On the Narrow Gauge:

Narrow Gauge Railways & the Lincolnshire Area Narrow Gauge Group

Narrow Gauge Railway Society ® - website

This page has been 'under construction' for too long. Suffice it to say that I have been involved in narrow gauge railways for many, many years. My first introductions to the narrow gauge were to the gravel pit railway at Burton Fen, near Lincoln and the ironstone tramways at Greetwell, and to the industrial scene at Newsum's joinery works on the Fosse Dyke in Lincoln. In those days, nearly 60  years ago there was also open access to the Docks at Boston, Lincs., and it was on Sunday visits to these that that I first experienced the 'potato railway' at Nocton. Notes on other lines in the 'West End' of Lincoln and 'Newsums' are available. Whilst they are not narrow gauge there are some interesting diagrams of Lincoln's railways in the 1950-59 period on this website: these show the extensive system of 'industrial' lines in the City at that time.

I have worked as a 'Traffic Volunteer' (Guard) on the Talyllyn Railway (Mid-Wales) for over fifty years. On my journeys to Tywyn I have often stopped to visit my friends on the Welshpool & Llanfair Railway, and my involvement with the smaller gauges has led to me being Secretary of the Lincolnshire Area of the Narrow Gauge Railway Society ®. (Now the Lincolnshire Area Narrow Gauge Group). The Lincolnshire Area NGG (generally) meets on the 2nd Wednesday of alternate months at the 'The Golden Eagle’ 21 High Street, Lincoln, LN5 8BD, with a start time of 7.30pm. We finish for 10.00pm. We offer a range of events that we hope is of interest to all interested in narrow gauge and minor railways. Membership of the NGRS is not a pre-requisitite of attending our meetings or any other events: we welcome all.

Our current programme (and an idea of the sort of things we get up to) is below.

2019 Programme (in process)

January 9th: Members Slides  of  2018: continued

February 13th: ‘Narrow Gauge around the world’ - Graham Lightfoot

April 10th: ‘Crowle Peatworks Railway’- Angus Townley

June 12th: ‘Railways of Southampton Docks ‘: Ian Drummond

July 10th: ‘Eastwell Ironstone & the ‘Lord Granby’ Project’: Eastwell History Group.

August TBA

September 11th: A presentation on the Ravenglass & Eskdale Rly - hopefully by Peter Van Zeller.

October 9th: ‘Tileries & Brickworks of S Humberside’: Geoff Hankin

December 11th: AGM & Slides of 2019

2018 Programme: Please note new location: The Golden Eagle, 21 High Street, Lincoln,  LN5 8BD (Tel: 01522 521058)

January 10th: Members Slides  of  2017: continued

February 14th -  'Videos from Darjeeling': Peter Barnes

April 11th   'Sentinels from Sri Lanka': Harry (& Sam?) Billmore

June 13th   'Quarries & Tramways of the Yorkshire Dales part two': Stewart Liles

August 8th   'Slates from Dinorwic & Nantlle': Andrew Neale

September 12th  ‘Narrow Gauge Industrial Locomotives  - a monochrome journey'- a continuation of 'Hand, Hoof & Rope':  Adrian Foster

October 10th ‘India & Pakistan 1983/4’ Dave Billmore

December 12th  AGM & Slides of 2018

2017 Programme

January 11th: Cancelled

February 8th: Members Slide Night & continuation of AGM Presentations

April 12th: ‘Bord na Mona: Irish Turf Board’ -Dave Billmore

June 14th:  ‘Quarry Railways & Tramways of the Yorkshire Dales’ -Stewart Liles

August 9th: ‘The Fowler Story’ - John Pease

October 11th: ‘'An Extra Six Inches: the British Army's 2ft 6 in Gauge Railways in the Middle East 1915-19': Iain Logie

December 13th: AGM & Slides of 2017 - last meeting at this location.

2016 Programme

January 13th: Members Slide Night & continuation of AGM Presentations

February 10th: Statfold Barn night - Alan Bowler & Graham Lightfoot (& others) present slides of Statfold Barn Railway.

