John Silman has submitted an article from the American newspaper The Towson Times of October 15 2003, written by Bob Allen, which describes the efforts of a local community preserving a section of a Pennsylvania railway. John said that, the last time he and Margaret were in the States visiting his brother-in-law, they had the opportunity to ride on the five miles of preserved line and look around the little village which has a general store and a mill restored to look as it did in 1900. His brother-in-law sent him this newspaper article covering the history and preservation of the railway, from which I have extracted some information.

During its heyday in the first half of the 20th century, the Maryland & Pennsylvania Railroad ran a meandering, picturesque 77-mile route from Baltimore to York, Pa. - only 47 miles apart as the crow flies - that included 27 station stops. The "Ma & Pa" was created in 1901, with the merger of the Baltimore & Lehigh Railway and the York Southern, both of which had been consolidated from a number of smaller, short-line railroads.

"It had a more circuitous route than other, bigger lines, like the Western Maryland Railroad, or the Pennsylvania Railroad," explained Craig Sansonetti, a railroad historian. "But it was the little towns in between that the Maryland & Pennsylvania was trying to serve." At its peak, the line had 16 locomotives and 160 rail cars. A crew of more than 100 workers was needed to maintain the track. The line also had 31 "flag stops", when it halted on an as-needed basis. The Ma & Pa was not just a driving force in the local economy; it created a common thread that stitched together communities.

Charlie Mahan, 78, who grew up in Towson, vividly remembers going on "Railroad Fan Trips" the line offered back in the 1930s and '40s. "It cost a buck and a half to ride to York and back," Mahan remembered.

"For every major family event, whether it was a graduation or a wedding, our family had a picture taken on the Ma & Pa Railroad," said Ericka Quesenbery, whose great-grandfather, great-grandmother, grandfather, father and other relatives worked on the railroad. "We were all connected by what we did on the railroad". On Sept. 27, Quesenbery shared family photographs and memories with other devotees of the Ma & Pa at the annual Railroad Heritage Day, held at the Ma & Pa Railroad Heritage Village in Muddy Creek Forks, Pa., a dozen or so miles southeast of York. Muddy Creek Forks' 1900 general store and train station, a rolling mill and even a short length of the line that once served the rural hamlet have been restored by people who, for one reason or another, have strong emotional ties to the line.

Mahan is a longtime member of both the nonprofit organizations behind Railroad Heritage Day and the restoration of Muddy Creek Falls: The Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad Preservation Society and the Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad Historical Society. Every year, Mahan brings to Railroad Heritage Day a display of photographs that he either collected or took himself back in the late 1930s and early 1940s.

Rails of milk and money

For quite a while in the early 1900s, more than 1,100 gallons of milk a day were hauled to Baltimore from the Fallston station alone. Milk was such a staple cargo that the first train of the morning to make the hour-and-a-half run from Fallston to downtown Baltimore was called "The Milky Way". The line hauled countless tons of coal from Baltimore to smaller northward communities and countless tons of slate southward from slate mines around Cardiff, Maryland, and Delta, Pennsylvania.

It also carried thousands of passengers, including Baltimore-bound commuters and vacationing Baltimore residents bound for recreational areas such as The Rocks at Deer Creek, in Harford County. A late, northbound train that left Baltimore at 11.40 p.m. let people from communities like Fallston, Hyde or Bel Air see a movie in Towson or a live show in Baltimore and still be back home by 1 or 1:30 in the morning.

With the advent of the automobile and the freeway, the Ma & Pa, facing economic hard times, shut down its Maryland operations in 1958. The Pennsylvania portion of the line kept operating until the 1980s. And though the railroad itself is gone, devotees like Seitz, Mahan, Don Jones (whose father worked for years as a trackman) and Larry Altoff, a former brakeman on the Ma & Pa, have kept its legacy alive with the hundreds of artifacts, photos, advertisements, signs, timetables, ledgers, lanterns, old newspaper articles and oral histories they've amassed.

Most are members of the Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad Preservation Society, which was founded in 1986 and has since acquired five miles of the line's track in Muddy Creek Valley. The society has also purchased and restored most of the buildings in the hamlet of Muddy Creek Forks, along with a small collection of railroad cars."

John comments that the Maryland & Pennsylvania Railroad Historical Society has quite a large selection of preserved rolling stock but, as yet, no restored steam engines. They rode on open trucks hauled by a small diesel track inspector's wagon - and the ride was not cushioned much at all!

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A proposal to rescue and restore items of Guernsey's Industrial Heritage

by Roy Perry

On November 4th, HIAS's then Chairman, Roger Hedge, received an e-mail from Roy Perry in Guernsey concerning a project to set up a heritage centre on the island based around a tramway. His primary reason was to ask if HIAS members could assist in some way with the restoration of a replica Guernsey tram which is at present in Matlock Bath. Before the continuation of the saga, here is Roy's proposal.

The granite and stone working industry in the Bailiwick is centuries old. There are records, archives and books but very few remaining actual physical artefacts. The island's National Trust has been very successful with retaining and restoring many items of agricultural heritage and family life in past times. There are collections of clothes, implements and vehicles on display.

The Guernsey Museum and Art Gallery and Heritage Service is the custodian of an enormous number of documents and relics, many of which have never been on public display. One of these is the partly restored body of a tramcar. Another is a fabulous collection of scale model trams and trailers. Will they ever see the light of day again?

