This page is an archive of previous 'Latest News' since the website was redesigned in November 2007.
December 2009
If you would like to see more photos of our latest event on Saturday 5th December, Alan Usher has added a 'Santa 2009' Gallery to his Kirkby Stephen East website.
With the snow and freezing temperatures, little work has been undertaken at KSE the last few days and the site is now officially closed to the general public - it will formally re-open on Saturday 9th January. We are pleased to report that Newsletter No.32 has been delivered and that it is now in the post to all our regular subscribers - hopefully it will arrive in time for Christmas. It is, of course, also available from various outlets including the local Newsagents etc. Finally, we thank you all for your interest and support and wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
Saturday (12th) saw our 3rd Annual 'Santa' event with visitors arriving on the free bus service from Brough and Kirkby which was operated by Cumbria Classic Coaches. Despite the cold weather, there were many smiling young faces which made all the effort to decorate the platform and construct the grotto worthwhile. A report in the 'Eden Valley Messenger' can be found here.Yesterday (13th) saw the volunteers back at work on more familiar duties - the first panel of the standing line which had been lifted for attention to the trackbed was relaid and the S&T gang made excellent progress with the rodding run to Point No.3B - an update has been added to the Signalling & Track page.
Yesterday (9th), work started in earnest on the section of standing line vacated by last weekend's shunt of rolling stock. The consensus view was that the best way to proceed would be to dismantle the 3 panels of track and regrade the trackbed - this was completed yesterday and we also had time to start relaying the sleepers for the first panel - a couple of photos have been added to the Gallery on the Trackwork page. In addition, the S&T gang were hard at work installing the remaining roller frames for the point rodding which will operate Point No. 3B on the crossover - these are now all in position and completion of this part of the project is in sight! All is now ready for our 'Santa' event this coming Saturday (10am - 4pm) - please support us if you can. Finally, the latest Newsletter has just been finished and should go 'to press' this weekend.
This weekend (5th / 6th) saw the successful completion of the latest stage in our plans to create a loading / unloading bay on the northern side of the station building. On Saturday, a shunt took place to move the 'Yorkshire Engine', Class 31 410 and the 'BG' up to Point No.3B adjacent to the crossover. Today, work commenced on the remaining section of the standing line which has now been vacated by the shunt - a couple of photos have been added to the Gallery on the Trackwork page. Elsewhere, the S&T team have continued to progress the point rodding operating the crossover and further work has taken place on the Class 108 DMU. Inside the building, preparations for next Saturday's 'Santa' event are now essentially complete - all we need now is some decent weather! Finally, a couple of photos have been added to the Gallery on the 2084 Overhaul page.
Yesterday (2nd), just for a change, we had a nice sunny (but cold!) day at KSE. The volunteers took advantage of this change in the weather to finish ballasting the section of standing line up to and including Point No. 3B on the crossover. The next stage in the work is to move the 'Yorkshire Engine', Class 31 410 and its support vehicle up to the crossover so that we can then work on the section of track on which they are currently standing. In addition, Graham and John from 'West Coast Railways' were on site again and good progress was made with the boiler work on the Peckett - an update has been added to the 2084 Overhaul page.
November 2009
Last Wednesday, the mid-week volunteers had to cancel their regular session due to the terrible weather Cumbria has been experiencing which continued over this weekend (28th / 29th). However, undeterred, further progress has been made. Outside, braving the elements, the guttering on the south-facing wall which was damaged in the storms has been repaired and we managed to ballast another panel of the standing line east of the crossover - a photo has been added to the Gallery on the Trackwork page. Inside the building, Santa's grotto has been completed and much of the 'Darlington' platform has been decorated in readiness for our 'Santa ' Event on Saturday 12th December - please see the Next Event's page for more details. In addition, further items have been removed from the Station Master's Office in readiness for its restoration and, on Saturday afternoon, we managed to find time to remove the first batch of boiler tubes from 2084 - an update and photo have been added to the 2084 Overhaul page.
Following the Volunteers Meeting, the November draw for the '200 Club' was made. The winning numbers and prizes are:
1st Prize. £15. Number 27. Dave Greenhalgh
2nd Prize. £10. Number 17. Richie Gregory
3rd Prize. £5. Number 19. Bill Watkin
The next Volunteers Meeting will be held on SUNDAY 24TH JANUARY 2010 AT 1PM in the mess room at KSE. All welcome.
First of all, many apologies for the lack of updates during the last two weeks - we have just returned from a much-needed holiday so, hopefully, normal service will now be resumed! In our absence, progress has continued on a number of projects including the S&T work (an update and photo have been added to the Signalling & Track and Trackwork pages respectively) and the Class 108 DMU. In addition, the Station Masters Office has been emptied in readiness for restoration work to begin in earnest. Work outside has been hampered by the terrible weather that Cumbria has experienced - we have been fortunate to escape relatively lightly when compared to some areas. However, we have lost some material from the Picnic Area embankment and this will be subject to repairs as soon as we are able to do so.
Yesterday (4th), Graham and John from 'West Coast Railways' at Carnforth were busy cutting the boiler tubes in 2084 in readiness for their removal - a report and photos have been added to the 2084 Overhaul page. Elsewhere, there was more progress with the trackwork and efforts continued to tidy up the site. The Next Events page has been updated with the latest news of the 'Santa' event on Saturday 12th December and Alan Usher has added some recent photos to his Kirkby Stephen East website.
Despite more bad weather again this weekend, particularly today (1st) with gales and driving rain, progress continues. Yesterday saw the last two remaining rotten timbers removed from Eden Valley Bridge No.3 so we are now in a position to make a full assessment of the condition of the steelwork. In addition, further tidying up work continued on site and, inside the building, excellent progress has been made with the initial construction phase of 'Santa's Grotto' in preparation for our event on 12th December.
October 2009
Wednesday (28th) saw the volunteers at work 'jacking and packing' the siding. The first three panels to the east of the crossover are now ready for final ballasting to take place - once this has been undertaken, we will be ready for the next phase of our plans to build a new loading / unloading ramp - this will be to move the Class 31, BG and Yorkshire Engine up to the crossover so that the siding can be temporarily realigned.
This weekend (24th / 25th) has seen the first really unpleasant weather of the winter with gale force winds and driving rain. However, the volunteers have been busy regardless - quite a bit of tidying up has taken place both inside the building and outside in the yard - further progress has been made with the S&T (an update and photo have been added to the Signalling & Track and Trackwork pages respectively) and additional work has taken place on the Class 108 DMU.
Following the Volunteers Meeting, the October draw for the '200 Club' was made, this time by Tamsyn Rayner. The winning numbers and prizes are:
1st Prize. £15. Number 7. Mike Thompson
2nd Prize. £10. Number 1. David Rayner
3rd Prize. £5. Number 34. Ken Ball
The next Volunteers Meeting will be held on SUNDAY 29TH NOVEMBER AT 1PM in the mess room at KSE. All welcome.
With bad weather forecast for Wednesday, the volunteers switched to working on site yesterday (22nd). The last two remaining track panels on the passenger line were ballasted thus completing the section up to Eden Valley Bridge No. 2 - a photo has been added to the Gallery on the Trackwork page.
Saturday (17th) witnessed a gang busy on the track once more - the ballasting of Point No. 2 was completed and the first panel towards Point No.3A was also finished - a photo has been added to the Gallery on the Trackwork page. In the evening, we held the first of the 2009 - 2010 Slide Shows and were treated to a most informative (and amusing!) presentation by Kit Spackman, one of the tilt design engineers, on the design and testing of the Advanced Passenger Train. Yesterday (18th), volunteers were busy on lineside clearance, S & T work, the Class 108 DMU and the recovery of trackwork materials off site.
Wednesday (14th) saw further progress with the trackwork. A number of fishplates were cleaned and oiled and the ballasting of Point No. 2 on the passenger line was almost completed. A photo has been added to the Gallery on the Trackwork page.
On Saturday (10th), the ballasting of another panel of track on the passenger line was completed. Steady progress continues when time allows with the boiler overhaul on 2084 - a report and some photos have been added to a new Gallery on the 2084 Overhaul page. Yesterday (11th), work continued on the Class 108 DMU, the S & T team were busy on the crossover and, after two days work, the volunteers successfully 'fired up' the diesel crane late in the afternoon.
Following the successful test train a couple of weeks ago, work has now started to finish ballasting the new section of passenger-carrying line. After a little remedial 'jacking & packing', yesterday (7th) saw Point No.1 adjacent to the site of the Junction 'box essentially completed - a photo has been added to the Gallery on the Trackwork page. In addition, painting of the door at the eastern end of the Tebay / Penrith platform was finished and some routine cleaning and oiling of fishplates also took place. Finally, last night one of our directors received a cheque for £100 which has been donated to the project from the proceeds of the 'Kirkby Stephen Garden Trail' which took place on the 18th / 19th July. We are most grateful to the Committee who organise the 'Trail' for their support - many thanks folks. Further details can be found here.
This weekend (3rd / 4th) saw further ballasting work on the pasenger and standing lines adjacent to the crossover - a photo has been added to the Gallery on the Trackwork page. Apart from a couple of very minor jobs, the new access ramp at the eastern end of the building is now finished and ready for use - a photo has also been added to the second Gallery on the KSE Station page. Further clearance of vegetation adjacent to Point No.1 also took place and work continued on 2084 in preparation for the removal of the cab and saddletank.
