RMweb Gold Colin_McLeod Posted February 2, 2021 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 2, 2021 9 hours ago, jhb171achil said: I think the young fella on the fence might be me Jonathan did you always sit on the fence, or did you make a decision? lol 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jhb171achil Posted February 3, 2021 Share Posted February 3, 2021 4 hours ago, Colin_McLeod said: Jonathan did you always sit on the fence, or did you make a decision? lol I recall leaning against a wagon axlebox with things growing out of it - must have been across the tracks in the yard! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunslet 102 Posted February 7, 2021 Author Share Posted February 7, 2021 A bit more scenery in front of the old derelict stores building attached to platform 2 has been added along with the wooden telephone mast that sat on a derelict pill box style structure at the back of platform 1. The mast took a sea of wires to the stores building and was used for some form of communication during the Second World War! Everything, apart from the houses in the background would all be wiped away by the early 70s! 5 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirley Posted February 8, 2021 Share Posted February 8, 2021 Love the historical detail 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lambeg Man Posted February 8, 2021 Share Posted February 8, 2021 19 hours ago, Hunslet 102 said: The mast took a sea of wires to the stores building and was used for some form of communication during the Second World War! Hi Hunslet, I read somewhere that it was the Goods Control office during WWII. In "UTA Lines" Ian Sinclair states that the stores building was originally the Goods Control office. However as the above photo taken in 1932 by William Robb shows the mast and wires were in place way before the Second World War. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunslet 102 Posted February 8, 2021 Author Share Posted February 8, 2021 Thanks Steve, interesting photo. The lines fan out towards the engine sheds to the right, the control office to the centre and then off to the left, which must have had other buildings but I am not sure what. I had heard the building had been used for some purpose during the war, maybe it was top secret! What has crossed my mind is how the war affected the GNR as they operated in both a country at war and a neutral country, would be interested to hear any facts or theories! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AMJ Posted February 9, 2021 Share Posted February 9, 2021 Many books indicate that there were border checks but there seems to be little mention of what happened during the war. I suspect that the GNR it was business as usual provided that they were not trying to transport items that could be construed as assisting a waring nation from a neutral one. I have heard about folks from the republic going to Belfast to sign up for the military. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirley Posted February 9, 2021 Share Posted February 9, 2021 Looking at Willie Robbs photo, is that corks on the wires to protect the racing pigeons? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Colin_McLeod Posted February 9, 2021 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 9, 2021 6 hours ago, AMJ said: Many books indicate that there were border checks but there seems to be little mention of what happened during the war. I suspect that the GNR it was business as usual provided that they were not trying to transport items that could be construed as assisting a waring nation from a neutral one. I have heard about folks from the republic going to Belfast to sign up for the military. I understand that British troop trains ran on GNR(I) metals from Portradown etc to Derry. Both these places are in Northern Ireland, but the railway crossed back and forth over the border at a number of locations. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunslet 102 Posted February 9, 2021 Author Share Posted February 9, 2021 4 hours ago, kirley said: Looking at Willie Robbs photo, is that corks on the wires to protect the racing pigeons? No idea Kieran, but homing pigeons were transported across the GNR network so don’t bite the hand that feeds you springs to mind Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunslet 102 Posted February 9, 2021 Author Share Posted February 9, 2021 4 hours ago, Colin_McLeod said: I understand that British troop trains ran on GNR(I) metals from Portradown etc to Derry. Both these places are in Northern Ireland, but the railway crossed back and forth over the border at a number of locations. Very interesting Colin! I would have thought Derry-Belfast would have mainly used the NCC, but provincial towns like Portadown etc would make sense to use the Derry Road. I suppose as long as they did not stop and were just passing through, then a blind eye would be turned. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lambeg Man Posted February 10, 2021 Share Posted February 10, 2021 18 hours ago, Colin_McLeod said: I understand that British troop trains ran on GNR(I) metals from Portradown etc to Derry. Both these places are in Northern Ireland, but the railway crossed back and forth over the border at a number of locations. At the risk of hijacking Hunslet's thread, I wish to add the following: I do not think there was much "blind eye" to military traffic. Omagh was a military centre but military traffic for Derry had to go via Cookstown or Antrim. It could not go beyond Strabane through the neutral IFS. Serious consideration was apparently given to re-gauging the 3' Strabane to Derry (Victoria Road) CDR section to 5' 3" to allow military traffic to reach Derry from Strabane, but by the time resources were obtained, the war was winding down and the impetus was lost. That building at Adelaide with the mast which was allegedly a "goods control" office during the war would have been for ALL three railway companies serving Belfast (under military direction?), a wagon 'pooling' operation being set up to meet the massive increase in freight, civilian as well as military. As for Irish Free State (IFS) neutrality, the following examples were breaches of the Geneva Convention on 'neutrality'. 