Background

In January 1897 there was a bit of a fuss at the docks in St Peter Port, Guernsey. The latest modern tramcar trailer had arrived from Liverpool on a steamship. Guernsey Railway Company tramcar trailer No 3, built by G.F. Milnes of Birkenhead, took to the metals which ran between the seaports on the east coast of the island. So began the career of a passenger transport vehicle whose body is still substantially intact in the year 2004.

Now a serious attempt is to be made to return this car to the rails along a stretch of the original route. A Trust is to be set up to achieve this and also to act as a focal point for the rescue of any examples of our Industrial Heritage that are still extant. Archivists have records of some of these but lack the funds for their recovery.

The first tram service in the island started in 1879 and consisted of steam tram locos hauling passenger trailers. It was introduced to carry workers to the quarries of the north; clerks and shop assistants to the capital in the south. Long before this time metal and stone plateways were used but steam power had only been used for stationary pumps, engines and stone crushers. In 1892 Siemens Bros of London successfully electrified the line. This in itself was a major achievement since it was the first street tramway in the British Isles to be supplied with current from an overhead wire (apart from an experimental line in Leeds). It was also startling because a public supply of electricity was not to be installed for another ten years.

When it entered service, Car No. 3 was towed by a powered tram, sometimes with a second trailer attached. The electricity supply was not particularly reliable and one of the remaining Merryweather steam tram locos had to provide the motive power. This engine carried the name 'Shooting Star'.

End of the line

The tramway ceased to operate in July 1934. All the running gear was sold for scrap and the bodies disposed of for �5 each as garden sheds and summerhouses. Six of the bodies were known to have survived the German Occupation from 1940 - 1945 and two are still extant today. Tram No. 3, which was electrified in 1901, was rescued by members of The Guernsey Old Car Club in 1976. It had seen use as a summerhouse and had been protected by a tarpaulin roof and placed on stone supports. Although covered entirely with ivy, the body was lifted out and placed on a trailer. There it stayed for a number of years whilst a small band of volunteers tackled the task of renovation. In 1980, with a new roof, sides and staircase ends, the trailer was motorised and it moved once more under its own power, albeit with an under floor internal combustion engine and a steerable road chassis. It retraced its route to the northern port on Liberation Day (May 9th) that year, and then continued to circumnavigate the whole island.

Meanwhile the Club learnt that another tram body was about to be destroyed. This was in use as a battery store at a west coast garage. Two members, assisted by British Rail, took this former Cardiff Horse Trailer apart and conveyed it into storage. Shortage of funds and enthusiastic helpers meant that Tram No. 3 was donated to The States of Guernsey and trailer 17 to a private collector. The remains have been in store for more than 20 years with no more restoration work done.

The proposed Heritage Centre

There are many artefacts in Guernsey which have been donated to, or acquired by, the Museum and Heritage committee. There is an extreme paucity of suitable storage for these valuable items. The new proposal is to establish an Industrial Heritage Trust and build a Centre on the original tramway track, at the northern end of Belle Greve Bay. Facilities would include a two road shed with adjacent workshop. Behind this it is planned to erect a long, wide glassed roof gallery to display pictures, memorabilia and a working scale model of the tramway. Further rooms are assigned for storage and renovation of small items. Above this would be a restaurant with stunning sea views. Standard gauge track panels would be laid on the old bed alongside the sea wall. It is hoped that a replica of Tram No. 3, constructed by a local bus operator in 1992, can be brought back to the island to convey passengers, especially those who are elderly or disabled, from St Peter Port to the site. This replica is currently located in Derbyshire and is in excellent condition. In April 2004 it was put on the market and there is a plan to make it the highlight of the celebration of the 60th anniversary of Liberation from Axis Occupation of the Island. A reduction in the purchase price has been negotiated and the Liberation Cavalcade Committee has offered to pay for the costs of bringing the vehicle back to the Island. Some funds have already been pledged but a further �8000 is needed.

Restoration of the original tram bodies, to non-electric condition, will probably have to be carried out in the UK. An application for funds for this work could be made to The Heritage Lottery Fund as soon as a UK restoration site is selected. It may be possible to interest a UK Museum in order to obtain volunteer help. Both the National Museum at Crich and the Beamish Heritage Centre have offered advice but regrettably have too many of their own projects.

Finance for construction of the Centre would have to come from private sources. When completed, the Centre could be lease-purchased by The States of Guernsey on whose land it will stand. Track laying and operation would follow after this. Its potential as a tourist attraction is enormous, especially since it is adjacent to major roads, on the seafront and can be viewed from the decks of the many cruise ships which visit the island each year. The final jewel in the crown of this restoration project will be the construction or lease of a replica Merryweather Steam Tram Loco. Prior to this the trailer could be cable-hauled.

The first step in this project has to be the establishment of a Trust to administer any funds collected. A management committee would determine the aims and there must be connections to other bodies operating in this field. Care must be taken to co-ordinate our efforts with those of The States of Guernsey Departments, The Guernsey National Trust, La Societ� d'Guernesiase, etc.

Co-ordinator: Roy S. Perry, 40 Pre de Queritier, Rue Cohu, Castel Guernsey, Channel Isles, GY5 7TF

Telephone: 0 (0044) 1481 250880 E-mail: josroy@cwgsy.net or mercator@cwgsy.net

Roger then 'snail-mailed' the e-mail and copy of Roy's proposal to Nigel Smith (Tram 57 Project), who received it on November 11th. Nigel e-mailed Roy asking for more information and he phoned back with the very disappointing news that the plans had been rejected by the States of Guernsey planning authorities only that week, as the former tramway right of way and the site of the proposed museum were on 'green belt' land. A very despondent Roy asked if Nigel had any contacts 'on the mainland' who would be able to take on the restoration of Car 3 and the ex-Cardiff horse trailer, so Nigel immediately e-mailed the co-ordinator of the Association of Tramcar Restorers and Operators (ASTRO), of which Tram 57 Project is a member, who was able to include the item in the November 14th newsletter (which is e-mailed to members). At the same time Nigel e-mailed a copy of the notice to Roy, who was himself able to contact ASTRO with a slightly more promising update:-

"This morning (Friday 12th November) it was decided to look for another site for the Industrial Heritage Museum in Guernsey. This is a private venture. The tram shed used from 1898 to 1934 still exists, but currently houses the local bus company. Land costs here are around �500 per square metre."

So we await news of developments from this 'Outer Hampshire' island and hope that Roy can overcome the usual official disinterest to which we have become accustomed here in Southampton. With many daily flights to Guernsey from Southampton Airport, this island is easily within our reach - even for a day trip.

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News from Heritage Data Management of English Heritage

- Summer 2004

www.english-heritage.org.uk/heritagedata

Birmingham Jewellery Quarter

The Jewellery Quarter, north of Birmingham City Centre, developed in the late 18th century as a wealthy suburb. Within 50 years the area had changed into an industrial zone producing jewellery and small metal goods. By 1850 purpose-built manufactories were being constructed and in the early 20th century, at the height of production, around 70,000 people were employed there. Today around 6,000 people work in the jewellery and metal work trades in Birmingham and it is the largest centre for gold-jewellery production in the country.

Around 1100 buildings were photographed as part of a 3 year survey of the Quarter. The types of building recorded are varied, including: houses, churches, public houses, car parks and garages as well as the many jewellery workshops. The project archive has recently been catalogued and monument records are now being created as a cross-reference. It is hoped that the database enhancement work will be completed by Feb. 2005.

Ancient Britain map & guide

English Heritage, RCAHMS, RCAHMW and the Ordnance Survey are to publish a revised fifth edition of the Ancient Britain Map in 2005. The map was first published to celebrate the Festival of Britain in 1951. The new map will be similar in layout, type and style to the current edition of the Roman Britain Map. A timeline, which has proved popular on the Roman Britain map, will also be included. It is proposed that new photographs of the sites, artifacts and drawings, and map extracts showing routes to the sites will be incorporated into the map and guide.

There will be a revised gazetteer which will focus on exemplar sites, possibly including Stonehenge, Avebury, Grimes Graves and Maiden Castle for England. The selection criteria will also include a geographic and historical spread of sites. All material to be included on the map will be sent to the Ordnance Survey in December 2004.

The splendour falls on Castle Walls

Staff have nearly completed a project to reassess, re-index, and update the NMR's monument data set for post Conquest to World War I fortifications. These include all monuments of a fortified nature from fieldworks and bastles to castles and Civil War town defences. All types of evidence from non-destructive survey techniques to excavation, and selective documentary evidence, have been used to aid the updating of the records.

Elements of the record which have particularly benefited from enhancement include the following: fortifications associated with Stephen's reign; small scale fortification of the Border region; fortified houses built between the 14th and 17th centuries; the Palmerston fortifications; Civil War fortifications, and defensive works on the East and South coast from the mid 18th century until World War I.

So far some 5000 records have been updated and some 300 new records created, enabling the NMR to provide more consistent information for these sites. They will also be accessible via PastScape - www.pastscape.org.

Review of the National Monuments Record

A draft report on the Review of the NMR following public consultation was presented to EH Commissioners in June. Modifications took place in light of these discussions and the report due to be published in the autumn.

(via Tony Yoward)

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Council for British Archaeology - Wessex Region

. . . . request for IA news

Alison received a letter in June from John F Brown, who had recently been elected as Industrial Archaeology representative of CBA Wessex Region at its AGM. The post had been vacant for some time and John says he will have to build up his own contacts in the Wessex area, which comprises Berkshire, Dorset, Hampshire, the Isle of Wight and Wiltshire.

"I understand that part of my brief is to report to the regional committee at each committee meeting to update them of matters of interest concerning industrial archaeology, including planning applications that may be affecting significant sites. The other main part is to find items for the regional newsletter.

"Ideally any report should cover the whole region but I can only achieve this objective with your help in providing me with details from your own area. If you could provide me with a copy of your newsletter each time one is published this would be very helpful. If I do not hear from you to the contrary I shall assume that I may use any item in your newsletter to be a part of my report, or to be used in the CBA regional newsletter. Between your newsletters please advise me if any matter of urgency, such as a planning application, occurs in your area.

I am really feeling my way at present but, with your help, I hope to bring industrial archaeology in the region to the fuller attention of the CBA."

Alison confirms that John already receives Focus and the Hampshire Mills Group newsletter via his r�le as Chairman in the Dorset Industrial Archaeology Society, but members with useful information who may wish to pass it on to John directly should contact him at 14 Rylands Lane, Weymouth, Dorset, DT4 9PZ. Telephone is (01305) 785968 and his e-mail address is john-jill@rylands14.fsnet.co.uk.

Don't just read and forget: write down those contact details somewhere safe for quick reference if something should come to your notice. It's no use relying on 'someone else' to do it: they could be thinking the same thing!

Also, it would be useful to the Committee if members would 'copy' to Carol any information so that we can keep a record of such news. Quite often items of interest are only in local publications such as parish news magazines or local history groups. Whilst Ian Harden scours the pages of the Southern Daily Echo and regularly sends your editor newsy items (far too many to be reprinted, but they are all kept in a file for posterity), John Silman keeps an eye on the Hampshire Chronicle and I get the New Forest Post and Waterside Herald 'freebies', other areas of Hampshire have no coverage. Rodney Hall occasionally checks the BBC website and I sometimes look at the Ceefax news pages, but obviously some items must be missed. Keep your eyes open in your area and also on Planning Applications which might affect IA buildings, structures, etc. You'd be surprised how many things have come to our attention over the years 'just by chance' - for instance, the following item . . . .

Ex BTDB loco 'discovered' by Cobden Bridge

In mid-October Bill White was walking over Cobden Bridge in Southampton and noticed, in the back garden of a riverside house which was being demolished on the Bitterne side, what appeared to be a small locomotive. The house had been owned by a collector of 'junk' that had been piled up in the garden, most of which had been removed, revealing this item. Bill contacted John Horne, who investigated and found that it was a Simplex petrol locomotive, originally narrow gauge and used for construction work on the Southampton 'New' (Western) Docks in the 1930s, then converted to standard gauge and used by BTDB in the Docks: it still bore faint traces of the lettering. At the time of writing, attempts are being made to negotiate with the site developer to purchase the engine and keep it for the City, though he threatened to put it on e-Bay . . . . ! So, thanks for the tip-off, Bill.

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Meetings and Activities

by Carol Burdekin

May - World's Smallest Public Railway

Our speaker in May was John Snell on the Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway, the "World's Smallest Public Railway". Started by Captain J E P Howey and Count Louis Zborowski back in the 1920s, it was to be the same as any other mainline railway except in size. Trains would run to time carrying both passengers and freight and there would be proper stations and it would be equipped with the finest locomotives ever built.

Count Zborowski, who was very rich and had been one of the founders of the Aston Martin Motor Company, engaged the eminent miniature railway engineer, Henry Greenly, to design and have built the first two 15" gauge steam express locomotives. Unfortunately, the Count was tragically killed while practicing for a motor race at Monza in 1924, before the project was completed. Several sites were looked at, and it was the almost flat Romney Marsh, connecting the Southern Railway Station at New Romney with the seaside towns of Dymchurch and Hythe, which was decided upon. On the 16th July 1927, the Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports declared the line open and the first train steamed out of Hythe with a full train, en route to the celebrations at New Romney.

During the war the railway was taken over by the Army as part of its coastal defence work and, in 1945 at the end of the war, it was handed back to Captain Howey. The immediate post war years were the halcyon days for the railway with hundreds and thousands of people flocking to the large holiday camps dotted along the coast. When Captain Howey died, it was sold to a pair of retired bankers and then it was sold on to a group of local businessmen, whose job it is now to make sure that Captain Howey's dream of a miniature mainline railway continues to thrill and interest visitors for many years to come.

June - Visiting American and Russian Cinemas

Our speaker in June was David Trevor Jones, Vice Chairman of the Cinema Theatre Association who was going to speak on Visiting American and Russian Cinemas, but decided that it was too big a subject to cover in one evening, so just told us about his visits to American Cinemas. David became interested in cinemas in the 1980s, especially the Art-deco style ones, and has visited many since, not just in this country, but abroad as well. He told us that the earliest cinemas, following the invention of motion pictures at the end of the 19th Century, were usually conversions of existing premises, but around 1910 the first purpose-built picture houses started to appear. These were very popular, leading to the construction of huge numbers of cinemas. During the boom years of the 1920s and 1930s these were built on a huge and extravagant scale and his vast collection of extremely good slides illustrated this.

The Cinema Theatre Association was started by Eric George, who wished to see more attention paid to those magnificent movie palaces of the '20s and '30s which were starting to disappear, by the study and appreciation of this important heritage. The Association studies all aspects of cinemas and theatres including architecture, decoration and film projection and is often consulted by local authorities on planning applications, plus giving advice to other concerned heritage groups. We very much hope that David will return soon and give us a talk on Russian Cinemas.

July - Outdoor Visit to British Military Powerboats Trust, Marchwood

July found us meeting at the former Husbands Shipyard Estate on the waterside at Marchwood for an outdoor visit to The British Military Powerboat Trust collection. Clive Frampton of the Trust gave a short introduction, then we wandered at will with Clive and his colleagues always on hand to answer any questions. The BMPT was established to create a national exhibition centre to demonstrate the innovation, development and history of 20th Century high speed military craft used by the Royal Navy, Royal Air Force and Army. They have a wonderful collection of boats - their pride and joy being the HSL 102, a 64ft 100 Class High Speed Launch (built 1936) which was used by the RAF for air sea rescue and built, as were most of their collection, by the British Power Boat Company at Hythe. This vessel represents the BMPT at events at home and abroad.

