Colin Churcher 2020

  The main hall has an interesting display of signals A strange colour for a Great Western locomotive.  This is actually a Hall class 4-6-0 5975 Olton Hall There is another hall which is devoted to longer trains. Here we see LBSCR "Gladstone? Railway heraldry is not forgotten A Great Western diesel car. A Midland locomotive in maroon I have saved the best, in my view, to last. At one time the GWR King class 4-6-0 No. 6000 King George V was at York.  It has now been moved to Swindon, its birthplace This is the famous bell that was put on 6000 for its trip to the USA and which was retained after it returned to the UK. On Wednesday 15 August 1962 I reported for duty as a cleaner at Reading and was delighted to find 6000 in the yard, having come off an overnight train with steam heating problems. Extract from my diary for that day: "The cleaners badgered the charge hand foreman, Eddie, to allow them to clean the King but he wouldn't let them because it wasn't one of his e...

  Visitors are allowed complete access to the Warehouse which contains an incredible collection of railway memorabilia, much of it stacked up and all properly labelled. One could spend days in here alone. The collection is confusing and not stored in any particular order which makes the search all the more interesting as you never know what you are going to come across next This nickel-silver plate is an interesting souvenir of Ottawa-Hull.  One wonders how it came to be in the UK National Railway Museum There are many models in differing scales. This is a GWR King Class 4-6-0 If you can tear yourself away from the Warehouse the repair shop has a good viewing balcony. 60800 is a V2 class 2-6-2 "Green Arrow".it looks to be carrying a 50A (York) shed plate  A4 class 4-6-2 "Sir Nigel Gresley" under restoration. It is very difficult to cover everything at York in just one day.  Next we will finish with some my favourites.

  The first thing one sees when entering the museum is "Tiny" a narrow gauge locomotive used at Crewe works Believe it or not, entry to the museum is free, although they ask for a small donation which,  unfortunately, does not give a tax deduction for foreign visitors Whenever I enter the main hall I am bewildered trying to decide what to see first.  The exhibits are frequently changed.  Here we can see, on the right, LNER "'Mallard" world steam record holder and on the left the LMS Coronation class competition. A Western class diesel hydraulic - I rode many a mile in these, having brought a metal milk crate to sit on. At one time the GWR speeder No. 3440 "City of Truro" was at York, seen here on the turntable. I watched as a perfectly attired lady demonstrated turning the engine on the turn table - she was wearing high heels. She just moved a small lever and it turned itself - I didn't have the heart to ask her how she got the engine balanced so t...

  The journey from Darlington to York does not take too long. These HST trains have now all been phased out of this service to be replaced by the Hitachi electrics The first thing to notice is the impressive curved train shed The decorative scroll work is well worth a second look This is now a small tearoom but I assume it was once a signal box In the entrance is to be found this North Eastern Railway map done in tile work Before spending a couple of days in the Railway Museum we have time to take a look at this wonderful medieval town.  This is the bridge over the River Ouse. Guildhall York Minster The Shambles - Mary and I rented an apartment here for a month a few years ago Local flavor Scratchings are a local delicacy - deep fried pig skin Mild beer seems to be making a welcome come back We'll fortify ourselves with roast beef and Yorkshire pudding