TRIVIA: Last stations to have early BR or older signage

[AY1975]

Does anyone know which stations were the last ones on BR to retain early BR (i.e. totems or other regional style) signage (or even older signage for that matter) rather than the standard 1970s/80s ones with black letters on white, and how late they survived?

In this video from the last day of services on the Kilmacolm line on 8th January 1983 (which has since reopened as far as Paisley Canal) at

only Mosspark station appears to have a standard 1970s/80s BR style nameboard, with all others still having older ones with white letters on light blue (which I think was standard for the Scottish Region in the 1950s and '60s).

I would guess that the Kilmacolm line stations may have been among the last surviving examples of these on BR. I expect BR tended to be less bothered about changing the signage at stations that were either already under threat of closure or thought likely to be proposed for closure in the near future.

See also the now closed thread on signage examples from the 1920s onwards at https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/signage-examples-1920s-onward.45792/

 

[Bedpan]

Do you mean this sort of thing? The sign is still there now, as far as I know. (Not my photo).

 

[ac6000cw]

The sign is still there now, as far as I know. (Not my photo).

Yes, at least one of those large enameled signs is still there (I think it's listed/has some sort of preservation order on it). The rest of the station has modern signage.

 

[RichJF]

I think in my area, the Redhill - Tonbridge line had gas lighting, original BR signage well into the 1980s when it was diesel-served with the Tadpole units before electrification in 1994.

 

[davetheguard]

There's this original one at Umberleigh on the Exeter to Barnstaple line. As it's concrete, I assume it dates from Southern Railway days.

 

[Ash Bridge]

There's this original one at Umberleigh on the Exeter to Barnstaple line. As it's concrete, I assume it dates from Southern Railway days.View attachment 58902 View attachment 58903

Lovely to see that still in place and obviously cared for, I wonder what happened to the finials off the top of the posts though? as looking at some fairly recent photos available on the internet they were still attached. Definitely a product of the Southern Railway (or just possibly LSWR) Exmouth Junction Concrete Works as you suggest.

 

[Brush 4]

Tunbridge Wells West had gas lighting in 1980 and presumably is still there now in the preserved station.
Workington had enamel signs in April 2000.

 

[30907]

Lovely to see that still in place and obviously cared for, I wonder what happened to the finials off the top of the posts though? as looking at some fairly recent photos available on the internet they were still attached. Definitely a product of the Southern Railway (or just possibly LSWR) Exmouth Junction Concrete Works as you suggest.

It's missing its top "border" as well, and I suspect the uprights are new.

 

[Ash Bridge]

It's missing its top "border" as well, and I suspect the uprights are new.

I was wondering myself if those were replacement uprights but hadn't noticed the missing top border, I wonder if a new section is yet to be fitted with the finials attached as a one piece section or could it be that the top/bottom borders are actually actually separate concrete castings to the signboard?

 

[Bedpan]

Has the sign always always been there? I've just noticed that it's positioned behind the fence and was wondering if it belongs to whoever now owns the station house ie nothing to do with Great Western or whoever is responsible for signage on the line.

 

[randyrippley]

There's this original one at Umberleigh on the Exeter to Barnstaple line. As it's concrete, I assume it dates from Southern Railway days.View attachment 58902 View attachment 58903

those look like two old name boards with new concrete uprights
too clean, no cracks or weathering, to be old
the bird nesting box with the same green paint is an amusing touch.
As someone suggested above - both appear to be outside railway land, so I'd guess at a parish council trying to prettify the place

 

[davetheguard]

those look like two old name boards with new concrete uprights
too clean, no cracks or weathering, to be old
the bird nesting box with the same green paint is an amusing touch.
As someone suggested above - both appear to be outside railway land, so I'd guess at a parish council trying to prettify the place

If anyone has a copy of the book "The North Devon Line" published by Irwell Press in 2010, they might like to take a look at a photograph on page 69 - undated but taken in steam days. The sign appears to be in the same place as it is now; just behind the fence, and the same sort of distance from the station building. The land behind the fence was, at that time at least, also in railway ownership and formed part of a small goods yard.

As has already been pointed out, making a "then & now" comparison, the concrete supports are definitely not the originals!

 

[Greetlander]

You did say “even older” signs - Hebden Bridge’s signs are presumably L&YR original?

