John Aldous, former Grantham cleaner and fireman, recently sent us some more memories of his time on the footplate which we're sharing in a new page here. It's a pleasing complement to our popular series exploring the Woolsthorpe and High Dyke branches, Railways Rediscovered, because John spent many hours on ironstone trains, both up the High Dyke Branch, bringing the heavy mineral out from the quarries there, and on the main line delivering it to the steelworks.
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More Railways Rediscovered
The High Dyke Branch Rediscovered - Part 2
Our Railways Rediscovered series has proved to be very popular. First we explored the old Woolsthorpe Branch, from Belvoir Junction near Muston to Denton and Harlaxton, and then we followed up with the first 3 miles of the former High Dyke Branch.
As our contribution to setting 2019 off to a healthy start we're redoubling our efforts to help Tracks through Grantham readers burn off excess calories after the Christmas and New Year season. If you'd like to get out and about, stretch your legs, and fill your lungs with fresh air why not take yourself out into the countryside and rediscover the next part of the old High Dyke Branch? Or you can enjoy the journey from the comfort of your home.
The High Dyke Branch Rediscovered - Part 2 begins here.
Film clips from happy summer days
Chris Kidd has recently been in touch to share some short clips of film made by his father at the lineside south of Grantham in the early 1960s. In this chilly winter season we could all do with a taste of summer.
John Clayson
A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to All
Above: Empty ironstone wagons are taken up the High Dyke branch by Class O2 No. 63932 of Grantham shed in an early 1960s winter scene. The location is bridge No. 1, about a quarter of a mile from Highdyke, where the branch ascends a 1 in 40 gradient.
Photograph taken by Colin Walker; used with the kind permission of Martin Walker.
Mel and John at Tracks through Grantham would like to say ‘thank you’ to our contributors, readers, supporters and friends.
Your help and encouragement throughout 2018 has continued to strengthen the enthusiasm we share for this project.
In 2019 we hope to discover, record and present even more interesting information and stories about the railway people and places of the Grantham area.
We hope you all have a Merry Christmas and send our Best Wishes for a Happy New Year.
Driver Billy Bell
Alan Bell has recently been in touch with memories of his father's time on the footplate at Grantham, and some insights into what it was like to grow up in the 1940s and '50s when activity at the Loco and the station could be viewed from your family's allotment.
Continuing to remember The Fallen…
During the past 4 years many moving ceremonies and events have taken place in commemoration of those who served their country on land, at sea and in the air during The Great War, 1914-1918.
On the day before our most recent Tracks through Grantham get-together in mid-October I called in at Grantham Library, as I often do when in the town, to look at the railway items in the Local Studies collection. A document caught my eye, a 'Roll of Honour' from 1914-18 which lists eleven GNR railwaymen who did not return to their families, their homes, and their jobs and workmates on the railway. Perhaps this modest document was once framed and displayed at Grantham Station? In time, maybe, it was put away in a cupboard there until someone thoughtfully decided that it should be preserved for us to study at the library.
As I was about to slide the document back into its folder I felt that it would not be right for these men's names to disappear once more into the darkness. Surely they deserve to be seen, and not only in Grantham but around the world in recognition of the bravery shown all those years ago? So I began to write out the information with the intention of creating a new page on our website.
The men are represented in the Roll by their initials and surnames, regiment, rank and their grade while on the railway. This seemed quite formal, so last week I decided to try to research their Christian names by looking online at reports in The Grantham Journal of the time. The reports usually indicated their age, so I created a new column for that too.
It has been very moving to read a few paragraphs about each of the eleven men in the editions of the newspaper. Often there are words of tribute quoted from a letter received by the family from an officer who, for all he knew, may have been destined to become a casualty himself soon after laying down his pen. In fact we learn that, following an act of conspicuous gallantry at the Battle of Cambrai, in which one of the Grantham railwaymen died, his Commanding Officer was himself killed before he was able to write to the man's family. A 2nd Lieutenant who wrote in his place died a year later, in November 1918.
We will remember them.
John Clayson
Hougham Station on Film
A TALE OF TWO VILLAGES, 1950-55
Here is a link to a short clip of film, part of which features Hougham station with J5 No. 65498 shunting in the yard and a V2 passing through on an express.
Does anyone recognise the signalman?
John
An Iron Ore Train Runaway – Australian Style
At our Tracks through Grantham project get-together in October we heard about a runaway ironstone train that was in collision at Barkston Junction in 1946. We also spent some time exploring the High Dyke Branch, enjoying stories of life 'Up the Branch', and hearing about the precautions taken to work the heavy ironstone trains safely on that switchback route, known as 'the Alps'. There was the occasional runaway on the branch, more often than not safely managed by the High Dyke signalmen, though one or two runaways ended in a pileup.
I was therefore interested to see some recent news from 'down under'. The Australians have staged he world's most spectacular iron ore train wreck, 1.5 km of piled up locomotives, wagons and iron ore and ripped up track - though, fortunately, without casualties. It took place on 5th November on their equivalent of the High Dyke Branch - only, being Oz, this iron ore line is 180 miles long, not 5¾!
Follow the links here and herefor more.
Apparently it's affected the price of iron ore on the global market because the line will be out of action for a week or so.
John Clayson
Forthcoming Book: Grantham – A Lincolnshire Railway Centre
The Lincolnshire Wolds Railway Society is about to launch a publication which may be of interest to many regular readers of Tracks Through Grantham. Due out later this month, it can be ordered from the LWRS here.
Parcels, Mail and Papers
In our newest page Kevin Roche describes a feature of railway activity which has disappeared from our passenger stations and all but vanished from the railway itself - the routine handling of mail, parcels and newspapers.
Using the Summer 1961 Working Timetable Kevin has compiled a list of parcels trains which stopped at Grantham, or passed through, daily. Information from other sources, along with photographs taken in the 1960s, illustrate this important traffic which brought main line junction stations such as Grantham alive with activity at certain times of day as staff prepared for the arrival or departure of certain services.
Today on our stations in Britain there are no porters or post office staff to be seen heaving wooden barrows and trolleys along platforms, or up and down ramps, or into and out of goods lifts. No bulging grey bags with their necks tied and sealed. No strangely shaped packages with labels stuck or tied on. These days there are no open trolleys, chained to station columns or other fixtures for safety and available for passengers, railway staff and spotters alike to use as as convenient seats. Occupying a trolley was somehow much more satisfying than sitting on a station bench. The Swindon Works-built BRUTE (British Rail Universal Trolley Equipment) trolleys that began to replace the ancient wooden ones in the 1960s were caged and faced with cold, hard steel; a waste of space for any purpose other than their designed use.
Read all about Parcels, Mail and Newspaper Trains: Summer 1961 here.