This is the original forum of the Bristol Railway Archive that existed between 2003 and 2013. I finally rescued it after it seemed unrecoverable after a large crash. I have made it available for viewing. It is locked, all posts to the new version please!
Use this forum to talk about the railways in and around Bristol, or for any off-topic stuff you want to share. Also request photos and information that you are missing.
The early 1960s were indeed great days to spend a day at Temple Meads, or, as I did quite often, Lawrence Hill to spot the workings that avoided Temple Meads. The steam worked expresses climbing towards Fishponds looked and sounded superb from Lawrence Hill station.
I had some great times at Lawrence Hill, like Roger. Summer Saturdays between 1.00 and 3.00 were particularly busy. Here are some shots from the 1963-64 period.
The early 1960s were indeed great days to spend a day at Temple Meads, or, as I did quite often, Lawrence Hill to spot the workings that avoided Temple Meads. The steam worked expresses climbing towards Fishponds looked and sounded superb from Lawrence Hill station.
I had some great times at Lawrence Hill, like Roger.
It never even crossed my mind in those days to go to Lawrence Hill, although coming down the Midland line from Mangotsfield or Staple Hill would have made the journey difficult (short of pulling the chord towards the bottom of the bank!).
But surely the amount of stuff you missed on the GWR main line in and out of Bristol was much more than you could have seen of trains avoiding TM at Lawrence Hill?
One reason I spent a lot of time at Lawrence Hill was that I travelled to Temple Meads by train from Redland and stopped off at Lawrence Hill to go around Barrow Road before continuing to Temple Meads. Also by Summer 1964 there was virtually no steam south of Bristol and not much on the line to Bath. Most steam turns were to South Wales, the North to West route and the Midland line from Bristol. Anything going north was usually worked hard because of Filton and Fishponds Banks. It was a very interesting and busy place to be.
trafalgar45682 wrote:One reason I spent a lot of time at Lawrence Hill was that I travelled to Temple Meads by train from Redland and stopped off at Lawrence Hill to go around Barrow Road before continuing to Temple Meads. Also by Summer 1964 there was virtually no steam south of Bristol and not much on the line to Bath. Most steam turns were to South Wales, the North to West route and the Midland line from Bristol. Anything going north was usually worked hard because of Filton and Fishponds Banks. It was a very interesting and busy place to be.
Very true. After St Phillips Marsh closed in June 1964 there was virtually no steam working except to the north from Bristol (ie via Filton or Fishponds)
I had some great times at Lawrence Hill, like Roger. Summer Saturdays between 1.00 and 3.00 were particularly busy. Here are some shots from the 1963-64 period.
Thanks so much for sharing - what a fantastic set of photos - and not just these! Your sets at Flickr are amazing and ought to be in a book or at least on a website of your own.
Thanks for your comments. The Bristol photo's from 1963/64 were taken by me and a friend who I have not met for 35 years, but who I am hoping to meet up with again this Summer. Other photo's were taken by myself. Visiting Temple Meads and the local steam sheds every day over the two years meant that I built up a lot of information on train workings and photo's. I still have many more to put on Flickr, including some away from the Bristol area. I have started work on preparing a website based on steam in Bristol in 1964, which is my most documented year. I hope to publish it in the Autumn.
trafalgar45682 wrote:Thanks for your comments. The Bristol photo's from 1963/64 were taken by me and a friend who I have not met for 35 years, but who I am hoping to meet up with again this Summer. Other photo's were taken by myself. Visiting Temple Meads and the local steam sheds every day over the two years meant that I built up a lot of information on train workings and photo's. I still have many more to put on Flickr, including some away from the Bristol area. I have started work on preparing a website based on steam in Bristol in 1964, which is my most documented year. I hope to publish it in the Autumn.
That'll be worth viewing - I look forward to it being made available
trafalgar45682 wrote:Thanks for your comments. The Bristol photo's from 1963/64 were taken by me and a friend who I have not met for 35 years, but who I am hoping to meet up with again this Summer. Other photo's were taken by myself. Visiting Temple Meads and the local steam sheds every day over the two years meant that I built up a lot of information on train workings and photo's. I still have many more to put on Flickr, including some away from the Bristol area. I have started work on preparing a website based on steam in Bristol in 1964, which is my most documented year. I hope to publish it in the Autumn.
That'll be worth viewing - I look forward to it being made available
I second that.
I don't suppose you took any photos of the Bristol Harbour lines did you? Some of my earliest railway memories are of the shunting at Canon's Marsh; I'd love to see more pictures of those lines but they seem to have been all but ignored by photographers.
I'm afraid I can't help you there, Andy. There are a couple of photo's of Canons Marsh in Bradford Barton "Great Western Steam around Bristol" and Terry Nicholl's video production Vol 84 Railways around Bristol has a section on steam at Wapping Wharf.
You could look at GWR Goods Services Part2B by Tony Atkins (Wild Swan)
several Pics etc. And the excellent ltttle booklet Pannier Tanks & Shunting
Poles Part 1 by D.J.Fleming Printed locally by R P Printing Services which
as well as the Panniers has Pic's of the 03s used at the end.
Happy Day's I lived in Clifton Wood in the 1950s and used to lie in bed listening to the noise of shunting at Canons Marsh
trafalgar45682 wrote:I'm afraid I can't help you there, Andy. There are a couple of photo's of Canons Marsh in Bradford Barton "Great Western Steam around Bristol" and Terry Nicholl's video production Vol 84 Railways around Bristol has a section on steam at Wapping Wharf.
Patrick O'Brien
Is "Great Western Steam around Bristol" the book that has a photo taken from what is now The Arnolfini, and shows a ship moored opposite adjoining what are now restaurants with the Canons Marsh railway clearly visible behind it?
I hope so as I have been trying to recall this book ever since "The Post" published that photo.
trafalgar45682 wrote:Is "Great Western Steam around Bristol" the book that has a photo taken from what is now The Arnolfini, and shows a ship moored opposite adjoining what are now restaurants with the Canons Marsh railway clearly visible behind it?
I hope so as I have been trying to recall this book ever since "The Post" published that photo.
Actually I don't think it can be because the above is apparently from 1975 and the book I saw reviewed in "The Post" was published around 2000, give or take 5 years either way. It was definitely about ships or boats but that's all I can recall.
trafalgar45682 wrote:Is "Great Western Steam around Bristol" the book that has a photo taken from what is now The Arnolfini, and shows a ship moored opposite adjoining what are now restaurants with the Canons Marsh railway clearly visible behind it?
I hope so as I have been trying to recall this book ever since "The Post" published that photo.
Actually I don't think it can be because the above is apparently from 1975 and the book I saw reviewed in "The Post" was published around 2000, give or take 5 years either way. It was definitely about ships or boats but that's all I can recall.
That rings a bell. I recently read "Bristol's Floating Harbour: the first 200 years" by Peter Malpass and Andy King (Redcliffe Press) and I've an idea there was a picture in that that answered your description (not the same book that you were thinking of, obviously, but perhaps the same or a similar picture was included in it)
What it does have is a view of the Canons Marsh Wharf taken across the water from Wapping Wharf in which you catch a tantalising partial glimpse of a panier tank on the quayside.
