The Bristol Railway Archive

all the talk of the kids of today playing out doors well i iwonder how many kids could lay claim to having a den in old broadguage brake van there was one at bridge end of the shed at yatton it was used as a cabin for the staff until the new one was built.driver s sledge was driver in charge and he let us use it for our den it had stove so we cooked food when we could get it because it was ratioed in those days.those were the days!

At the north end of Lawrence Hill station on the down side was a bit of waste land alongside a builder's yard. We used to climb over the fence into the yard using it as a sort of den while trainspotting. It had a panoramic view across the WR main line and also the Midland line passing over the top. We learnt a lot about fly shunting which was acted out about 1800 every evening directly in front of us. Because of the stockade type fence, we nicknamed the yard Fort Apache or 'Fort' for short. I don't ever remember the builder turning up while we were in there.

I don't ever remember the builder turning up while we were in there.

If that's the yard off Russell Town Avenue, I think it might even still be there. There is still an old style lamp post there, which has attracted moderate attention on flickr.

We used to lodge ourselves, at considerable danger, underneath the middle footbridge at Narroways high above the main lines. When I look at it now as I pass underneath on a train, I wonder how none of us ever managed to fall to our deaths!

We also had a brilliant den ready built for us out of a huge pile of railway sleepers in Ashley Hill yard. Almost as if the small entrance hole and large space under the sleepers was put there on purpose, though I'm sure it wasn't. Nobody ever found that den (this was in the days when dens would often get smashed up if found by rivals!)

Sadly though, the sleepers were from the lifting of the yard so we only had the trains up on the mainline to watch by that time - but no "gaffers" to chase us away with there customary "Oi! Get out of it!" call

Yes, that's the one. Before my enforced move to Barrow Road, we lived just to the north end of the headshunt on the up side but it was just a bit too far to read loco numbers on the Midland line. And I don't think mum was that keen on having 6 lads in the back garden every evening, especially as we used to resort to a game of football between trains. Single glazed windows were much easier to smash than modern double glazed ones!

oldchapie wrote:all the talk of the kids of today playing out doors well i iwonder how many kids could lay claim to having a den in old broadguage brake van there was one at bridge end of the shed at yatton it was used as a cabin for the staff until the new one was built.driver s sledge was driver in charge and he let us use it for our den it had stove so we cooked food when we could get it because it was ratioed in those days.those were the days!

Do you mean this ?

http://bristol-rail.co.uk/wiki/File:Yat ... l_Box6.jpg

yes that was our den and it was ours as long as we behaved ourselfs oh happy days

the old railway van was nowhere the signal box it was at the end of the shed and in between the the shed door and the bridge bank when the new cabin was built thre was stick cuboard and the rest of the van was for our gang use hpoe this was of use.

oldchapie wrote:yes that was our den and it was ours as long as we behaved ourselfs oh happy days

I've wondered for years what it was.

No one has been able to answer until now

I wonder what became of it.

it was burnt after being smashed up when the shed was knocked down. i was told by a railway official that the shed and cabin was knocked down so quick was that rates were paid on them?

oldchapie wrote:it was burnt after being smashed up when the shed was knocked down. i was told by a railway official that the shed and cabin was knocked down so quick was that rates were paid on them?

Well it was still there in 1972 when I took that picture. A pity the GWS didn't rescue it.

well i thougt it was destroyed i must admit i never ever went near the site although i lived near the site gone now forever.