Amongst their WW2 display of old photographs and press coverings, Andy Fish spotted a picture of his father, who was then about 12 being evacuated to Bournemouth, where he stayed for the duration of the war, although Andy said he did sneak home when he could!

It was a lovely evening and we were able to wander outside with good views over Southampton Water to Mayflower Park and beyond. Unfortunately, there was a sad element to the visit, the Trust have now got to find new premises for their collection as the site is needed for redevelopment. With the amount of boats they have and all their equipment, this is not going to be an easy task. Fortunately, there has been a lot of coverage of their predicament in the press, local and national, so it is hoped that a suitable location will be found. Sadly, this sort of situation is becoming more and more common as organisations, which have spent years lovingly restoring and maintaining their collections, find themselves with similar difficulties.

August - Members' Slides and Book Sales

August's meeting found about half the membership turn up for the annual book sale and members' slides. Roger Hedge's slides were of an outing which Edwin Course organised a few years ago. Nigel Smith showed some of the Dordrecht Steam Festival, Bob Smith some of Prague, including a Blacksmiths situated in the town centre, and Jeff Pain showed us an assortment from his trip in a VC10 being used for mid-air refuelling. All slides were excellent in clarity and content. There did not seem to be many books or publications left at the end of the meeting, so I hope Alan managed to get rid of most of the stock he brought along.

September - Outdoor Visit to Wessex Film and Sound Archive, Winchester

Unfortunately, I missed September's outdoor meeting held at The Record Office in Winchester on Wessex Film and Sound Archives, but I am sure everyone had a thoroughly enjoyable evening.

October - Quiz

It was quiz time again in October. Martin Gregory gave us 50 questions which were originally set 25 years ago, so some of the members had a head start - as long as they had good memories to go with it! John Silman scored 44 and Keith Andrews 42. Although not so many members as usual, it was good fun.

November - AGM and Photo Competition

As usual in November it was the AGM with a photographic and slide competition afterwards. The AGM went quite smoothly with us electing a new Chairman, Rodney Hall. Eleanor proposed a big thank-you to Roger from the members for all his hard work he has put in during the last three years. We are lucky that Rob Fish is taking over the video library from his father, Andy, and Andy is now doing publicity. Unfortunately no one came forward to take over the library when Alan Teatherton gives up next February, so we are very anxious to find another librarian. Think of all the I.A books you get to read! Mateen Farooqui has now moved away after doing such a sterling job with the website, and Gerald Davies has now stood down as SERIAC Representative, but I have taken over from him.

During the break Keith and Ruth Andrews started to collect membership fees for the coming year, and the meeting ended with Bill White giving out prizes to Angela Smith for her very atmospheric picture of a Dutch windmill and to Tony Yoward for his photograph of the Newport Transporter Bridge.

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Reports

The Hertfordshire and Lea Valley AIA Conference 2004

Mary Yoward

The Conference this year was held at the newly built De Havilland Campus of the University of Hertfordshire, situated at Hatfield. This has been erected on the site of the old De Havilland aircraft factory and the observation tower is still there, although now a centre for athletics! The buildings, accommodation and lectures were excellent, as usual, and the visits full of interest.

Preceding the main Conference was the Seminar on Current Thinking and Research in IA when nine speakers with varying interests told of their research. This is always an interesting day, with a broad number of subjects covered including, this year, a talk by Adriaan Linters on Heritage Preservation in Flanders.

The Main Conference began with an introductory talk on Friday evening - when we were assured that all great inventions began in Duck Leas Lane in the Lea Valley, the birthplace of the Technological Revolution.

Saturday began with The Industrial Age Archaeology of Hertfordshire and the Planning Process by Jonathan Smith, followed by a talk on the malting industry of the area by Amber Patrick. Later, we were to see how great this industry had been there, along with Paper-making and Gunpowder making, the subjects of the next talks by Richard Hills and Brenda Buchanan respectively.

Then, after lunch, we could have gone to look at paper mills or maltings, but see below - they were for other days - and we took the lazy option - a ride on the Leighton Buzzard narrow gauge railway for three miles behind a steam engine. Sand had been found in the valley in the late 19th century and the track was used to carry it to the nearby canal or railway. The two foot gauge track wound its way between houses and across several level-crossings - where the guard had to get out to stop the traffic! Unfortunately, it went just too fast to pick the numerous blackberries beside the track.

The day ended with the Conference Dinner, members' contributions and, of course, a visit to the bar! For those who have never been to a Conference, the dinner is a (semi-!) formal occasion, the members' contributions consist of about ten minute talks on a variety of subjects and the bar speaks for itself! Seriously, this is where one meets like-minded people and renews contacts and friendships every year - and it doesn't have to be alcoholic!

Sunday began with the presentation of the various AIA awards for work done during the preceding year. This was followed by the AGM and then the Rolt Memorial lecture, given this year by Dr Dennis Smith, with excerpts from Rolt's writings read by his widow, Sonia. A truly memorable annual lecture.

Lunch ended the main Conference and the visits began with a choice between Gunpowder at Waltham Abbey, a visit to various sites around Luton, or our choice of Enfield, including the Flash Lane cast iron aqueduct and the Whitewebbs Road Transport Museum. The latter is well worth a visit - it was originally the New River Pumping Station and we were supposed to look at the remaining 200ft deep well, but the transport collection was so fascinating that it rather took over! Talks on the Aviation Industry in Hertfordshire and on Bletchley Park and Enigma finished the day - always excepting the bar!

