Prototype Paperwork and other Railway Artifacts.

[VonRyan]

I must admit that my own railway interests extend beyond the form of models. I've been known to grab my camera and do some occasional railfanning, but besides that I quite enjoy collecting paperwork and other artifacts from the railways/railroads of times gone by.

 

I'm a fan of the GWR, so when I decided that I wanted to get together one or two N-gauge GWR trains (still haven't accomplished that...) I also ended up beginning to look at the UK eBay for items from the prototype.

And, being that I'm just a lowly American, it is very cost prohibitive to try and acquire anything that is heavier than 1kg. So, my collecting has been limited to paperwork and the occasional small items. For instance, a couple notepads, a detonator tin, a telegraph-codes book, a mug, a few buttons, and a whistle.

 

There's just something about being able to hold and/or read things from the past that intrigues me.

I also have acquired various pieces of prototype paperwork from the Pennsylvania Railroad and the Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines, but unlike my acquiring of GWR paperwork, I have been gathering PRR/PRSL paperwork for operations on a future N-scale layout.

 

To make a long story short, I'm curious to see if there are others who also like to collect prototype items and what their own fascination is with the items they collect.

 

Shortly I shall try and post some photos of some of my GWR items to help spark some discussion, and I'll possibly some of my PRR/PRSL paperwork as well in case there is any interest for it.

 

 

Cheers!

-Cody F.

[beast66606]

I have a pretty big collection of LMS appendices, their supplements (only missing one appendix and one supplement for the full set from Grouping to Nationalisation) and SOI (Supplementary Operating Instructions). I also have an extenisve collection of signal box nameboards and signal box diagrams (and other paperwork such as signal sighting forms, train registers etc.) from "my" line : Chester - Birkenhead. Add to those a variety of other diagrams, plans and drawings I have acquired over the years and lots of other miscellaneous paperwork and all in all I have a fairly good collection of LNWR / LMS / BR(LMR) paperwork focused on signalling / operations - or "that junk" as my Boss lady calls it.

[adanapress]

Just in passing, as an amateur printer as well a railway enthusiast, I have produced a good many tickets for the preserved lines in close Edmondson style,  and a very few items of railway stationery, eg the Parcels forms for one station on the revived GCR, and also for them set and proofed proper three part set pads for T.T.I.s to use,  serially numbered against fraud. They declined to proceed, and amazingly only 18 months later a TTI was involved in fraud.   All this work was provided absolutely free of charge.  The problem was always endless changes of volunteers to correspond with.  Various types of Tickets were provided at various times for Rutland,  for Mid Norfolk,  for the Colne Valley and many for the GCR,  and proofs only for  a number of others - all free of charge.  Latterly all had a tiny date printed on

at the request of the ticket collectors society.  This work ended tailed off about five years ago, and could no longer be produced.. 

signed

The Happy Dragons Press

[VonRyan]

Here are some photos of some of the items that I've accumulated. There are still a few items that I have yet to photo-document, but that is soon to change.

 

 

 

This is the largest item in my collection. I assume given it has a 4-digit number on the front, and since the number does correspond to an actual locomotive, that this must have been in the cab of 5568.

I won it on eBay for relatively cheap, but just to ship it to the USA cost me $60.

But since it came with some contents, I'd say it was somewhat worth the costly shipping.

 

The etched measuring glass really blows me away:

 

 

 

My detonator tin with the old style GWR logo on it:

 

 

 

My whistle and a few buttons:

 

 

 

A pretty plain mug. The seller's story was that his grandfather worked along the permanent way and found this laying on the ground by the tracks:

 

 

 

A Maintenance Dept. pay cheque and a neat brass plate that from what I was told means "one hundredweight":

 

 

 

Here's a few different items. The BR rule book was actually the first railway item I had purchased on the UK eBay. The two season tickets came in that nifty little leather holder, which is where the tickets stay when they aren't being looked at.

 

 

 

These next few pictures are of the same notepad. It's unused and even has it's original pencil.

The elastic band has worn out, so in the first photo I simply folded the excess under so that it would appear to be holding to notepad closed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I still need to photograph some items that I had purchased after all these were taken. I haven't purchased anything else recently so I should also start thinking about photographing the many pieces of GWR paperwork that I have accumulated.

 

 

Cheers!

 

-Cody F.

[Bob Reid]

Cody,  Unless I'm completely mistaken that's an Emergency First Aid Kit (equivalent to St.John's Ambulance No.3 Kit) from a GWR Carriage rather than a locomotive you have there - it was a statutory requirement for all passenger trains to carry one, usually in the Brake Van - though curiously that's the number of a GWR ordinary Third on the front and not a Brake Third as I would have expected - no doubt someone with a better knowledge of GWR coaching stock will be along directly to explain why.  A nice collection nevertheless!

