Ted sent this to me today:

Hello Stanley,

Will you please be good enough to post the attached photograph of M.R. Sleeping car No.21 which I understand was retrieved from Skipton and was the one which was formerly located between No.1 Bay Platform and the Black Walk. I refer to it in the next installment which I hope to put on this afternoon. The photograph was taken in 1994 at the Midland Railway Trust, Butterley where it was awaiting restoration. I'm the lad stood alongside. Thankfully, in the forty odd years between when I last saw it at Skipton and seeing it at Butterley, I seem to have weathered rather better. So far I have been unable to find out what has happened to it in the last 12 years.

Best wishes,

Ted

Cheeky! but you've certainly improved the pic Stanley, I spent nearly an hour trying to make it viewable but without success - you do it in 5 minutes (no doubt even less)!

To continue:-

SKIPTON; The Bradford and Leeds Railway opened through to Skipton on 8th September 1847 ( extended to Colne 2.10.48) and the Little North Western completed their Skipton to Lancaster line on 1st June 1850. Initially the Skipton Station was located at 26MP from Leeds off Craven Street adjacent to other facilities like the Goods Yard and Loco. The anticipated increase in traffic from the opening of the Settle-Carlisle resulted in the building of a new passenger station just over 200 yards north of the original. This was brought into use on 30th April 1876 and, also around that time, new marshalling yards and a replacement Loco Shed were opened north of the new station. The old station buildings were not demolished until 1969 and housed the District Control Office until its closure at the end of the 1939/45 War. After I returned from the RN the former Control Offices were occupied by Mr. JE (Teddy) Weatherhogg (retained as outbased Assistant Chief Controller from Leeds DOS Control), the District Inspectors and Skipton Yardmaster, other accommodation being in use by the Engineer. At that time the Goods Guards were still located at the Loco Shed under the Motive Power Superintendent.

Hot axle boxes on freight trains were a common occurrence, as many grease axle boxes were still in use and roller bearing boxes were a thing of the future. All freight trains from Carlisle, except  Fully Fitted No.1 not requiring to call, had to stop at Skipton for examination. Maximum distances which freight trains could run between examination were FF NO.1, 160 miles; FF No.2 and Maltese X (at least four fitted vehicles connected to loco); 125 miles; and remainder 85 miles. The first `Midland' sleeping car, No.21, located south of No.1 Bay up against the `Black Walk' acted as the Carriage and Wagon Department Office, Stores and Messroom. When I used to visit this structure whilst at Skipton i was unaaware of its illustrious past. I met up with it again, much the worse for wear,  when visiting the Midland railway Trust at Butterley where, in late 1994, it reclined in glorious splendour awaiting restoration (and how!).

GRASSINGTON; originally the `Yorkshire Dales Railway', which was authorised on 6th August 1897 from Skipton to Grassington and opened on 29th July 1902. The single line left the Skipton-Ilkley line at Embsay Junction for a distance of 5m.352ch. from there to Rylstone Station, and a further 3m484ch. to Grassington Station.   From the outset it was worked by the Midland Railway but retained its independence until the grouping in 1923. What passenger traffic there had been declined to such an extent that regular services were withdrawn on 22nd September 1930. The first passenger train for ten years ran in the form of a day excursion from Bradford on Easter Monday, 18th April 1949, hauled by Class 4F No. 4059. This was the forerunner of many bank holiday specials, sometimes as many as four in one day, from places as diverse as Huddersfield and Manchester. Given reasonably good weather these were well patronised and, so far as I am aware, continued to run until the good Doctor came on the scene.

The single line was worked under the Electric Token Block signalling system and, exceptionally, freight trains and engines were authorised to return to Embsay Junction from Swinden Sidings. At Grassington the electric token instrument was provided in the Office on the one and only platform, the signal box being 100 yards of so away at the entrance to the yard. After the one clerk was withdrawn in 1949 the staff consisted of Station Master/Goods Agent and Porter Signalman. The latter being Harry Harrison who was also a bookmaker in the village. Harry was quite capable of doing any of the numerous jobs he was called upon to perform and did a lot of clerical work in the course of a normal working day. This was often `par for the course' in those days when quite a few signalmen/porters such as Fred Scott at Bolton Abbey and Roland Hodgson at Gargrave, many with copper plate handwriting, kept their station's books with excellence and pride.

