedly, the electronics in the van could detect if you were watching TV, and match that fact to a database of licence records, as well as boil the operating crew’s kettle. The equipment is installed in a modified 2500 series Commer/Dodge general-service vehicle. Eleven of this type were made, and this bought the compliment of detection vehicles to two in each region. A dummy roof houses the aerial-movement mechanism. To prevent water entering the dummy roof and being driven into the mechanism by the forward movement of the vehicle, the slot necessary to allow fore and aft movement of the front aerial is closed by a heavy-duty zip fastened neoprene cover. A purpose built console in the body of the vehicle provides the operating condition. The inside and roof of the vehicle is lined with washable plastic to reduce condensation. Hot air from an additional heater is ducted to the side windows to prevent misting, and to the roof to prevent seizing of the mechanism in freezing temperatures. The vehicle is fitted with automatic transmission to give smooth take off and slow speed during detection runs. Continues below:

Continued from above: The owner of this 2-tonner seems to have taken very literally the Bedford claim as “the truck for a 50% overload”. It is pictured carrying a load of hops from Kent to London. I wonder which stadium the sign on the railway bridge above referred to? These long wheelbase Express Dairy vans feature very deep windscreens and sliding door windows. We come to a Beardmore Cobra in Marks and Spencer colours next. This was built in 1931 at the William Beardmore Motors factory in Paisley, Scotland. It has a very distinctive radiator design which incorporates the manufacturer’s name. Beardmore is best remembered for its range of taxi-cabs, first introduced in 1919, and updated in 1923. They were sold via their own taxi company in London. In 1930 the company acquired the rights to build the French Chenard-et-Walcker tractor unit. The design of coupling allowed part of the trailer weight to be borne by the tractor unit, increasing the traction and therefore improving its driveability in damp conditions. These were produced in Clapham, London. Three versions were offered for sale. The Anaconda was a 15 ton multi-wheeler, while the Python could handle a 10-15 ton payload. The Cobra was a 10 ton tractor unit, powered as with the other two variants by a Meadows 3.3 litre, four cylinder engine giving 20 HP. In 1932 this arm of the business was sold off to an independent concern – Multiwheelers – who continued in production with these vehicles until 1937, utilising either AEC or Gardner engines. The museum example on the 1984 Brighton run Alongside the Beardmore is a Guy J of 1922 vintage. This 17 HP, 30cwt lorry was pensioned off after delivering coal in the Aldershot area for nearly 30 years. Guy Motors was a Wolverhampton-based vehicle manufacturer that produced cars, lorries, buses and trolleybuses. The company was founded by Sydney S. Guy (1885–1971) who was born in Kings Heath, Birmingham. Guy Motors operated out of its Fallings Park factory from 1914 to 1982, playing an important role in the development of the British motor industry. The company’s first product was a 30cwt. lorry of advanced design. To get away from the more commonly used heavy rolled steel channel frames of the time, Guy employed a much lighter form of pressed steel frame, and patented a three-point flexible suspension to prevent any distortion from being transmitted to the engine and gearbox. The direct third gear was intended for use when the vehicle was fully laden, whilst fourth gear, which was used only when travelling light, was indirect. A governor – controlled by road speed and not engine speed – was another novel feature, and this limited the maximum speed to 30mph without affecting the engine’s ability to “rev” in the lower ratios when ascending hills. This governor was somewhat unpopular with drivers, who much preferred the economical overdrive top gear which they could engage when no load was being carried. Variations on these features became standard practice in the industry in later years. Next, we have a 1950 built Morris 10cwt ‘Y’ type in the green colours of the Post Office Radio Service. The Y's back-to-basics specification is clear to see on this example - for example, just the one windscreen wiper, no chrome plating, and no hub-caps. The single offset hole in the grille is a reminder that, like with the Ford, the Morris' engine is offset to the passenger side, hence needing a starter handle aperture set off to one side. The design of the vehicle enables more of the overall length to be given over to interior carrying capacity. The original pop-up semaphore trafficators are fitted to the bodywork just behind the front doors. A pic from June 1948 Three steam vehicles come into view now. The first is a chain driven Foden from 1922. It is a two cylinder, side valve developing 45 HP. Of all the companies making steam lorries in the first thirty years of the last century by far and away the best known was Foden. Until the mid-twenties Foden manufactured locomotive over-boilered type machines (i.e engine over the boiler); the exhibit is a classic example of the type. It had a crew of two, one man steered from the left and the other drove from the right. Unfortunately there was a distinct lack of forward visibility on these over-boilered variants. Its weight at 6 tons (incl.coal and water) was rather more than it could carry (5 ton payload). This vehicle was restored by Tate and Lyle in 1968. The apprentices who were involved put dome head rivets in the boiler by mistake. They had to be removed and replaced by cone heads. Foden abandoned steam soon after making its first oil engined lorry in 1931. The second vehicle is a Leyland ‘F’ class. It had been used to haul timber in the Atherton Tablelands in NSW, Australia. It was found derelict in the Australian outback, brought back to Leyland, and completely re-built by the Leyland apprentices. Joseph Sumner, Steam Flour Mills, Chorley 1908 Continues below: