Signal & Telegraph Depots

[Ian G]

Is there a list of S&T depots on the Western Region?

 

Ian G

[The Stationmaster]

Is or was?  

 

There used to be quite a few albeit holding varying levels of stock of some items while some were little more than bases fr the local Signal Lineman and Telegraph Lineman.  In some places in later years the stock they held could include various 'unofficial' things which were basically material which had been recovered from closures, various, and was considered worth keeping as spares. Mimd you even Reading stores was bit like that with stuff brought at the time of Regional boundary changes and S&T depot closures or ex Western stuff got from other Regions who had decided it was surplus to their needs and they wanted rid of it.  Thus by the latter route Reading acquired a significant stock of Electric Token machines which had been taken out of use by the LMR but which they didn't want.

 

Eevn the holding og f hi nofficial stocvks couldn't always keep pace with demand.  Just into the second half of the 1970s on my areawe  were in desperate of signal lamp interiors.  The local S&T stores h at From had none left (and hadn't had any fora year or more) and Reading Works had none in stock and didn't lnow how long it would take to get some made (yes, they'd stopped making them for stock).  So in the end atfter trying around various parts of the Region we had some made locally at a very good price.  Our Lampie was in the antiques trade so knew where we could get burners at a good price (where we were already buying wicks when we couldn't easily get the right size on stores requisitions if we needed them urgently) and he also knew someobody who could get hold of the right type of glass and could also engrave the  flame height guide lines on it to the pattern we lent him.   We got them for far less than the Reading catalogue price and within a few weeks.  And they worked just as well as Reading made ones being completely interchangeable with them.  We bought a couple of dizen complete in the first round plus a good stack of spare glasses as they were inclined to suffer in everyday use.