Chris Dickerson’s death stuns NYMR and railwayana auction movement
CHRIS Dickerson – a career railwayman who was a leading light in the country's vibrant railwayana auction scene and in recent years a board member of the North Yorkshire Moors Railway Trust – died unexpectedly on June 6 at the age of 69.
A proud Essex lad, Chris was born in October 1951. On leaving school he started a 30-year railway career in 1968 that included posts in the TOPS office at the vast former Great Eastern Railway Temple Mills marshalling yard near Stratford and, prior to retirement in 1998, with Freightliner in Paddington.
Britannia fan
As shocked family and friends, railwayana collectors, and members of the NYMR came to terms with the news of his death, former business partner Brian Moakes spoke of Chris's love of railways and subsequently railwayana, which he began collecting in 1970.
“It began with him seeing Britannia locos at Liverpool Street, and his interest in the class continued when he became a railwayana collector and started buying ‘Brit' nameplates and smokebox numberplates,” said Brian.
“His other area of collecting was enamel totem station signs, some of which he bought direct from BR. He still had his Chapel-en-le-Frith totem that cost him 10 shillings.”
Brian first met Chris in 1990. “I responded to an advertisement he had placed in a magazine selling railwayana, and as he lived at that time only three miles from me, I telephoned him for a chat. After this we travelled together to auctions.
“I discovered he had an enthusiasm for tickets, and as there were then no regular auctions specialising in tickets we decided to start our own, which we launched as Paddington Ticket Auctions in September 1991.
“Due to Chris's enthusiasm and optimism this quickly flourished, and we branched out into London Transport-themed sales that included hardware and paperwork as well as tickets. This further developed in 2000 when we joined Ian Wright, of Sheffield Railwayana, to carry out his postal auctions of printed ephemera.”
By this stage the pair's bandwagon was at full speed, and they expanded their interest in railwayana auctions in 2005 when they bought Sheffield Railwayana from Ian, which they ran for seven years before selling it to Great Central Railwayana in 2012.
Goathland stationmaster
In 2014 Chris and his wife Joanna, who had five children, moved from Bedford to Pickering in North Yorkshire, and Chris soon became involved with the NYMR, often as stationmaster at busy Goathland and subsequently as a trustee. Joanna too became a volunteer.
“By 2018 the railway was becoming an important part of Chris's life and we sold Paddington Tickets, also to Great Central, although his love of tickets continued through his Old Railway Tickets website, which thrived until his sudden loss,” said Brian, who runs the Paperchase quarterly auction of transport literature and paperwork.
John Bailey, chairman of the NYMR Trust, said: “Chris brought a wealth of experience to the trust board as a long-service railwayman. Important though that was, what shone through was his enthusiasm, commitment and willingness to take on tasks wherever he could help – and always with an engaging sense of humour. Fortunately the trustees were able to recently meet face-to-face to plan future strategy after months of online video sessions. As always, Chris was a significant contributor.
“I shall treasure the memory of our last meeting and take some comfort from knowing that, even though he is no longer with us, his participation in that event will be a lasting influence on the railway's future.
“Great though the railway's loss is, it is nothing compared with that of Joanna and their family, and I am sure his many friends on the NYMR will want to join us in sending our heartfelt condolences to them.”
Simon Turner, boss of GW Railwayana Auctions who had known Chris for many years, saw him just days before he passed away.
“Hearing about his death was a real shock,” he said. “I occasionally had business dealings with him, and found him a genuinely nice guy and pleasant to deal with.”
Chris's funeral was held at East Riding Crematorium, Octon, Driffield, on June 28.