New £50k appeal to restore GCR Edwardian classic is launched
A £50,000 appeal has been launched to complete the restoration of one of three now-unique Edwardian Great Central Railway coaches in time for the 125th anniversary of the 1899 opening of the London Extension.
Its owner, the GCR Rolling Stock Trust, wants help to fast-track the restoration of 1910-built ‘Barnum’ carriage No.228 which, it is planned, will eventually run on the ‘Greater GCR’ between the outskirts of Nottingham and Leicester, once the Bridging the Gap scheme at Loughborough is complete.
No. 228 is one of the last four surviving Barnum carriages, all but one of which are awaiting restoration at the Nottingham Transport Heritage Centre in Ruddington.
A third-class open saloon for 64 people in two compartments, it was built by GCR at the then-new Dukinfield Manchester works to the design of John G Robinson to meet the burgeoning Edwardian prewar excursion boom to East Coast seaside resorts and events such as the Wembley cup finals.
The carriage design reveals a heavy American influence, similar to the touring Barnum & Bailey circus train, with fully-compensated patented bogies and landscape windows, setting a new standard in passenger comfort.
Unusual use
No. 228 was last used in Hull Docks as an engineers’support vehicle until it was taken out of service in the 1970s and adopted with three stoves inserted as a tomato-growing hothouse!
The trust has launched The Barnum Restoration Club to raise the appeal target and supplement the capital already set aside. The first 64 donors of £100 will be the first to travel in No.228, but supporters can also buy their seat for £500 or sponsor a set of four with their own table and a massive landscape window view at £2000 for their family each time they travel.
The trust’s Chief Mechanical Engineer, Pat Sumner, said: “We are already a long way down the restoration road with this massive vehicle, with much more than half of the work done. Special thanks to Nemesis Rail at Burton-on-Trent for the very heavy overhaul of the two bogies, which are ready to be reinstalled. We are well on our way to producing a very comfortable and impressive classic carriage but we are appealing for help with skills and cash.
“We have had some big decisions to consider and there is no easy way forward.
“We still need all those key woodworking and mechanical engineering skills. We must continue and increase our drive for funding – the GCR legacy in our hands is just so vulnerable.
“On the Barnum we have an interesting ‘manufacturing’ prospect as we have three near-identical Barnum units requiring very much the same requirements in restoration.
Matching the original
“With the aid of TAS Engineering, we have new-manufactured water tanks, and after leading in-depth six-month research and computer design work, we have had Kreativ Joinery work up the prototype to supply the bases of the 160 seats – all to the same design, but still matching the original GCR build in 1910. Effectively, each seating unit is to be built up in easy fashion from a nowcommon kit of parts, all computer-aided manufacturing produced.
“As with so many smaller heritage group restorers, we are at a crucial point. Those who set up the trust are gradually stepping down, and the whole of the heritage movement has been affected by having donations curtailed. To make progress we have increasingly had to buy in what we used to do with in-house skills. We are aiming to speed up our progress.”
The trust has an established track record with the 20-year restoration of 1888-built Manchester, Sheffield & Lincolnshire Railway six-wheeler No. 946. It has just has its brake system fitted, and has been displayed at Nunckley Hill Rail Museum for the past three years. Trustee Mike Lang said: “We have the elements and the basis of a compelling case for seeking external grant funding to deliver the ultimate goal of three Barnums – 160 seats – as one passenger carrying unit, but we are concentrating on this one vehicle first.”
➜ Visit https://gcr-rollingstocktrust. co.uk/donate/ and reference donations as the‘Barnum Restoration Club.’