On Monday we opted for a day looking at the remains of the malting industry in the area - the alternative being a visit to Bletchley Park. On the way, we came very close to Stansted Airport - interesting to those of us who have never braved travel from it. The sites varied from the 16th century building at Great Dunmow to the large maltings on the Stort Navigation, and the tour finished with a visit to the working maltings of French & Jupps at Stanstead Abbotts. That evening, lectures were on Three Mills & the Distilling industry and The Grand Junction Canal in Hertfordshire.

Tuesday was a paper and canal day for us. The alternative was a visit to the RAF Museum at Hendon and then the Royal Gunpowder Mills at Waltham Abbey, both of which we had visited before. We had not realised the extent of the paper making industry in this area - names such as John Dickinson, Croxley & Basildon Bond originated in the area and it was at the Frogmore Paper Mill that the first Foudrinier machine was installed. It is mostly specialist paper which is still made here and we all came away with a sample of 'Ellypoo' paper - work it out! Dickinson was one of the moving spirits for the Grand Junction Canal - he could see that it would be useful to his business! The last visit was to the Pitstone Green Museum, an assortment of farm implements and village industries, with a Crossley gas engine.

That evening, we were told of the proposed museum of the industry of the Lea Valley and about the IA of Old Ford and Hackney Wick.

As we have visited Abbey Mills Pumping Station and Three Mills, we decided that, interesting as they both are, a day in the Central Lea Valley was the better choice, chiefly visiting pumping stations and Enfield Lock. This included the preserved 100hp Woolf-compound beam engine which had been installed at the Markfield Road Sewage Pumping Station in 1886, where it is hoped to create the Lea Valley Museum. In the evening, the lectures were on Garden Cities and, rather unexpectedly, the Watercress Industry of the area. That was to be the last evening, so goodbyes were being said to those who were not staying for the last visit, but returning home from various points during the next day.

And the last day was an architectural one - looking at the Garden Cities established in the last century. Quite properly, the first one visited was the first one built - Letchworth, built in 1903. A tour of the town, partly by coach and partly on foot, demonstrated the varying forms of housing, but the most imposing building was undoubtedly the Spirella Factory - for those who remember mother's corsets! Then through the post-WW2 town of Stevenage to Welwyn Garden City, started in 1920, with various industrial buildings as well as the housing.

So ended another very enjoyable Conference. The weather was good, the accommodation comfortable (although the least said about the food, the better!) and, as always, the company was most enjoyable - it is always good to meet old friends, even if it is only once a year!

Next year the accommodation will be at Nottingham, but with special emphasis on the Industrial Archaeology of the Derbyshire area. Why not make a decision to come and join us? As members of HIAS, an Affiliated Society, you will be very welcome - as you would be at the Ironbridge weekend in April, another worthwhile occasion.

HIAS Rescue and Restoration Section

John Christmas (Project Manager)

The past six months have been moderately busy with ongoing involvement at various sites.

Whitchurch Silk Mill has had to replace the timbers in the wheel and, during this process, the calcine deposits on the wheel were removed. Members of the section attended the mill during this process and assisted. Crux Easton Wind Engine has had minor work carried out mainly to the control linkages. Shafting and pulleys have been obtained for this location but have yet to be installed.

Chesapeake Mill, Wickham, has seen the section start work on some of the machinery left in place. All of the machines will shortly be complete in their drives with fast and loose pulleys, which will enable the turbine to run without the machines running but with the shafting all belted and rotating behind guarding where necessary. The antiques furniture firm which has leased the mill is now open for business.

Plastic sack that caused the turbine to jam at Chesapeake Mill

The wheel and pump at Timsbury has been the major ongoing work this year. The wheel has now been painted, the pumps have been stripped and a new crank sourced, complete with new coupling. These items have been repainted and are in place and aligned. Prior to this placement, the bearing timbers were replaced, these having been fashioned from 12 x 12 air-seasoned oak. The wheel bearings have yet to be finally aligned. The wheel control sluice and frame is being rebuilt and should be fitted shortly.

If anyone has knowledge of any IA plant which is in danger of being broken up, or help is required in its restoration, then contact John Silman, Mick Edgeworth or myself and we will follow up the contact to see if we can give assistance in any way.

Hampshire Mills Group

Mick Edgeworth (hon. Vice-Chairman HMG.)

Our membership keeps growing slowly but steadily.

We supplied labour and expertise to Whitchurch Silk Mill to help them replace the wheel bearing timbers and lent them our air compressors for use in decalcining the wheel iron work and also supplied much of the labour required for this task.

We are in the process of moving the ancillary milling equipment originally installed in Emsworth's Quay Mill from Hayling Island, where it has been in store, to HCC Museum Store. At Chesapeake Mill in Wickham we are restoring the remaining machinery and already have freed the turbine, where we discovered a large plastic sack had been caught in the blades, and ran it for a short time to check that the machinery operated all right.

We have hosted Somerset IA Society and Sussex Mills Group in visits to Crux Easton Wind Engine and Longbridge Mill where we operated & milled for them. We also mill at Longbridge Mill every month, generally on the fourth Saturday.

