Volume 8, Issue 1, January 2005
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Obituary - Dick Moy Dick Moy, owner of the Spread Eagle and reportedly ‘Mr. Greenwich’, was one of GIHS’s founder members – in particular contributing a number of articles on Greenwich based cutlery manufacture to one of our first newsletters. He always promised to come and speak at our meetings – sadly he never made it. Dick died on 23rd November after a long illness. His life, and death, have been widely reported, including in the Independent on 23rd December, Dick was one of the people who brightened life in Greenwich, and who from the 1950s drew attention to the town’s history and got it onto the heritage map. He will be sadly missed by Greenwich – and particularly by its historians. |
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Passenger railways developed very quickly in the 1830s but with infrequent trains, slow speeds and light stock there was not much need for signalling in the early days. When services became more frequent and faster some regulation became necessary and railway policemen were given the job of controlling the trains as well as the passengers. They were later called 'signalmen' but because of the connection, are still nicknamed 'Bobbies'.
Crude signals of many types that could be seen by train drivers a long distance away were brought in, together with auxiliary or distant signals that allowed for braking distance; red, green and white flags and lights also became commonly used. Rule books, detonators, semaphore signals and the Railway Inspectorate all came in the 1840s. The usual method of train working at that time, and on some railways for nearly fifty years, was Time Internal. In this, an interval of about five minutes had to elapse before a train was allowed to follow a previous one and a green flag or light was shown. When an interval of about ten minutes had elapsed a white flag or light was exhibited. This system did not give much protection if a train came to a stop in a section and the Guard could not get back far with detonators. The electric telegraph was used early in the 1830s for normal railway working but apart from protecting traffic through a few tunnels was not much used for signalling. The South Eastern was a pioneer in the use of the telegraph for signalling; and in 1851, they installed a very simple form of Absolute Block working using single stroke bells'. The signal codes were recorded in what is still called a Train Register and the system improved safety to a considerable extent. Few other railways seem to have copied it though.
At this time Greenwich Time was sent around the country by the railway telegraph systems from the Greenwich Observatory. Until the 1850s most points and signals were worked independently with no interlocking but by the late 1850s crude types of interlocking, with everything controlled from one frame, were introduced at a few busy junctions and early signal boxes with signals mounted above them started to appear.
Interlocking was very expensive and a lot of railways did not install it for many years until forced to by legislation Absolute Block at last started to become popular using instruments that indicated the state of line. Many types of instruments were used and some of them were in use for a hundred years or more. In 1874 Sykes introduced their Lock and Block instruments which were mechanically (later electrically) connected with the signals to ensure that the correct sequence of operation had to be carried out. Treadles to prove where a train was were also soon introduced; not many railways though used Lock and Block because of its cost.
Single line working was a big problem when intensive traffic came about and working by pilotman, staff, staff and ticket, one engine in steam, etc, sometimes in conjunction with block instruments, were used but the big break through came in 1878 when Tyers introduced their electric tablet system that was completely flexible in operation. This was followed by the Webb and Thompson, key token and other types most of which were in use for many years.