This week has seen further progress with ballasting the standing line to the east of the crossover and we have also started to manufacture some large tubs which should enable us to have some nice floral displays for the large car park next year. The latest newsletter has now arrived from the printers and will go in the post today to all our regular subscribers.
September 2009
Yesterday (26th) saw the 'Planet' propelling the NE Brake Van and Class 20 to the present limit of the passenger-carrying line adjacent to Eden Valley Bridge No. 2. The purpose of this was to 'bed down' the ballast and expose any areas where further work is required before ballasting is completed. The exercise was a complete success with very little further work needed - a couple of photos have been added to the Gallery on the Trackwork page. In addition, the 'Planet' was also used to shunt the two Gresley coaches beyond the crossover so that additional work can be undertaken on the standing line. Today (27th), the fencing on the new ramp was completed - a photo has been added to the new Gallery on the KSE Station page. In addition, further vegetation clearance was undertaken, a coat of gloss paint was applied to the door at the eastern end of the Tebay / Penrith platform, further progress continued on the DMU and the S & T team were also hard at work. Finally, the last loads of material from Durham and Greetland Signal Box also arrived.
The September draw for the '200 Club' was also made, this time by Dave Greenhalgh. The winning numbers and prizes are:
1st Prize. £15. Number 31. Maureen Wilson
2nd Prize. £10. Number 24. James Redfern
3rd Prize. £5. Number 33. Maggie Yates
The next Volunteers Meeting will be held on SUNDAY 25TH OCTOBER AT 1PM in the mess room at KSE. All welcome.
Wednesday (23rd) saw more progress with ballasting the standing line adjacent to the crossover (Point Nos. 3A / 3B). In addition, our regular contractor, Paul Thompson, has been hard at work during the last two days. Jobs completed include fitting new guttering at the eastern end of the building (a photo has been added to the Building Restoration Gallery on the KSE Station page), a minor roof repair and finishing the end of the new ramp - there is now just the last bit of fencing to put up and the job is complete. In addition, all the flagstones on the external section of the Tebay / Penrith platform and the ramp have been power-washed and they now look much better. Finally, for photos of the 'Steam Gala' at 'Locomotion' last weekend, please see the 'Volunteer Away Days 3' Gallery on Alan Ushers 'Kirkby Stephen East' website.
The 'Steam Gala' at 'Locomotion' was very successful - all our volunteers thoroughly enjoyed themselves as usual and more funds were raised to aid our project - many thanks to Anthony and the team for all their hard work. Elsewhere, more components for the two 'Stevens' Lever Frames were retrieved from Durham and safely stored at KSE - this job is now almost complete. Finally, the latest Newsletter should go to press this week so hopefully it will be with all our regular subscribers shortly.
Today (18th) one of our regular contractors, Paul Thompson, undertook the repointing of the wall at the eastern end of the station building. We hope that the last two jobs we have planned for this year, a minor roof repair and completion of the new ramp, will be finished shortly.
Yesterday (16th), ballasting of the standing line adjacent to the crossover (Point Nos. 3A / 3B) continued and some lineside clearance work was also undertaken - a photo has been added to the Gallery on the Trackwork page. In addition, efforts also continued to remove the remaining sections of rotten timber from Eden Valley Bridge No. 3. This coming weekend will see a number of our volunteers assisting with the 'Steam Gala' at 'Locomotion', Shildon. The mainline guest locomotive due to arrive on Saturday evening is 70013 'Oliver Cromwell'. As usual, our Sales Stand will be in attendance on both days, so please come along and support the event if you can.
Firstly, may we apologise for not having added any updates during the last 7 days. On Tuesday evening, our faithful PC finally gave up the unequal fight and refused to work anymore! However, we are now back on-line, so hopefully 'normal' service will be resumed. As ever, there is much to report. A number of our volunteers have been working off site over the last 10 days or so to recover the Lever Frame from Greetland Signal Box - this work is now essentially complete and the frame is safely stored at KSE - a Gallery illustrating the work involved has been added to the Signalling & Track page. This weekend (12th / 13th) saw us participate for the first time in the English Heritage 'Heritage Open Days' event - this was very successful (particularly yesterday) with visitor numbers well into three figures and several hundred pounds raised for our project - many thanks to everyone who supported us. Elsewhere, work continued on the track, Class 108 DMU and the door at the eastern end of the Tebay / Penrith trainshed is now in undercoat - hoprfully we can get it finished before the weather turns against us. Finally, following a boiler inspection, work has now commenced to return Peckett 2084 to steam - a new page which will describe the work as it proceeds has been added to the website - 2084 Overhaul.
This weekend (5th / 6th) saw our 2nd Car Boot Sale and another very useful sum raised for the project. Elsewhere, some work was undertaken on the main drain running along the northern boundary of the site and ballasting continued on the cross-over at Point Nos. 3A / 3B. On Thursday / Friday, our volunteers were busy recovering items from Greetland Signal Box - we hope to have a report and some photos available shortly.
Yesterday (2nd), the volunteers were hard at work as usual between the frequent showers. Ballast 'shoulders' were added to the right-hand curve just to the west of the footbridge and attention then turned to completing the ballasting of Point No. 3A on the passenger line - this is now almost finished. Today we have taken delivery of our first batch of stock from 'Hawkshead Relish' - this should be on sale from next weekend onwards - further details are available on the SRC Shop page.
The Bank Holiday weekend (29th - 31st August) saw progress on a number of fronts. Outside, further ballasting of the passenger line took place and a couple of our volunteers were busy removing the rotten timbers on Eden Valley Bridge No.3. Work continued on the DMU and the S & T folk were busy as usual - there is an update on the Signalling & Track page and a further photo has been added to the Gallery on the Trackwork page. Inside the building, a slight reorganisation of the shop was taking place to accomodate more stock which is due to arrive this week and we have finally got around to painting the outside of the door at the eastern end of the Penrith / Tebay platform - this is currently in red oxide primer and will ultimately be a dark green as per our planning permission.
Following the Volunteers Meeting, the August draw for the '200 Club' was made, this time by Marjorie Cowin. The winning numbers and prizes are:
1st Prize. £15. Number 4. Mike Thompson
2nd Prize. £10. Number 52. Maggie Yates
3rd Prize. £5. Number 27. Dave Greenhalgh
The next Volunteers Meeting will be held on SUNDAY 27TH SEPTEMBER AT 1PM in the mess room at KSE. All welcome.
August 2009
This week, because of the bad weather, our volunteers were on site yesterday (27th) rather than the normal Wednesday. The work of ballasting the passenger line continued and Point No. 2 is now complete - a photo has been added to the Gallery on the Trackwork page.
A photo of Pesspool Signal Box - the source of the 22 Lever 'Stevens' Frame recently donated to our project has been added to the Gallery on the Trackwork page.
This weekend (22nd / 23rd) saw volunteers starting to sort out the ground levels in readiness for the next section of tracklaying between Eden Valley Bridges Nos. 2 and 3. In addition, ballasting of the recently completed passenger line up to Bridge No.2 continued - a photo has been added to the Gallery on the Trackwork page. Elsewhere, good progress was made inside the station with the Education Room, further work was undertaken on the DMU and the S&T gang were busy with a number of jobs - a report has been added to the Signalling & Track page.
Yesterday (19th) saw the delivery of more granite ballast and the volunteers soon started to put it to good use on the passenger-carrying line. Hopefully it will not be too long now before we are in a position to utilise some of the rolling stock to 'bed down' the line as far as Point No.1 adjacent to the site of the Junction 'box.
Saturday (15th) was a busy day for our volunteers. Firstly, one group was at work in Durham collecting items for the S & T Department - we have been donated two complete Stevens Lever Frames which will subsequently be used in our new signal boxes at KSE. The first of these is a 22 Lever Frame from Pesspool (near Hetton) and the second is a 50 Lever Frame from Tynemouth North (a photo of the latter 'box has been added to the Gallery on the Trackwork page). We are most grateful to the estate of Chris Woolstenholmes, together with John Midcalf and Richard Pulleyn of the Signalling Record Society who made the necessary arrangements, for their most generous support of our project and hope that it will not be too long before the two frames are back doing the job that they were built for. Secondly, we held our first 'Coffee Morning' - this went well given the appalling weather and many thanks to all who attended (and those who provided the delicious cakes!). Finally, at KSE over the weekend, the volunteers continued to work away at a number of tasks despite the rain and strong winds.
One of our regular contractors (and shareholder), Paul Thompson, has been busy on site the past couple of days (12th / 13th). The remaining section of guttering at the western end of the Tebay / Penrith trainshed has been fitted and Paul has also been busy with the lime mortar repointing the south-facing wall at the eastern end of the building. A photo has been added to the 'Building Restoration' Gallery on the KSE Station page. On Wednesday (12th), it was a pleasure for us to receive a visit from the judges as part of Kirkby Stephen's entry in 'Britain in Bloom' - hopefully they were impressed with the recent progress which has been made with our project - further details can be found here. In addition, the regular team were at work on the Class 108 DMU and ballasting of the standing line continued - late in the afternoon, the 'Works Train' was moved up to Point No. 1 adjacent to the site of the Junction Signalbox. This is the first step in our plans to create a more appropriate loading / unloading area for rolling stock on the northern side of the building.
This weekend (8th / 9th) saw further ballasting of the running and standing lines - a couple of photos have been added to the Gallery on the Trackwork page. In addition, two plaques gratefully acknowledging the financial assistance of the 'Cumbria Waste Management Environment Trust' have been attached to the picnic area - a photo of one of these has been added to the Gallery on the Picnic Area page. Work also continued on the DMU and further finishing touches were made to the new ramp at the eastern end of the building.
