B of B pacific 'Sir Winston Churchill' and the funeral train

 

The project to reunite Sir Winston Churchill's funeral train has been achieved. Staff at Locomotion; the National Railway Museum at Shildon prepared the carriage that carried his coffin for its historic journey. The newly cosmetically restored parcel van is now playing its part in the national events marking 50 years since the his state funeral.
The workshop team at the Co Durham museum moved Southern Railways goods van S2464S from the workshop where it has been undergoing comprehensive restoration work for the previous 3 months to transform it back into its 1965 condition, ready for its journey by road. On loan from the Swanage Railway, which brought it back from the US, it now takes pride of place in a display of the funeral train at the York National Railway Museum. Churchill's Final Journey (30 January -3 May) and will tell the moving story of the state funeral using archive TV news footage and a variety of personal recollections of the steam hauled funeral train.

 

 

Millions of people around the world watched the former prime minister's state funeral on January 30, 1965, in which his coffin was placed into the South Railway parcel van S2464S.

Following his death, the train carriage – which once carried basic goods such as vegetables and newspapers - ended up in Los Angeles before being brought back to the UK in 2007.

 

 

Waterloo station January 1965

 

Top four pictures by Mick Higgins bottom two

Hulton Getty images

 

Electric traction on the Sheffield Manchester route through Woodhead

How well we remember these running up from

Sheffield and through the Woodhead Tunnel to

Manchester.

 

 

Many thanks Mick Higgins

 

London Brighton and South Coast Railway No 214 'Gladstone'

Almost as if it has just arrived with the Royal

train

 

 

William Love the driver

 

Queen Victoria returns from Osborne

 

 

Frome the lens of Mick Higgins

LNER 'Mallard' the fastest of them all

Once again at the NRM York. Mallard now alone

but of course the fastest steam locomotive ever.

 

 

Once again from the lens of our roving reporter

Mick Higgins

Great Western Railways 'City of Truro'

Here at the NRM York, now retired is City of Truro.

The first locomotive to top 100mph though sadly not

an official record as it was simply timed by an

enthusiast on the train at the time. The run was down

Wellington Bank in Somerset

 

 

Picture by our roving reporter Mick Higgins.

Bradford railways Caledonia St crossing

There were very few level crossings on the railway

into and out of Bradford but one such was just south

of Lancashire and Yorkshire Exchange station. most

line leaving Bradford to the south went through

tunnels under the area of Bradford called Broomfields.

As the line climbs to the south it comes level with

the surrounding district and a level crossing was

situated at Caledonia St.

 

 

 

Below a map of old Bradford showing the Caledonia

St crossing. The line has come south out of Exchange

station. Adolphus St Station can also be seen which

was the original Lancashire and Yorkshire station

for Bradford.

 

 

Bolton Abbey Station then and now, past and present. Yorkshire Dales Railway

This view of Bolton Abbey Station in the 1920's

 

 

Here once again in the early part of the 20th century

 

Here in decline in the 1960's. The line had been

closed and the track lifted

 

Reborn. Bolton Abbey station now.  

 

 

Completely rebuilt

 

Bolton Abbey station now reminds us of those

days past

 

It certainly takes me on a trip back in time

 

The food and the tea/coffee is great too

 

Very well done to all concerned in the resurgence

of the Embsay Bolton Abbey Railway