Gloucester Transport History

"Doesn't sound very exiting does it? Yet within these pages can be found all manner of things such as the first British seaplane, the Bristol Freighter, Gloster jet fighter, Daleks, K-9, the Whippet tank, all sorts of locomotives, a Gloster Meteor with propellers and a Zeppelin or two"

MARK HUGHES MODELS JOINS GLOUCESTERSHIRE TRANSPORT HISTORY! CLICK ON THE LOGO ABOVE TO GET ON BOARD THE SUMMER 2011 CATALOGUE OF BUS AND TRAM KITS AND MORE!

If you like high quality card mounted photographs of interesting aircraft - and more - then why not call Gloucester photographer Ken Guest on +44 (0)1452 413511 or email ken.guest@tiscali.co.uk? Prices start from just £5.00 for a 7" x 5" print and for a further selection of images click on the picture of Swiss marked Hawker Hunter F6 J-4015 at Kemble above.

ALTERNATIVELY, WHY NOT BROWSE KEN GUEST'S PRINTS IN PERSON AT THE AVIATOR RESTAURANT AT GLOUCESTERSHIRE AIRPORT?

LOOKING TO CELEBRATE THE CENTENARY OF THE BIRTH OF THE REVEREND WILBERT VERE AWDRY IN 2011? THEN WHY NOT VISIT www.silverliningcakes.co.uk FOR MORE TASTY DETAILS?

On 15 August 2011 The Earlswood Press published GTH reader and London taxi driver Bill Munro's latest book - London Taxis : A Full History - at an RRP of £15.99. Bearing ISBN 978-0-9562308-2-9, the 240 page 200mm x 175mm paperback includes over 150 black and white photographs, some of which have never been published before, and traces the story of the London taxi from 1897. Some of the first of these Horseless Cabs, ordered and operated by Walter Bersey, were electric and built by The Gloucester Railway Carriage and Wagon Company Limited.

For a consumer review of your latest book, DVD or other Gloucestershire and Transport related product or service why not email Alan ?

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As is recounted in the Introduction to The Gloucester Railway Carriage and Wagon Company Limited elsewhere on this website, Bristol Road's Wagon Works contribution to Allied victory in World War II included building 764 Churchill tanks.

However, the earliest A20 Churchill prototypes were built by Harland & Wolff in Belfast and the same company also built 550 tanks including Centaur, Matilda and Churchill Mark Is, Mark IIs and possibly Mark IIIs at Carrickfergus from August 1939 to November 1943.

In Yorkshire meanwhile A22 Churchill tanks were constructed by Charles Roberts of Horbury, Wakefield and in the English Midlands both Metropolitan Cammell and Birmingham RCW also built Churchills with some of Birmingham RCW's first A22 tanks being used on the Dieppe raid of 1942.

As discovered on various websites, the running number blocks of the Churchill tanks built by Birmingham RCW and Metropolitan Cammell are set out in the table below along with number blocks for 322 of the Churchill tanks built by Gloucester RCW. The Gloucester data comes from original Wartime documents recently released from The Tank Museum, Bovington, Dorset.

T31496	T31670	Metropolitan Cammell	174 tanks
T31821	T31995	Birmingham RCW	174 tanks
T32396	T32470	Gloucester RCW	74 tanks
T67866	T67990	Gloucester RCW	124 tanks
T67868	T67990	Birmingham RCW	122 tanks
T67991	T68140	Metropolitan Cammell	149 tanks
T68716	T68840	Gloucester RCW	124 tanks
T68919	T68965	Metropolitan Cammell	46 tanks

However it will be noticed that the numbers T67868 to T67990 are claimed by both Gloucester and Birmingham RCWs. Could it be that numbers originally allocated to Gloucester were moved north? And what numbers were carried by the other 442 Churchill tanks built in Bristol Road? Incidentally, the 322 Gloucester RCW built tanks mentioned in the Bovington paperwork were identified as "assembly only" - constructed from components rather than built from scratch.

