EDUCATIONAL ASPECTS OF THE

G.W.R. TRAILER CARRIAGE NO.163

Lionel Wass

Oswestry Railway Museum

G.W.R. Trailer Carriage – Historical Context

In the 19 th Century the railway held a virtual monopoly in land transport. Its rivals, being horse-drawn, could not hope to compete in either speed or comfort. However, by the beginning of the 20 th Century this position was being contested. Firstly in metropolitan areas, where the railway’s aloofness from the growing urban sprawl was challenged by the electric tram-car, which offered almost door to door convenience – and later in more rural districts where the motor bus offered a similar service, overcoming the problems of widely spaced stations – often located some distance from the villages they purported to serve.

The railway’s response to these situations was to construct large numbers of stations in the newly expanding suburbs and to put up simple “halts” in any rural position that might be expected to generate custom. Linking them gave rise to the frequent electric suburban train in busy areas, and where a less intensive system was required, the “rail-motor” was developed. This saved on the electrical infrastructure by having a small steam plant inside the carriage, with enough power to drive itself and perhaps a similar unpowered trailer vehicle. These offered fairly basic accommodation with provision for standing passengers, parcels, perambulators etc. The railmotors could be driven from either end, and saved considerable time in turning round at terminal stations.

The vehicle which is the subject of this grant application was built by the Great Western Railway at Swindon in 1929 (see accompanying diagram). It is an unpowered trailer car, with a driving compartment at one end. By this period, trailer cars were powered by a small separate locomotive, the steam powered cars having been found inconvenient to maintain – falling as they did between Locomotive and Carriage Department responsibilities; thus work on either aspect of their construction resulted in their being taken out of service. The usual arrangement was for a specially adapted engine to be sandwiched between two similar trailers, with driving compartments at opposite ends, though they could also run as a single trailer/engine combination.

This particular vehicle was one of twelve built, of which 5 survive, and is interesting in that it marked a transitional phase between the earlier wooden panelled or match boarded vehicles and later all-steel structured ones. In this case the wooden framework was retained, but this was overlaid with flush steel plates giving a more modern appearance. An additional point of interest is the provision of a set of extending steps leading down to rail level, thus allowing the car to pick up or drop passengers at locations without platform provision - a practice derived from light railway operating procedures. The guard was given the additional responsibility of acting as a conductor, and was provided with a tramway type rack of tickets and a bell punch.

In the period following the First World War, railway maintenance, running and labour costs had risen sharply and were to be further inflated by working time restrictions, holidays with pay and other government regulations. Economies of operation such as were permitted by the use of vehicles like this, were to enable rural branch lines to continue providing a valuable service to scattered communities right up to the 1960’s when they were finally pruned by the Beeching axe. The fact that this vehicle has survived the demise of the rural lines, for which it was designed, by some 40 years is remarkable in itself. The coach is significant in development terms in that it pointed the way to the diesel multiple unit railcars of the 1960’s which themselves helped to prevent further axing of the rail network. Modern practice has continued to move away from locomotive hauled trains, and this coach’s lineage can be traced in recent metro systems and indeed in most rail passenger vehicles, which are now largely lightweight railcar based.

In wider interest terms, this vehicle is a direct link to an era when very few people owned cars, and the idyllic rural railway with its picturesque stations, flower filled gardens, milk churns and mailbags was the gateway to the world. An era as remote in concept to many modern children as the Middle Ages! If History is to do with re-visiting the past, this carriage must surely have value as a time machine in which to do it. Should its owners decide to bring it to the Cambrian Railway Museum site it would be an ideal exhibit, in that cars of this type ran from Oswestry to Gobowen, from Ellesmere to Wrexham and at other locations on the Cambrian system.

I append notes, ideas and comments on possible ways the vehicle may be utilised in an educational context, linked to the Railway Museum at Oswestry.

The auto-trailer railway carriage would appear to offer the following possibilities for use in an educational context:-

Several of these uses may, of course, be combined.

Use of the Carriage as a Museum Exhibit

 

 

If, as is anticipated, the carriage is to be based at Oswestry, then (a) it will become an adjunct to the Oswestry Railway Museum, which has recently been granted phase II registration with the Museums and Libraries Association, and (b) it will have direct access to a quarter of a mile of running line for demonstration purposes – with the expectation of at least part of the closed Gobowen to Nantmawr Quarry railway becoming available in the foreseeable future.

The Oswestry Railway Museum holds and exhibits a number of relics, and much memorabilia and documentation associated with Oswestry’s role as a railway town and headquarters of the Cambrian Railways Company, together with other items of local and general railway interest. It is open most days during the year, admission is free, and it is gradually pursuing its aim of providing access to information on, and encouraging interest in, the local and regional railway heritage. It receives many visitors, including school parties, together with frequent requests for information.

