Memories of signal box invite

I was gratified to see the response by Express & Star readers to my query about trainspotters. It is nice to know that so many lovers of steam locomotives still exist.

At the age of 86 and infirm, I no longer have any connection with the railways today, but I still retain my happy memories of the later years of steam in the 1930s.

I was lucky one winter's afternoon, while standing at Swan Village level crossing on the main line from Birmingham Snow Hill to Wolverhampton, and gazing with appealing eyes at the signal box adjoining the crossing gates, to be pitied by the signalman who asked me if I would like to go in the box out of the cold.

Like a shot I said "yes" and started having a regular invitation for many years when this particular signalman was on duty. I was given tuition in the running of a manually operated signal box and the pulling of heavy levers to the extent that I eventually became competent enough to work the box on my own, although still only in my teens.

The line from Wednesbury to West Bromwich going through Swan Village was quite a sharp incline which caused freight trains to labour until the line levelled off at West Bromwich.

But on one occasion we had an eight coach London train pulled by a Castle Class engine run out of steam on the incline and come to rest in Swan Village station to recover enough steam pressure to carry on.

Chaos? Line blocked for an indefinite time? Not at all. A quick emergency call to the freight yard resulted in a Matchbox shunt engine coming quickly out of the sidings and taking up the position of bank engine at the rear of the passenger train.

With a whistle from both engines the Castle pulled and the Matchbox pushed to get the train to start moving up the incline until it reached West Bromwich. A short time later the Matchbox returned to Swan Village and I could almost see a proud Thomas the Tank Engine smile on the front of the boiler!

S Ridgway, Dudley Street, West Bromwich.