Postscript to North Wales Railway Holiday July/August 1963

In responding to Comments, if not done relatively quickly I imagine that few get to read them, which is a pity as both the comments and responses are often interesting and add to the original article. I guess this is the nature of the blog as successive articles are added and the readership correspondingly moves on to the new entries. With both this in mind and wishing to provide some more comprehensive replies, I have generated this postscript to my original article.

1. Geoff J   November 12, 2020 at 6:45 PM

   A wonderful story; it triggers my own memories of that time. Thank you very much for sharing this with us.

   Thank you Geoff. It was very enjoyable to write up, bringing back many happy memories. The two subsequent Vintage Trains excursions, in particular the first one, had me in awe. The North Wales line is quite a speedy section and the Earl certainly wasn't hanging about. I wish I could remember what pulled my friend and I as we sped along that same line in 1963. Also of course, on both VT trips we went via Crewe bringing back even more memories. Crewe in fact was the regular stopover and sometimes engine exchange with other VT excursions to Carlisle and Chester. 

   

   Llandudno with the Earl ready for the return to Tyesley on 24 May 2014
    
   

2. 
   Nozumi   November 12, 2020 at 11:08 PM

   In 1963 if you were 15 you would have paid adult fare on British Railways. I know this because when raised the age from 14 to 16 in 1982 and due to my age I went from being a Child fare to Adult then back to Child !

   I really am certain that my friend and I only paid half fare for the runabout tickets because I remember us both being pleasantly surprised. I think the Oswestry Station booking clerk must have simply issued the tickets thinking we were younger than we were. We were always honest about our ages whenever asked and must have known about the age limit, but just accepted what we were given and charged with grateful thanks, especially as this was when all "earnings" were saved up pocket money (as my Dad called it). Regarding the fare structure change in 1982,  although by then I was married, I didn't have children so wouldn't have known about it. That change must have been a very weird experience for you.

    
   

3. 
   Anonymous   November 14, 2020 at 10:02 AM

   Pedantic but I'm pretty sure my Brownie 127 took 12 shots to the roll.

   I was bought my Brownie 127 for a school trip to Switzerland in April 1963, so it was a natural extension to start photographing trains once I had got back. All the roll films that I bought were 8 shots and my record of all my railway photos show this. I don't think it occurred to me that you could get longer roll film and that my Brownie would have been ok with it. If this really was the case, how I wish I had known that, especially on Sunday 9th June 1964.

   I was at my friend's and as usual we were sat at the top of the embankment on the other side of his garden fence, with Cheltenham Lansdown Station just a few yards away. I was very pleased to use my 8th and final shot on 78001 with an inspection saloon - a nice little rarity with which to finish my film - in the photo notice that the up line signal is set at clear. Suddenly there was a chime whistle followed by 70001 "Lord Hurcombe" rushing by. A great cop, but oh for want of another shot! I remember groaning and burying my face in my hands, while it took my friend quite sometime to stop laughing. There was however a consolation when years later I discovered in one of my books that the well known photographer Derek Cross had been at Cloddymore Footbridge, Hatherley, and had photographed 70001 probably no more than a couple of minutes before we saw it. Even more satisfying was finding another photograph by Derek Cross of 78001 and the inspection saloon descending the Golden Valley line through Chalford (where I now live) on the same day. I imagine that Swindon had been the special's destination and it was returning from there.
   

   

   Sad to say that my last "real days" railway photos were taken on an East Midlands shed trip in August 1964. By early 1965 I had moved on to girlfriends and "O" levels, and my little Brownie 127 was never used again. Thankfully my railway interest re-emerged 5 years later.
   

    

4. 
   CDK    November 16, 2020 at 3:59 PM

   My father took me, 10, and my brother, 9, to Crewe in September 1964 and were let in to 5A and allowed to wander freely about at our leisure. We saw a dozen or so Duchess's, all withdrawn. I remember Dornoch Firth still with it's nameplates in the semi roundhouse. Duke of Gloucester in a siding in the middle of the Chester lines. We walked around to the station side of the shed where named members of the D200's came to refuel, no fence, hi vis or anyone telling us we shouldn't be there, great days.
   Only downside was that we didn't know there was a 5B at the time so missed seeing loads more, ah well. 

   Good luck everyone to do with the G&WR, always enjoyed our visits and can't wait to get back again, cheers Colin.

Thank you Colin for a very interesting comment. It must have been a remarkable, but very sad sight to have seen so many Duchesses withdrawn. Just about half the class (18) were withdrawn in September 1964, leaving just 46256 "Sir William Stanier" which was in use for railtours, but that too went a month later. The 18 included 46251 "City of Nottingham" which I was lucky to see again at Crewe North (5A) just a few months prior, in May 1964. 46251 had also been used for rail tours - in my books there are photos of it on the GCR and also at Swindon. When I visited 5A, "Duke of Gloucester" along with two other Duchesses (presumably withdrawn) were inside the shed, the Duke looking incredibly rusty.

The shed trip in May included Crewe North, South, and the Works yard - I don't recollect going inside the Works itself. My faithful little Brownie recorded a number of photos, including some Britannias in the Works yard undergoing refurbishment.

I was thrilled to see dear old 46251 again slowly moving underneath 5A's coaling tower. Based at 5A, I wonder what I would have thought had I known the engine would be withdrawn a few months later. The next time I was to see a Duchess in steam was at the Severn Valley in 2001, but somehow "Duchess of Sutherland" didn't seem to be as large as I remembered them 36 years previously.

 Also at 5A was Royal Scot 46128 "The Lovat Scouts", fully coaled up and still in service.
The engine was shedded at Springs Branch, Wigan (8F) until withdrawn a year later in May 1965.

 

My final photo at 5A was of Britannia 70030 "Williams Wordsworth". Shedded at 5A since 1963, the next month saw a transfer to Crewe South. Crewe North closed to steam in May 1965.

We then moved to the yard at Crewe Works to see a number of Britannias looking somewhat undressed to say the least.

70048 "The Territorial Army 1908-1958". At the time shedded at Aston (3D), a move to Carlisle Kingmoor (12A) was just 5 months away in October 1964. Withdrawal was in May 1967.

70049 "Solway Firth" was shedded Willesden (1A). Also due to move to Carlisle Kingmoor in October 1964, withdrawal was in December 1967.

 

Another famous poet, this time 70006 "Robert Burns", a Carlisle Kingmoor (12A) engine until withdrawn in May 1967.

Then on to Crewe South (5B) to find 45156 "Ayrshire Yeomanry", an Edge Hill (8A) Black 5. Ending up at Patricroft (9H) in May 1968 and then Rose Grove (10F), withdrawal was in August 1968 at the end of steam. Scrapping occurred 4 months later.

Finally, coming through the station a rare visitor in the form of Standard Class 2 Mogul 77001. The engine was based at Farnley Junction (55C), I only ever saw one more from this 20-strong class, 77012, however I have no record of where this had been. All the class was based either in the North East or Scotland, although in the last few years two ended up in the North West, while one ended up on the Southern Region!

I have lists of all the engines seen on several of my shed trips in 1962, 63 and 64, but unfortunately, other than the photos taken, I have lost my record of this particular day. It would have been fascinating to see again in the light of Colin's notes.

Thank you Colin for your kind compliments. Roll on when we can get back to something like normality.