The fact that auto-trailer carriages of this exact type ran in the local area, including from Oswestry station – adjacent to the museum – to Gobowen, provides ample justification for adding this vehicle to the items on display, either within the museum building itself or in an adjacent building where visitors can view it, and have access to its interior. Here, an interpretative exhibition would explain it’s mode of operation, historic context, type of construction, position in a line of development etc. together with photographs and a video display of these vehicles in use locally. A proprietary 00 gauge model of this type of carriage is available, which could be used to show it and the correct type of locomotive in use, in G.W.R. and British Railways liveries. Since the museum is housed in an old goods depot, access to the carriage from there would be directly from the display area at platform level, with the possibility of a ramp for the additional convenience of physically disabled visitors etc. If housed in an adjacent building, this would give access at ground level to view the wheels, running gear etc., but internal access would involve negotiating steps or a lengthy ramp until more permanent arrangements could be made involving extending the museum platform through a new doorway.

For demonstration purposes, the Museum has available more than 400 yards of railway line over which it has a Light Railway Order. The line runs from an adjacent short bay platform and is used to give passenger rides to the general public at weekends and on other occasions. The auto-trailer would be ideal for this purpose, as coupled to a small steam locomotive it could exactly reproduce the push/pull mode of operation for which it was constructed. Thus a visitor to the Museum will have the opportunity to be informed on most aspects of local railway history and be able to study first hand – including riding in – a type of vehicle that from the 1930’s to the 1960’s was not only part of that history, but a well-known and much missed part of the local transport scene.

The Museum is stewarded, by and large, by ex-railwaymen who can give explanations and, in many cases, tell anecdotes and enlarge upon their experiences concerning these vehicles. School age visitors can be given explanatory talks, appropriate to their age and abilities – this is particularly so with pre-booked school parties where a guide is provided.

Educational fact sheets containing written and pictorial information aimed at Key Stage 2 and 3 children are available via our website.

Use of the Carriage as a Static or Mobile Classroom

 

One of the criticisms levelled at the current school curriculum is that children are being increasingly deprived of out of classroom learning experiences. Various reasons are given, including the amount of time needed to be spent on literacy and numeracy – as dictated by the requirements of the National Curriculum and the fear of schools falling down the league tables of test results, a certain degree of risk aversion by Local Authorities and teachers themselves, the problems of providing sufficient staff numbers to give adequate supervision, the costs involved and so on. However, given the cyclical nature of educational thought, it can only be a matter of time before the campaigning voices for “Real World Learning” begin to be heard, these difficulties are addressed and this approach to education regains the position it once held.

With a number of Primary and Secondary schools within the vicinity of the Museum, it is anticipated that the auto-trailer carriage could provide a viable location and base for extra-mural activities. The main saloon, having seating for 48 with a further 16 in the smaller saloon, would provide more than adequate accommodation for a class of children, and if fitted with removable tables would become a novel, but most suitable classroom. The original seating was of a low-backed variety which would not impede visibility for speaking to the pupils or using visual aids etc. The coach would be fitted out with a mains and a portable power supply, and provided with facilities such as video and computer equipment, display board etc. At the rebuilding stage adaptations, such as for ease of disabled access, provision of a hearing loop etc. could be easily incorporated into the structure without compromising the originality to too great an extent. Unfortunately the carriage lacks toilet facilities, which would need to be provided externally at the site where the vehicle is located.

The Museum has some toilet provision, and there is talk of new ones being built at the adjacent station building when it is refurbished. For off-site provision, either pupils would use station facilities where the carriage was parked, or portable facilities would need to be provided at more remote locations. (Or there is always the bushes!)

At the Oswestry Museum site the carriage can be used within the museum building, giving direct access to and from the museum platform where the exhibits are on display. Outide, the carriage can be shunted into a bay platform which is close to toilets and kitchen facilities and is convenient for access to view the yard, old station buildings and other railway remains – also to give access to the town. At a later date it is possible that a further platform-side location could be made available, namely the cattle-dock at the end of the quarter mile demonstration line. If/when sections of restored railway become available, there is the convenience of being able to move the vehicle and it’s occupants from location to location – either for a panoramic overview or to study several different areas. The opening steps can be used to give access to rail level for use in places without platform provision. This could present problems for the less agile, but would be perfectly suitable for most children and adults as handrails and flat treads are provided.

Some possible areas of study using the coach as a base at the Museum site might be:-

When/If the railway line becomes available then the study possibilities are obviously much greater, including for example:-