The relationship between braking distances and signalling was very important and a lot of experiments were carried out in the 1870s with several different types of continuous brakes. It was found that a light train fitted with the Westinghouse air brake could stop in 440 yards from 60 mph and this distance is, I think, still the standard overlap used with mechanical signaling. Track circuits, which electrically detect where a train is, were experimented with in America and, without much success, in Britain, by Sykes. The big problem in Britain was the widespread use of the wood centred Mansell Wheels, which could not act as a short circuit. In later years earthing straps were fitted to the wheel sets to overcome this trouble. In 1886 a large installation of track circuits was put in at St Paul's with some success but they were not widely introduced until the Edwardian period after a series of terrible accidents, which their use would have prevented. Again in America automatic signalling was tried out, including the Halls clockwork signals. In 1881 there was a terrible accident near Armagh caused by the lack of a continuous automatic brake and the use of Time Interval working on a single line with heavy gradients. At last legislation was brought in and proper brakes and working practices were made compulsory on all railways from then on. Signal boxes had become very large by the turn of the century and the mechanical working of points over large distances was very difficult. In America 'power' boxes were being introduced and the GER installed an air worked installation at Granary in 1899 with great success. The L&SWR brought quite a long air worked automatic stretch into use in 1902 again using American equipment and this worked very well for some sixty years. I believe that one of the power frames is still in use at Salisbury. The L&NWR developed a successful all electric system at this time. This again, although rather basic by modern standards, stayed in use a very long time. Colour light signals and three position electrically operated signals started coming in to use about the early 1920s but the big problem in Britain was what colour aspects to use. The majority of railways still used red glasses in their distant signals and this could not be used in the same way with colour light signals. In 1924 a Signal Engineers Conference decided to advocate the use of upper quadrant signals with yellow aspects instead of red. At the same time distant signals started to be painted yellow as well. In the 1920s very large power boxes were built and four aspect colour light signals were first introduced on the Southern. One of the largest power boxes was London Bridge, built in 1928 with 311 levers. Because of its great length the mechanical interlocking of the miniature levers caused a lot of problems. In 1929 North Kent box was the first built with all electric interlocking which eliminated the problem and was much cheaper to install and alter. Even power boxes took up a lot of space and experiments were carried out in the 1930s with route relay systems using panels and switches instead of miniature levers to make them much more compact. Many different arrangements were used but after the War the NX system combined with miniature relays became very popular. Nowadays Solid State interlocking is often used and radio signalling for single lines. Cab signalling is used in some countries but not as far as 1 know in Britain. The Docklands Light Railway uses computer control and the Victoria Line has automatic control, the operator being able to take control in an emergency.
Obituary - Tony Robin Tony - who died on 18th November 2004 - was the current President of Woolwich Antiquarians. |
ARCHIVE COLLECTION
Brian Middlemiss writes:
Siemens Brothers & Co. was a British-based and registered business founded in 1858 primarily by William Siemens who subsequently assumed British citizenship, married a Scottish lass and was knighted by Queen Victoria in 1883 to acknowledge 'the service he rendered to the cause of science'. The Company grew and prospered at Woolwich, London for over 100 years throughout which time it maintained its early pioneering spirit among the World leaders in electrical, cable and telecommunications design and manufacture. Final closure occurred in 1968 following the takeover by G.E.C..
Over recent years members of the Engineering Society, who still meet bi-annually, have collaborated to collect, collate and catalogue archive papers and hardware items related to the Company. This project was prompted by a realization that far too little evidence remains to record the above long history which also embraced factories at Preston, Lydbrook, Hartlepool, Spennymoor, Gravesend and other locations in the UK and Overseas. Our self-imposed task now nears completion and we think it sensible and helpful to widen catalogue distribution to locations other than the 6 "New Holders" with whom our archive material is now lodged.
Siemens’ Woolwich building in the 1890s
John Ford of our Archive Committee has endeavoured to outline our intentions to most additional recipients by direct contact during recent weeks and we much appreciate the courtesy and co-operation received. We thus have pleasure to enclose:-
i) One copy of the Archive Catalogue (very generously printed and bound by Siemens U.K. plc, Bracknell, Berks., at their expense and thus involving no charges to the Society's own budget).
ii) A separate paper re. specific aspects on which queries may possibly arise.
iii) A catalogue distribution list.
Our final intention is to issue informative publicity "flyer" leaflets to many locations, societies, etc., to publicise the availability of the material. In the meantime please address any immediate queries to the undersigned and please accept our thanks for your co-operation in helping the Society to achieve its aims.
A copy of the Archive Catalogue has been deposited with GIHS and is available should anyone want to see it. Please ring Mary 0208 858 9482. Copies have also been sent to Lewisham, Southwark and Bexley Local History Libraries, as well as Greenwich… to the Museum of London, the National Maritime Museum and the Meridian Sports Club at Charlton.
