Whilst there are a number of anniversaries coming along this year, there is one that Archivist, Paul Brunt, does not want to go un-noticed. Seen here lit up as if in action at the Winter 2014 Steam Gala, it is 20 years ago, 1995, that Keighley Signalbox was lifted into place on the Railway, having last worked at Shipley on 25th June 1994 and moved to the KWVR the next day. This has been a long and thorough installation and it is anticipated that Keighley signalling will be commissioned in time for the 50 year anniversary of the opening of the line in 2018. Here is Paul’s report.

Doesn’t time fly, a collection of photographs from member F. W. Smith of Ilkley came into the archives last year and whilst cataloguing these I came across a sequence of images from the installation of the Ex-Shipley signalbox into its position at the end of Platform 3 at Keighley.  The date of the lift was 25 May 1995.

As can be seen from the images it was moved in two parts and used the BLS 50 Ton Craven Breakdown Crane No. 1015/50 hauled to site by the Railway’s English Electric Class 20 whilst painted green and numbered D8031.

The signalbox base is moved carefully into position

The base of the signalbox lever frame is moved into position

The top half is then lowered and fixed into position

The signalbox top is still supported by the crane whilst D8031 waits for everyone to finish so it can take the crane back.

The signalbox is now in place and has since become a familiar sight to our many visitors

Whilst all the major work was taking place further up the Valley and there were no steam engines needing their thirst quenched down at Keighley, a small band of volunteers gathered at Keighley to give the water column on Platform 3 a well earned spruce up .

Although on a Midland branchline, the column has greater connections with the old GNR line to Bradford & Halifax. It was rescued by a group of members in the early 1980s from the National Coal Board’s Manvers Main Colliery near the Sheffield to Swinton railway line and appears similar in design to those used by the GNR/LNER.