Lapford station yard

[Cowley]

Ah I see. Not sure about that. Better do a bit of digging later.
Unless you know of a book that I've got somewhere?

 

[AnthonyRail]

That's exactly the sort of thing I need. Shows perfectly what was there at the time.
I've found these photos on the Cornwall Railway Society site.
The first two were taken in 1984 by Ron Kosys and show 47128 picking up a single OCA (surely one of the most inefficient workings ever? ) He says that it had possibly dropped off bagged fertiliser.
View attachment 59002
Lovely stuff.
View attachment 59003
It's interesting to note that some kind of gravel store has been plonked on top of the other sidings.
The point and spur must've been taken out quite soon after?

And then there's this picture also on the same site taken by Roger Smith showing what was left in 1986.
View attachment 59004
There's a load of logs ready for loading into those wagons, and there's another type of traffic that I vaguely remember seeing. Possibly 33 hauled?

That would look a good as a model layout

 

[Cowley]

That would look a good as a model layout

I'm all over it Anthony. Just working it all out at the moment.

 

[Will Thompson]

Not sure if it helps but railfreight today southwest has a few minutes of the fertiliser workings. I found it very interesting

 

[Cowley]

Not sure if it helps but railfreight today southwest has a few minutes of the fertiliser workings. I found it very interesting

That might be very useful, I’ll look into that.
It might give me a break from banging my head against the wall trying to create those warehouses in N gauge...
Welcome to the forum by the way Will.

 

[Will Thompson]

Thanks

A very interesting thread that I stumbled on by searching for "lapford fertiliser traffic".... which I hope to have some kind of similar traffic on a model of mine.

Jusy checked out the dvd and it has about a minute at lapford from 16:20 and the roughly another minute on its traffic around the area.

Cheers
Will

 

[Cowley]

A couple more questions for anyone that might know.

First of all is this funny collapsing hut that I took a photo of recently:

It’s situated just off the Barnstaple end of the platform, you can see it on the left of the platform here:

I was wondering if this used to contain the ground frame for the yard, would anyone know?

The other question regards this picture taken in the 1980s.
I saved the picture for reference a while ago and I’m not sure who took it but it wasn’t me.

Is the blue and white grain wagon basically a Polybulk wagon?
It caught my eye because I hadn’t seen one like it in any photos of the line before.

Thanks for any replies folks.

 

[John Webb]

The Hut: Ground frame huts tended to have windows in them so that operators could see clearly what they were doing. The signal box was close to the foot crossing, according to old maps (see https://maps.nls.uk/view/106001279 for example). I wonder if this hut was used for the ground frame when BR closed the signal box and it is a converted permanent way hut? Otherwise it could have been a PW hut or possibly a toilet so shunters and/or porters were not using the passengers' facilities - if any!

 

[Cowley]

The Hut: Ground frame huts tended to have windows in them so that operators could see clearly what they were doing. The signal box was close to the foot crossing, according to old maps (see https://maps.nls.uk/view/106001279 for example). I wonder if this hut was used for the ground frame when BR closed the signal box and it is a converted permanent way hut? Otherwise it could have been a PW hut or possibly a toilet so shunters and/or porters were not using the passengers' facilities - if any!

That’s an interesting thought. If it was a toilet then that last helping of curried brussel sprouts seems to have done the job...

 

[Ash Bridge]

I don't know if these shots are of any help but the first dated June 1990 does appear to show rodding and levers immediately beyond the hut. The second with signalbox still in situ and located excactly as John mentioned above is dated April 1969, photos credited to D H Mitchell & R A Lumber respectively.

 

[Cowley]

I don't know if these shots are of any help but the first dated June 1990 does appear to show rodding and levers immediately beyond the hut. The second with signalbox still in situ and located excactly as John mentioned above is dated April 1969, photos credited to D H Mitchell & R A Lumber respectively.

Ah that’s great Mr Bridge. The 1990 shot certainly makes it look like it was possibly the ground frame. That’s a good bit of detail.
Love the signal box in the first shot though...

Interesting to see the second platform in the 1969 picture.

 

[Ash Bridge]

Yes and it's quite amazing the amount of additional foliage that's been allowed to grow in the 21 years that separates the two views allowing of course for the fact that the earlier shot was taken during springtime rather than midsummer, I suppose it does prove though that it was BR that started the trend of allowing unchecked growth and not a product of the privatisation era companies who just followed suit on takeover.

 

[Cowley]

Yes and it's quite amazing the amount of additional foliage that's been allowed to grow in the 21 years that separates the two views allowing of course for the fact that the earlier shot was taken during springtime rather than midsummer, I suppose it does prove though that it was BR that started the trend of allowing unchecked growth and not a product of the privatisation era companies who just followed suit on takeover.

Definitely.
I’ve got a photo somewhere with a Skipper on test in the mid 1980s that shows ‘Lapford’ spelt out in white painted stones opposite the platform, which surprised me bearing in mind it would’ve been unstaffed by then (not sure when it became unstaffed actually).
Someone obviously still cared. A bit.

 

[Ash Bridge]

Definitely.
I’ve got a photo somewhere with a Skipper on test in the mid 1980s that shows ‘Lapford’ spelt out in white painted stones opposite the platform, which surprised me bearing in mind it would’ve been unstaffed by then (not sure when it became unstaffed actually).
Someone obviously still cared. A bit.

