Prototype Bristol Area 1970s and 80s

[Devonbelle]

Ian G asked about a Bristol area freight thread - Ive gone wider than that (because I don't have oodles of freight working photos), so have pass and GW150 workings and more……Most 1980s shots by self, or late father John Stanford in the case of the Sentinel loco and Peckett saddle tank.

In the case of the 1970s material - the shots were taken by father.

Wapping Wharf Branch (Coal traffic ceased May 1987). In October 1981 the Hudswell Clark diesel shunter which worked between Wapping Wharf and Ashton Jn, shuttling coal wagons broke down, so Western Fuel Co. hired from the adjacent industrial museum Peckett saddle tank Henbury for three weeks to work the daily coal train. At the time there had been a bank slip on the branch so trains only ran when the tide was high (high water holding up the bank). I bunked off school to see the working, throwing a sickie - well worth it!


Port of Bristol Avonmouth Docks 1973 0-6-0 Sentinel diesel loco (replete with City of Bristol Crest) running light engine on the quayside - system closed 1983.

Bristol Temple Meads 2 June 1985 - 46443 en route to Wapping Wharf on load 3, GW150 special



Temple Meads Looking to Bath Road Depot (Closed 1995) - Clun Castle between GW150 workings - July 1985.

Avonmouth St Andrews Rd - January 1985 - looking toward Avonmouth Town. Left hand side Fisons sidings - now the site of Bristol Bulk Handling Terminal opened 1993.

Sea Mills - June 1986. Large logo class 47 on a Monkey Special - Clifton Dn to Llanelli with school children having visited Bristol Zoo - train travelled round t Hallen Marsh Jn, through Henbury then turned left beyond Filton North Platform on the 1974 opened chord to Patchway (for some reason unknown, known as the Ho Chi Minh Trail)


St Andrews Rd Station looking towards Hallen Marsh Jn Signal Box (area resignalled January 1988). Behind fixed distant signal and Avonmouth Tn Goods starting signal is Royal Edward Yard, bereft of traffic from 1983 - later relaid in the 1990s to become Bennetts Rail Coal Terminal


Avonmouth - Imperial Smelting Corporation - Sentinel loco number 6 - January 1985. Loco hauling 3 empty VDA vans for loading with ingots. Rail traffic finally finished 2003 - locos 6 and 7 (both 4 wheel chain drive Sentinels were there until the end of rail traffic) The ISC joined the national network at Hallen Marsh Junction.



Avonmouth St Andrews Rd - 47284 running light engine to ICI Severnside (rail traffic ceased 1991).


Avonmouth Dock Junction Signal Box - under the M5 bridge - signal box closed 1988 - Janaury. DMU heading toward BTM. At the time I had a former school friend who was a signalman and I used to go and work the box on Saturday mornings, as I was preparing for sitting my Safe Working of Trains Exam (I passed!)





December 1986 - about 0640 - showing a Peak on a rail tour from BTM, running via Hallen Marsh Jn, with the Bubble Car on the first returning train of the day back from Severn Beach.

 

[Devonbelle]

A few more Bristol Area shots -

2 June 1985 - Ivatt on the Wapping Wharf specials and a Bristol Padd HST in platform 5.


Earlier the same day (o2-06-85) Im coming into work at Bristol ™ on a Met Cam DMU and pass 46443 going to Wapping - behind the loco is fuel oil tanks for St. Phillips Marsh and some EnParts vans (VDA box vans).


Ivatt 46443 on 29-9-85 on the very last Portishead Branch special - going flat out - such were ticket sales the last days trains saw a whopping 8 coaches. Minutes earlier, I heard the train depart Ashton Jn after dropping off the token and the signalman had put a get down a detonator for every year the line had been open - 118 detonators if I recall correctly! A cacophony of noise and smoke.


June 1986 - ICI Severnside - bogie tank wagons at the unloading racks. Just discernible is YEC 0-6-0 diesel shunter - 1 of two on the site.


June 1988 - BTM with a class 47 departing on a cross country service and a new fangled class 155 2 car unit which had displaced class 33s and mark 1s a month earlier (


October 1985 - 45150 on the return working of a charter from Scarborough/York run by the Avon Valley Railway.


Early morning at Imperial Smelting Avonmouth - with Sentinel loco number 6 - directly ahead is the Fisons works (now demolished) which had a connection off the ISC network and had an English Electric 0-4-0 shunter.