Does anyone have a comprehensive list of British World War II "T" numbers with corresponding tank types and possibly the army units they were first issued to? If so, please email me!

The beautiful painting of BUSHMILLS, a Churchill Mk I C5 armed with two 75mm howitzers, is reproduced above courtesy of Bracken Anderson, historian of the North Irish Horse, the only mechanized cavalry regiment of World War II to be issued with Churchill tanks.

The Mellor Brothers are particularly keen to receive any pictures of - or data on - the lorry fleet of R.H. Goulding of Newent. If you have anything to contribute, please email me.

The Mellor Brothers are particularly keen to receive any pictures of - or data on - the lorry fleet of R.H. Goulding of Newent. If you have anything to contribute, please email me.

THE MIND ROBBERS, GLOUCESTER'S OWN DR WHO SOCIETY, WILL BEGIN CELEBRATIONS OF ITS 20TH ANNIVERSARY AT 2000 ON SATURDAY 28 JANUARY 2012 AT THE LINDEN TREE, BRISTOL ROAD, GL1 5SN. ALL WELCOME.

ON SATURDAY 4 FEBRUARY 2012 SODBURY VALE MODEL RAILWAY CLUB PRESENTS THEIR 28TH ANNUAL MODEL RAILWAY EXHIBITION AT ST MARY'S CHURCH HALL, CHURCH ROAD, YATE BS37 6BG. ADMISSION £3.50 / CONCESSIONS £2.50. I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT ATTRACTIONS WILL BE PRESENT, BUT HERE IS A PICTURE OF SOMERSET & DORSET JOINT RAILWAY 2-8-0 LOCOMOTIVE 88, AS PER THE FLYER.

A TALK ON SHIPPING IN SCOTLAND WILL BE GIVEN BY TED TEDALDI FOR THE WORLD SHIP SOCIETY AT THE POP-IN, HUCCLECOTE ROAD, GL3 3ES ( OPPOSITE THE WAGON AND HORSES ) AT 1930 ON MONDAY 13 FEBRUARY 2012.

THE CHELTENHAM GWR MODELLERS EXHIBITION - SUPPORTED BY CHELTENHAM MODEL CENTRE - WILL BE HELD AT ST MARGARET'S HALL, CONISTION ROAD GL51 3NU ON SATURDAY 14 AND SUNDAY 15 APRIL 2012. EXHIBITS WILL INCLUDE A DISPLAY OF GRUMMAN AIRCRAFT FROM THE JET AGE MUSEUM.

A TALK ENTITLED "CANBERRA - THE LAST TWO YEARS" WILL BE GIVEN BY LES DALTON FOR THE WORLD SHIP SOCIETY AT THE POP-IN, HUCCLECOTE ROAD, GL3 3ES ( OPPOSITE THE WAGON AND HORSES ) AT 1930 ON MONDAY 16 APRIL 2012.

THE TRIANG SOCIETY CHELTENHAM EXHIBITION WILL BE HELD AT ST MARGARET'S HALL, CONISTON ROAD GL51 3NU FROM 1030 TO 1630 ON SATURDAY 5 MAY 2012, MARKING AMONG OTHER ANNIVERSARIES THE 60TH OF THE 00 GAUGE TRIANG LMS "JINTY" 0-6-0T. PICTURED ABOVE IS REAL JINTY 47202 - FITTED WITH CONDENSING APPARATUS - AT NEWTON HEATH DEPOT, MANCHESTER, ON 20 FEBRUARY 1967

THE ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING OF THE GLOUCESTER BRANCH OF THE WORLD SHIP SOCIETY WILL BE HELD AT THE POP-IN, HUCCLECOTE ROAD, GL3 3ES ( OPPOSITE THE WAGON AND HORSES ) AT 1930 ON MONDAY 14 MAY 2012.