Parcels and feight sundries traffic for Grassington and surrounding villages were delivered by goods road vehicle from Skipton. This called each day at Grassington Station and was, for me, a handy means of returning home at close of play. Alternatively I could travel in the guard's brakevan on the `pick up' dropping off as the train slowed to surrender the token at Embsay Junction. Unfortunately there was no alternative to using the bus on the outward journey.

Len Huff, the SM/GA, was an active member of the Upper Wharfedale Fell/Cave Rescue and their equipment was kept in a railway van body located in the station approach. A housing development now covers the former yard and station area and in a visit, an absence of over fifty years made it difficult to recall the situation of the actual layout other than its location between the extant Station House and the Wilson Arms. 

Grassington has happy memories for me, not least that our daughter was born on 15th June 1949 whilst I was working there. Whenevre i went there I always had the feeling of going home which, I have since found, may have been due to my ancestors having sojourned in the village for the past three centuries.        

To Continue:-

EMBSAY; The first station out of Skipton on the Ilkley line which had opened on the 1st October 1888, the ilkley to Bolton Abbey section having been brought into use on 16th May of that year. Limestone traffic was forwarded from Hawbank Quarry and the SM/GA was also in charge of Bolton Abbey.

BOLTON ABBEY; Although a good mile from the Priory and its associated recreational area, the station was fairly well patronised by visitors thereto having regard to the paucity of the normal services from and to Leeds and Bradford. As with Grassington, special trains were run to Bolton Abbey at bank holiday weekends, The Royal Train was stabled here overnight occasionally which entailed the usual security arrangements and delivery of documents and newspapers each morning.

ADDINGHAM; Given the large village, the user was very low except for the odd excursion. This was no doubt again due to the paucity of the service and the frequency and regularity of the bus service plying through the village. Freight and parcels traffic were also nothing to write home about and this was a station waiting for Doctor Beeching. During my time there `mine host' at the `Sailor's Arms' in the village was Eddie Paynter the former Lancashire and England left hand batsman. Eddie would undoubtably played more for England had he not had to play second fiddle to that great Yorkshire batsman Maurice Leyland. Unlike today selectors in those days seemed to dislike more than one left handed bat in the team.

BEN RHYDDING; serving the residential side of Ilkley, with an excellent commuting service to Leeds and Bradford, ensured good bookings from this station. Local staff could still recall the comedian Albert Modley, and his brother said to be equally funny, working there and at Ilkley as porters. Their alleged harmless pranks, varied from tying adjoining compartment doors together with string, to wheeling empty barrows about upside down.They were also said to have been exponents of the renowned method of clearing platelayers out of their cabins by placing a sod of earth on top of the stove pipe. The Station signal box was opened two hours for morning and evening peaks to shorten the block between Ilkley and Burley Junction.

MENSTON; There was a half mile long branch to the County Asylum, opened 1883 to 1951, mainly used for conveyance of stores and fuel. Bill Bowes, the former Yorkshire and    England fast bowler, resided here and I recall some considerable time spent in endeavouring to locate his luggage on his return from the 1950/51 Australian Tour, which he had been covering as cricket correspondent for either the Yorkshire Evening Post or the Telegraph and Argus. I instituted my first emergency single line working here between Menston Junction and Milnerwood Junction due to a broken rail, for one train, the 1/10pm Bradford - Harrogate.

GUISELEY; Scene of much activity from `Silver Cross' prams with passenger train forwardings of two or three `coaching' vans daily.