In order to provide more information about Siemens, the following article is an account of a talk about the firm given by John Ford (a member of GIHS and Siemens Brothers Engineering Society) to the Docklands History Group in September 1999.
John Ford
“John introduced his marathon talk on 100 years of Thameside Electrical History by giving a brief account of his career with Siemens, saying that he joined in March 1936 as a Drawing Office Learner in the Telephone Dept. at the princely sum of 12/6d per week. The blitz of 1940 caused Siemens to move most of their staff to a Yorkshire woollen mill where work on radar was undertaken. John returned to London in 1945 and for the next 10 years he was heading design teams concerned with telephone exchange equipment. He was promoted to Chief Engineer responsible for contracts, specifications, planning and final installation on site. His proudest moment was in 1950 when he flew to Winnipeg and was responsible for installing a 1000 line telephone exchange.
John outlined the history of the Siemens family and paid a special tribute to Sir William Siemens who was born in 1823 and was christened Carl Wilhelm. Later he adopted the name William. Sadly he died in 1883. During his lifetime he was a leading member of many professional institutions. He was knighted by Queen Victoria in 1883 and a memorial window was placed in Westminster Abbey in 1885. The window was removed in 1914 for safety and was subsequently lost and not replaced.
In 1863 Siemens Bros. of Woolwich was founded by William and his brother Werner. Prior to that date William had developed an interest in heat sciences and inverted regeneration furnaces, steam engines, water meters etc. His brother Werner collaborated with a young engineer named Halske to produce satisfactory insulation for underground usage. In 1847 Werner Siemens amalgamated with Halske and became cable manufacturers and electric telegraph engineers."
John then used a series of excellent slides to demonstrate the wide variety of work undertaken by Siemens, such as:-
Cable Manufacture
In 1858 William negotiated with Siemens & Halske and R.S. Newall Ltd to lay all Newall's cables.
Dynamos
In 1876 the Siemens Dynamo produced the same light and intensity as other models but was 'A the size and l/8th the weight of rival products. In 1877 a trial at the South Foreland Lighthouse was carried out by Trinity House.
Ships
In 1874 the ship Michael Faraday was launched and by 1897 it had laid seven North Atlantic telegraph cables.
Siemens’ cable ship, the first Faraday
The 5000 ton vessel was the first ship to be lit by electric light and when it was overhauled in 1909 over 50,000 miles of submarine cable had been laid. In 1923 a second ship M. Faraday II was launched. This ship was 5,530 tons and during 1940 it picked up and recovered 260 miles of German submarine cable. In 1953 the ship ss Empire Frame was converted and renamed the Ocean Layer. This ship laid a big proportion of telephone cable from the USA to France before it was irreparably damaged by fire. Between the years 1873 and 1957, 63,105 miles of submarine cable had been laid.
Lighting
Siemens Bros were responsible for the floodlighting of Big Ben by 12 x 1000 watt projector lamps as part of the 1935 Silver Jubilee Celebrations. Other notable buildings were also floodlit, e.g. St. James Palace, St. Paul's Cathedral, Tower Bridge, Hammersmith Bridge and the R.A.C. Automobile Club.
Telephones
Manual telephone exchanges were set up soon after 1850 and in 1877 Werner Siemens filed letters patent in England for 9 telephone receiver designs. In the early 1900s the GPO standardised candlestick phone was developed and in 1929 the Neophone was introduced. By 1931 the 2 millionth GPO telephone had been installed. In 1951 the Siemens No. 17 System was modernised for the PLA. The system comprised 240 lines for Head Office and 699 lines for the five docks and was manned by eight switchboard operators.
Radio Telephony & Marine Radio
Siemens Bros was responsible for a complete installation of telegraphs for transmitting orders to and from the navigation bridge to the engine room for the RMS Queen Mary and later the RMS Queen Elizabeth.
Traffic Control & Road Signals
In 1913 Siemens developed the "Autoflex" Progressive Traffic System widely used on busy London roads such as Oxford Street, Edgware Road and Marylebone.