1. Dundalk, Drogheda and Dublin based fire engines dispatched to Belfast to assist with the aftermath of the 1941 air raids 2. NCC engines and stock repaired at Dundalk Works 3. German embassy in Dublin 'bugged' by the IFS intelligence, material then fed on to MI5, etc., etc. Some years back I was amazed to see colour footage at the Foynes Flying Boat museum (allegedly taken in 1944), of American servicemen IN FULL MILITARY uniforms coming off a flying boat from the USA at Foynes! Either the year was wrong or they too were in breach of the convention. Getting back to the thread, Hunslet, I don't suppose you can remember what was at the base of the mast (or any remains of something) in your day? From available photographs there does not appear to be much room for a structure of any size. 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Colin_McLeod Posted February 10, 2021 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 10, 2021 (edited) 5 hours ago, Lambeg Man said: As for Irish Free State (IFS) neutrality, the following examples were breaches of the Geneva Convention on 'neutrality'. "Neutral on the side of the allies" I'm sure they had considered that Hitler would not have respected their neutrality if he had won the war. Who knows; we could have ended up with an ICE express service from Cork to Great Victoria Street, which brings us back on topic lol Edited February 10, 2021 by Colin_McLeod 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunslet 102 Posted February 11, 2021 Author Share Posted February 11, 2021 On 10/02/2021 at 11:36, Lambeg Man said: Getting back to the thread, Hunslet, I don't suppose you can remember what was at the base of the mast (or any remains of something) in your day? From available photographs there does not appear to be much room for a structure of any size. The building was just rubble when I was growing up in the area, but I believe it looked similar to a WW2 pill box type structure and may have been used as some sort of stores building 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunslet 102 Posted February 21, 2021 Author Share Posted February 21, 2021 A bit of a warts and all few pics of how the next section of the layout will start to progress! The photo below is the backs of the houses that ran along Northbrook Street, backing on to the line which ran between Central Junction and Tates Avenue The following 2 photos are from the other side of the tracks and represent Donegall Avenue. The houses again are similar to the ones on Donegall Avenue, but for variety and also wanting to create a flavour of life in Northern Ireland in the late 60s/early 70s, I have decided to include the small church and the fortified RUC station from my earlier layout, otherwise there would have been no room to incorporate them. Lots of repairs to do after storage also! 5 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirley Posted February 21, 2021 Share Posted February 21, 2021 Looking forward to this Andy. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lambeg Man Posted February 21, 2021 Share Posted February 21, 2021 Just gets better and better. Well done. Point of curiosity Hunslet, what was the source of the police building? LM 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jhb171achil Posted February 22, 2021 Share Posted February 22, 2021 Love the old RIC building! Many still to be seen all over Ireland, some in use with Gardaí, some PSNI, and some other uses..... 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunslet 102 Posted February 22, 2021 Author Share Posted February 22, 2021 18 hours ago, Lambeg Man said: Just gets better and better. Well done. Point of curiosity Hunslet, what was the source of the police building? LM Thanks Steve. The police station is a very old Superquick model. I know they do another updated version and although the front looks similar the back is different. They are reasonably priced and could always be customised. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunslet 102 Posted February 22, 2021 Author Share Posted February 22, 2021 17 hours ago, jhb171achil said: Love the old RIC building! Many still to be seen all over Ireland, some in use with Gardaí, some PSNI, and some other uses..... Thanks JSB. The building when I got it had a passing resemblance to the old RUC station on the Lisburn Road, before it was flattened by a bomb! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunslet 102 Posted March 8, 2021 Author Share Posted March 8, 2021 The latest addition to the layout is a freelance Guinness goods shed, positioned to the back of Adelaide station, just as the original from around 1974 onwards. The previous Guinness shed before 1974 was further down the line and was connected to Grosvenor goods yard via the 3rd line. Guinness traffic, mainly in closed vans would go into Grosvenor yard and then be taken up the 3rd line to the Guinness factory, with the empty wagons returning later. When the new facility at Adelaide was built, the third line was cut back to Tates Ave, with the Guinness traffic using this siding to gain access to the Guinness factory, reversing back into the factory. 4 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirley Posted March 10, 2021 Share Posted March 10, 2021 Looks very impressive Andy. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunslet 102 Posted March 20, 2021 Author Share Posted March 20, 2021 A wee bit more work done on the area between Central Junction and Tates Avenue. A new wall has been built and the houses, church and RUC station have started to appear. Plenty of work still to do, the wall needs weathered etc, but with these in front of the lines and the other houses behind the lines I think it adds a bit of depth to the area. CIE 141 class B165 is returning to Grosvenor yard with empty Guinness wagons via the 3rd line while NIR Hunslet 101 Eagle runs light engine towards Lisburn 3 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pat141 Posted March 20, 2021 Share Posted March 20, 2021 Looks great, nice to see a bit of law and order. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunslet 102 Posted March 24, 2021 Author Share Posted March 24, 2021 On 20/03/2021 at 17:44, pat141 said: Looks great, nice to see a bit of law and order. haha thanks Pat Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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