This post takes a different approach to the usual ‘workshop diary’ format of my posts on the blog.  In the post below, I’ve attempted to describe some of the thinking that goes into the work on our transport collection, and how this is now being classified and encapsulated within a workable system, and one which can grow with the continuing history of the objects.  In developing this process, my objective was to create something usable and accessible to everyone who might have contact with these collections, and also to capture a lot of information that has a tendency to only reside in the heads of those involved sometimes – something clearly not sustainable beyond the average lifespan!  I hope readers find this to be of interest, and that it adds something to the usual posts, and reports of progress on the varied and exciting projects that reside within our care.

Sunderland Corporation Transport No.2

Whilst the history of this vehicle has been covered previously, it is perhaps useful to repeat it here.

Sunderland Corporation, whose extensive and well-regarded tramway system was established by an act of parliament in 1899, added powers to operate motor buses in 1927.  The first buses to operate under these powers commenced work in February 1928.  These vehicles were hired from the Northern General Transport Company (as were their crews) and the first route served the docks.

The first buses purchased by SCT arrived in 1929, and were a batch of 12 Leyland Lion LT1s with Leyland front-entrance B32F bodies, of which No.2 was the second in the fleet.

No.2 was sold in 1934 to a Hull dealer, who exported it to Jersey for service with Tantivy Motors (where it was re-registered J 9008) in 1937.  It is reputed to have been one of only four buses still licenced for operation at the end of the German occupation (as petrol supplies became scarce) and was also subject to some modernisation including an increase of its seating capacity from 32 to 35.  In 1949 it was purchased by Jersey Motor Transport, becoming No.49 in their fleet.

No.2’s working life finished in 1958 when it was withdrawn and in 1959 it purchased for preservation by the late Michael Plunkett and returned to the UK.  He brought it back to the UK and set about restoring it to its original Sunderland specification, a process that took several years.

It became a familiar vehicle on the rally scene in the 1960s and was also driven back to the northeast on two occasions to take part in anniversary celebrations of the transport departments in both Sunderland and Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

Latterly based at Amberley Chalk Pits Museum in West Sussex, in the ownership of the Southdown Omnibus Trust.  It was transferred to Beamish in 2023, arriving at the museum on the 10^th January 2023.

Below: These images from The Leyland Archive (c/o Mike Sutcliffe) shows SCT 2, from the same batch of buses that SCT 2 was part of.  Such images are invaluable when developing the VAS for any artefact, and are particularly useful if restorign details that were removed in subsequent service life.  I have yet to see a photo of SCT 2 when in Jersey, but hopefully something will emerge one day.

Vehicle Attitude Statement

The term above (VAS) is something that I’ve started to use when compiling documents on vehicles (railway, tram and road) within our collection – usually if work is to be carried out on them, or if they are newly acquired.  Perhaps one day the whole collection will be thus documented, but for now, it is done rather more on need than nice-to-have.  The document uses a standard format and takes its title from a mechanism the National Tramway Museum uses for their collection of tramcars.  Once inside the document, various areas are described, including history, current condition, desired condition and any useful references and resources.  The vehicle is also allocated an operational criteria letter.  Here is a screenshot of the VAS for SCT 2, to give an idea of what it looks like when first created.  The document continues to grow as more research is carried out and work (if that is desired) completed.

The criteria letter referred to is a reference to the Operating Working Artefacts policy and I’ll use extracts from it here to describe its creation and function.

The operation of transport and industry artefacts at Beamish Museum is a core principle and one which resonates with general visitors and enthusiasts for this subject matter alike.  There is a general presumption that, within an open-air museum setting, collections should be seen in context, be made operational where possible/practicable and that visitors should be able to explore and interact with them in the manner that they would have done when our artefacts and objects were made and in original use.

Nationally, there have been many attempts to describe the use and conservation of working collections in museums, but none have quite fitted our requirements at Beamish, therefore we designed and evolved our own system, the aim being to create something simple and therefore effective, usable by both collections and maintenance staff within the organisation and able to describe our ‘attitude’ to the care and maintenance of working collections (and rationalise why there were some artefacts that would not be operated).

In order to categorise the usage of transport and industry artefacts (largely vehicles but also to include fairground rides and stationary working exhibits), the system has been devised to enable the restoration, management and maintenance to be focussed so as to ensure safety in operation, ensure that performance/engagement is of the highest standard, maximise available resources and enable planning of restoration/overhauls and the precious funding that is available for these.

Nearly all of the artefacts in the collections at Beamish have the potential to move up and down the categories and whilst downward movement will generally come with age/use and therefore increased management in terms of monitoring wear and tear/condition, the upward movement requires more in depth consideration of the potential performance/use at Beamish, the work required and its impact upon the object itself (i.e. degree of originality) and also the cost.  It is also important to note that there is no variance in levels of safety between categories where artefacts are operational.

A/A+: Within the working collections there are clearly artefacts that have a high degree of operational availability required – such as the Gallopers and Accessible Buses.  The A category has therefore been supplemented with an A+ to reflect this.  The wider A category would include the tramcars, but as multiple vehicles are available, the individual requirements are not quite so vital.  Therefore, in restoration terms and maintenance planning, an A+ artefact would be subject to more rigour in order to deliver the higher degree of reliability and therefore availability of operation required for these core operations.

B: This category of artefacts are still regularly operated but are not at the core of daily operation.  They are also artefacts that may be A/A+ artefacts which, due to wear or age are reduced in status but remain available for operation – this has been reflected in the usage of some tramcars for instance.  A review of the condition and potential usage would be carried out and costed in order to restore the artefact to a higher status.  A current example of this would be the printing presses in the Print Shop – where availability of competent operatives is as much a factor in the potential usage as the condition of the press.