Power Signalling For Railways
Siemens Bros in collaboration with the General Electric Railway Signal Co. provided electric signalling boxes etc. which in later years replaced the old original mechanical systems and manual signal boxes.
Fire & Ambulance Control Systems
Another facet installed by Siemens.
Totalisators
Several of these were installed by Siemens at race courses in Edinburgh, West Ham, Haringey and Crayford. Siemens engineers made extra money for operating the Totalisators and were readily on hand to deal with any electrical faults.
London Television Cable
Co-axial cable was laid for the BBC between Alexandra Palace and Broadcasting House. The cable was also routed to cover Oxford Street, Park Lane, Hyde Park Comer, Piccadilly, Shaftesbury Avenue, Pall Mall, St. James' Palace, Victoria Station, Horse Guards, Westminster Bridge and St. Margaret's, Westminster.
The Grid System
In 1961 a 40 year dream was realised by the British & French power authorities. The ship Dame Caroline Haslett was converted off Woolwich to lay twin cables to carry a 200,000 volt direct current link across the Channel.
Pluto
In 1942 Siemens Bros undertook experimental and development work in connection with the high pressure couplings which enabled a million gallons of petrol to be pumped daily from Dungeness to Calais to supply fuel to the Allies.
The foregoing provides some indication of the wide variety of work undertaken by Siemens Bros & Co. of Woolwich.
Where addresses are not given, please contact through the Editor, c/o 24 Humber Road, London SE3
From: David Riddle
Just a note to let all members know that the Greenwich Industrial History Society has been added to the membership of WebRing - the Industrial History & Museums Ring created by the Wandle Industrial Museum to interlink related Web sites. This ring also contains web sites dedicated to information and/or research about industrial history and heritage in a wider context.
Industrial History & Museums WebRing
From: Bob Aspinall
These few lines will update you on events in 2004. After 22 years as Librarian of the Port of London Library & Archive (PLA 1982/1986, Museum of London 1986-2004), I retired in October 2004. This was due mostly to the stress of the workload (which led to another 10 weeks sick absence in the Summer). I have found that retirement and I are very well-suited, and I have to say that I am surprised by how little I have thought about work! I am currently working one day a week in the Library on special projects, with the flashy title of MiD Library & Archive Advisor! It would be delightful to hear from you now and again:- I wish you a healthy and prosperous 2005.
From: Graham Manchester
I had contacted you about my great-grandfather’s business in Anchor & Hope Lane plus an old antiquarian called Ron Longhurst who lived up by the Park in Westcombe Park Road. You kindly came back to me with some recollection of Ron and his wife but I have not heard anymore. However, I have found some photos of my great-grandfather’s vehicles working for the South East Gas Board supplying tar for the A20 at the Dutch House! Plus we have found a person who has a record of ALL the vehicles owned by my great-grandfather including the one which was blown up by a V1 doodlebug.
From: Jenny Hunt
My maternal grandfather, George Francis Mole, worked for William Webster of Crossness from 1888, aged 16, for a number of years having started his employment two to three years earlier with the Beckton Gas Works as a Crane Boy. While at William Webster he obtained his 'full ticket'. At some point he joined Redpath Brown and worked there until he retired aged 75. He worked on the construction of old Canning Town Bridge and Folkestone Harbour. We always understood that he was a Crane Driver. he was a founder member of the National Union of Gasworkers and General Labourers. Any information would be most helpful and greatly welcomed.
From: Patrick Harvey
I would like any information about Duresco, the paint company formerly based in Charlton.
From: Mary Tuffett
I would like to draw the attention of the society to the Jubilee Geological Wall currently being built at Watchet Station in Somerset. In Cadet Place in Greenwich stands what has been called ‘the Cyclopean Wall’.
I recall that in this newsletter Eric Robinson, the geologist (senior lecturer University College and ex-President Royal Archaeological Institute) has drawn attention to its importance as ‘a history of the stone trade in the English channel’.
In Watchet, Eric Robinson has been supervising the construction of a very similar wall in order to demonstrate the varieties of local stone in that area. The result will look very like our Greenwich wall. Details of the wall can be obtained from the Town Museum in Watchet (no address but Watchet is a very small place!).