April 13th: ‘The Ruston Story’ - Andrew  Neale

June 8th:  ‘Sierra Leone Railway Museum Project’ - Helen Ashby

August 10th: Ian Drummond - ‘A Talyllyn subject’

October 12th: ‘Austrian Industrials’: Adrian Foster

December 14th: AGM & Slides of 2016

2015 Programme

January 14th: Members Slide Night & continuation of AGM Presentations

February 11th: ‘High Latitudes, Little Engines, Cold Seas: Railways of the Arctic & Antarctic Islands’ - Tim Hudson

April 8th ‘A Small matter of a Military Coup: a trip to Volos’ - Alan Bowler

June 10th: ‘Sewage Farm & similar railways’ - Geoff Hankin (Transferred from October)

August 12th: ‘Protecting the Nation’s Art Treasures: the National ‘repository’ at Manod Quarry, N Wales’ - Chris Mackenzie

October 14th: ‘The Chairman’s Miscellany’: Alan Burgess, Chairman, NGRS

December 9th AGM & Members Slides of 2015 - As always - please restrict yourself to 15 minutes (err, not 45, Mr ...) and first timers go first.

2014 Programme

8th January:  ‘Carry On AGM’ Additional meeting to give those who didn’t have a chance to show slides in December a chance to do so.

12th February: NGRMT at North Ings Farm: the story  so far: Chris White

9th April: ‘Hands, hooves & cable - a journey in monochrome’ - Adrian Foster.

4th June: ‘Ed Lund Memorial Evening’ - John Smallwood with vintage cine from the collection of the late Ed Lund. PLEASE NOTE CHANGE OF DATE

13th August: ‘Slates from Blaenau’ - Andrew Neale

8th October: ‘Narrow Gauge Miscellany’ - John Scholes

10th December: AGM & Slideshow - A retrospective of the year 2014. Speakers are limited to 15 minutes per speaker - 'first timers' go first! (If the event over-runs there is the prospect of an additional event in January 2015)

2013 Programme

9th January,: ‘Carry On AGM’ Additional meeting to give those who didn’t have a chance to show slides in December a chance to do so.

13th February: ‘European narrow gauge in the 1970s’ by Andrew Neale.

10th April: ‘Hands, hooves & cable - a journey in monochrome’ - Adrian Foster. CANCELLED due to illness - replaced by  ‘Indian ng & metre gauge archive’

12th June: ‘The Welsh Narrow Gauge in the 1950s & 1960s - a journey in transparencies’ - David Mitchell.

7th August:  ‘South Africa & Zimbabwe’ - vintage video by Mel Haigh. PLEASE NOTE CHANGE OF DATE.

9th October: ‘War Dept Light Railways of World War One’ - Kim Winter (War Office Locomotive Society).  CANCELLED - Replaced by ‘Railways of Sardinia  plus Colorado & German updates’ - Graham Lightfoot. Change of venue (this event only) to SLHA, Jews Court, Lincoln. LN1 2LS

11th December: AGM & Slideshow - A retrospective of the year 2013. Speakers are limited to 15 minutes per speaker - 'first timers' go first! (If the event over-runs there is the prospect of an additional event in January 2014)

x-x-x-x

2007 Programme

 

February 14th:  'Health & Safety Sahib? No Problem Sahib' 'What is Health & Safety' - 23 years in India & Nepal  :Tim Hudson

April 11th 'Cuba' :Lawson Little

June 14th :'A Week of N.G. days out'. Alan Bowler

August 8th.'Compressed Air Locomotives': Nick Kelly

October 10th: 'A - Z of Narrow Gauge Railways in Britain: from the resources of the Narrow Gauge Railway Museum, Tywyn'. Chris White

December 12th.: AGM & Slideshow

2008 Programme

 

February 13th: 'Welshpool Topics': Dave Billmore

April 9th: 'Railroading the States - 2006/7: Colorado & Wyoming'. Mick Melbourne & friends

June 11th. 'A - Z of Narrow Gauge Railways in Britain: from the resources of the Narrow Gauge Railway Museum, Tywyn': Part 2. Chris White

August 13th. 'Muscles on Railways': A return visit by ... Nick Kelly

October 1st: Narrow Gauge in Ontario, in the 1860s, 70s and 80s: Rod Clarke

October 8th: 'Ratty Topics': John Taylor

December 10th: AGM & Slideshow - limited to 15 minutes per speaker - 'first timers' go first!

