From the Folkestone Herald Published 25 May 2000
Rail nostalgia.
REMARKABLE number of narrow gauge railways have added interest to the Garden
of England over the years and, of course, one of the most popular is the
Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway.
The local railway, a great favourite with children and families alike, is
featured in a new book on railways published on May 13.
Called Kent Narrow Gauge it is from the pen of two
enthusiasts like the man who built the railway, Capt Jack Howey.
That is to say Vic Mitchell and Keith Smith who have penned literally dozens
of railway books published by Middleton Press. In fact to
prove that I am not exaggerating, the publishers’ blurb notes that there are
now more than 120 of them.
The 96-page book with 120 photographs costs £12.95 from local bookshops or
can be obtained post free from the publishers, at Easebourne Lane, Midhurst,
West Sussex, GU29
9AZ.
Both men live in West Sussex and have had a lifelong interest in railways.
The book was launched at a rare open day at the Bredgar &
Wormshill Railway in beautiful grounds south of Sittingbourne, on May 13.
Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway locomotive Typhoon pictured first thing in
the morning in September 1987 on the old 30ft turntable, later replaced by a
40ft model.
The Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway line takes up a large section of the
book, and I was interested to see a photo of the remarkable loco created out
of Capt Howey’s own
Rolls-Royce car which I have referred to before in Memories. But other
little known narrow gauge lines also get a mention, ranging from the ‘Fish
Railway’ across the miles of shingle at Dungeness, to the little known
Nuttall line which ran for only two years in the construction of a new sewer
through the hillside, from Farthingloe, in Folkestone Road to Aycliffe, to a
land owner’s line at Sandwich Bay involved in plans to build homes there in
the early 1900s.
This was known as the Guilford Tramway after the Earl of Guilford, who lived
at Waldershare Park.
Little used after 1915 it was to prove useful to the Army in
the First World War serving camps in the area.
A narrow gauge network of lines used in construction of the Channel Tunnel
also features prominently.
Bowaters Paper Mill at Sittingbourne had a large network of lines and some
interesting locomotives which feature strongly in the new book.
And, apart from others in the northern part of the county such as the
Chattenden and Upnor military line, near my grandparents’ home near
Rochester - the apparent secretiveness of the line fascinated me in my teens
-there were little trains connected with the holiday industry around the
Isle of
Thanet. Margate Dreamland, Margate and Herne Bay piers, and the Isle of
Thanet Light Railway. - A fascinating book!
And, on the subject, of books I was pleased to yet the proofs back this week
for my own new book on old Dover in the Archive series of books by Tempus
Publishing who have already covered Folkestone, Hythe, Canterbury and Deal.
To change the subject completely and referring to last week’s Memories piece
I find that I need to correct a date I gave for a walk down memory lane for
Ron Dutt and other ex-Dover Road School boys who were evacuated to South
Wales in the last war. A group of five meets up on June 2.
This Mustang fighters photo is the cover picture of Mustang Wing a new book
about RAF Brenzett, an advanced landing strip, by Anthony John Moor, I hope
to write about next week.
ANOTHER charabanc picture, but what interesting old cars they were. Memories
reader and postcard collector Peter Hooper lent me the card postmarked July
1909. The picture was taken outside the old Co-op grocery and hardware store
at the bottom of Dover Road. Two of the charabancs are clearly ‘Pop’ Wills
Pullmans and this was probably a Co-op staff outing. The second car has a
Maltby ‘Sandgate Pullman’ body dating from 1908 and the third is a 1906 MMC.
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1900
Court told of children of 12 drunk fetching beer.
THE DUKE of Cambridge agreed to lay the foundation stone of
a new wing of the Royal Victoria Hospital at the end of May.
Celebrations were to Include lunch at the Pavilion Hotel. Over a column
of space In local papers was given over to a report of the Church of
England Temperance Society’s annual meetings and concerts at the Town
Hall. The main object of the society was re-habilitation of offenders
sent to prison for drink offences. The meeting passed a resolution
calling for the closing; of pubs on Sundays and a ban on children under
16 fetching beer for adults. Children as young as five had been found
carrying jugs of beer late at night and some as young as 12 were drunk
having gained a taste for it themselves. A subscription fund was begun
for the widow and children of Sandling stationmaster Mr E Hilder killed
In an accident on the railway. Recent Boer casualties In South Africa
illustrated the international nature of the war. They included a German
lieutenant and among the wounded was a Russian commander of the Foreign
Legion. A trade exhibition was held at the Town Hall, with Red Rose
Orchestra music, trade stalls and cookery lectures.