The Greenwich wall is likely to disappear soon when Lovells and Granite Wharves are developed.
The Webmeister comments (2017). The Cyclopean Wall sadly succumbed to developments a couple of years ago. It is not known whether any parts of it were preserved.
SHARP – you may not know – stands for Sustainable Historic Arsenals Regeneration Partnership.
To launch this, a day seminar was held on the Arsenal site by English Heritage on 3rd December, attended by GIHS members among many others. English Heritage described it as a European Project "which seeks to celebrate the regeneration of the Royal Arsenal, Woolwich and share experience and knowledge with our European partners in Spain, Malta and Estonia". Regeneration of the site has transformed a derelict part of London, involving the creation of a large number of residential units; 55,000 sq metres of industrial/office space; a Heritage Quarter of 22 listed buildings; two new museums, Firepower, created for the Royal Artillery and the borough council Heritage Centre; public and leisure space developed; tourism and education promoted; and access to the River Thames given back to local community use. English Heritage, Lead Partner, wishes to take forward the evolving ideals from the regeneration process to advance the creation of a model for broader European application in terms of regenerating industrial heritage sites. The project will create a reciprocal platform that enables our European partners to further develop plans for their local sites within the model that will emerge from this constructive dialogue. Attendees at the seminar heard papers from a number of specialists – including a very impressive site history from Rob Kitchin Smith. We also heard descriptions of work in progress from Malta, Estonia and Cadiz. It must be said that all three of these were minute compared to Woolwich. This is an important project which needs all our support. Some detailed papers are available and any one wanting them is urged to get in touch.
Mary Mills
Two lots of archive pictures in one day must be a record for me! I had given a lecture in Stepney about gas in East London and was surprised when someone who had been at the lecture turned up on my doorstep one morning, having braved the Blackwall Tunnel. He left with me two albums of photographs of gas holders in Newham and elsewhere in North London plus some brochures. None of them was relevant to Greenwich but later on Alan told me he had just seen Faye Gould who said she had some photographs of Ordnance Wharf. This was the old East Greenwich Gas Works Tar Department, now under the Dome, where her husband had been manager for many years. In the past she has come up with pictures of the Lennard Still which was installed there in the 1890s.
I didn’t count how many pictures Faye handed over to me – it must have 400 or 500. They are all of the tar works – and include things like puddles of tar, tarred road surfaces, and endless tar spraying vehicles as well as many, many pictures of the works. I have scanned all of these and passed them on to the Heritage Centre. I can let anyone who is interested and might be able to interpret some of them have a CD to look at if they like. Give me a ring 0208 858 9482.
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This newsletter was produced for the Greenwich Industrial History Society.
Chair, Sue Bullevant, 11 Riverview Heights, Shooters Hill, SE18. Views
expressed in it are those of the authors and not of the Society.
ANY NEWSLETTER IS ONLY AS GOOD AS ITS CONTENTS.
IF YOU HAVE ANYTHING TO TO CONTRIBUTE - ARTICLES, REPORTS, LETTERS - ANYTHING.
Contributions are always welcome. If possible, please send on disk to Mary Mills (address below).
Meetings as advertised at the head of this Newsletter will be held at;
The Old Bakehouse, (at back of the) Age Exchange Reminiscence Centre, 11 Blackheath Village, London, SE23 9LA
Do not go to the Reminiscence Centre itself - The Old Bakehouse is at the back, in Bennett Park.
Walk into Bennett Park and turn left into a yard.
The Old Bakehouse is the building on your right. The entrance is straight ahead.
Members and visitors are strongly advised not to try and park in the yard at the Old Bakehouse itself.
Mary Mills now has a limited stock of Greenwich and Woolwich at Work available at £8 each plus £2 postage from 24 Humber Road, London, SE3 7LT, 020 8858 9482
DON'T FORGET TO ASK US FOR A MEMBERSHIP FORM!
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