On Wednesday (5th), good progress was made with ballasting the running line and slightly realigning the adjacent standing line. In the evening, we played host to some 30 members of the 'Eden Valley Vintage Tractor Club' who were given a tour of the station building and site - a good time was had by all.
Three photographs taken in September 1998 which illustrate only too clearly just how heavily overgrown the site was when it was purchased for the railway project have been added to the Gallery on the Trackwork page.
With the running line up to Eden Valley Bridge No.2 now essentially complete, this weekend (1st / 2nd August) saw a serious start being made to get it levelled and ballasted. In addition, yesterday saw the S&T gang hard at work on both the crossover and Point No.1 and further progress was also made on the new ramp at the eastern end of the building - after much effort this is now approaching completion.
July 2009
It is a great pleasure to be able to report that, having recently won firstly, the 'Cumbria', and then the 'North England' titles, Kirkby Stephen has now been declared the '2009 Calor England Village of the Year' - many congratulations to all the hard working individuals behind the bid - well done folks! We are delighted that our project has been able to make a very small contribution towards the award - further details can be found here.
At 7.30pm on Friday (24th) evening, our new picnic area was formally opened by Councillor Mrs Margaret Albon, Vice-President of The Cumbria Wildlife Trust - fortunately the rain held off and our invited guests were able to enjoy drinks and a buffet. Some photographs of the event have been added to the Gallery at the bottom of the Picnic Area page - this facility is now availble to all members of the local community for events such as birthday parties, meetings or even a picnic!
We are very pleased to report that our shop is now able to offer for sale small tubs of delicious English Lakes Luxury Ice Cream - further information is available on the SRC Shop page.
On site this weekend (25th / 26th), further progress was made with the trackwork, the new ramp at the eastern end of the building and the Class 108 DMU.
Following the Volunteers Meeting, the July draw for the '200 Club' was made, this time by Tamsyn Rayner. The winning numbers and prizes are:
1st Prize. £15. Number 13. Derek Thompson
2nd Prize. £10. Number 3. David Rayner
3rd Prize. £5. Number 19. Bill Watkin
The next Volunteers Meeting will be held on SUNDAY 30TH AUGUST AT 3PM in the mess room at KSE. All welcome.
The 'mid-week team' were hard at work on Wednesday (22nd) completing the picnic area - this is now finished and ready for use. A brief report and further photograph have been added to the Picnic Area page. In addition, the two closure rails linking Point No.1 to the rest of the passenger line were cut to length so that our 'running' line from the Darlington platform to Eden Valley Bridge No.2 is now essentially structurally complete - the next job will be to level and ballast it. A photo has been added to the Gallery on the Trackwork page.
This weekend (18th / 19th) saw a steady stream of visitors in association with the 'Kirkby Stephen Garden Trail' - many thanks to those who attended and to Phyllis for all her hard work with our garden. On site, a gate has been fitted to the new ramp at the eastern end of the building and two picnic tables and a bench have been purchased for the remaining external section of the Tebay / Penrith platform - a couple of photos have been added to the new Gallery on the KSE Station page. Elsewhere, work has continued on the Class 108 DMU and the S & T gang were busy yesterday with some minor jobs on the crossover - a brief report has been added to the Signalling & Track page.
The sales team enjoyed a very successful weekend (11th / 12th) at Hartlepool Model Railway Show - a big 'thank you' to Paul & the gang for putting on such an excellent event. At KSE, further progress was made with the new ramp at the eastern end of the building, the Class 108 DMU and the mechanical operation of the 'cross-over' adjacent to the footbridge.
Our latest Newsletter has created considerable interest - particularly the World War II diary of Barnard Castle Station Master, Mr. Percy Wrightson - one of our shareholders familiar with many of the station staff at 'Barnie' has made some interesting comments and we hope that more information will be made available in the forthcoming months.
The mid-week volunteers continue to make good progress with Point No.1 adjacent to the site of the Junction Signalbox - we hope to have this completed and connected to the main running line in the next couple of weeks. This weekend (11th / 12th), our Sales Stand will be attending Hartlepool Model Railway Show (which for the second year is to be held in The Wynyard Rooms, Wynyard Park, Billingham - just off the A19) - please support the event if you can.
Yesterday (5th) saw our first 'Car Boot Sale' held on the site. This was very successful with well over 200 folk attending - a similar event has provisionally been arranged for September - please watch the 'Next Events' page for further details. We were also delighted to host a visit from members of the 'Merseyside Industrial Heritage Society' - a pleasure to meet you all. Elsewhere on site over the weekend, our volunteers made further progress with Point No.1, the new ramp at the eastern end of the building, the Class 108 DMU and the S & T team were busy working on the 'cross-over'. Keith's joinery skills have been tested once more - this time he has made a new 'Donations box' for the 'Darlington' platform. A photo has been added to the 'Building Restoration' Gallery on the KSE Station page.
With the work on both the picnic area and visitor car park almost complete, the 'mid-week gang' are now able to turn their attention back to the track. Yesterday (1st), good progress was made towards completing Point No.1 and a photo has been added to the Gallery on the Trackwork page. We have also set up a couple of 'planters' outside on the Tebay / Penrith platform and these should be supplenmented shortly by a new bench and picnic table.
June 2009
This weekend (27th / 28th) saw the new set of steps giving access from the car park to the Tebay / Penrith platform completed - a photo has been added to the new Gallery on the KSE Station page. In addition, the S & T gang were at work on the cross-over, more Brunswick Green paint was applied to the 'Yorkshire Engine', further progress was made on the Class 108 DMU and phyllis was busy preparing our entry in the 'Kirkby Stephen Garden Trail' which is now just 2-3 weeks away.
Following the Volunteers Meeting, the June draw for the '200 Club' was made, this time by Robin & Paul Wallington. The winning numbers and prizes are:
1st Prize. £15. Number 9. Derek Thompson
2nd Prize. £10. Number 4. Mike Thompson
3rd Prize. £5. Number 23. James Redfern
The next Volunteers Meeting will be held on SUNDAY 26TH JULY AT 3PM in the mess room at KSE. All welcome.
The 'mid-week gang' were hard at work on Wednesday (24th). Much of the day was spent putting the finishing touches to the tables and benches in the picnic area and work also commenced on constructing a 'rose arbour'. There is now just this to finish and the nesting boxes, feeders etc to hang and it will be ready for use. In the evening, the last two flagstones comprising the new set of steps giving access from the car park to the Tebay / Penrith platform were cemented into place. All that now remains is some 'pointing' work and the construction of a handrail and that will be another job finished. The latest Newsletter is now at the printers and we hope that it will be in the post to all our subscribers next week.
Saturday morning (20th) saw our AGM take place - many thanks to everyone who attended for their input. The rest of the weekend saw progress on a number of fronts: the last batch of benches for the picnic area were completed, the painting gang were busy on the 'Yorkshire Engine', the S & T team were hard at work on the cross-over (Point Nos. 3A / 3B) and Phyllis was attending to her plants in preparation for the annual 'Kirkby Stephen Garden Festival'.
This weekend (13th / 14th), the volunteers have been busy with a number of tasks. On Saturday, another replica station sign was fitted above the toilets on the Darlington platform, the side gate at the western end of the new car park was completed and work began in earnest to construct a new set of steps up to the Tebay / Penrith platform - a photo has been added to the new Gallery on the KSE Station page. On Sunday, work progressed on the 'Yorkshire Engine', the Class 108 DMU and the S&T gang were busy installing point rodding on the cross-over. A report and photo have been added to the Signalling & Track and Trackwork pages respectively.
Yesterday (10th), the 'mid-week gang' were hard at work on the Picnic Area once more. The grass was cut and all the tables are now finished - hopefully the remaining benches will be completed next week - the job is almost done. A further photo has been added to the Gallery on the Picnic Area page.
Last weekend (6th / 7th) saw further progress with the Car Park area - a new side gate has been fitted to the Tebay / Penrith platform - all we need to do now is complete the steps leading up to it - a photo has been added to the new Gallery on the KSE Station page. In addition, we have also identified a suitable source of picnic tables for the platform and we hope to acquire these shortly. The S&T gang have also been busy working on the cross-over adjacent to the footbridge. A report and additional photos have been added to the Signalling & Track and Trackwork pages respectively.
May 2009
Yesterday (28th), we had rain for most of the day. However, the mid-week regulars managed to put together some more tables and benches for the Picnic Area. We are now roughly two-thirds of the way towards completing all the 'furniture'.
The Bank Holiday weekend (23rd - 25th) saw our participation in the Kirkby Stephen 'Family History Week'. This was very successful with many visitors attending and it was a great pleasure for us to welcome a number of ex-employees and their relatives to KSE. Perhaps most notable amongst these was Maurice Yeates who started in the Locomotive Department in 1937 - Maurice came all the way over from York for the event with members of his family on his 90th birthday! Over the 3 days, a very considerable amount of additional information was obtained and this will be incorporated into our displays in conjunction with the Civic Trust Open Days to be held in September. Elsewhere on site over the weekend, the S & T Department continued to make excellent progress (an update has been added to the Signalling & Track page) and further fencing has been constructed in association with the new picnic area (a report and photo have been added to the Picnic Area page). Finally, the foundations have been prepared for the set of steps up to the Tebay / Penrith platform from the car park.
