There is lots to report on this week, both activity on site as well as coming up away from the Museum, plus a glance over the hill to our neighbours at Tanfield.  We start with a look two weeks ahead to an open day at Seaham Harbour…

Seaham Harbour Open Day

On the 22nd June our No.17 and a former Londonderry chaldron waggon will return to Seaham for display at an open day on the North Dock adjacent to the new heritage centre.

Below: A reminder of No.17’s last visit to the North Dock at Seaham in November 2007.

And a reminder of the link to some fantastic archive footage of the engines at work around Seaham: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b5wLRqj2pHQ#t=22

Below: In November 1962 a lifeboat rescue was to become famous after the boat The George Elmy, returning from its mission to rescue five fishermen, was capsized as it approached the harbour at Seaham, its home, resulting in the loss of nine lives.  The boat was later repaired and though it didn’t work from Seaham again, it was etched into the minds of the community who still vividly recall that day.  It was later decommissioned and converted into a fishing vessel and so would have remained had it not been recognised following its advertisement on eBay.  It was purchased and moved back to Seaham by the East Durham Heritage Group, who within a very short space of time have raised the funds to restore the boat, sailed it back to Seaham and placed it into a newly created heritage centre in the original (pre-dating the George Elmy) lifeboat house at the North Dock.  Not a bad achievement!!!  It is now on regular display and will be on display outside along with No.17 on the 22nd June.

For more on this story, see: http://www.seaham.org.uk/georgeelmy/

Below: The original lifeboat house, and later fisherman’s store, has been restored as the East Durham Heritage and Lifeboat Centre.  This now forms a focal point for heritage in this area and includes the George Elmy display and numerous artifacts and photographs of the Seaham area.

Below: A view from the north showing an area to the north of the harbour that was once covered in track and very familiar territory to No.s 16, 17 and 18.

Below: This impressive and evocative sculpture is presently on display in Seaham.  More information on this can be found at: http://www.sunderlandecho.com/what-s-on/new-world-war-one-statue-for-seaham-seafront-1-6630051

Austin Hearse

Below: This, until now, has been one of our lesser spotted and rarer seen items from the transport collection, our Austin 20 hearse.  Some facts and figures from the Regional Museum Store record:

A petrol driven Austin 20 hearse. Date of registration: 12/05/1928. The hearse was used by Mr T. W. T. Kirk of Thornley, County Durham until 1950. The coachwork was built by Slater, a Nottingham company. Registration No: YM 5032. Chassis type: 629-6. Rating 24.5 HP. Weight: (unladen) 1 ton 17 cwt. Engine no: 665.6. Length: 4900mm x Height: 2080mm x Width: 1820mm. Wheel diameter: 800mm

It has been brought up to the workshops for assessment towards a return to the road.  It will probably move to the Town Garage for much of the work to be done, in the public eye, but is thought to have a cracked cylinder block, so this is being investigated first.  It has, in the past, completed the Beamish Reliability Trial, and in due course it may yet enter this again…

Below: An appropriate play on a previous marketing slogan used at the Museum!

Living Van

Below: Tony has now assembled the new clerestory  panels, seen here in the foreground and behind.  He is now working on the numerous windows which insert between the uprights.  Most of this assembly, along with a new main entrance door to the van, will be varnished and should look very well alongside the deep red paintwork.

Below: Matt has lined the whole van using a dense commercial insulation board.  This should reduce condensation and make the occupants life a little more comfortable!

Below: Externally the aluminium panels have been etch primed, and the steel ones treated with rust inhibitor and then primed.  The aim is to provide a very good base to the coachpaint and lining.

N&G 49

It is probably timely to have a look at the horse tram restoration project that we have underway in the RHEC, centred on former Newcastle & Gosforth Tramway No.49…

Below: This image, a copy given to us from what looks like a commercial source (postcard?) shows a tram of the type that No.49 is.  It might be No.37, but is certainly of the same ‘class’ and probably origin (Midland Carriage & Wagon).  Note the livery style, bold lining with Greek Keys, the enamel adverts and the plethora of paper adverts and notices in the windows.  A very nice and everyday scene, not apparently posed, and thus a rare view of a double deck horse tram working in Newcastle.  We have the destination/route panel from 49, similar to that shown here (just above the lower deck windows), which will be conserved and provide a something to copy during the reconstruction of the tram.

Below: A look back at N&G 49 as it arrived and ultimately ended up at Beamish.  It arrived in the early days of the Museum, as seen here in 1973 when it was railed onto the tramway at Foulbridge crossing and moved to the depot. There it was displayed until it was eventually moved across Foulbridge and found itself behind the present Erecting Shop building.  Decay took its inevitable toll and eventually an offer from an enthusiast on Merseyside to remove the remains and see if anything was salvageable was accepted and 49 was dismantled, recorded and taken away.  Eventually, its restoration was ruled out, so the remains returned to Beamish, where we now had the chance of obtaining the almost identical and also incomplete L&W 8.  So the plan was hatched – use the best of both plus a fair bit of replica material to recreate N&G 49, but doing nothing to prevent it also being L&W 8 if required!  So the present project was born and a team of volunteers under Clive’s leadership are steadily working on the bits each weekend, with the Museum (usually me!) providing a route towards a running vehicle again, with the assistance of other enthusiast groups around the UK.  When complete it will give us an attractive vehicle to occasionally use, send out for display and add to the evolution of Newcastle transport that we can present at Beamish.

Below: These views, which came into our collection via the late George Hearse, were taken in Gosforth and show a varied assemblage of horse trams going about their business – though none are of the batch 49 came from. They show a mixture of double ended and single ended Eades reversible cars, with a variety of lettering types too.

Below: This view fascinates me – it shows such a variety of horse-drawn traffic, but also an interesting interloper.  Note the tram in the centre of the view (also shown as an enlargement) – it would appear to be in a different livery, with its origin on the rocker panel painted out.  Is it Leeds?  Busby & Turton operated this tramway (as franchisees essentially), and many others across the UK, so this would seem to confirm that they would move trams between systems according to need and traffic requirements.  This is certainly worthy of further investigation!

Below: One of the wheelsets from 49, cleaned and primed.  A good deal of such work has been carried out on the mechanical bits of the tram so far, and close study of the bearings/axleboxes has revealed some work in this area requiring attention.  This can be done in-house, but joins a lengthy queue of work for Chris to tackle, not least completing 16’s truck works.

Tanfield Railway

A quick look over the hill at the Tanfield Railways recent programme of events, with visiting motive power (see earlier post for photos of Locomotion No.1 there).  See also: http://tanfield-railway.blogspot.co.uk/

Below: The first of a series of (somewhat grainy – i-phone rather than proper camera I’m afraid!) photographs taken on Sunday at the Tanfield Railways Rural Railways themed gala, starring the Bluebell Railway’s visiting SECR P Class No.178, seen here approaching Andrews House Station from Sunniside during a momentary burst of sunshine.

Below: Twizell has passed its steam test and is being finished off ready for a re-entry to service.  The railway is currently using its five-road shed as a running depot whilst the original engine shed receives attention to the gable wall.  Again, dissapointingly grainy shot – must check the phone settings!

Below: No.2 (ex Keighley Gas Works) arrives on shed for disposal.

Below: No.178 and Sir Cecil Cochrane join No.2 on shed for disposal at Marley Hill.