C: These artefacts are operational and potentially quite fragile or require operation by someone with a specific competence.  Thus the motorcycles fit this category very well as they are in full working order and available for use, but are managed according to available riders and also in deference to their age/originality.

D: In this category the artefact is potentially operable (i.e. is complete and intact) but is not so at present and therefore is either performing a static display function or in storage.  A survey of condition and potential usage would enable movement upwards through the scale and an example of this is the Dodge Bus, now undergoing restoration by the Friends of Beamish.

E: The artefacts in this category would usually be of a fragile state, of great value or originality, or derelict.  The Seaham Harbour coal drops and the Stephenson works engine are examples here (and are also long-term loans in with conditions attached). 

Below: These tables (rather blurry screenshots I’m afraid) show the categories, colour coding and some examples of each too.

The policy was created by Matt Ellis and I, and it has served Beamish fairly well so far.  The VAS is designed to expand on this and give the necessary detail required for each of the vehicles (or industrial artefacts) to enable considered maintenance, conservation, restoration and use.  In this example, it is being applied to SCT 2, which is a precious and important vehicle and one which will be very carefully treated in both a conservation and operational sense.

Work so far…

Below: This view was taken before work on the interior started.  It shows a later style of seat fitted (possibly in connection with increasing the seating capacity when in use in Jersey).  There is a lovely patina evident throughout, but also quite a lot that would make it unsuible for the occasional carriage of passengers around the museum.

Below: Oh what have we done!  As the old saying goes, you have to break eggs in order to make an omelette, so at this stage of work (which is untidy and seems rather destructive), it is always useful to have the VAS for the bus in the back of our mind and have clear sight of the objective.  So, what is the objective?  Let’s focus on the interior of SCT 2 for now.

We are seeking to achieve a Category C object, in care and operational terms.  To recap, this is: An An artefact suitable for occasional operation with certain restrictions of usage/range of operation and which is not part of the core operation but used to enhance performance in some areas on occasion.

Therefore, with SCT being of regional and national significance and of great interest due to its material originality, the work to be carried out internally consists of that which will enable it to pass the inspection that all of our passenger carrying vehicles are subject to, to allow for the occasional operation of it within the museum.  To this end, the work being carried out will consist of:

• Removal of the seats and assess them for restoration (these not being the originals, but very much part of SCT 2’s post-Sunderland history)
• Inspect the original floor for areas requiring repair, then encase this with a modern plywood to allow a replacement linoleum surface to be restored per the finish when SCT was received at Beamish
• Renew the lower side panels internally – these being hardboard and badly warped.
• Repaint the ceiling, and window pillars, paint the new side panels and also the seat frames
• Repair or renew the edge trim, both wood and metal sheet, where required
• Replace forward/rearward glazing with safety glass and have side windows coated with ‘bomb blast’ material to prevent shattering in the event of window breakage
• Repair/replace missing window dropper mechanisms including the instruction plates (several of which are missing)
• Replicate the luggage racks – potentially in a latter phase of conservation

Whilst it would be tempting to leave SCT 2 exactly as it is, in a museum such as Beamish, where the visitor experience is so important to us, the opportunity to put the bus back into occasional use is one that is important to us, and I think it is something that will be of very great value to those who are thus able to enjoy a journey in SCT 2, with all the attendant sounds and smells that go with a vehicle that is only five years short of its centenary.

Below: The rear of the bus shows evidence of seat re-spacing, and we will have to work out the original positions in order to restore the as-new configuration which would have been seen in Sunderland.  The floor will be clad in Birch-plywood, to spread the load and protect the original floor as well as to give a suitable surface onto which the replacement lino can be laid.  Note the inspection hatch for accessing the differential (the dome-like shape seen in the centre of this photograph).

Below: The side windows can be lowered, and are self-balancing.  The latch locks them in whatever position is desired and are a lovely feature to have and ensure are operational.  A couple of the drums are missing, so replicas will be made in the machine shop to ensure a full compliment features on the bus.

Below: These brass instruction plates for the windows are also a nice feature to have survived.  Some are missing, but we’ve sufficient examples to be able to commission replacements, in etched brass.

Below:  This is the area around the fuel filler, from the inside.  It was shrouded by a plate, and is clearly an area that we will have to pay particular attention to.  The witness mark of the cowl that sits around this apperture is just about visible.

Below: These kick-panels can be found all around the interior of the saloon.  They have deteriorated quite badly and we will have to decide whether we can repair them or will have to replace them.  Much of the dismantling work thus far has been carried out by Matt Beddard, who is the joiner in our team, and he reports quite a lot of repairs are evident in the trim, where nails have been used in place of brass screws – perhaps telling a story of repairs being carried out on a very tight budget while the bus was in Jersey.

Below: Dan has been manufacturing a new exhaust for the bus, which will complete the first stage of work required towards recommissioning the bus mechanically.

I hope the above has been a useful overview of this type of project, and which I’ve presented in far more detail than is usually possible in the regular postings.  Progress will be fairly slow as this project has to fit in and around all of the other (and often more urgent) work that the team carries out.  SCT 2 is having a new exhaust made, and I’ll feature this in the regular posts as this new component is something of a work of art!  Meanwhile, stripping will continue, and then the work to the floor should provide the first visible evidence of this project moving forward.  As ever, please do check in on the blog for latest news.

Photos in this post by Matt Beddard, Paul Jarman and c/o The Leyland Society.