The May draw for the '200 Club' was made by Marjorie Cowin (wife of Brian Cowin who started in the Locomotive Department at KSE in 1943) during their visit on Sunday. The winning numbers and prizes are:
1st Prize. £15. Number 53. Maggie Yates
2nd Prize. £10. Number 15. Mike Pattinson
3rd Prize. £5. Number 25. James Redfern
The next Volunteers Meeting will be held on SUNDAY 28TH JUNE AT LUNCHTIME (1PM) in the mess room at KSE. All welcome.
On Wednesday (20th), the double gates and side gate were fitted at the western end of the car park - a couple of photos have been added to the new Gallery on the KSE Station page. In addition, the volunteers also put together the second table, with its associated benches, for the picnic area. A photo illustrating some of the recently acquired nesting boxes, feeders etc has been added to the Gallery on the Picnic Area page.
We have had a mixture of sunshine and heavy showers this weekend (16th / 17th). However, progress has continued on the 'Yorkshire Engine', Class 108 DMU, the gates for the new car park and the S & T gang have been busy installing further roller stools and point rodding. In addition, we have also prepared the station building for our Local History Event next weekend - please see the Next Events page for further details.
The 'mid-week gang' were hard at work on Wednesday (13th). Mike has completed the new dry stone wall at the bottom of the picnic area ramp allowing the last 3 sections of fencing alongside the ramp to be completed. A couple of photos have been added to the Gallery on the Picnic Area page. In addition, all the roller stools between Point Nos 1 & 2 on the passenger-carrying line have now been installed along with much of the point rodding. An update has been added to the Signalling & Track page and a further photo has been added to the Gallery on the Trackwork page.
Firstly, may we apologise to those of you who have been trying to access the site over the last 4 days. We have had a problem with the server which, much to our relief, has now been solved. On site at KSE, the volunteers have been working hard as usual - further fencing has been erected at the front of the picnic area and alongside the ramp leading up to it (a couple of photos have been added to the Gallery on the Picnic Area page) and fencing has also been put up in the north-west corner of the new car park (a further photo has been added to the new Gallery on the KSE Station page). In addition, the S&T gang were hard at work yesterday digging the pits for the roller frames which will carry the point rodding which will control Point Nos 1 & 2 on the passenger-carrying line.
The Bank Holiday weekend saw our volunteers working on a variety of projects including the Class 108 DMU, Class 20 169 and the 'Yorkshire Engine'. In addition, further progress was made by the S&T team (a report has been added to the Signalling & Track page) and some of the last jobs to completely finish the new car park and wheelchair / pushchair ramp were undertaken - a couple of photos have been added to the new Gallery on the KSE Station page.
April 2009
Yesterday (29th), we had a visit from Andris Bergs who is employed at Gayle Mill - suppliers of the timber for the Picnic Area. The 'mid-week gang' spent the day constructing the first picnic table and part of the new fencing. A couple of photos of the work have been added to the Gallery on the Picnic Area page.
During the evening of Friday 24th, an all-night possesion took place at Brampton Fell on the Carlisle to Newcastle route. Through the generosity of Jarvis Rail, we were able to obtain 4 LNER - period Lattice Post Signals from Brampton Fell and 1 BR (North Eastern Region) - period flat-braced 2-doll Lattice Post Bracket Signal from Low Row. We would like to express our grateful thanks to (i) all the Jarvis Rail employees involved, particularly Site Managers Paul Mullane and Vinny McCoy, and Project Manager Matt Tupling, (ii) Jim and Colin Lawson for making it possible to load and transport the signals and (iii) our own volunteers who were on site throughout the night. A New Gallery containing photographs of some of the work involved has been added to the Signalling & Track page.
We are very pleased to be able to announce that we have now complied with the two conditions imposed upon us by Eden District Council when we submitted our first Planning Application i.e. the removal of 7,500 tonnes of contaminated waste from the site and, more recently, the construction of a crushed stone Car Park. As a result, we are now able to formally open to the general public 12 years after volunteers first began work on the site. This is a major milestone in the development of our scheme. On site this weekend, further progress was made with the new Car Park and Wheelchair / Pushchair Ramp, restoration of the 'Yorkshire Engine' and in the S&T Department. In addition, a number of our volunteers were working off site throughout Friday night and we hope to be able to release more news regarding this shortly. Alan Usher has added a small Gallery of photos of the 'Diesel Gala' at 'Locomotion' to his Kirkby Stephen East website.
Following the Volunteers Meeting, the April draw for the '200 Club' was made, this time by a member of the S&T Department. The winning numbers and prizes are:
1st Prize. £15. Number 15. Mike Pattinson
2nd Prize. £10. Number 26. James Redfern
3rd Prize. £5. Number 22. James Redfern
The next Volunteers Meeting will be held on SUNDAY 24TH MAY AT LUNCHTIME (1PM) in the mess room at KSE. All welcome.
The 'mid-week gang' were on site yesterday (22nd). Further progress was made with the fencing around the Tebay / Penrith platform and at the western end of the Car Park. A couple of photos have been added to the new Gallery on the KSE Station page.
On site this weekend (18th / 19th), further progress was made towards finishing the fencing associated with the new Car Park. In addition, the S&T Department were at work and an update has been added to the Signalling and Track page. Away from KSE, our volunteers had a most enjoyable (as always!) and successful few days at 'Locomotion' - many thanks to Anthony and the team for all their hard work. Finally, we have added a new page to the website - Next Events describes the forthcoming Open Day on Saturday 23rd May in association with the Kirkby Stephen Local History Week.
This weekend (18th / 19th), a number of our volunteers and the Sales Stand will be attending the Diesel Gala at Locomotion, Shildon. This is the second time that the event has been held and it was a great success last year - please support it if you can.
The basics of the visitor Car Park were finished on Thursday 9th - a few more photos have been added to the new Gallery on the KSE Station page. This was just in time for the Easter Rally which was a tremendous success - glorious sunshine on both days and 3000 visitors to the East Station site - a new record attendance as was that to the Slide Show on the Saturday evening - many thanks to everyone who helped and supported the event. A new Gallery has been added to the Easter Rally page showing a selection of the vehicles which attended. Alan Usher has also added a Gallery of photos of the Rally to his Kirkby Stephen East website. Yesterday, the S&T Department were on site and they have now started work on Point No. 2. An update has been added to the Signalling & Track page and a photo placed in the Gallery on the Trackwork page.
For the last three days, we have been working hard with our contractors to complete the Wheelchair / Pushchair Ramp and new Car Park in time for the Easter Rally this weekend. Although there are one or two bits and pieces still to do, the job is basically finished - a big 'thank-you' to everyone involved - another half a dozen photos have been added to the new Gallery on the KSE Station page. In conjunction with the Rally, Saturday evening sees the last in the 2008-2009 series of Slide Shows - Mark Keefe will be presenting 'Things you don't see every day' - the venue is the Methodist Hall in Kirkby starting at 7.30pm. Admission is £2 and includes refreshments and a free raffle - all welcome. Finally, Ken Taylor (who recently wrote an excellent article on his time as a child at Bowes Station [1948-1955] for our Newsletter), will be giving a short talk as an introduction to a discussion about the life of Bowes Station in the early 1950's at Bowes Village Hall on Thursday 23rd April starting at 7.30pm - all welcome.
Last week, we began to construct both (i) a Wheelchair / Pushchair Ramp at the eastern end of the station building and (ii) our new Visitor Car Park. The former is almost complete and we very much hope to have the latter finished by the end of this week. A Gallery illustrating the work undertaken to date has been added to the KSE Station page. Our preparations for the Easter Rally this coming weekend are almost finished - now all we need is some good weather! Elsewhere on site, work has continued on Point No.3 - an update has been added to the Signalling and Track page and a photo placed in the Gallery on the Trackwork page. Finally, our latest Newsletter has just been published - this can be obtained from local newsagents in Kirkby, from KSE or by annual subscription.
March 2009
This weekend (28th / 29th), preparations were being made to ready the station and site for the Vintage Vehicle Rally at Easter which is now less than two weeks away. Work also continued on the 'Yorkshire Engine' and pits for the last two roller stools operating the Mechanical Facing Point Lock (FPL) on Point No.3 were excavated. An update has been added to the Signalling and Track page and a further photo placed in the Gallery at the bottom of the Trackwork page.
Following the Volunteers Meeting, the March draw for the '200 Club' was made, this time by Sue Jones. The winning numbers and prizes are:
1st Prize. £15. Number 13. Derek Thompson
2nd Prize. £10. Number 14. Mike Pattinson
3rd Prize. £5. Number 27. Dave Greenhalgh
The next Volunteers Meeting will be held on SUNDAY 26TH APRIL AT LUNCHTIME (1PM) in the mess room at KSE. All welcome.
Yesterday (25th), the 'mid-week gang' were completing the preparatory work for the new car park. In addition, now that Point No.2 in the passenger-carrying line is essentially complete, they have turned their attention to Point No.1 located adjacent to the site of the Junction 'box. This Saturday (28th), our Sales Stand will be attending the Settle Model Railway Exhibition (10am - 5pm in the Primary School) - please support this event if you can. Finally, the latest Newsletter is at the printers and we hope that it will be in the post to all our subscribers next week.
