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Confessions of A Steam-Age Ferroequinologist
ferroequinologist (noun) Someone who studies the 'Iron Horse' (i.e. trains and locomotives). From the Latin ferrus 'iron' and equine 'horse' + -logist As the British steam era drew to a close, a young Keith Widdowson set out to travel on as many steam-hauled trains as possible – documenting each journey in his notebooks. In Confessions of a Steam Age Ferroequinologist, he cracks these books open and blows off the dust. His self-imposed mission, that of riding behind as many Iron Horses as possible prior to their premature annihilation, led to hours of nocturnal travels, extended periods of inactivity in station waiting rooms, missed connections and fatigue. However, any downsides of his quest were compensated by the camaraderie found amongst a group of like-minded colleagues who congregated on such trains. This is a book that no self-respecting ferroequinologist should be without.
Scottish Steam's Final Fling
In May 1967, Scotland became the third of the six British Railways regions to dispense with the steam locomotive, bringing an iconic era of Britain's transport heritage closer to its demise. Residing over 300 miles away, then teenaged Keith Widdowson's pilgrimages north of the border were marathon undertakings. Abysmal overnight time keeping, missed connections, trains allegedly booked as steam but turning up as diesel – each journey could have been a disaster, but those setbacks were easily forgotten after many successes, such as in catching runs with LNER A2s, A4s, V2s and B1s, as well as BR Clans. Accompanied with brief historical data of routes and stations – many no longer extant – visited, alongside photographs from the author's archives, this book is a collection of reminiscences from the final two years of steam that anyone with a penchant for railways will enjoy.
The Great Steam Chase
Amassing over 52,000 miles from Kent to Cornwall, here is the story of Keith Widdowson's journey as he raced against time to chronicle the steam locomotives working throughout southern England before they succumbed to modern traction. From sleep deprivation to gung-ho drivers, this is no ordinary trainspotter's diary but a nostalgic and evocative look back at how things really were in those steam days. A must-have for enthusiasts and locals to the closed railways alike, this is one man's journey, with 140 contemporary images to capture the railway as it was then, fully aware that things were about to change for good (but not necessarily for the better). From closing branch lines to final steam workings, here is the last snapshot of the golden age of steam. It is a personal and informed account that all people with any interest in the Southern Region or steam in general will no doubt relate to.
The Great Western Steam RetreatThe Great Western Steam Retreat
One man's personal travelogue of his journeys throughout BR's Western Region, Wales and the Welsh Marches during the final months of steam
Chasing Steam in 1966
By 1966 the steam locomotive was entering its death throes: withdrawals were being carried out at a frenetic pace, with the slightest defect sending engines straight to the cutter's torch. In an attempt to capture the British steam scene before it was no more, teenage enthusiast Keith Widdowson made it his mission to travel the length and breadth of the country to obtain runs behind as many locomotives as possible. Armed with a Southern Region season ticket and enjoying the camaraderie of fellow devotees, Keith quickly amassed many catches and great mileage, but countless overnight and lengthy expeditions to the north of England and Scotland throughout the summer of 1966 were needed to complete the picture. With a multitude of photographs, maps and notebook extracts, Chasing Steam in 1966 is a window into a bygone age. Join Keith on his 47,000-mile journey that takes in the demise of the Somerset & Dorset and ex-Great Central lines, and showcases the hunt for the handful of remaining Jubilees, capturing all the joys and frustrations of a great steam chase.
The Last Women of the Durham Coalfield
'As this book shows, the women of the Durham coalfield played an equal role in shaping daily life and trajectories of history in the region, just as women today are building their own futures in communities around the world.' - Hillary Rodham Clinton The Second World War took its toll on every part of society. The appeal for women to work outside the home in the ammunition factories supporting the war effort was taken up by many women throughout the colliery villages. They worked for eight hours a day at the factory, taking up their caregiving and home-making roles when they returned home. Their days continued to be long and strenuous. After the war, the government introduced a series of initiatives intended to improve the lives of the nation. A reformed education system was implemented in 1944, nationalisation in 1947 and a national health service in 1948. At last things were looking up for coal-mining families. At the edge of this bright new horizon, little did Hannah's female descendants realise that they would come to represent the last generation of women of the Durham coalfield.
The Lost Back-to-Back Streets of Leeds
Despite what journalists chose to highlight, the gas lamps in Woodhouse still had work to do because the streets were not empty of life. Some houses were boarded up but many – often next door – were still family homes, albeit in the last years of occupation. Shops were still open, the washing lines swung in the wind across the streets where the children were playing, the cats and dogs sunbathed on doorsteps. They were a fertile source for photographs. In the 1960s and 1970s the suburbs of Woodhouse were undergoing a sweeping transformation from groups of back-to-back terraces to late-twentieth century houses amid green spaces. Chronicling this period of change was a student with a camera. The Lost Back-to-Back Streets of Leeds tells the story of Woodhouse's shifting urban landscape through pictures and the meticulous research behind them. At their heart are not just houses and shops, but also the people who lived or worked in them in a time of such great change.
200 Years of Lifesaving at Sea
On 4 March 1824, thirty philanthropic gentlemen – including the abolitionist William Wilberforce and Archbishop of Canterbury Charles Manners-Sutton – met in a London pub. Here, the Royal National Lifeboat Institution was born. In the following 200 years, the RNLI has been woven into the fabric of our island nation, saving over 144,000 lives, despite some rescuers losing their own in the process. With over 100 fascinating images from Mirrorpix, one of the world's biggest photo libraries, 200 Years of Lifesaving at Sea is a testament to the brave folk who sailed and continue to sail towards danger, rather than away from it.
Riding Yorkshire's Final Steam Trains
Keith Widdowson visited the North Eastern Region of British Railways on over forty occasions during the final eighteen months of steam powered passenger services. With the odd exceptions (usually for railtours) most of the locomotives were neglected, run down, filthy, prone to failure and often only kept their wheels turning courtesy of the skills of the crew coaxing them along with loving care. Far from the scenic delights so often justifiably portrayed of the Yorkshire countryside, the ever-dwindling numbers became corralled within the industrialized heartland of Bradford, Leeds, Wakefield and Normanton. Here, Widdowson recalls that bygone era, leading an almost nomadic nocturnal existence...
Scattering Plenty
At the outset of the twentieth century, the management of the British countryside was the preserve of powerful aristocratic estates, the ground worked by labourers toiling in time-honoured tradition. Scattering Plenty tells of the birth of modern farming through wartime, post-war reconstruction and four decades embroiled in European countryside policies. It follows the stories of key figures driving change; as the face of the countryside evolves, it charts their fight for nature and natural beauty, and traces the gradual control that the state and democratic agents had on the land. Their stories evoke the landscape of Britain, and take the reader inside the corridors of power in Whitehall and Brussels, where farmers and environmentalists jostled for influence. Who were the people scattering plenty across our land, and who made the modern countryside? In Scattering Plenty, you'll gain a deeper appreciation for the profound legacy of agriculture in shaping Britain's past, present and future, as Jim Dixon delves into the lives of those who shaped the modern countryside and made space for the deeply rooted bucolic haven that millions enjoy today.