Working party at Emsworth

Nigel Smith

Sunday 14 November dawned very cold, but bright and sunny which suited our purposes for the day's activities. A group of 8 members met at a farm on Hayling Island where our morning's efforts were to be clearing mill machinery for safe storage at Chilcomb. The artefacts have been stored in an open-fronted barn for over 10 years and originally came from Quay Mill in Emsworth when it was converted into a sailing club with a marina. Equipment includes a crusher, sack hoist and what may be a bread mixing machine, plus other ancillary machinery. Plans for their long term future have yet to be decided, but they will be in a safe storage with Hampshire County Museums until a use is found. Two heavy items were winched on to a trailer and other parts moved out for easier collection at a later date. The group then adjourned for lunch courtesy of the Yowards at Slipper Mill in Emsworth, where our next task awaited.

After an excellent lunch and being joined by another member, plus Tony Yoward and Tony from the AIA, we constructed temporary scaffolding next to the sluice at the Slipper Mill pond whilst the tide dropped. The objective was to complete earlier repairs to the sluice gates carried out over a year ago and, specifically, to fix a thick rubber strip on to the bottom of the gate and add some plastic strips to the side bearers to reduce leakage. The gate was raised to its full height by a pulley block and cleaned of marine life before the rubber strip was fixed in place - this required the gate mechanism to be dismantled which was a time-consuming job. All the while, walkers on the public footpath were asking us what we were doing. Due to the short daylight, the job had to be completed under floodlights and torches, but it was all finished by 6.30pm. Hopefully, a job well done and good for at least 20 years or so. Many thanks to Tony and Mary for their hospitality and the HMG members who braved the chilly conditions.

Maritime Projects

Jeff Pain and Angela Smith

S.S. Shieldhall www.ss-shieldhall.co.uk

After a mainly successful season, allowing for the unfortunate incident in Holland, Shieldhall is now undergoing her normal winter refit. There are no Christmas cruises this year, but there is an Xmas lunch on board Sunday 19th December.

Plans are well underway to celebrate her 50th birthday in 2005, both in her adopted home of Southampton and Glasgow, her birthplace. Firstly, in Southampton, a rededication ceremony at the City Cruise Terminal, 101 Berth, Western Docks, by the three Port Chaplains with support from the Sea Scouts, a pipe band, the Bournemouth Male Voice Choir, etc and Southampton City. It is scheduled to commence at 10.30am on Saturday 11th June followed by a river cruise (inclusive tickets will be available at about �40 each) with a gala dinner on the Sunday (12/6/05, cost tba).

The trip to Glasgow is at last gaining local support. Lord Primrose (son of Lord Elgin) has joined the cause and this, in turn, is generating commercial interest (and money) and the circumstances for a successful visit home are coming together. Shieldhall representatives were visiting Glasgow in November to check 'on the spot'.

A high quality hardback book is in the process of production to tell the story of Shieldhall's 50 years. Although there is plenty of material of her time in the south, photographs during her service on the Clyde are not so easy to come by. One member had managed to get a trip whilst she was in service and took a few photographs, but more would be very welcome, also anecdotes relating to her service and any details of crew. Co-ordinating this is Graham Mackenzie, 54 Old Kennels Lane, Olivers Battery, Winchester, Hampshire, SO22 4JS.

Tug/Tender Calshot www.tugtendercalshot.co.uk

On a general note, final handover from City ownership to the Calshot Trust is progressing and, once complete, will hopefully facilitate a Lottery application for funds. ABP remains content with her continued use of 42 Berth.

An event celebrated on the 4th November was the 75th anniversary of her launch and naming by Mrs Hilda White (wife of a Thornycroft director) at Woolston on the River Itchen. This comprised a gathering on board for a renaming ceremony by Susan Tatton-Brown (granddaughter of Hilda White) who also donated a number of photographs covering the original proceedings in 1929. At the ceremony, which was held at the Queen Elizabeth II passenger terminal, the Lord Lieutenant of Hampshire, Mary Fagan, cut a celebration cake while soldiers from 17 Port and Maritime Regiment formed a guard of honour.

British Military Powerboat Trust www.bmpt.org.uk

Members of the Trust are looking at a proposal to move from Marchwood to the old power station site at Poole as all attempts to relocate in the Southampton area have so far drawn a blank. Hubert Scott-Paine's British Power Boat Company was at Hythe . . . why is there no museum in Southampton devoted to this genius, who was even more remarkable than R J Mitchell, having founded Supermarine Aviation in 1914 before going on to building powerboats in 1927. An approach was made by two entrepreneurs who want to set up a World of Boats exhibition in Poole, so the entire collection of these unique craft would be lost to Dorset. However, this is dependent on a property developer being given planning permission for a major housing development on the site provided they include the museum . . . and developers usually like to wring the maximum profits for their outlay. September is the deadline to move from the former Husbands Shipyard.

Dunkirk Little Ships Restoration Trust

Nydia and Irma were moved to Donington Museum, Leicestershire, earlier in the year to be restored and join the collection of mainly historic vehicles and weapons from the Second World War. Attention was then turned to the remaining Dunkirk Little Ships at Marchwood, all of which must be found new homes by next summer. HIAS members who visited the former Husbands Shipyard in July would realise that some of the vessels need rather more space than can be fitted into an average back yard. Jerry Lewis reports that work on Rania is continuing steadily, but they need volunteers to sort out the engine room and electrical system. An HLF application is being worked on for Lucy Lavers. Another vessel which has been awaiting restoration funds, Resolute, looks like it will be going to Scotland.