 

[Taunton]

A surprising survival of old BR Eastern Region dark blue enamel signs was at Plaistow Underground station on the District Line. This had been ER property until the early 1960s, at the time of the LTS electrification, when the adjacent BR and Underground tracks were fully segregated. The signs were probably renewed just before then, and left as serviceable. The platform nameboards were all standard Underground ones, but the signage over the stairways etc were the old BR ones. They were still there 30 years after the transfer, in the early 1990s.

 

[Aictos]

What about Hanwell on the Great Western Mainline as that has a black and white BR sign from pre 1974 on Platform 3 there, the actual sign has the pre 1974 name of the station which is Hanwell and Elthorne.

 

[nw1]

Heyford still had them into the 1980s (certainly 1982-83).

I remember using XC services for the first time round then and the whole area, compared to the SR, seemed like something out of some bygone era; ISTR semaphore signalling and possibly those old classic lineside telegraph poles still existed at the same time.

 

[Taunton]

What about Hanwell on the Great Western Mainline as that has a black and white BR sign from pre 1974 on Platform 3 there, the actual sign has the pre 1974 name of the station which is Hanwell and Elthorne.

That's a recent historic recreation, I believe funded by Ealing Council and TfL, to go with the station building being a Listed structure. The same applies to signage at Bere Ferrers in Devon, which has been redone in modern times in SR green style.

 

[Shimbleshanks]

That's a recent historic recreation, I believe funded by Ealing Council and TfL, to go with the station building being a Listed structure. The same applies to signage at Bere Ferrers in Devon, which has been redone in modern times in SR green style.

Probably in the same category is Atherstone on the West Coast Main Line with its white on black London North Western (?) style boards. The station's nicely done though the metal security-sheeted ground floor windows do detract from the atmosphere a bit.

Not station signs but you do still occasionally see BR Southern Region green enamelled signs on electrical substations.

 

[davetheguard]

There's also this quite well-known sign at Dawlish in Devon; a similar style one also exists further along the main line at Totnes.

 

[tom73]

What about Hanwell on the Great Western Mainline as that has a black and white BR sign from pre 1974 on Platform 3 there, the actual sign has the pre 1974 name of the station which is Hanwell and Elthorne.

AFAIK there is no place named Elthorne. There is only Elthorne Park

 

[JohnElliott]

East Croydon had fluorescent lights with green "EAST CROYDON" lettering on them until the early-1990s rebuild.

 

[Harpers Tate]

I presume this is a pre-BR relic:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thornton_Abbey_railway_station

 

[philthetube]

Berney arms deff has an old name board, but I couldnt give info on it, or a pic.

 

[bramling]

Not station signs but you do still occasionally see BR Southern Region green enamelled signs on electrical substations.

These are modern. Most substations have BR-style black-on-white signs, but quite a few gained the green ones in the last few years, either replacing the aforementioned versions or in a few cases where signs had gone missing. Whilst they look rather nice, they’re definitely not vintage!

Some of the black-on-white ones might be quite old though - in many cases dating back to BR days.

 

[pdeaves]

I remember seeing this sign at High Wycombe

(https://www.flickr.com/photos/36844288@N00/20231830498) when it was recently-uncovered from whatever posters, etc. were on it. It's been nicely restored though modified (as shown in the picture) to suit the change in railway geography (it is no longer the junction for Maidenhead/Marlow). The other side

(https://www.flickr.com/photos/36844288@N00/19074116194) looks original (I doubt the pock-marks in the enamel would be applied to a modern reproduction!).

 

[UP13]

1980s posters were uncovered at Richmond Station a few years ago. I think they've kept them.

 

[AY1975]

East Croydon had fluorescent lights with green "EAST CROYDON" lettering on them until the early-1990s rebuild.

So did many other stations (usually black or grey rather than green, though, I think). There may be a few surviving examples of these.

 

[AY1975]

Of course there are also the totems at Lymington Town and Lymington Pier, but they don't really count as they were put there in 2005 to coincide with the introduction of the two heritage liveried 3-CIG EMUs (which were withdrawn in 2010, but AFAIK the totems still survive).

 

[6Gman]

So did many other stations (usually black or grey rather than green, though, I think). There may be a few surviving examples of these.

There were some in Chester until the last couple of years but I fear they have gone now.

 

[satisnek]

Not early BR or older but, prior to its remodelling a few years back, Nottingham station had Regional Railways nameboards. This was the temporal equivalent of 'totem' signs in the 1980s - and at a major city station!