Avonmouth Dock Jn Box - December 1986 with Richard the signalman - it had 13 working levers at the time.

July 1985 at Pylle Hill with the Ivatt on a Portishead special with parcel vans stabled behind and the Temple Meads middle distance. The view is impossible in 2014 owing to tree growth.

 

[SteadyRed]

Good stuff, sad to see so many closed dates.

Who would have thought that depots such as Bath Road would have such short lives?

Thanks for posting these.

Dave

 

[Steph Dale]

Lovely stuff. As a resident of Bristol I always enjoy seeing photos of the railways around this area, especially if taken before I started living here (in 2003)
Steph

 

[oldravendale]

Really interesting pictures. Great to see photos of some of the lesser known lines and locos too.

Brian

 

[Devonbelle]

Some more scanning this evening -


7th July 1985 and the DMU - specially repainted at March Jn for GWR150 heads off to Portishead - the DMU special sold very poorly - such that the full programme envisaged never ran. BR took over the ticket sales from July 85 and some ace loadings were seen on Portishead steam specials that year.


Saturday 3rd January 1987 and 33062 gets underway from Nailsea on a Taunton Bristol train


Same loco later that morning - approaching Nailsea on a Bristol Taunton service.


7th July 1986 - Sir Daniel Gooch goes onto Bath Rd to join an 08, 37 and 33.
2nd October 1986 - 33204 comes onto Bath Road

3 January 1985 Imperial Smelting Avonmouth. Sentinel Loco No.6 hauling a VDA van - used to carry ingots from the works.

 

[Devonbelle]

With the shot of the Sentinel loco at Imperial Smelting, I should have pointed out the vac braked HTV hoppers, these used to come to Hallen Marsh (for the smelter) on a MWFO service ex Margam (with coke from Port Talbot). In the 80s this was class 37 hauled, however end of Jan 1988 saw trials with air braked hoppers, HEA and HAA types were trialled, shortly thereafter became the norm until the traffic ceased a few years later.

 

[Devonbelle]

So a few more this evening, really winding back in time, my father took this shots in the 70s.


30th January 1972 - the last day that Yatton signal box was open before takeover by Bristol Panel Box. Note that the last remnants of the Clevedon Bay line are in, but not the branch itself - having gone a couple of years before. I recollect the remnants of the bay - which was served off the Up Goods loop. Note the dumped wagons - If I recall correctly there had been a derailment around Flax Bourton and the wagons came to Yatton and were dumped.


Summer 1971 and Peak D61 hauls 4588 in light steam to Totnes through Yatton. To the left of the children is a raised disc signal governing moves out of the bay platform.
4th December 1971 and the last day that Nailsea and Backwell signal box was open, with a DMU coming along the up line - supervised by my brother - whilst I lurk in the shelter demolished in the mid 1980s.

Rather than start a south Somerset thread, Ive popped this one in (and it was on the Bristol Division). Its Castle Cary on 17th May 1969. with a Hymek on grampus wagons with a Cross Country DMU on a Great Western Society rail tour - which had covered Radstock and Bason Bridge which my Dad undertook.

 

[Devonbelle]

Last one tonight - 11th June 1969 at 11.35 hours to be precise - a two tone green hymek on weedkiller passes through Yatton (folk have said its 7082 - two green, full yellow panels). To note is the Clevedon batch is still intact - latterly used to train on track machine operators - witness first generation tamper on the curve. To the left is the void left by the Cheddar Valley line closed 1963. A large copy of this picture hangs in the Strawberry Line Cafe at Yatton station - a gift to the cafe from my family in memory of my folks - the cafe does excellent food incidentally and decent cup of (proper) tea.

 

[Devonbelle]

A couple tonight - again hydraulics. Taken nearly 37 years to the day (heck that makes me feel old!) as the last non preserved Westerns came through Yatton in February 1977. I still remember the buzz at hearing them in the distance, then delight as 1013 and 1023 whizzed through; then Dad and I walked back up the platform at Yatton, and two more came through - as back-up to the farewell train. I can't remember their numbers now -


Then a block signal section behind -

 

[Phill Dyson]

Great photo's, my favourite is the Hymek on the weed killing train

.............then Dad and I walked back up the platform at Yatton, and two more came through - as back-up to the farewell train. I can't remember their numbers now -

The back up loco's were D1048 Western Lady & D1010 Western Campaigner


Phill

 