This weekend (21st / 22nd), much of the effort has been concentrated on the trackwork. Point No. 2 is now essentially complete and a photo to illustrate this has been added to the Gallery on the 'Trackwork' page. The gang have also been working hard on the 'Yorkshire Engine' and restoration of the cab is now progressing nicely. A photo of the current position has been added to the Gallery on the 'Industrial Diesels' page.
Our Contractors have now finished the access ramp and picnic area - they have done an excellent job and we are very pleased with the finished product - an update and a number of photos have been added to the Picnic Area page. Today (18th), we have taken delivery of the timber from Gayle Mill which will be used to manufacture the fencing, picnic tables and benches - this is now all safely stored away on site. The volunteers have also been busy with trackwork and checking over the Class 108 Power Car which arrived last week.
Today (16th) our Contractors have begun to tarmac the access ramp - further photos of the work have been added to the Gallery on the Picnic Area page.
Last Friday (13th), the Class 108 Power Car (51572) arrived from the Wensleydale Railway. This is in full working order and will be used with the Trailer Car (56274) already on site which was delivered from the Rutland Railway Museum. Our Contractors continue to make excellent progress with the Picnic Area which has now been turfed. An update and further photos have been added to the Picnic Area page. Saturday evening (14th) saw another very successful Slide Show with presentations from Mike Thompson and Mark Keefe, whilst on site this weekend, our volunteers have been busy with the 'Yorkshire Engine', trackwork and installation of the first Mechanical FPL. An update has been added to the Signalling and Track page and a further photo placed in the Gallery at the bottom of the Trackwork page.
Today (9th) our Contractors have been busy fitting a new drain to remove the water running off the embankment. An update and photos have been added to the Picnic Area page.
Our Contractors continue to make excellent progress with the Picnic area. The major earthworks to construct the 'Terrace' are now essentially complete - further photos have been added to the Picnic Area page. On site this weekend (7th / 8th), despite the terrible weather once more (!), preparations for construction of the Visitor Car Park continued with the movement of the two containers to their new location. Off site, our Sales Stand had a very successful weekend at the Kendal Model Railway Show - many thanks to Martin and his team for all their efforts in putting on the event and to our volunteers who came over to help run the Stand.
Once again, our Sales Stand will be attending Kendal Model Railway Show at the Leisure Centre this weekend (7th / 8th: 10am - 5pm both days). We will also have a Poster Display and information leaflets available at Birtley Model Railway Exhibition (Birtley Community Centre: 10am - 5pm Saturday; 10am - 4pm Sunday) - please support these events if you can. Our Contractors continue to make excellent progress with the Picnic Area and further photographs will be added to this site in the next couple of days - please watch for updates.
Our Contractors undertaking the work on the Picnic Area have now arrived on site and are making good progress. An update and some photos have been added to the Picnic Area page. The 'Midweek gang' were busy today (4th) with the trackwork and preparations for the construction of our new visitor Car Park.
This weekend (31st / 1st) has seen excellent progress in a number of areas. Work has been undertaken on the Picnic Area, Car Park, 'Yorkshire Engine', track and S & T. An update has been added to the Signalling & Track page and a diagram showing the latest S & T arrangement for operating the Mechanical Facing Point Lock to Point No.3 has been added to the Gallery on the Trackwork page. Finally, we have been informed that our Contractors undertaking the work on the Picnic Area will be arriving on site Monday / Tuesday this week and that the job will take approx. 2 weeks. We hope to include regular updates on progress.
February 2009
In comparison to the last few weeks, this weekend (21st / 22nd) we were treated to some very mild weather which enabled us to make good progress in a number of areas. Work continued on removing the tree stumps in the Picnic Area and the container at the bottom of the embankment has now been moved giving our Contractors full access so that they are able to undertake the work on the ramp etc - an update with photos has been added to the Picnic Area page. In addition, the S&T Department were hard at work installing the first of the Facing Point Locks to the passenger-carrying line - again, an update with photos has been added to the Signalling and Track and Trackwork pages. The 'Yorkshire Engine' gang continue to make good progress and this is another loco that will look very smart once the current work is completed.
Planning for the Easter Rally is now well underway and details will appear on this website shortly - please watch for updates.
Finally, also in April, we will be holding the first of what we hope will become an Annual 'Civils Week' to undertake specific tasks on the railway. This year it will be held the week after Easter during the School Holidays (13th-19th) in order to try and allow as many people as possible to attend. If you are able to help, even for a few hours, please let us know.
Following the Volunteers Meeting, the February draw for the '200 Club' was made, this time by Julia Lawrence. The winning numbers and prizes are:
1st Prize. £15. Number 33. Maggie Yates
2nd Prize. £10. Number 43. Phyllis Richardson
3rd Prize. £5. Number 42. David Duncan
The next Volunteers Meeting will be held on SUNDAY 29TH MARCH AT LUNCHTIME (1PM) in the mess room at KSE. All welcome.
The 'mid-week gang' were on site again on Wednesday (18th). Work undertaken included the removal of yet more tree stumps from the picnic area, the errection of another bay of pallet racking and some minor repairs to the covers on the LNERCA coach, 3857.
At last, the weather has improved and most of the snow has gone. This weekend (14th / 15th), our volunteers have undertaken further preparatory work on the Car Park and Picnic Area. Yesterday afternoon, it was good to see and hear Class 20 169 burst into life once more. There was another excellent turnout on Saturday for the 'Open Night' Slide Show - many thanks to all who attended, particularly those presenting their slides, for such an interesting evening.
With the weather forecast predicting a thaw, we have taken the decision to open the site as normal this weekend. However, if you are intending to visit us, please ensure that you have a good pair of waterproof boots - there will be a lot of slush and water about! Saturday evening (14th) sees the second of the 2009 Slide Shows. This features our 2nd Annual 'Open Night' for which we encourage folk to bring and present their own slides (maximum 10-12 slides). Last year we had everything from the railways of Peru to snow scenes on the Settle & Carlisle. The Show starts at 7.30pm at the Methodist Hall in Kirkby - admission is £2 including refreshments at the interval and a free raffle.
This weekend (7th / 8th), with frozen snow covering the site, difficult driving conditions and more snow forecast, we took the decision to keep KSE closed. At present, there is no indication of a thaw taking place, so it remains a possibility that the site will be closed again next weekend. Notice of any such closure will appear on the homepage of this website - please watch for updates - thank you.
Yet another freezing cold weekend at the East Station! Inside the building, our volunteers managed to put up another two bays of pallet racking - this has greatly increased the storage space we have available. Outside braving the elements, further work was undertaken on the 'Yorkshire Engine' and the gang were busy once more clearing the new picnic area. We had a visit from our Contractors last week and it is currently intended that they will be arriving on site around the middle of this month - weather permitting! The job to construct the access ramp etc is projected to take roughly a couple of weeks.
January 2009
The 'mid-week gang' have been busy today (28th). There has been further progress on the Picnic Area with the removal of 3 very large tree stumps (a couple of new photos have been added to the gallery on the Picnic Area page). In addition, we have begun to put together some recently acquired pallet racking which will be used to store all our signalling equipment.
For the first time this year, we had two semi-decent days of weather this weekend (24th / 25th). Our volunteers were hard at work on the overhaul / repairs to Class 20 169 and the 'Yorkshire Engine'. In addition, the 'Picnic Area gang' continue to make good progress removing the remaining tree stumps. Following the Volunteers Meeting, the January draw for the '200 Club' was made, this time by Derek Thompson. The winning numbers and prizes are:
1st Prize. £15. Number 33. Maggie Yates
2nd Prize. £10. Number 36. Ken Ball
3rd Prize. £5. Number 49. Phil Champion
The next Volunteers Meeting will be held on SUNDAY 22ND FEBRUARY AT LUNCHTIME (1PM) in the mess room at KSE. All welcome - please note the change of time in order to take advantage of the limited daylight working hours available at this time of year.
This weekend (17th / 18th) our volunteers were again subjected to the worst that the Cumbrian weather could throw at them - an apparently random mixture of gales, rain, sleet, hail and snow! However, further progress was made in preparing the ground for the new picnic area, work was undertaken on the 'Yorkshire Engine' and some of our S&T team were busy off site. On Saturday evening, we were treated to an excellent Slide Show by John Midcalf who presented a selection of John Boyes photographs taken on the Settle and Carlisle Railway - another excellent turnout despite the gales and heavy rain. Many thanks to John and all those who braved the weather to attend.
KSE has now officially re-opened after the Christmas and New Year break. Last weekend, the atrocious weather and subsequent traffic problems on the A66 over Stainmore conspired against us - although a number of our volunteers did make some progress on site - hopefully this week will see an improvement in the weather.
Next Saturday (17th) sees the first of the 2009 Slide Shows. We will be welcoming back John Midcalf from the north east who will be presenting more of the excellent material from the John Boyes Collection covering northern England.The presentation starts at 7.30pm at the Methodist Hall in Kirkby - admission is £2 including refreshments at the interval and a free raffle.
December 2008
In the last few days, we have added a page to describe the work being undertaken on our new Picnic Area. In addition, galleries have also been added to the Steam at KSE and KSE Station sections of this website. Finally, the December draw for the '200 Club' has been made and the winning numbers and prizes are:
1st Prize. £15. Number 33. Maggie Yates
2nd Prize. £10. Number 3. David Rayner
3rd Prize. £5. Number 13. Derek Thompson
We have recently added a First Aid page to our website. This skill, which is so important in a railway environment, has a very strong tradition at KSE. It is particularly so in a relatively isolated environment some distance from major hospitals and we have taken additional precautionary steps to safeguard the wellbeing of our volunteers and visitors.