A MODEL BOAT EVENING WILL BE HELD FOR THE WORLD SHIP SOCIETY AT OVER CANAL BASIN, WEST OF GLOUCESTER, AT 1830 ON MONDAY 11 JUNE 2012

THE ANNUAL RALLY OF THE MODEL STEAM ROAD VEHICLE SOCIETY WILL BE HELD AT TEWKESBURY RUGBY CLUB, GANDER LANE ON SATURDAY 30 JUNE AND SUNDAY 1 JULY 2012. VISIT www.msrvs.co.uk FOR DETAILS

THE SECOND ANNUAL GLOUCESTER MODEL RAILWAY EXHIBITION WILL BE HELD AT HUCCLECOTE METHODIST CHURCH HALL GL3 3SB ON SATURDAY 30 JUNE 2012. EXHIBITS WILL INCLUDE TERMINAL 1, NOT SEEN SINCE 2010.

THE GLOUCESTERSHIRE STEAM & VINTAGE EXTRAVAGANZA WILL BE HELD AT SOUTH CERNEY AIRFIELD, CIRENCESTER ON 3, 4 AND 5 AUGUST 2012. LOOK OUT FOR THE GRUMMAN STORY IN THE MODEL TENT. www.steamextravaganza.com

THE FIRST CITY OF GLOUCESTER VINTAGE STEAM RALLY WILL BE HELD AT HEMPSTED MEADOWS ON 22 AND 23 SEPTEMBER 2012. FOR MORE DETAILS VISIT www.shakespearesrally.com

THE CHELTENHAM GWR MODELLERS EXHIBITION WILL BE HELD AT ST MARGARET'S HALL, CONISTION ROAD GL51 3NU ON SATURDAY 27 AND SUNDAY 28 OCTOBER 2012. EXHIBITS WILL INCLUDE "FUNNY BUSINESS" - A DISPLAY OF WORLD WAR II BRITISH FIGHTING VEHICLES.

Set at the lowest natural crossing point on the River Severn, Gloucester has always been a focus for travellers and as a result both the City and County have a rich transport heritage.

First came the Romans with their roads, which evolved from the pathways of the Ancient Britons and grew into the complex of trunk roads and Motorways that we enjoy today. These roads not only allowed Welsh livestock to be driven to London but also accessed the coal, iron and timber of the nearby Forest of Dean

As the centuries passed too, the Severn was also exploited for the movement of goods, leading Queen Elizabeth I to grant the Letters Patent that made Gloucester a Port in 1580. Indeed, the trade on the Severn was so busy by the reign of Charles I that his imposition of Ship Tax helped the citizens of Gloucester decide to stand against him in the English Civil War.

After decades of manual labour, the Gloucester and Berkeley Canal also opened in 1827, allowing the dangerous sandbanks of the river to be bypassed by ocean going vessels. The longest, widest and deepest ship canal in the World – as it was when new – also brought an abundance of timber to the Cathedral City.

This in turn laid the foundation for such firms as Morelands – the "England’s Glory" match manufacturers – the Gloucester Railway Carriage and Wagon Company Limited and H.H. Martyn's of Cheltenham.

From Gloucester's tradition of blacksmithery and pin making too, sprang Cotton Motorcycles and – ultimately – the Gloster Aircraft Company. Among this company's illustrious products were the Gloster E28/39. In 1941 this became the first Allied jet aircraft to fly and led directly to the development of the Meteor and Javelin fighters.

Indeed, prior to the creation of the new counties of Avon and South Gloucestershire in 1973, Gloucestershire also embraced Parnall's of Yate and the Bristol Aeroplane Company with its omnibus building ancestry.

From the latter's base at Filton, the British prototype Anglo - French Concorde first flew on 9 April 1969. With Brian Trubshaw at the controls, G-BSST landed at RAF Fairford - still a part of the transport infrastructure of Gloucestershire today and host to the annual Royal International Air Tattoo.