[Devonbelle]

Two tonight on the Bristol Division

First up the 0-6-0 Hudswell Clarke 'Western pride' which used to work between Wapping Wharf and Ashton Junction until end of May 1987 when Wapping Wharf coal traffic ceased. The loco was ex Port of bristol Authority - who used to have a fleet of Hudswells, which were later joined by the Sentinel 0-6-0 s. The Hudswell is privately preserved and presently resides at Long Marston. I had a day off from work in Temple Meads booking office on 5th July 1985 and went and photographed workings, which featured house coal in HEA hopper wagons - which used to come over on a Severn Tunnel Jn to Ashton Jn weekdays working - which was often hauled by a Peak.

Then finally a shot from father 19-4-69 - Worcester Depot open day, featuring 7808 Cookham Manor, up from Dowty RPS site at Ashchurch, multiple D63s, a Warship, Peak, Western and some interfrigo wagons - note at the back a brace of 03 diesel shunters.

 

[Devonbelle]

So some more scanning - 70s and 80s shots in and around Bristol -



Yatton - taken same morning as the shot of the Hymek on the weedkiller. Class 47 on a Weston Padd - according to fathers notes. So to note is the Clevedon branch still in situ - connection came out in 1971. Some van fits are in the Clevedon bay - I recollect father telling me painters were using them to stand on - to paint the canopy!! The signal box had just over 2 1/2 years to go before it closed 30 Jan 1972. Also in shot is the Yatton gasometer - one of those things which disappeared quietly in the 1980s.



Summer 1971 at Yatton D61 hauls 4588 in light steam - I can still remember this - I was 4! I can't recollect whether the 45xx had been overhauled at Swindon for the DVLR or Bath Rd open day.



A final going away shot - so Yatton SB open, for its last 7 months. The Clevedon Bay still rail served by only with a connection off the up goods - note up main relaid and trailing connection revived (in foreground). There are some wagons in the sidings behind the box. Signal B68 Junction indicator visible above the 45xx - not into use until 30-1-72

 

[Devonbelle]

Imperial Smelting Avonmouth 3rd Jan 1985. The crews on the Sentinel locos were always friendly and they kindly gave me many cab rides on either Sentinel number 6 or 7 unto Hallen Marsh Jn - see youtube under Stanthesteam for the last cab ride I did there in summer 1998.

Rgds Paul

 

[Dog Star]

Taken nearly 37 years to the day... ...as the last non preserved Westerns came through Yatton in February 1977. I still remember the buzz at hearing them in the distance, then delight as 1013 and 1023 whizzed through; then Dad and I walked back up the platform at Yatton, and two more came through - as back-up to the farewell train.

Like you I can still remember the shiver in the neck as the two engines on the service train screamed their way between Pangbourne and Cholsey.... and the really cold weather as I stood in a field to watch the passing of an era. Peter thinks I was mad doing that and yet he is the one who decided that we needed a model of these superb engines.

thanks for the memory, Graham

 

[Devonbelle]

Father took these shots October 1981 at Bristols Wapping Wharf - nothing unusual about Peckett Henbury on the wharf until its clear that its working in everyday industrial service - it worked for 3 weeks hauling coal trains to the wharf from Ashton Jn, after the firms Hudswell Clarke diesel broke down - see my shot taken July 1985 earlier in the thread. Last BR train to the Wharf was September 1990 - I planned the train - an 08 went to the wharf with some Ganes and collected a load of rails, the working also took a bogie Weltrol to the industrial museum. I went to see the working and recollect our relief signalman who came to clip points had a spat with gypsies encamped on our lines - in the yard. He warned them that he'd instruct the 08 to plough into their homes unless they moved - they moved sharpish!! Paul

 

[Steph Dale]

Paul,
Absolutely fascinating shots around Wapping Wharf, I'd love to see more if you've got them. It'd make a fascinating little layout, just a shame no one seems to make kits of the Peckett FA, Avonside 0-6-0st or Hudswell Clarke 300hp diesel. The Sentinels in their smart royal blue livery would be less of a problem!
Steph

 

[Pugsley]

Paul,
just a shame no one seems to make kits of the Peckett FA,

Such a sweet loco

 

[West Junction]

Paul

4588 at Buckfastleigh after delivery, summer 1971







Peter

 

[Pugsley]

Wow, Buckfastleigh has certainly changed massively since those pictures were taken!