We have also added our latest publication, ' Bambles the Platelayers Puppy' to our SRC Shop page. This has been written and illustrated by two of our regular volunteers, Richie and Cath Gregory. The book is aimed at the 5-10 year old age group and all proceeds have been most generously donated to the project.
Photos of last weekend's 'Santa' event have now been uploaded in the 'Santa 2008' Gallery on Alan Usher's Kirkby Stephen East website.
The latest newsletter is now at the press and we hope to have it in the post this weekend for all our regular subscribers.
We shall be taking a short break to recharge our batteries and the site is now officially closed to the general public. It will re-open again on Saturday 10th January.
We thank you all for your interest and support and wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
This weekend (6th / 7th) saw our second 'Santa' event. This was the first public event on site that we had organised entirely ourselves and we are pleased to report that it was very successful. Over the two days, some 400 visitors braved the freezing weather (it was reportedly minus five degrees in Kirkby on Saturday night!) to visit KSE and enjoy the festivities. A big 'thank you' to everyone who came to see us and to all our volunteers who worked so hard to make it happen. We hope to have some photographs of the event available shortly.
The construction of Santa's Grotto and preparation of the Darlington platform in readiness for next weekends (6th / 7th) 'Santa' event is now complete. For full details, please see the 'Santa at KSE' page. Outside the building this weekend, our volunteers braved the freezing weather to begin the work of removing the tree stumps on the section of embankment that will become our new picnic area, the S&T team continued to progress the equipment needed to operate the first Facing Point Lock on our Passenger-carrying line and the 'diesel gang' were busy sorting out their stock of batteries.
Following the opening of the new shop last weekend, Alan Usher has uploaded a series of photographs of the event on the 'New Shop' page of his Kirkby Stephen East website.
Yesterday (30th November), the latest draw in our '200 Club' took place at the monthly Volunteers Meeting. The winning numbers and prizes are:
1st Prize. £15. Number 14. Mike Pattinson
2nd Prize. £10. Number 5. Mike Thompson
3rd Prize. £5. Number 9. Derek Thompson
All the winners have kindly donated their monies to a fund initiated to purchase a replica double-sided flanged enamel British Railways platform sign which will hang over the entrance to the new shop - many thanks folks.
In view of the Christmas and New Year break, our next Volunteers Meeting will be held on SUNDAY 25th JANUARY at 3PM in the mess room at KSE. All welcome.
November 2008
Friday evening (21st) saw our new shop formally opened by the Rev. Alan Cliff at a private event held to thank the funders, contractors and volunteers involved in the project. On the Saturday morning, the book signing broke all previous records with 68 'Jack' books being sold in 2 hours! In the 24 hours from the Friday evening to the end of the Slide Show (another excellent presentation - this time from Dennis Atkinson) on Saturday night, we sold the wonderful total of 96 books! A huge 'thank-you' to everyone who braved the freezing weather to support us over the weekend and to Alan, his wife Rosemary, and son (and book illustrator) Nigel, for coming up from North Wales to Kirkby to open the shop.
Yesterday (23rd), the 'Santa' team were hard at work preparing the platform and grotto in readiness for our event on 6th / 7th December. All should be in place by the end of next weekend.
Elsewhere on site, the clearance gang have continued their work on the new picnic area and the S&T folk have made further progress with the installation of the Facing Point Locks on the Pasenger-carrying Line.
After one final effort this weekend (15th / 16th), the new shop is now ready for the formal Opening. Alan Cliff, author of the award-winning 'Jack the Station Cat' books, and Keith Richardson, author of the acclaimed 'Kirkby Stephen East - A Station Remembered', will both be present between 10.30 - 12.30 on Saturday 22nd to sign copies of their books. Please come along and support them if you can and take a look around our new shop at the same time.
On site, there was further progress with the new picnic area. In addition to yet more clearance work, the Yorkshire Engine was started up and was used to push the 'BG' and Class 31 410 further along the siding allowing the short section of track on which it was standing to be removed. This is the first step towards providing access to the embankment for our Contractor who will be undertaking the work on the wheelchair / pushchair ramp up to the picnic area.
Tuesday (11th) saw the last major piece of the jigsaw fall into place in the new shop with the fitting of the window blinds. Three of the four are now in place, but a very minor alteration is required to the last one. This will be fitted shortly. Elsewhere, the mid-week gang have been busy as usual with further progress being made on the trackwork and clearance of the new picnic area. For the latest photos, please go to the 'Signal and Telegraph' and 'General Photographs' galleries of Alan Usher's Kirkby Stephen East website. In addition, Alan has also added a 'Class 108 DMU' gallery featuring our latest arrival.
Yet another weekend (8th / 9th) of heavy rain and high winds at the East Station. However, our intrepid clearance gang were hard at work on the new picnic area. This project is progressing rapidly and the designated area of the northern embankment is now looking completely different thanks to their hard work. Inside the station building, almost all of the final painting in the new shop is complete and yesterday we started to move the display cabinets into position.
Yesterday (6th), our Contractors fitted the floor covering in the new shop - both rooms now look very smart. The work is almost complete and we are virtually ready to move all the display cabinets and stock into their new home. Our mid-week gangs have also been busy and there has been further progress with the trackwork, installation of the Facing Point Lock mechanisms (please see the Signalling and Track page for an update) and the picnic area.
This weekend (1st / 2nd) saw our Sales Stand attending the 'Lancashire and Yorkshire DCC Model Rail Group' Annual Exhibition at Rawtenstall. A big 'thank-you' to our shareholder, David Warner, and his team for inviting us and for all their hard work in putting on such an excellent event.
On site, the S&T gang has really started work in earnest with the aim of fitting all the equipment which will enable the 2 Lever ex-LNER Ground Frame to operate the set of switches controlling the cross-over from the Passenger-carrying line to the Standing Line. We hope to include regular updates on this work on the Signalling and Track page for those who are interested in this aspect of our project.
October 2008
There is good news and bad news to report from the last few days. The good news is that the Trailer Car of our Class 108 DMU (56274) was off-loaded this morning (30th) following its arrival from the Rutland Railway Museum. This vehicle and the Power Car (which we hope will also arrive in the not too distant future) are both in full working order and will be painted in Brunswick Green with cream lining and 'speed whiskers'. A number of these vehicles were based at Darlington working to locations such as Bishop Auckland. If anyone has details of any Class 108 workings over Stainmore to KSE, we would be very interested to hear from you.
The bad news is that our beloved station cat, 'Rabbit', has been missing since Sunday evening. In view of the current cold weather and the fact that we estimate she is 17 years old, we obviously now fear the worst, but continue to hope that she will turn up unharmed.
The last two days (25th / 26th) have seen all the electrics completed in the new shop and excellent progress made with the final painting. Our Contractors have also fitted the last new window and plastered the surrounding area - the end of the job is now in sight! Following the grant award last week, work started yesterday on preparing the land which will become our new picnic area - there is much to do!
Saturday evening saw the first in our regular winter series of Slide Shows presented on this occasion by David Bousfield (the next will be held on the 22nd November) which was well attended given the horrendous weather conditions. On Sunday, Glenys Lumley made the latest draw in our '200 Club' at the monthly Volunteers Meeting. The winning numbers and prizes are:
1st Prize. £15. Number 14. Mike Pattinson
2nd Prize. £10. Number 2. David Rayner
3rd Prize. £5. Number 44. Keith Richardson
Mike, David and Keith have very kindly donated their winnings back to the Company.
Our next volunteers meeting is SUNDAY 30TH NOVEMBER 3PM in the mess room at KSE. All welcome.
We are delighted to report that we have been informed today (24th) that the Cumbria Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund (CALSF) has awarded us a grant of £10,473 for the provision of a Picnic Area with Wheelchair access. CALSF is a DEFRA funded scheme, administered by Cumbria Waste Management Environment Trust on behalf of Cumbria County Council. We are most grateful to them for their support of our project and to the many organisations who kindly provided letters in support of our application - thank you all.
Last weekend (18th / 19th) saw all the wiring installed in the new shop and further progress on the painting side. Elsewhere in the building, the new architraves and dado rails in the Booking Hall received their final coat of gloss paint and look very smart. Work outside in the yard was somewhat limited due to the atrocious weather for much of the weekend, but the S & T team have now begun to prepare all the concrete bases which will be needed for the point rodding runs from the two Ground Frames to the Facing Point Locks. For the latest photographs, please see the 'Signalling and Trackwork' Gallery on Alan Usher's Kirkby Stephen East website.
The last 3 days (11th - 13th) have seen the crossing and switches for the pointwork adjacent to the site of the Junction Signalbox placed in position and aligned. In addition, a further 60' panel has been added to the standing line.
Inside the station building, work has continued on the new shop. All the conduit is now in place in both rooms. Gloss paint is starting to appear and, on Sunday evening, 'self-levelling compound' was added to the floor in the ex-Porters Room which was quite rough in some places. This has considerably improved matters although there is still one area which requires further attention.
This weekend (4th / 5th) saw our volunteers subjected (not for the first time!) to extremes of weather at KSE. On Saturday, with torrential rain all day, we were confined to the new shop and the room at the eastern end received its first full coat of paint. Volunteers were working under temporary lights until well into the evening to get as much done as possible.