I'm sure I've got a shot from the steam era in a book somewhere showing those stones, I wonder if after BR de staffed these stations former railway employees in some cases continued to occupy(rent?) any accommodation within the station buildings and therefore perpetuated some of the tlc of days gone by in their retirement years?

 

[Cowley]

I'm sure I've got a shot from the steam era in a book somewhere showing those stones, I wonder if after BR de staffed these stations former railway employees in some cases continued to occupy(rent?) any accommodation within the station buildings and therefore perpetuated some of the tlc of days gone by in their retirement years?

It could be something like that couldn’t it?

 

[John Webb]

The 1990 photo may just show the right-hand most lever of the ground frame, so I think the ground frame was in the open and the hut may have contained signalling instruments, perhaps? Or just a bit of shelter for the ground frame operator?

The wooden top of the signal box in the earlier photo looks a bit askew!

 

[Cowley]

The 1990 photo may just show the right-hand most lever of the ground frame, so I think the ground frame was in the open and the hut may have contained signalling instruments, perhaps? Or just a bit of shelter for the ground frame operator?

The wooden top of the signal box in the earlier photo looks a bit askew!

I wonder if the hut provided a bit of shelter for the ground frame to stop it getting damp and seizing up?
Re the signal box - I think you’re right John, the whole thing seems to be slightly ‘on the lean’, it certainly doesn’t look straight compared to its surroundings...

 

[GusB]

Those polybulk wagons (if that is the correct term) were a regular sight along the road from me, at the Burghead maltings. They'd either be wearing the blue/white United Distillers livery, or they were in green with "Grainflow" lettering in yellow. I always regretted that I never actually saw any of them move.

 

[Cowley]

Those polybulk wagons (if that is the correct term) were a regular sight along the road from me, at the Burghead maltings. They'd either be wearing the blue/white United Distillers livery, or in green with "Grainflow" lettering in yellow. I always regretted that I never actually saw any of them actually move.

That’s interesting. So I’m assuming that they were the same vehicle but in different liveries then?
Graham Farish did them but they seem to be quite difficult to come by, I found this picture on the Cornish Railway Society site though of a mixed train in the goods yard at Barnstaple in the 1980s with an original Railfreight liveried class 31 at the front and some Polybulks in the consist:



And then I found this beauty (before realising that they’d actually sold out):



Then I had to have a lie down...

 

[GusB]

That’s interesting. So I’m assuming that they were the same vehicle but in different liveries then?

As far as I'm aware they were the same thing with different liveries. I'm happy to be corrected if this isn't the case. I wonder if any of the examples from your neck of the woods made it to mine.

I found this little gem (credit: Roddie MacPhee) when I was googling.
https://flic.kr/p/m1gLFi

 

[30907]

I wonder if the hut provided a bit of shelter for the ground frame to stop it getting damp and seizing up?...

It wouldn't be easily portable so more likely for the operator to take cover in, as John says. I suspect it had been repurposed - an old fog hut?

 

[John Webb]

A couple more questions for anyone that might know.

First of all is this funny collapsing hut that I took a photo of recently:
View attachment 61526
It’s situated just off the Barnstaple end of the platform..........

Looking at your photo again, I've realised it shows two timber baulks in front of the collapsing hut - almost certainly these baulks were what the ground frame was mounted on.

 

[Cowley]

Thanks all, very useful.
There doesn’t appear to be any kind of hut there in the 1969 photo, so I assume it was put there when the box was decommissioned. Not sure when that happened though?

 

[Cowley]

As far as I'm aware they were the same thing with different liveries. I'm happy to be corrected if this isn't the case. I wonder if any of the examples from your neck of the woods made it to mine.

I found this little gem (credit: Roddie MacPhee) when I was googling.
https://flic.kr/p/m1gLFi

That’s a great photo, and your area is where I associate seeing them in those colours.

 

[Ash Bridge]

Thanks all, very useful.
There doesn’t appear to be any kind of hut there in the 1969 photo, so I assume it was put there when the box was decommissioned. Not sure when that happened though?

I've just read that Lapford signalbox closed on 21st June 1970 Mr C, also checked the original photograph where John and yourself commented on the box roof appearing rather askew, trust me it was fine, the distortion was introduced by my poor efforts at reproducing it!

 

[Cowley]

I've just read that Lapford signalbox closed on 21st June 1970 Mr C, also checked the original photograph where John and yourself commented on the box roof appearing rather askew, trust me it was fine, the distortion was introduced by my poor efforts at reproducing it!

Ah ok. Luckily I didn’t decide to make a miniature wonky signal box.

 

[delt1c]

Ah ok. Luckily I didn’t decide to make a miniature wonky signal box.

A quick course of Viagra would have resolved it

 

[Ash Bridge]

A quick course of Viagra would have resolved it

Didn't know it works for signalboxes too!

 

[delt1c]

Of cour

Didn't know it works for signalboxes too!

Of course it raises the signal arm to the "Off " position

 

[Ash Bridge]

Of cour

Of course it raises the signal arm to the "Off " position

Many thanks for enlightening me.....never would have thought of that!