      

2009 Programme

 

February 11th: Ironstone Mining from Greetwell to Barkston. Stewart Squires

April 8th: The Great Alex Hurd 2009 Video Show by the one and only ... Alex Hurd

June 10th: Steam on the Cambrian & Talyllyn in the 1960s; (& hopefully) Austrian Narrow Gauge in the 1980s (film by John Smallwood & Ed Lund):  John Smallwood

August 12th. The Modern Industrial Railway - Europe, the UK and the USA: Nick Kelly

October 14th: 'When the Wall Came Down'. Graham Lightfoot

December 9th AGM & Slideshow - limited to 15 minutes per speaker - 'first timers' go first! (and, as agreed, in 2009 people with slides and first timers get first go).

 

2010 Programme

 

February 10th: Slow Train to Sargan: Tim Lockley

April 14th: Steam in Central & East Africa: David Mitchell

June 9th: Running the Cambrian section. Larry Bridges

August 11th. 2'0" gauge in the British Isles: Fred Pugh

October 13th: Kirby Green Miniature Railway. Stuart Ravell

December 8th. AGM & Slideshow - limited to 15 minutes per speaker  (and, as agreed, in 2009 first timers get first go)  CANCELLED DUE TO BAD WEATHER.

      

  

2011 Programme - As this is the 60th Anniversary of the UK (& World) Preservation movement the talks this year have a ‘nostalgic’ theme.

January 12th: Postponed from December 8th. AGM & Slideshow - limited to 15 minutes per speaker  (and, as agreed, in 2009 first timers get first go)

February 9th:  Peru & Bolivia - narrow gauge, standard gauge, & Lake Titicaca steamers.Tim Hudson

March  12th & 13th (Saturday & Sunday) - not one of our events but members can often be found at Narrow Gauge North

April 13th : ‘Nostalgia evening’. Members slide night (nothing younger than 20 years old, if possible, and please try and limit yourself to 15 minutes)

June 8th ‘Fifty Years a Talyllyn Volunteer’ - Gordon Rhodes  (Due to circumstances beyond his control Gordon has had to cancel. We are looking for a replacement, but the meeting will take place). REPLACED BY ANDREW NEALE - Subject TBA

August  10th;  ‘Leeds Built Locomotives around the World’ : Ron Redman

October 12th ‘Colorado - Railroad Heaven’ - Graham Lightfoot

December 14th: AGM & Slideshow - limited to 15 minutes per speaker - 'first timers' go first!

2012 Programme

February  8th : ‘Poland, 2011’ Chris White CANCELLED DUE TO BAD WEATHER - NEW DATE - see below

March 13th TUESDAY  ‘Poland, 2011’ Chris White - POSTPONED FROM FEBRUARY

April  11th: Not quite a Tim & Mick show, but ‘Indian retrospect’ - DHR, KSR & INRM from 1990 to 2011, with hopefully some DHR material from the 1970s (& Nepal Govt Rly if I can get it copied)

June  13th: ‘Early Days on the Talyllyn Railway’’ - Gordon Rhodes

August  8th: ‘Nostalgia evening’. Members slide night (nothing younger than 20 years old, if possible, and please try and limit yourself to 15 minutes)

September 12th :ADDITIONAL MEETING - ‘War Dept Light Railways of World War One’ - Kim Winter (War Office Locomotive Society) - Possible joint meeting with the Lincolnshire Branch of the Western Front Association. DUE TO CIRCUMSTANCES BEYOND THE CONTROL OF THE NGRS THIS MEETING WILL NOT NOW TAKE PLACE. TJH 10/08/2012

October 10th :  Film Presentation - Burma - including the Burma Mines Railway: Mel Haigh.

December 12th : AGM & Slideshow - limited to 15 minutes per speaker - 'first timers' go first!

Membership of the Lincolnshire Area Group of the NGRS ®is open to anyone interested in narrow gauge and light or industrial railways - membership of the NGRS ® is not necessary to attend our meetings. A small charge is made to cover expenses. For further details please contact me (ngrs [at] photrek.co.uk) or telephone me on 01522 524672.

This page is copyright and may not be reproduced without permission.

© Lincolnshire Area NGRS & Tim Hudson. 22nd  November 2018