Chance to see unique restored wartime railway ambulance van

Traditional signwriter Tim Fry, from Martin Dales, near Woodhall Spa, has been working on the ambulance van, which will go on show at the LCRA at Skegness Water Leisure Park at the event on Saturday, September 21.

The van was one of a number built by the Gloucester Rail Carriage and Wagon Company towards the end of World War One, to rescue casualties from the trench warfare in France.

After the Armistice in 1918, some were bought by the Nocton Estates Railway, a 23-mile narrow gauge system which carried potatoes (for Smiths Potato Crisps) and other crops in the fields between Bardney and Nocton and Dunston station in the Lincolnshire Fens, over marshy land not dissimilar to some of the ground churned up by the war.

Narrow gauge railways there had been invaluable in helping the British and their Allies secure victory over Germany.

It was one of two purchased in 1960 by the Lincolnshire Coast Light Railway when it became the first heritage railway in the world to be built by enthusiasts, at its first site in North Sea Lane, Humberston, south of Cleethorpes.

The second van was sold to the South Tynedale Railway at Alston in Cumbria, where it became damaged beyond repair.

Restoration of this unique surviving vehicle, in which casualties on stretchers or “walking wounded” could be treated on the move by medical orderlies on the perilous journey to field hospitals, began more than 40 years ago when it was acquired by the LCLR Historic

Vehicles Trust and moved from the LCLR’s original site to the erstwhile Museum of Army Transport at Beverley.

After the museum’s closure, that work continued at a private site in North Somercotes, Lincolnshire, and along with other vehicles owned by the Trust, later moved to the current site within the Skegness Water Leisure Park in Walls Lane, Ingoldmells.

Work on renovation continued over the past winter and spring and now Tim Fry has freehand painted the lettering which identified it as part of the War Department Light Railways, its stock number and weight.

Tim has in the past painted headboards for the LCLR, commemorating anniversaries and the Coronation of King Charles III.

The ambulance van will form part of demonstration trains showing how troops, munitions, food, water, medical supplies, fodder for horses and everything needed to fight a war was moved to the trenches – and it will show how those injured soldiers deemed capable of surviving their injuries were transported for treatment.

The van did not carry a Red Cross on its side – that would have provided a too-easy target for enemy artillery (and one of the passenger carriages on the LCLR still carries shrapnel damage inflicted by German gunners when it was too close to their positions).

Richard Shepherd, Chairman of the LCLR’s Historic Vehicles Trust, which owns the ambulance van, said: “Tim has done a magnificent job applying the lettering needed to complete the restoration of this unique survivor of Britain’s military and transport history – and will enable us to pay tribute to those brave soldiers who fought and died in the battlefields of the First World War. It is a salutary reminder of the horrors of war.

“Over the years Tim has produced a number of headboards for our locomotives to enable us to mark special occasions – his skill and attention to detail attract much admiration from our passengers and visitors”.

The LCLR is home to a unique collection of these railway vehicles from World War and the design of its collection of “Simplex” diesel locomotives goes back the robust machines developed by the Bedford firm of Motor Rail Ltd for the War Department – the oldest

(“Nocton”) dates to 1920.

They were used in agriculture, industry, tourism and by the military until comparatively recently in Lincolnshire and elsewhere.

While working on the ambulance van, Tim also “lined out” the recently renovated Simplex diesel loco “T3” which had worked on horticultural sites in Scotland and Cumbria before moving to the LCLR, so that its colours reflect those of the old North Eastern Railway – Richard Shepherd adding: “Tim did all this freehand; the little loco looks superb and as it has an electric start and an air-cooled engine, it’s ideal for us to use in cold weather when we’re working on our track and maintenance.

“We are all very grateful to him for his skill, generosity and dedication”

Tim Fry’s work on traditional signwriting vehicles, shop fronts, signs and heritage buildings is showcased on his website at www.timfrysignwriting.uk . He can be contacted on 01526 354492 and 07810 351511.

• On Saturday, September 21, the World War One collection will be run on special demonstration trains, in between a limited service of passenger trains (which also use vehicles either from World War One or components from them).
• Normal fares of £2 return or £5 for a family will apply on passenger services. Those wishing to see the demonstration trains from the lineside, will be asked to make a donation to the Trust and should wear a hi-viz jacket.