West Somerset Railway General Discussion

The WSRA website says 5 o'clock on "blue timetable" days, Tony.

Steve

 

West Somerset Railway - Then and Now #78

Williton 1952 / 2017

Back to the time when the A39 road bridge deck was replaced. Here we are looking east across the crossing.

A couple of things strike me. Firstly that the telegraph pole survives, approaching 50 years since the wires came down. Secondly, in the 'now' shot the green 'palisade' fencing on the left is the corner of builder's merchants, Travis Perkins' yard, which has clearly absorbed some Railway land.

Copyright NRM / Robin White

1952


2017

 

The crossbars were even wonky then!

 

Wheres the Traction Engine gone??

 

I'll think you'll find it's a working Somerset County Council steam roller with water bowser at the back (probably sheeted over for the weekend), working on the adjacent road works. Very common sight in the fifties.

 

I last visited the WSR about this time last year . I saw outside Minehead Shed 7828 Odney Manor minus it's cab . I did find out then what the problem was and dismissed it as I considered it to be a minor spot of maintenance that was required . I don't think I've seen her running since so gather it might be a bit more serious . I did see her return to service after a heavy overhaul roundabout 2013 or thereabouts so not scheduled for more heavy work . Could anyone from the MPD help me out please .

Paul . K

 

I'm not from the loco department, but I think I can explain.

A steam loco has inner and outer fireboxes. They are held apart by copper stays, thick copper rods threaded at both ends and screwed into the fireboxes. The space between the fireboxes forms the 'water space' where boiler water picks up the heat from the fire. So this is a challenging environment.

To cope, the copper stays must be made from a precise metallurgic formulation. In particular, the level of certain impurities must be low. Unfortunately, some time ago, a batch of copper came to the western world from China, apparently certified to be of the right formulation but it was not, in that it had high levels of impurities. Thus batch was used for Odney's stays.

In use, it has meant that they have wasted away much faster than would have been expected. And will continue to do so unless replaced.

They are now being replaced.

Who is financially responsible for this situation is the subject of 'debate' between a number of loco owning groups, locomotive works contractors and material suppliers. Or, more accurately, their insurers.

How else, dearly beloved, would a lawyer like me come to understand so much about copper firebox stays....

Robin

 

West Somerset Railway - Then and Now #79

Williton 1939 / 2017

Yesterday's photo pair showed that a good slice of what used to be the station yard has now been absorbed into Travis Perkins' builders merchants, so a shot from precisely the same position as the 1939 photographer stood would capture only the inside of green metallic fencing. But the buildings serve as excellent reference points.

This is a lovely shot of an unlovely time. That moment when, in the first week of WW2 well prepared plans evacuated a sizeable part of London's population to the provinces. These Londoners are about to spend their first night in unfamiliar rural accommodations. Most would soon drift back to London as nothing much happened for months in the so-called 'phoney war'.

That so little has changed shows how, with only a little leap of the imagination, it can be the 50's, 30's or even 1900's on a heritage railway.

It also illustrates why the unthinking introduction of, for example, modern signage or methods of working is a retrograde step, and the need to respect, preserve and enhance heritage must be at the forefront of what we do. Some of those in the rarified atmosphere atop ivory towers In the upper echelons of the WSR tree appear to have forgotten those things recently.

They must be reminded.

(Robin White. Member of WSR Heritage Committee which has never met since its creation several years ago, and has, it is rumoured, been dissolved without informing those who volunteered to serve on it.)

1939


2017

 

Ouch! Lovely pair of photos. They lightened my insomnia.

 

Many thanks Robin for that explanation , and you say " locos don't interest you " ha , a lawyer like you !!! So has this been one of the reasons the WSR has been short of " steamers " ? From what I understand Odney has been a fine performer on the WSR and IMHO another reason for the exhibit in Swindon to be returned to Somerset . I'm afraid my pockets aren't deep enough . I know Prairies are more typical of the WSR but the smaller tender engines do suit the WSR now with the heavier trains and extra water capacity .

Robin , you mentioned in a post a little while back about the hindrance at Williton of a down train taking water but blocking the passage of the up train , only really understood it once you showed the before and after pictures , I do enjoy them . Of course I've seen some of the photographs in Ian Colbey's fine book but not all .

Once again thank you for a prompt and full description of Odney's woes , hopefully this time I'll retain this information .

Paul . K

 

A slight niggle but knowing how keen lawyers are on the accurate use of language I suggest that "They are held apart by copper stays" should in fact read "They are held together by copper stays". If they were not there the pressure in the boiler would push the firebox side sheets apart.

 

I've always been curious about how people were selected for evacuation.

My mother spent the entire war in London - her school and surrounding houses were bombed, but she and her siblings were never evacuated despite the obvious risk.

My father spent the beginning of the war in Brighton, right on the south coast, including through the entire Battle of Britain, the Blitz and the period of the "tip and run" raids. Then when everything quietened down he was evacuated to Yorkshire for some months in 1943, before coming back home to the south of England during the mass build up for D-Day.

It's hard to see what logical process was being followed in either case!

Tom

 

I think the 'problem' here is that you are expecting decisions made by governments to be logical.

 

I suspect that the situation developed and changed so fast that it would have been hard for those responsible for planning to keep up. by the time they had executed a plan the tactical situation that necessitated that plan would have moved on.

 

This map may be of interest! http://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/spy/index.cfm#zoom=19&lat=51.1657&lon=-3.3095&layers=168&b=2

 

Tom, I recall an account of someone being Evacuated from somewhere in Birmingham to six or seven miles up the road to Dudley! Just down the road from Dudley is the village of Kinver, parts of which were used to store munitions underground in WW2, again this was used for evacuees, all it would have taken was one stray bomb from the Luftwaffe... Kinver would be past tense now!

 

Kinvered...

 

The sandstone caves are famous in that area and have been used over the centuries for varying reasons. Troglodytes once used them.

 

Quite possibly. What I find interesting is that there is a kind of folk tale about this mass process called evacuation, but I wonder if it was actually rather more spasmodic? I'm interested particularly since my daughter is doing the usual primary school history stuff about the war and evacuations at the moment: unlike most of her class she has living close relatives who were children during the war, but neither of them can be said to have had a very normal evacuation experience, at least not according to the textbooks!

Tom

 

Some of the cave homes are still there, preserved by the National Trust.