Railway enthusiasts and amateur historians are being invited to share in the latest collection to arrive at the Bath Record Office.
The Council has received 80 drawings depicting a range of old railway buildings and equipment around Green Park Station goods yard dating from 1869 to 1934. The detailed architectural drawings include an engine shed, turntable, oil lamp room, fish house, cab stand and stabling for horse-drawn taxi carriages.
The sketches were returned following an inventory check by the Somerset and Dorset Railway Trust which had borrowed them in 1982 from Bath City Council, the predecessor to Bath & North East Somerset Council.
Colin Johnston, the Council’s Principal Archivist, said: “It was a great surprise when they were returned to us after nearly 30 years.
“They were given to the old Bath City Council by British Rail back in the 1980s. They all have the stamp of the ‘British Railways Engineering Office, Paddington” and they’ve been well looked after and carefully wrapped in tissue paper. It’s a fascinating collection, and all in very good condition.
“They are mostly late 19th to early 20th century drawings produced by the railway company for buildings, alterations, extensions, rebuilds and changes on the site across the river from the main station, which used to be the railway goods yard. I believe Pinesway and the Homebase store are on that site now.
“We have virtually nothing in the way of railway drawings here so it’s really pleasing for this to come in as 80 drawings can offer a wealth of information on one topic. I’m sure it will be wonderful source material for railway enthusiasts.”
Bath Record Office, in the Guildhall, collects and preserves historical records relating to Bath and makes them available for research to anyone who wishes to use them.
Councillor Cherry Beath (Lib-Dem, Combe Down), Cabinet Member for Sustainable Development, said: “Bath & North East Somerset Council is pleased to retain these interesting records of the city’s railway heritage for the appreciation of our residents and visitors. This collection could be of particular interest to people whose relations may have worked on the line or at the station, as well as local railway enthusiasts, who could come into the Bath Record Office and offer any additional information from their own findings.”
The Bath Record Office is open for research from Tuesday to Friday each week, except the third full week of the month.
Opening times:
* Tuesday to Thursday – 9am to 1pm and 2pm to 5pm
* Friday – 9am to 1pm and 2pm to 4.30pm
For more information, contact Bath & North East Somerset Council’s Bath Record Office, Guildhall, High Street, Bath BA1 5AW, telephone 01225 477421 or email [email protected].