The DLSRT is still seeking a new home for its vessels and, although they could join the BMPT in Poole, the boats would have to be mothballed for 3 years +, so other sites in Southampton, Gosport and Norfolk are being looked at. What a shame that such a historic collection of boats is being broken up - but better that than scrapping, which was the fate of Dunkirk Little Ship New Windsor Castle when a site couldn't be found.

Steam tug Challenge (Dunkirk Little Ships Restoration Trust)

Although not at present based in Hampshire, the Trust hopes to return the Challenge to the county when a berth is available. The tug visited Portsmouth for the D-Day commemoration and Liverpool for the Mersey River Festival, both in June, then to France for the Festival of the Sea at Brest in mid July, followed by a visit to Bristol in August. It attracted more than 15,000 visitors. A berth has been offered at Shoreham for the next two years.

Next June sees the International Fleet Review at Spithead on the 28th with a Son et Lumi�re at Portsmouth in the evening, and the Festival of the Sea at Portsmouth June 30 - July 3. Challenge will also attend the London International Boat Show at ExCel January 8 - 18, and May 26 - 30 is the commemorative return to Dunkirk.

(Items about the Dunkirk Little Ships Restoration Trust and S.T. Challenge have been taken from the Autumn 2004 newsletter, DLSRT News, with thanks to Jerry Lewis - who can be contacted at

The Cottage by the Lake, Hook Shore, Warsash, Southampton, SO31 9HF. Tel: 01489 572775; or e-mail: jerry.lewis@care4free.net for information on the Trust or any offers of help.

Tram 57 Project

Angela and Nigel Smith

The main focus of our activities in the past six months has been in support of various initiatives to find suitable new accommodation for restoration to recommence. We have been working closely with the Collections Management team from Southampton City Council and through the Southampton Heritage Federation, both exploring potential sites around the city, but so far to no avail. We have not given up, though, and efforts continue to examine possibilities with these two organisations and by our own independent researches.

Without workshop facilities little progress can be made on Car 11 or Car 38, but in July we took one of 11's controllers to a specialist firm in the Midlands for assessment and certified overhaul. If this proves economic, our other controllers will follow in due course and maybe other components which we lack the expertise or facilities to overhaul or rebuild. Some small items are subject to restoration as a homework project, on an ad hoc basis.

On August bank holiday Sunday, the heritage bus group organised a small rally and running day at Ocean Village at which we had a sales stand that proved very successful. It had been relocated from Mayflower Park which was being set up for the Boat Show. Hopefully something similar will be repeated next year.

We sadly lost recent volunteer Bill Geddes, a skilled joiner, who had begun work on 11's curved-end window frames in advance of fitting the glazing. He was taken ill last December and seemed to be recovering, but passed away in August at the age of 56, a day after his mother died.

However, there was one bright spot. In June the Southampton Advertiser ran a short feature on the Tram Project, mainly on the subject of artefacts (and at the same time just happening to mention the 'homeless' situation, though that came to nothing). A photo of Collections assistant Rachel Wragg, holding the destination box from Car 9 which was mentioned in the last Focus, appeared with an appeal for tram memorabilia for the archives.

This appeal did result in some artefacts being donated. There was a small packet of bus tickets from Beryl Ferguson of Sholing, and Sylvia Street (wife of former Southampton mayor Ken Street - they visited the Millbrook workshop during Ken's mayoral year) sent a Southampton tram ticket. A photograph of Car 41 with a lady conductor, taken about 1916, along with a photo of the lady in question - a Mrs Guy - were brought to our attention by John Petty of Totton (not the same John who was once a SUIAG member). Mrs Guy was the aunt of his next door neighbour. These two photos were purchased from Mr Petty.

Now we get on to the larger items. Two genuine staircase mirrors from a Southampton car were donated by Mr Fryer from Bitterne (these were made of metal with a mirror finish, not from glass), and a rectangular wooden destination board with black lettering on a white background, saying 'FLOATING BRIDGE AND WINN ROAD (COMMON) Via High Street' came from Mrs Conner of Bitterne. She had kept this for many years after it wasn't sold at a car boot sale and thought it might be tram, and would we like to have it. Early electric trams carried this type of board over the front buffer irons for some years. This one was probably a 'short working' for events on the Common. Bill White picked up the mirrors and board for us.

The largest artefacts came from Dennis Ashby who works for First Bus at Portswood and owns a heritage bus and a number of old cars which are kept in various garages. He needed to vacate one garage and came across these two boards which he had rescued when the old Portswood bus depot was about to be demolished. One has been slightly damaged by water and they are in desperate need of a good clean, but what a find! In 1937 the tramways department ran an illuminated car for the Coronation. On the two ends were illuminated crowns and on the sides were profiles of the King and Queen. They were made of some sort of papier mach� and would have held coloured light bulbs on the outlines. One of each type survived and they are now in the City's Collections Management Centre awaiting restoration.

Whilst on the subject of publicity, Radio Solent's Ali Sparkes interviewed us and photographed us with Car 11, the result of which is in the Radio Solent Magazine which was published in early December. Martin Petch was interviewed, by phone on