flyingsignalman

A few more photos taken 31/5/1982.

Some views around the station and signal box, all taken 21/3/1981 in exceedingly bad weather! When the film ran out! Regarding the local goods train calling at the station. Looking at the track layout, I would guess that wagons to be detached would be worked to Garsdale (if coming from the south) and sent on to Dent on the up by a local goods. Wagons to be picked up would be collected by the up local goods and sent on to (say) Hellifield for onward transit. Down trains could detach wagons via the crossing that remained until the box closed and then be moved by gravity or using a pinchbar into the loading bay. As I say just my guess.

A view of the box frame, a couple of months after closure, early 1981. I have some other (B+W) photos but they're not scanned yet.

Unless I've missed something, the industrial railway is a private line and it is crossing a private road. I think the main considerations as to the type of crossing are whether the adjoining fields would contain livestock and any conditions made by the original landowner (at the time of the sale of the land required for the railway). If there wasn't any livestock in the fields, the crossing would most probably be ungated with maybe a homemade "Level Crossing" sign on either side. Gates, if provided, would be made by the Colliery Company in its workshops or supplied by the landowner.

When Port Sunlight Sidings was repainted, in about 1977, it had been a green and cream colour scheme. The colour scheme for the repaint was (and I presume these were trade names), Badger and Silver Birch. These were a dark, almost black, blue and off-white. Hooton South Jcn, which had been maroon and cream was painted in 1979 and for the dark blue used a mix of a small tin of light blue (1L) and a large tin (5L) of black.

Young Mr Ankers! I used to work with him in Wirral signal boxes until he and his buddy Garnett Roberts (AKA Sid Vicious!) both went down Lunnon way around the early 1980's. Neville's surname was sometimes (often) mispronounced.......................

Future engine drivers at Porthmadog on 3/5/1997 inspect Welsh Pony.

No 1 grandson paints his first Dapol mineral wagon kit (was in his "sunday best" so protective clothing required by mum)

See, you're getting into S&T thinking already

You forgot the "interesting" smell of the disinfectant we used for mopping the floor

Here's a few views of the interior of Port Sunlight Sidings taken 27/1/1979. The block shelf, under the left hand block instrument is a push button that rang a bell in Port Sunlight booking office (1ring for up, 2 for down) to advise of trains stopping at the station. At the far end of the shelf is the signal light repeater. The wooden box in between the block instruments is the closing switch, to enable the box to close each night. Underneath (and beyond) the block shelf can be seen arm repeaters for the down starter and distant mounted on a board. the block shelf looking the other way. The shelf used to have another pair of instruments and another block switch for the (now removed) fast lines. The box at the far end is my radio! The arm repeater for the up distant can just be seen mounted on a yellow pole. A close-up of the block instruments, the indicator next to the block switch is for a track circuit on the down line. The domestic side! Behind the table is the original doorway to the box; it was moved to the other end to allow a footbridge to be built. Sink in the corner with (useless) gas water geyser above it, two lockers for the Signalmen, gas stove with kettle, gas heater that replaced the original fire, phone to Port Sunlight station above it. The train register desk, with three omnibus circuit phones and the black phone being a direct line to Lever's. In the corner is the relay and battery cupboard for the S&T equipment. There was no mains electricity in the box and the gas lighting survived until mid-1985.

Here's a rear view of Latchford (18 levers) taken 22/8/1982. (edited to correct number of levers)

Another one for your collection, though its a larger box (50 levers) Port Sunlight Sidings

Lionel Hedderik (and daughter) at Stanlow & Thornton SB 3/10/1981

Seen at the entrance to a car park in Liverpool

One from my collection that's always made me smile

While the unit is one of the refurbished units (in white with a blue band) I don't remember it having any branding for WYPTE. I would imagine it was a unit based at Allerton or Longsight.

Rooting through negatives I found this taken, the same day as the others, 21/8/1978. We'd walked from Viaduct Jcn site towards Engine Shed Jcn. I think that the line on the left was used to give access to the holding sidings, with engines coming off by the relay room in front of the signal box. The last photo of Beast's shows the area, the line to the left being marked "Rathbone Road Siding" Here is a scan of a diagram I drew from a S&T diagram dated 21/1/1976. I hope its clear enough to be of some use. (edited to change diagram image from photo to a scan)

Another view of the wagons in the sidings that were in my post 766. Taken on 6/3/1980. I nearly put it in the "human side of Railways" thread as it shows work being done to provide sentry huts for the police who would be standing guard when Prince Phillip had a night in the Royal Train when it was parked in the sidings. One of the huts can be seen behind the train in my post 766. (all those cars in the background are stored Vauxhalls, sometimes they were there for months - hope no one bought a Vauxhall in 1980!) EDIT:- date added

Early days training for the Beast (Taken at LLanddu Jcn ex Tanat Valley Light Railway Ca 1980)

As usual, when looking for photos, ones I was not looking for surfaced, while the objects of the search remained resolutely hidden! Some I did find were some more taken on my journey to Sheffield on 25/2/1979 that went over the Glazebrook to Skelton line (and also the Woodhead route). A couple showing signal boxes appeared earlier in this thread. Approaching Partington Jcn with home signal off. Nearer the box with CEGB siding signal on left. Skelton Jcn home signal with subsidiary off for the loop. Standing in the loop while the Driver changed ends for the run down to Deansgate Jcn. The signal on the right reads (top to bottom) to Warrington, to Glazebrook Jcn, to Deansgate Jcn. the colour light just in the picture on the left is the main line signal for the same routes. Signal for our train from the loop. The signal is off for Deansgate Jcn but unfortunately the route indicator is not clear in this view. The train drawing out of the loop, the signal in the right background reads only to the line down to Deansgate Jcn. The line to Glazebrook is seen climbing away, the line to Deansgate Jcn drops away to the right and the Warrington line is hidden by the train. The home signal from the Deansgate Jcn line, Skelton Jcn box is just sneaking into the photo on the right. Deansgate Jcn home signal. Annoyingly (unless you have the eyes of a rat raised in a gents toilet) the fact there is a colour light distant under the semaphore arm is lost to view in the bridge carrying the Glazebrook line behind it.

A class 47 (with experimental exhaust attachments ) approaches Norwich Thorpe photographed by me (and Beast) in 1981.

Leaving Skelton Jcn we made our way to Northenden Jcn where I took these pics. Looking from the bridge in the Stockport direction, the then fairly new waste transfer sidings are on the right. No wide angle lens so I had to photo the box in parts, couldn't get it all in in one! Looking back to Skelton Jcn with the cement terminal just visible on the left. We left here and made our way back home along the line from Skelton to Warrington, which I think might be the subject for another topic. I found this colour photo lurking on my computer today. Its of Glazebrook East Jcn and was taken on 25/2/1979 and it shows the "weathering" quite clearly.

I don't know if this helps................ 418 passing Hooton South Jn about 1972 in the direction of the station, Signalman Reg Steele looks on. They used to appear, now and then, on the Joint line until they went down to the Western, quite often on Penmaenmawr ballast trains.

After leaving Partington Jcn we went to Skelton Jcn where the was PWay work going on. When we arrived this train was waiting to come off the Warrington line. It couldn't move until 25 224 and another class 25 had taken its train away The train from the Warrington line then crossed over to the right line and I think, headed off towards Northenden Jcn. We decided to see if we could look in the box. Unfortunately, while the Signalman was willing, the AMI with him most certainly was not. I took this photo of 40 004 leaving while I was half back down the stairs. There is a footbridge over the line to Deansgate Jcn and this photo of 40 004 and its train was taken from there. Looking back to the box from the footbridge.