[K14]

Here are some photos of some of the items that I've accumulated. There are still a few items that I have yet to photo-document, but that is soon to change.

 

 

This is the largest item in my collection. I assume given it has a 4-digit number on the front, and since the number does correspond to an actual locomotive, that this must have been in the cab of 5568.

I won it on eBay for relatively cheap, but just to ship it to the USA cost me $60.

But since it came with some contents, I'd say it was somewhat worth the costly shipping.

 

Cheers!

 

-Cody F.

The 'No.3' box usually lived in the Guards' Van in brake coaches, & as far as I can tell there's no correlation between the box number & the vehicle. I'd guess that the Guard would book one out of Stores at the start of his shift & return it at the end along with a note of any usage (there was a report book provided for this purpose that lived with the box). The GWT have one branded No. 666 (IIRC) in their collection, & we also have a BR (W) one numbered 1992. No idea what (if any) First Aid provision was made for Loco crews.

Here's a shot of one we have at Didcot that normally lives in Railcar 22:—

 

 

As you can see there is at least one layer underneath the top that has a much smaller G.W.R & at least two numbers - one of which seems to be 507.

 

Also in the Guard's compartment there's a handy transfer that says this:—

 

 

This example was in W231's vestibule & has since been overpainted in the same style, but 7371 retains its original. The central clip & the two screws are a common feature; I've never seen any similar fittings in loco cabs.

 

Love the 'shot glass'

 

Pete S.

[Rivercider]

During the earlier part of my railway career I kept a few Working Time Tables and public timetables from the late 1970s and early 1980s.

I also retained some of my old TOPS Office books and Western Region appendices hoping one day they might provide information or inspiration for a model railway.

These have proved helpful in confirming or reminding of how the rail network operated back then.

 

A few years ago when my father died I also received a small number of railway books and paperwork of his career,

and even some documents that my grandad  had used during his time on the Southern Railway which is a nice link to my families history.

 

cheers

[The Stationmaster]

Cody,  Unless I'm completely mistaken that's an Emergency First Aid Kit (equivalent to St.John's Ambulance No.3 Kit) from a GWR Carriage rather than a locomotive you have there - it was a statutory requirement for all passenger trains to carry one, usually in the Brake Van - though curiously that's the number of a GWR ordinary Third on the front and not a Brake Third as I would have expected - no doubt someone with a better knowledge of GWR coaching stock will be along directly to explain why.  A nice collection nevertheless!

The number on the First Aid box is its number - and not the number of the place or vehicle it was associated with.  Thus on audit or checking the check would be made on Ambulance Box No. XYZ etc and duly recorded as such.  I suspect that at one time items were even ordered from stores against a specific Ambulance Box number but as far as I know that had ceased to apply for static boxes (and probably others) by the 1960s and items were simply ordered as needed from Stores.

[The Stationmaster]

Here's a rather different sort of item from my collection of GWR ephemera

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[alfsboy]

I have the piece of paper signed by Neville Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler  to join forces and build a new railway  line out London going northwards.It didnt end well .

Hitler was heard to say a few years later that it would take a bigger economic moron than even Mussolini to finish it .

[Bob Reid]

The number on the First Aid box is its number - and not the number of the place or vehicle it was associated with.  Thus on audit or checking the check would be made on Ambulance Box No. XYZ etc and duly recorded as such.  I suspect that at one time items were even ordered from stores against a specific Ambulance Box number but as far as I know that had ceased to apply for static boxes (and probably others) by the 1960s and items were simply ordered as needed from Stores.

Thanks - By the early 70s we could still order the complete box or individual items but they'd long ago dropped any specific box number but were ordered against the vehicle required for - though fortunately the on-train boxes were contained within the Emergency Equipment cupboard and less prone to misuse - well that was the theory anyway!

[The Stationmaster]

Thanks - By the early 70s we could still order the complete box or individual items but they'd long ago dropped any specific box number but were ordered against the vehicle required for - though fortunately the on-train boxes were contained within the Emergency Equipment cupboard and less prone to misuse - well that was the theory anyway!

The emerging problem (on the Western at any rate) by the early/mid 1970s was that folk were taking the scissors out of the boxes for other uses and never returning them - I never could understand why as you could still order scissors from the stationery stores (although you did have to be patient).

[adanapress]

Be a patient??