Sunday was a complete contrast with glorious sunshine all day. The 'track-gang' were taking full advantage of this with a further 60' panel added to the standing line and, in addition, the track-bed was prepared for the next set of pointwork on the passenger-carrying line and a full set of crossing timbers were organised in readiness for this phase of the work to begin (for the latest photos, please see the 'General Photographs' Gallery on Alan Usher's Kirkby Stephen East website). A couple of members of the team were also up on the station roof repairing some minor leaks which had shown themselves the previous day. Finally, the latest Newsletter was published on Thursday and is now in the post to all our subscribers. If you would like to be included, please see the details on our 'Join SRC' page (back numbers still available are listed on the 'SRC Shop' page). It can, of course, also be purchased at KSE.
The plasterwork in the new Retail Outlet is almost complete and fitting all the electrics has now begun in earnest. Last weekend (27th / 28th September) saw all the conduit completely finished in the first of the two rooms and started in the other. The painting gang were taking advantage of the glorious weather with gloss being applied to the external windows and undercoat to the internal doors.
Away from the building, excellent progress was made with the trackwork. The crossing and switches for the next set of pointwork (a right-hand B8) on the passenger-carrying line were positioned / aligned and the standing line on which the mainline diesels are stored was extended by a further 45' panel.
In addition, our volunteers continue to work to tidy up the site and to prepare the area for our new visitor Car Park.
Sue Jones made the latest draw in our '200 Club' at the monthly Volunteers Meeting. The winning numbers and prizes are:
1st Prize. £15. Number 21. Graham Harris
2nd Prize. £10. Number 5. Mike Thompson
3rd Prize. £5. Number 34. Ken Ball
Mike has donated his winnings back to the Company.
Our next volunteers meeting is SUNDAY 26TH OCTOBER 3PM in the mess room at KSE. All welcome.
September 2008
Last weekend (20th / 21st) saw a dozen or so of our volunteers make the journey over to 'Locomotion', Shildon, for the Annual 'Steam Gala'. This was an excellent event enjoyed by us all - particularly those who helped with the preparation of the locomotives, stewarding of the 'Photo Shoot' on the Friday evening etc. The Sales Stand was very busy throughout and many useful contacts were made - a big 'thank-you' to Anthony and the team at 'Locomotion' for all their hard work (for photos of the event, please go to the 'Volunteers Away Days!' Gallery on Alan Usher's Kirkby Stephen East website). Meanwhile, back at KSE, on Sunday, we played host to another visit from 'V-Involved' volunteers associated with the Kendal group. We are most grateful to them for their help and look forward to seeing them all back at KSE again soon. Finally, Newsletter No. 27 is now finished and will be going to press later this week. We hope to have it in the post to all our subscribers shortly.
The last few days (15th - 18th) have seen the arrival on site of more track materials from the Shrewsbury area and substantial further progress on the new Shop. Work with the plasterboards is now essentially complete in both rooms and final plastering of the first of the two rooms has begun - we hope to have this finished by the end of next week.
This week (3rd / 4th) saw 2 contractors and 4 / 5 of our volunteers working for 2 days in the shop to undertake all the rendering. This will now be allowed to dry for 2 weeks before we undertake the final stage. Photographs of the work have been uploaded into the album on the SRC Shop page. We have also commenced repairs to the remains of the Tebay platform outside the shop which will be used as a small picnic area.
Our Contractor has now finished fitting the doors and windows to the new Retail Outlet - we are delighted with the standard of workmanship and the appearance of the Darlington platform at the eastern end of the building has been transformed. The walls of both rooms are now ready for 'rendering' and this should take place in the next few days. In addition, the new guttering has been fitted and is working well.
The main south-facing wall has now been cleaned and we have commenced fitting new guttering - this should be completed shortly.
Last weekend (30th / 31st August) saw Richie Gregory make the latest draw in our '200 Club' at the monthly Volunteers Meeting. The winning numbers and prizes are:
1st Prize. £15. Number 19. Bill Watkin
2nd Prize. £10. Number 1. David Rayner
3rd Prize. £5. Number 38. Ken Ball
Bill has kindly donated his winnings back to the Company - many thanks Bill.
Our next volunteers meeting is SUNDAY 28TH SEPTEMBER 3PM in the mess room at KSE. All welcome.
August 2008
We had a working visit to-day (27th) from 'V-Involved' volunteers (16-25 years of age) based in Kendal who did a really excellent job undertaking clearance work on the north embankment. Many thanks for all your help folks and we look forward to working with you again soon.
Today (19th) we have received the new print run of a further 100 copies of Keith Richardson's excellent book - 'Kirkby Stephen East - A Station Remembered' - the first edition of 500 having sold out. If you would like to purchase a copy, they are available from both KSE at weekends and by post. For details of the latter, please follow the link below to our shop.
The new doors and windows are now being fitted in the old Porters Room and Motive Power Office which will be our new shop. If you would like to see more pictures of work on the shop, please follow the link to the SRC shop page.
View of the Darlington Platform showing the bricked up doors and windows
7th August 2008 - 2 windows and 1 of the doors unblocked
14th August 2008 - New doors and windows fitted
The exterior windows have been replaced and the stone-work cleaned. Note that you can now see into the Darlington Platform as the windows on the other side of the room have been unblocked
We very much hope that work to fit the new doors and windows to our permanent Retail Outlet will begin in the next few days and we can then get on with the plastering, fitting electrics etc. New guttering for the shop and south-facing wall has arrived on site and is awaiting fitting.
This weekend (2nd / 3rd August) saw the July draw (we are a week later than usual due to attending Hartlepool Model Railway Show last weekend) in the '200 Club' at the monthly Volunteers Meeting - we currently have 46 numbers taken up - many thanks to everyone who is supporting us in this venture. The winning numbers and prizes drawn on this occasion by Phyllis Richardson are:
1st Prize. £15. Number 23. James Redfern
2nd Prize. £10. Number 27. Dave Greenhalgh
3rd Prize. £5. Number 25. James Redfern
James has (again!) very kindly donated his winnings back to the Company - a big 'thank-you' James.
Our next volunteers meeting is SUNDAY 31ST AUGUST 3PM in the mess room at KSE. All welcome.
July 2008
We are delighted to announce that we have been informed today (29th) that we have been elected to full Corporate Membership of the Heritage Railway Association. We are most grateful to all those who have supported us, particularly the Caledonian Railway Brechin and Barrow Hill Engine Shed Society who kindly proposed and seconded our application respectively.
Last weekend (26th / 27th) saw our Sales Stand attending Hartlepool Model Railway Show. A big 'thank you' to Malcolm, Paul and Co. for all their efforts in putting on such an excellent event with all profits given to such worthwhile charities - well done folks. We have already booked to return again next year.
The event also saw us sell the remaining few copies of Keith Richardson's book 'Kirkby Stephen East - A Station Remembered' - all 500 copies have now gone! However, the good news for those of you who have yet to purchase a copy is that we have ordered a reprint and this should be available shortly so please keep the orders coming!
This weekend (19th / 20th) saw a good number of visitors on site to view the station garden which was part of 'Kirkby Stephen in Bloom'. We have now collected the remaining mechanical signalling equipment which we purchased from the Leighton Buzzard Narrow Gauge Railway - most of this originally came from Hitchin on the East Coast Mainline. Elsewhere, good progress continues to be made with both the track layout and clearance work for the new Visitor Car Park.
We are very pleased to be able to report that the Holehird Trust, one of the funders associated with the Cumbria Community Foundation, have kindly awarded us a grant of £750 towards a wheelchair / pushchair ramp at the eastern end of the station building. We are most grateful to them for their support.
Good progress continues to be made with preparations for the new visitor car park and it is likely that our Contractors will undertake the work on the car park and wheelchair ramp at the same time.
Inside the building, the ceiling in the second room of our new Retail Outlet has been completed and the initial stages of rendering the walls has begun. Off site, progress continues to be made with the replacement doors and windows and our Contractor hopes to have them all fitted by the end of the month. This will dramatically alter the appearance of the Darlington platform at the eastern end.
Last weekend (28th / 29th June) saw the latest draw in our recently formed '200 Club' at the monthly Volunteers Meeting. The winning numbers and prizes are:
1st Prize. £15. Number 20. Bill Watkin
2nd Prize. £10. Number 15. Mike Pattinson
3rd Prize. £5. Number 23. James Redfern
James has very kindly donated his winnings back to the Company - many thanks James.
Our next volunteers meeting is SUNDAY 3RD AUGUST 3PM in the mess room at KSE. All welcome. This meeting has been put back a week from its usual time as we are at Hartlepool Model Railway Show with our Sales Stand during the weekend of 26th / 27th July.
June 2008
Our AGM was well attended this weekend (14th) and shareholders enjoyed a lovely buffet afterwards courtesy of Donna and Carol. The rest of the day was taken up with trackwork and moving signalling equipment which soon burnt off the calories consumed over lunch. Even 'Rabbit' and 'Quaker' enjoyed the buffet! Our nesting birds are starting to fly and the weather is waming up nicely.
A Wren on one of the Mainline diesels
Last weekend (7th / 8th) saw the last major step in the overhaul of 20 169 with the re-fitting of the roof. Other major progress to report concerns the Retail Outlet where approx. half of the new ceiling in the second room was fitted on Saturday. This should be completed soon and some of the initial rendering work on the walls will begin. Our Contractor is currently busy manufacturing all the new doors (3) and windows (4) and aims to have these in place by the end of July. Work also continues on the track, car park and station garden, the latter in preparation for our entry in 'Kirkby Stephen in Bloom' which takes place over the weekend of 19th / 20th July. The next edition of the newsletter is almost complete and we hope that this will go to press at the end of the week.