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1925
£10m rail plan to include new railway to Hastings.
A £10 MILLION upgrade of Southern Railway was to include a new
line from Folkestone to Hastings, part of a scheme for a better service
between Margate and the West Country, which included upgrading the line
from Thanet, through Dover to Folkestone. Sir Charles Wakefield opened
the Philbeach Convalescent Home at Station Road, Hythe, which was
established by the Tram, Omnibus & Tube Benevolent Fund, which managed
subscription funds of employees of the company, and was to care for
needy wives and children of men who served in the First World War. The
Folkestone Herald editor wrote that the start of work on a band pavilion
in Marine Gardens, near the sea, almost coincided with that of a start
being made on another at the Leas Concert Hall, which it had been
decided to call the Leas Cliff Hall. Martin Walters were advertising the
latest Vauxhall cars Including the “famed 30-98 hp Velox, the fastest
standardised touring car - Guaranteed 100 mph.” Others were the Wyndham,
Melton, Princeton, Grafton (all 14-40hp), the Carlton and Kington
(23-60hp.) Prices ranged from £595 to £1,295, but no price was given for
a Velox. Talks were still going on between the council and local bus
companies about a better run timetable of services and regulations.
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1950
Local girl judged UK’s most beautiful girl at 6.
NOLA Ansell, daughter of Mr & Mrs J E Ansell, of Longford
Hotel, The Leas, was selected as Great Britain’s most beautiful child In
the 1950 Sunday Dispatch competition for children born in 1944. Her
portrait, featured on the front the Herald’s midweek Gazette paper, was
on show at the Daffy Mall “Ideal Homes Exhibition.” Nola was in the top
10 the previous year. Photographer Theodore Greville, of Halksworth
Wheeler Studios, persuaded her to enter again and she won. It was a
double for Theodore who also photographed young Michael Slade, who took
second place in the class for children born in 1946. He was the son of
Mr and Mrs Slade of Bouverie Road West. There were 57,500 entries. A
portrait by Cheriton photographer H B Green, of Joan Wallace, not a
Folkestone child, also gained a first, for children born in 1947. For
those looking forward to a good Season of cricket a cartoon in the
Herald's midweek Gazette 50 years ago provides food for thought; 817
runs were scored In one day in a match between East Grinstead and an MCC
XI in July 1914. E. Grinstead made 442 for six, and MCC 375 for two, Pat
Hendren 201 not out. 50 years ago the Folkestone Gazette published an
early photo of the original Black Bull Inn, in Canterbury Road.
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1975
Worst ever catches threat to port’s fishing boat fleet.
FISHERMEN at Folkestone, Hythe and Dungeness were said
to face bankruptcy unless catches improved. A Kent fisheries officer said gloomily that he couldn’t see how some of them could do anything
else but look for jobs elsewhere unless there was government aid. He
pointed to Ramsgate where the rot had already started - a 15-strong
fleet of trawlers had dropped to one in a year. Winter catches were the
worst for 14 years. At every Kent port it was the same story, he said.
Folkestone fisherman Bert Reed said it was the worst winter since that
of 1962/3 when the sea froze in some areas. Folkestone might have to
brace itself against further winds of change and welcome hovercraft
services, warned the Herald editor. British Rail was considering the
port as a base for its cross-Channel hovercraft operation which could
have meant valuable jobs. The suggested site was the concrete apron at
the Warren. The town had a taste of hovercraft ‘din’ with pleasure trips
from just below the Leas, and didn't like it. The editor said the
proposal could tie in with a proposed conference and leisure centre
planned for Copt Point. In a compromise move to speed up housing Shepway
council was being asked to agree to Its planned 1,700 new homes being
finished In three years instead of five. This was the outcome of talks
between council officers, Whitehall officials and KCC officers.
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