Gloucestershire also boasts a rich heritage of railway operations, having been the Nineteenth Century battleground of the gauges between the factions of Isambard Kingdom Brunel and George and Robert Stephenson. As a result, the county still has direct links with Cardiff, Bristol, Swindon and Birmingham.

Indeed, Gloucestershire can also lay claim to preserved railways,horse drawn tramways, narrow gauge and miniature railways as well as a thriving model transport enthusiast community. This includes the Gloucester branch of the International Plastic Modelling Society which meets at Churchdown Community Centre on the first Tuesday of every month. For further information please contact Mr Barnfield on 01242 862826.

One of the great joys of compiling and illustrating Gloucestershire Transport History is the connectivity between different topics, as literally illustrated above by the cover of Fantom Film's audio production of Arnold Ridley's classic play and film "The Ghost Train".

This was brought to my attention by my friend, Fantom Films employee and fellow Mind Robber Ian Kubiak who also very kindly arranged for my own CD to be signed by Katy Manning, who played the role of Miss Bourne, while the cast also included Ian Fairbairn as Saul Hodgkin.

Both actors - and video, audio and book publisher Fantom Films itself - have strong links with Doctor Who. Katy Manning is perhaps best remembered as Jo Grant, a companion of the Third Doctor ( Jon Pertwee ) from 1971 to 1973, who appeared in 1972's "The Day of the Daleks" which also pitted United Nations Intelligence Task Force soldiers against Ogrons.

Also working ( for a while at least ) against UNIT was Ian Fairbairn playing the part of bespectacled scientist Gregory in 1968's "The Invasion", which similarly pitched the Second Doctor ( Patrick Troughton ) against Cybermen. This epic eight-parter also introduced Nicholas Courtney as Brigadier Alastair Gordon Lethbridge Stewart and many scenes were filmed at RAF Fairford and other Gloucestershire locations.

In fact Ian Fairbairn had previously appeared in "The Macra Terror" and later classic Dr Who credits included "Inferno" and "The Seeds of Doom".

Similarly, although known to generations of viewers as Private Godfrey in BBC TV's "Dad's Army", Arnold Ridley had a successful writing career and actually came up with the plot for "The Ghost Train" after being stuck on the triangular station at Mangotsfield - now in South Gloucestershire - on the former Midland route from Gloucester to Bristol - hence the typical LMS tank engine on the cover by Fantom Films, which also produces Arnold Ridley's biography as a talking book "Godfrey's Ghost: From Father to Son".

The Model Steam Road Vehicle Society was formed in Gloucestershire in 1985 to support and encourage model engineering in steam road vehicles. Interests within this national organisation - which also has quite a few overseas members - include a wide range of topics as well as live steam traction engines, steam locomotives and workshop equipment.

MSRVS members meet informally on the third Tuesday of each month at Longford Village Hall, Longford Lane, Gloucester GL2 9EL at 2000, visitors are welcome and many members have said that they could not have built their engines without the help readily given from within the Society.

For £18.00 a year (Under 16s £ 6.00) membership benefits include six newsletters a year, an annual two day rally at Tewkesbury (see above for 2012 details), other live steam meetings, FREE boiler testing under the MSRVS comprehensive scheme, monthly meetings of interest to members, with speakers, auction and modelling nights.

Although always focussed on Gloucestershire Transport History, this website has never been parochial and now receives news of transport related events further afield, including:

The South West Ship Show, including a contribution from the Gloucester Branch of the World Ship Society, will be held on Saturday 14 April 2012 at Parish Wharf Leisure Centre, Harbour Road, Portishead, BS20 7DD. For details visit www.coastalshipping.co.uk

The Gatwick Aviation Society's LGW2012, the 23rd Gatwick International Aircraft Enthusiasts Fair, to be held at K2 Crawley, Pease Pottage Hill, RH11 9BQ from 1000 to 1600 on Sunday 22 April 2012. Admission will be £ 4.00, SC £ 3.00 and accompanied children free. For more information visit www.Gatwickaviationsociety.org.uk