20169 with the roof replaced and awaiting removal of the scaffolding
Our next volunteers meeting is SUNDAY 29TH JUNE 3PM in the mess room at KSE. All welcome. |
Phyllis Richardson's green fingers are working hard on the KSE garden
May 2008
This weekend (24th / 25th) saw the first draw of our recently formed '200 Club' at the monthly Volunteers Meeting. The winning numbers and prizes are:
1st Prize. £15. Number 5. Mike Thompson
2nd Prize. £10. Number 20. Bill Watkin
3rd Prize. £5. Number 8. Mike Thompson
We are pleased to be able to report that our Chairman has re-invested his £20 in the Company! Please consider taking a number (or numbers) in the draw (see the '200 Club' page) - after all, it is the best way of trying to ensure that this is the one and only occasion that the Chairman wins a prize! We currently have 26 numbers allocated and the next draw will be held on Sunday 29th June.
We are delighted to be able to inform you that the 'Friends of the Lake District' (FLD) have offered us a grant of £1000 towards Phase 1 of the repairs (stone work on the buttresses / centre pillar and Hydragrit blasting) to the footbridge which carries the public footpath (335008) over the railway approx. 200 metres west of the station. The footbridge is an historical artifact dating from the time of construction of the railway and is believed to be a design by Sir Thomas Bouch. In addition, subject to the results of a detailed survey to be undertaken upon completion of Phase 1, FLD have also offered a further grant in principle of £4000 for Phase 2 of the work which will involve repairs to the steelwork. We are most grateful to them for their support and work continues towards raising the necessary funds to allow Phase 1 of the repairs to commence.
This weekend (10th / 11th) saw a working visit on the Saturday morning from 12 Kirkby Stephen Scouts (and their leaders / parents) who did an excellent job both painting the bases for the new seats in one of our Gresley coaches (60505) and beginning the task of degreasing / cleaning the frames of our Yorkshire Engine Company Industrial Diesel Locomotive (305). Thank you all for your efforts - we hope you enjoyed yourselves and look forward to seeing you again next time.
Freshly painted seat bases for TT0 60505 and a degreased wheel courtesy of Kirkby Stephen Scouts
Our Chairman demonstrating the work in hand for the Scouts
Other major progress to report this weekend is the fitting of the new ceiling in the first of the two rooms which will become our permanent Retail Outlet - a difficult job in very hot conditions!
Views of the ceiling before and after initial restoration work
We are pleased to report that this week (ending 4th May) our Contractors have completed the roof repairs in the second room which will form half of our new Retail Outlet. Other work has also been ongoing in the building and much of the Booking Hall has been repainted in time for our summer visitors - it now looks very smart. On site, the 'Clarty gang' have finished the new drains and they are working very well. Efforts to prepare the area for the new visitor car park also continue and steady progress is being made on the trackwork and signalling equipment.
Next Slide Show: Saturday 10th May in Kirkby Stephen Methodist Hall at 7.30pm. The speaker is Dr. Peter Rodgers who will present 'The greatest railway journey in the world - A look at the route from London Kings Cross to Edinburgh Waverley'. Admission is £2 including refreshments at the interval and a free raffle.
Our next volunteers meeting is SUNDAY 25TH MAY 3PM in the mess room at KSE. All welcome.
April 2008
Contractors have recently completed roof repairs in the first of the two rooms which will become our new Retail Outlet. The roof timbers have also been 'de-nailed', so we are essentially ready to fit the ceiling. It is hoped that the contractors will complete their work in the other room this week. Elsewhere in the building, both the Ladies and Gents toilets have been completely repainted and the Ladies has been upgraded with the addition of further facilities.
Cath and Sue: busy at work in the toilets
On site, we are very pleased to report that Class 20 169 has been successfully restarted following its engine overhaul. The drainage gang continue their excellent work and further progress is being made with the trackwork and signalling equipment.
The weekend 12th/13th saw our Sales Stand at the 'Diesel Gala' at 'Locomotion', Shildon and a number of our volunteers assisted on the site over the two days and during the photo charter on the Saturday evening.
Sales stand at Locomotion (Picture: Alan Usher)
Next Slide Show: Our April Slide Show has been put back a couple of weeks from its usual slot and will be held on Saturday 10th May in Kirkby Stephen Methodist Hall at 7.30pm. The speaker is Dr. Peter Rodgers who will present 'The greatest railway journey in the world - A look at the route from London Kings Cross to Edinburgh Waverley'. Admission is £2 including refreshments at the interval and a free raffle.
Our next volunteers meeting is SUNDAY 27TH APRIL 3PM in the mess room at KSE. All welcome.
March 2008
We are very pleased to report that the 'Community Enterprise Fund' have awarded us a package consisting of 5 days advisory support and a monetary grant of £8800. This is part of the 'Strengthening Rural Communities across the North West' programme. It is funded by the North West Development Agency and managed by a consortium comprising the Plunkett Foundation and the North West Rural Community Councils. We are very grateful for their support.
The Easter Rally held this weekend (22nd/23rd) was very successful despite all the snow which blocked the A66 for a while preventing some of the exhibits (and our volunteers!) from travelling. Many thanks to all who helped and to the 1200 visitors who braved the weather to come up to the East Station.
We are delighted to report that we have recently been awarded £7810 by Cumbria County Council's 'Community Regeneration Fund'. This money will primarily be used to provide replacement doors and windows for our new Retail Outlet which is scheduled to be complete by December in time for the 'Santa' events.
In addition, 'Rothera & Brereton', a trading division of 'The Paper Company Ltd', have very generously donated £750 towards our new visitor car park.
We are most grateful to Cumbria County Council and Rothera & Brereton for their support.
The March edition of the quarterly Newsletter has just been published. This is available from KSE or, alternatively, it can be purchased by annual subscription.
This weekend (1st/2nd) saw our Sales Stand at Kendal Model Railway Show. It was good to see many old friends and a big 'thank-you' to the local Model Railway Club for inviting us again.
Our next major event is the Classic Commerical Vehicle Rally at Easter which is on March 22nd/23rd and we will need volunteers to help out, so please call in to the station to see what fun volunteering can be.
Next Slide Show: Saturday 29th March in Kirkby Stephen Methodist Hall at 7.30pm. The speaker is John Midcalf who will be showing the photos of John Boyes. These will cover the Stainmore route, the Penrith - Keswick branch, the West Coast Mainline over Shap and the Settle - Carlisle line. Admission is £2 including refreshments at the interval and a free raffle.
Our next volunteers meeting is SUNDAY 30TH MARCH 3PM in the mess room at KSE. All welcome.
February 2008
The slide show 'Open Evening' this weekend (16th/17th) was a great success with 7 different presentations. A big 'thank-you' to those involved and to all our supporters who attended on what was a very cold evening. We fully intend to repeat the event next year. On site, good progress continues to be made with the new drain and the extension to the running line has now been marked out ready for track-laying. In addition, further work has been undertaken on the doors/frames at the eastern end of the station building.
This weekend (1st/2nd) we had a mechanical digger working on site and the trenches for the new drains were excavated. Work has also begun on preparing the ground for the next session of track-laying. The S&T Department continue to progress the equipment required to operate the Switches and Mechanical Facing Point Locks on the passenger line.
Next Slide Show: Saturday 16th February in Kirkby Stephen Methodist Hall at 7.30pm. This is an Open Evening - please bring your own slides - Railways or otherwise - a presenter is available if you would prefer not to show them yourself. Admission is £2 including refreshments at the interval and a free raffle.
Our next volunteers meeting is SUNDAY 24TH FEBRUARY 3PM in the mess room at KSE. All welcome.
January 2008
Many volunteers sucumbed to illness over the Xmas period so we have been a bit thin on the ground at KSE recently.
Next Slide Show: Saturday 19th January by Mark Keefe in Kirkby Stephen Methodist Hall (opposite the Spar shop).
Our next volunteers meeting is SUNDAY 20TH JANUARY 3PM in the mess room at KSE. All welcome.
Our next major event is the Classic Commerical vehicle Rally at Easter which is in March and we will need volunteers to help out, so please call in to the station to see what fun volunteering can be.
November & December 2007
Keen-eyed folk will have noticed that our website has changed. David Houston is working with SRC to redesign our site and make it more user friendly. We hope that you like the new format and will bear with us whilst it is developed.
The slide show season got off to an excellent start in our new venue of Kirkby Stephen Methodist Hall. Mark Keefe gave a great talk using a wide range of archive material from John Birbeck and others showing the Stainmore and Eden Valley lines.
Our Christmas Fayre Event at KSE in conjunction with Cumbria Classic Coaches and Kirkby Stephen Town Forum was a great success. Thanks to all the volunteers for their hard work on the day. There were 28 SRC volunteers of all ages including Santa who got very wet travelling up from the town on his pony and trap. Tom Cowing came over from Hexham to play his accordian on the platform and performed a number of requests for our visitors. Even 'Rabbit' got into the festive spirit with her collar and she also posed for the local press. 'Jones the Steam' (Will Hamer of Cumbria Classic Coaches) enthralled young visitors with stories of 'Ivor the Engine'. Plans for next year are already underway for a bigger and better event.
Views of the event at KSE are on the Santa at KSE page - for more pictures see Alan Usher's site.