Apart from a small value as a diversionary route for the main line, there was little non originating `through' traffic over the Ilkley Line. A three times out and home working Starbeck- Rose Grove during the war had got down to one a day by 1950. After I left Skipton in 1951 there was a tanker service between Teeside and Heysham using this route. The Sunderland - Blackpool SO service in 1947, I mentioned earlier in this document, was later replaced with a Saltburn - Blackpool. I also worked at these other stations in the district, Methley (i/c Altofts and Whitwood), Woodlesford (the only station I ever felt out of my depth when having to charge ale and porter), Newlay and Horsforth, Calverley and Rodley, Apperley Bridge and Rawdon, Baildon, Steeton and Silsden, Earby (i/c Thornton in Craven and Elslack) and Caton (i/c Hornby). 

In late 1949 I was fortunate enough to be selected to attend a Station Master's Course at the School of Transport at Derby. This was a six weeks course covering all aspects of the work of a Station Master/ Goods Agent. Two other six weeks courses were also being run, one for Controllers and one for Enquiry Clerks, and there was also a thirteen weeks general course underway for Traffic Apprentices. I found the course most hel[pful for someone like myself  coming from the clerical grades. In addition to practical projects `on the ground' (we went to Ashbourne) we were able to `polish' our block signalling on the model railway layout at the School. Many an enoyable evening was spent working Balham Junction, Osmaston No.1 and No.2 block posts. During my time there Richard Dimbleby visited the School with the BBC programme and, in spite of my strong Yorkshire accent, I was chosen as `first reserve'. The first choice was a lad from Liverpool called Taylor, and he proceeded to take part in the interview, so my services were not required. Mr. Taylor was appointed as SM/GA at Desford whilst at the School. This post was one of many being advertised at that time where the Station House was stated to have cesspool drainage and water by churn. Unfortunately?, my beloved always refused fo `allow' me to apply for positions with such salubrious conditions.

To be continued.   

To continue-

As was to be expected there were a few characters among the SMs in the District. One, who was convinced that he was the victim of more than his fair share of luck, went into a newly arrived horsebox accompanied by the consignee  to find that the horse was dead. The SM returned to the Booking Office, threw his SM's hat on the floor, and started to jump on it, at the same time wailing `It always happens to me'. Another had a parcels train derailed outside his station house, but allegedly could not be woken up until after the vehicles had been rerailed, although a steam crane was operating right under his bedroom window. Two, who alleged they had been unable to obtain replies to communications to District Offices, started refusing to answer letters from those points or to complete various laid down returns. Needless to say they both ended up losing their jobs. A few paid clerks from nearby larger stations to complete their monthly account current returns.

During 1949 the Railway Executive took the decision that flat bottom rails should be adopted as standard. These were 109lb per yard compared with the bullhead 95lb which they replaced. With baseplate 40lb and chairs 46lb each, the Railway Magazine reported that the weight of metal in a mile would be 257 tons compared with the existing 248 tons for bullhead. It was announced that the flat bottom rails would be rolled in 60ft lengths and could be welded into lengths of 180ft to 300ft.

Another momentous decision, to adjust regional boundaries, was announced in a pamphlet `A  Step Forward' and brought into operation on 2nd April 1950. Although the adjustments were brought in with continued operation by the original regions for traffic working and motive power purposes of certain `penetrating lines' the alterations were to affect my scope for promotion. The former LMSR lines east of Diggle, Eastwood and Skipton were transferred to the North Eastern Region. As staff below the grade of Special Category A were only allowed to apply for vacancies in their own region (in my case LM) this meant that I could not apply for three quarters of the positions which I covered for relief. My attentions had therefore to be directed further afield. After a few unsuccessful applications, I was eventually appointed to the post of Station Master/ Goods Agent Class 4 at Milnrow at the salary of £365 per annum with allocation date of 24th May 1951. The allocation date was relevant for seniority purposes and I was actually transferred on 9th July 1951.

This completes the part of my memoirs covering my time at Skipton published under the title of `Once a Midland Man, Always a Midland Man ' published in LMS Journals Nos. 10 and 11 (pt). My next post will cover the start of my sojourn in No.2 County.    

Ted will explain what these are, I've posted them for him.